Dozens of gay and lesbian couples entered into civil unions in New Hampshire in the early moments of New Year’s Day as a new state law legalized the partnerships after midnight. “We really didn’t believe that we’d be able to see this accomplished within one year but it has happened,” state Rep. Jim Splaine, a sponsor of the civil unions bill, told the cheering crowd. “We have to continue the journey to make sure that we have marriage equality, full marriage equality with the word marriage soon.”