The calm after the storm....

I feel like I can finally breath. It's Christmas day, Ian is tucked in bed and Alex is close. Sean's parents made it here safe and sound, the shopping, the food gathering, the cooking and baking is done. And NOW I'm on vacation. 11 more days until I go back to work and although I know it will fly, I'm going to savor each one. The best news about this Christmas is unlike the last two NOBODY was puking. We've had the stomach flu the last two Christmas and thank goodness we were left to enjoy this one bug free. YAhoo.

The last week has been a whirlwind! The weather here in Portland has been unbelievable. 16" or more of snow including a 1 inch layer of ice in the middle. It's slow to melt and has caused issues with work, Christmas shopping and resulted in a cancellation of a Linfield College Girls reunion. I spent the first few days loving it, hoping and anticipating that somehow just like all the school kids, I too would get to stay home for a snow day. I made the drive to work for several days until the storm really hit hard. And now I've been home for days, the snow and ice closed Nike WHQ and although I've been dialed in, checking emails, and available by phone I'm in the groove here of not going to work....and I think I like it. It always takes me 3-4 days to get used to not being at work, to forget about it, to get in this 'home life' lifestyle of really truly being in tune with my kids and to interact with them rather than just meeting their needs as quickly and efficiently as I can. I wonder on Mondays if I'm cut out to be a stay at home mom. What I've realized the past few days is those Mondays are packed to the brim with appointments, doctors visits, errands, laundry and any other thing I can't get to Tuesday-Friday. But here, today after days and days and days home I have a clean house, the bills are paid, there is food in the fridge, my kids are happy and so am I. I could do this. Now, the mortgage wouldn't get paid but I suppose we wouldn't be unlike a lot of people out there.

The kids were once again spoiled rotten this Christmas. I will surely need to hold a garage sale for all the old items that will never be touched or looked at again. Alex's most prized gift was her Sleeping Beauty vanity table. Google it...it's hideous. But she asked Santa for it and luckily-Nanna & Pop Pop prevailed. Second runner up was her V-Tech camera given to her by her Granmom & Pop and unfortunately for me, the gift I couldn't wait to give her and I thought would be her best (an overpriced collectors doll) evidently scares her and has 'weird eyes'. It's not allowed in her room at night...when it's dark. Nice.

Ian raked it in too. Sean and I got him a train table and Nanna & Pop Pop gave him a train set. He's now the proud owner of a rocking horse that due to operator error already caused an enormous egg on the back of his noggin. He'll learn soon enough to hold on to the handles and not the mane.

After days of being cooped up and lacking new and interesting things to do, I decided I needed a puppy. Now hold your horses, NO we don't have a puppy but for days I thought I wanted one NEEDED one. I researched breeds, debated on sizes, scoured the want ads and the Humane Society listings. I was sure I wanted it and I have to admit I was even a LITTLE disappointed after all the gifts were open this morning and there was no puppy but darn if right now, as the house is still and quiet that I'm not so relieved. If I were sure our puppy wouldn't grow up to be a barker, a chewer, a biter, or shed 4 lbs of hair each day I'd be in. But as I step over toys and run into my furniture constantly and curse this 1600 square foot, crammed to the max, lacking a bonus room hacienda-I fear a dog might break us. Maybe in May when it's nice and the dog can be outside? I figure I'll continue to find that perfect bread which I think is a Golden Doodle (google it) which will take me 9 years to save up for as they evidently cost more than my monthly income. And let's not forget according to Sean, are the 'ugliest dog he's ever seen'.

Overall we've had such a nice Christmas. Despite the roads, the travelling issues, the stressing over flights coming in or not it's just been really nice. There was a very important person missing this year. To not have my grandfather at Christmas Eve dinner was difficult. I missed his extra helpings of red wine and dessert. I missed his witty comments. I missed watching him watch my kids. As we all sat down to dinner and joined hands in prayer, my dad recited the prayer my grandfather always said at his dinner table and despite the loss we all felt inside my heart smiled with those simple words, heard a hundred times before, and it brought comfort. Merry Christmas Everyone...and to all a goodnight.