New Years Eve, Quietly

We've never been big on New Year's Eve around here.  In fact, we hardly ever make it to stay up until the big ball drop.  This year was a little different, as we also had no lights. 
They went out around 6:30, and after calming panicked children, we spent the evening sitting around the candlelit room, drawing pictures, playing Backgammon, and talking.  Eventually, most of us fell asleep.  Lorelei with me on the couch, and Reid squirreled away on the chair, surrounded by his stuffed animal friends and many pillows.  When the lights did come back on, around 11:30, we were thankful and ushered everyone to bed in their rightful places.  After showers, thankful for the hot water, Jeff and I retired.
Did we see the ball drop?  No.  We didn't turn on the TV at all last night.  But we did get to see the many, many stars outside, which was better than any show.  And we did get to spend time with each other, which is time well spent.  Happy New Year to everyone!