On New Year’s Eve, Brigette had to go to bed. Her parents insisted upon it. Brigette didn’t know that New Year’s Eve was anything special. Every day was exciting for her, filled with new adventures, and new things to grab onto. So far, she’d discovered scissors, knitting needles, and the coal bucket. Each one had caused mayhem when her parents spotted her.
“Amelia!” George called. “Patricia Johns called on the barn phone. She says to wish you a very happy new year!”
“Did you tell her about Ronnie and his new wife?” Amelia called back.
“I did! She thought it was wonderful!”
Amelia continued bathing little Brigette, and she smiled to herself. She knew Patricia would appreciate some romance. Patricia was perhaps the most romantic person that Amelia knew. She always said, ‘There’s a lid for every pot.’ And Amelia was inclined to agree with her. Even Ronnie found his lovely little wife, and ever since he and Lucy settled down in the barn together, they hadn’t been woken up once in the middle of the night because Ronnie got lonely or got the time wrong for his “cockledoodledoo.”
Amelia pulled a dripping wet Brigette out of the tub, and she towelled her off. Brigette was slippery when she was wet, but she was also a wiggler.
“Tonight is a very special night for Daddy and I,” Amelia told Brigette. “So you have to go to bed before Daddy falls asleep on the couch.”
Amelia couldn’t guarantee that they’d stay awake until the clock struck midnight. With the early morning chores and Brigette, they both fell asleep by nine. But they would try!
George and Amelia’s Amish neighbors celebrated New Year’s Eve with hymns and some sober thoughts about the passage of time. George thanks Mose for the kind invitation to be included in their sober gathering, but he said that he and his wife would be spending the evening together.
Mose understood, thankfully.
So that evening, after Brigette was in bed, George and Amelia lit some sparklers and settled in together for a cozy evening by the fireplace.
“What a year we’ve had!” George said. “We had Brigette, we moved to Pennsylvania, and now we’re settling into Amish Country! Can you believe it?
“I never would have thought we’d see so much change,” Amelia agreed. “What do you think is in store for next year?”
“I can’t even guess,” George admitted.
“I like when life is a surprise,” Amelia agreed. “I’m so glad I get to face all those surprises with you, George.”
“Here is to a very happy 2025!” George said. “Oh, I have some sparkling apple juice. We need to toast!”
And so they went in the kitchen, and got their sparkling apple juice, and George gave his wife a new year’s kiss. Then they settled back in front of the fireplace again.
They promised they’d stay awake until the clock struck twelve, and they did their very best. But soon their eyes grew heavy, and they decided to just shut them for a few minutes. They weren’t sleeping. They were only cuddling. A snore escaped George’s lips, and normally Amelia would wake him back up, but this time Amelia didn’t hear it. It is very possible that she snored, too, although she’d never admit to that.
It was 8:45.
January brings cold weather. It is one thing to know that it’s cold outside when you are inside a snug and cozy house with no plans to leave it until you run out of groceries. But it is quite another thing when you must go outside to do chores.
George went out early, and Amelia got Brigette up and brought her downstairs to play on the floor while Amelia got breakfast ready.
“Because Daddy will be hungry,” Amelia said to Brigette.
But then the door opened and George came inside with a rush of cold air, stomping off his boots. And right along behind him came Mikey the calf.
“Oh no!” Amelia said. “George, Mikey got in!”
“No, no, it’s okay,” George said. “I found him outside without his mother, and he was very cold. I don’t want to put him back in the barn until he’s warmed up. So I brought him inside.”
Mikey plodded in the kitchen and lowered a wet nose toward Brigette in greeting. Brigette just stared up at him, wide-eyed.
“Where could Bessie be?” Amelia asked.
“I’ll have to find her,” George said. “Give me a few bites of breakfast, and I’ll head back out.”
Amelia gave him a few big bites of omelet and fried potatoes, and a big slurp of milky coffee, and then George marched back outside again.
Amelia watched him out the window. George was seeming more and more like a farmer these days, and she brimmed with pride. What a good frog he was!
But then the clatter of hooves on the hardwood floor brought Amelia’s attention back into the room. Mikey was off exploring! Oh, dear! She went dashing after him.
I hope your 2025 is full of happy surprises. A very happy New Year from my home to yours.
If you’re looking for some books to read, perhaps you’ll try mine.
Happy reading!
❤
Patricia Johns 
Your comments make me feel warm and fuzzy. Seriously!