Let Me Always Remember the Miracles and Goodness of 2023

 They say that you can wake up each day and choose one of two mindsets; Either everything is a miracle or nothing is a miracle.

I'm in the everything is a miracle, camp... most days... at least I'd like to be!  So that is what this post is focusing on. All the things that made 2023 miraculous. What I'm grateful for and wish to remember 2023 by.

We started the year on the Antarctic Peninsula, winding our way north from the Antarctic Circle, back to Ushuaia, Argentina. New friends, thousands of photos, the trip of a lifetime.

Coming home to these guys and spending the entire year watching them play, bond and entertain us was priceless.

The seasons really turned it on for us this year. Spring was wet and wild... lots of standing water, flowing water and well-watered plants! The open space flourished and we flourished in it.

Fall was the most colorful I've seen and the snow came early in October. The changing seasons were the perfect backdrop for dog walks and cellphone photography.

Around the house there was growing, learning and us experimenting with healthier choices. We embraced a vegetarian lifestyle, began bottling our own ginger beer, have an ongoing sour dough starter and bread to "prove" it's alive! Yogurt making is the latest achievement... if you don't count the plethora of holiday baking that emerged from the oven.

And outside the house there were trips to NZ and WI to see family and friends...

And what year would be complete without a tip of the hat to bucket items ticket off?

We went panning for gold in Georgetown, attended a murder mystery dinner and I flew Business Class to NZ. 

In between, there were a multitude of gatherings and moments cherished with friends.

We ended the year with a hike near home. Breathing in 2024 and all its possibilities... breathing out 2023 with all it's surprises, gifts and things to be grateful for. 

Then there was a discussion about wishes and goals for 2024 and my annual review of "the bucket list".

I added the following to it:

- Photograph the monkeys in hot springs in Japan

-Visit Uyumi salt flats in Bolivia

-Climb Kelimutu volcano in Indonesia