It is Dec. 30, and I woke up with a feeling of suffocation and exhaustion.
There are lumps around the house, i.e. piles of new toys, pieces of new toys, wrapping from new toys and broken new toys.
The stockings hung on the chimney with care are crocked and stretched out, limp and tired.
And that Christmas tree. Oh that blessed Christmas tree that I was so excited to get only a mere month ago. Now it causes nothing but anxiety in my soul as a watch another brown, withered pine needle drop to the floor.
We had a wonderful "go" at Christmas this year.
We DID Christmas.
We even had a romantic date night one Saturday night:
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| We met Santa, the man who grants wishes. James was all business. He walked confidently in, looked Santa right in the eye and requested "trains." Levi and Caleb were a little less sure of Santa, and Evie, well, she just gave Santa her list. |
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| The outdoor mall by our house produced "snow" with shaving cream. This gave the kids a thrill. |
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| Evie saw Santa again, this time less prepared with her list. (She actually seems a little big to be on Santa's lap in this picture....) |
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| I took Evie to a Nutcracker Tea at the library where Evie decided she once again wants to take up dancing. |
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| We attempted to show the kids the real meaning of Christmas by visiting Bethlehem at a local church.... |
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| Snuggling up with friends and watching The Polar Express put anyone in a Christmas mood.... (I lost count as to how many times we read, listened to and watched the Polar Express..) |
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| And finally, we even met a Christmas camel at a local Christmas tree farm |
I packed in so many Christmas activities that our Christmas cup runneth over until next year.
I think another reason I feel so worn out is the fact that the kids will have had three full weeks of Christmas “vacation” due to “snow days."
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| Although they missed their Christmas parties at preschool, Evie at least got to celebrate her birthday with her teacher and classmates |
Yes, Portland officially went into Apocalypse panic mode with the few inches of snow mid December. Luckily, we stayed at home; I did hear horror stories of people stuck in traffic and commuting home for hours and hours.
Our hill by our house became the official sledding hill in the neighborhood, and we (I) had a blast bundling my kids up and (forcing) encouraging them to give it a try.
When I informed Evie we were going outside to sled, she proudly adorned herself in a skirt and slip on shoes.
James, on the other hand, peeked out the door at the coldness, turned his head in utter disgust, and decided that staying indoors playing with trains was a better option.
My kids kind of stood awkwardly in the front yard, kicking at the white stuff, not really knowing what all to make of it.
One night we drove to a local park near the Willamette river and viewed the “Christmas ships.” That day had been particularly draining for both John and myself and by the end, we were at our wits end.
However, after navigating various set backs and disputes, we arrived at the dark park and parked our car on top of a lonely hill. We turned the car off and all the kids negotiated their way up to the front seat to view the ships.
Nestled together in the front, there was silence in the car as the kids marveled at the floating lights on the water. I looked over at John and he looked at me, and I whispered “Ok, this is worth it.”
There are certain moments God gives us as parents which remind us that what we are doing is worth more than anything else. And this was one of those moments.
A Silent moment in the night.
A Holy moment in the night.
All was calm. All was right….for a brief minute or two anyways.
Dec. 25. Christmas day came, magic and all.
The reindeer ate the carrots; Santa left some cookie crumbs.
There were elves running across the backyard; and a daddy (many daddies all over the world I bet) who stayed up way too late locating screws and nailing pieces together in order to delight little faces in the morning.
The big gift this year was a trampoline for the family and “big boy” beds for the boys.
It was a day playing with new toys,
fighting over new toys,
crying about new toys,
and forgetting about new toys.
And soon it was Dec. 26.
I like to call Dec. 26 the “intermezzo”.... because on Dec. 27, pink streamers mix with the Christmas decorations.
Our "Christmas baby", Evie turned 5 on Dec. 27.
So more presents.
More celebrations.
More, more, more.
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| Holy Moly. FIVE years old?! |
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| Nothing beats a Red Robin Birthday |
And then on Dec. 29, our family from Washington (Rob, Melissa, Cady and Geneva) and John's Aunt Mary from Canada came to town to celebrate Christmas again.
This reason, and this reason alone was the only reason the Christmas decorations stayed up this long.
We had a jolly time visiting, eating an amazing roast (thanks John) and opening more presents.
But now I sit on Dec. 30, the eve of New Years Eve, with the house back to pre-Christmas status; but a heart still filled to overflowing with Christmas.
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| A full house and a full heart indeed. 2016 was a busy, but blessed year. |
