Doesn't it feel like we've been preparing for Christmas for a long time? I think it's because I've had a couple concerts I'd been rehearsing for quite a while. My kids are at a fantastic age for Christmas. Everything about it is magical and exciting to them. It makes it really fun but also really tiring. I don't want my being pregnant and tired to take away from their experience but I am starting to phone it in.
We did get outside for a little while later this afternoon. We only have about an inch of snow but you'd have thought it was a foot the way they played. They went sledding in the backyard for 45 minutes. They had so much fun and are hoping to go out again tomorrow.
I have been absolutely, positively spoiled by my students and neighbor this Christmas. It was all unexpected and very much appreciated. Tomorrow I am going to fully enjoy one of two massages I was given. Counting the minutes until 11:00 tomorrow.... And my sweet neighbor, who doesn't have children or grandchildren of her own, always gets gifts for the boys. This year she also gifted us with a fantastic present. She hired the guys who shovel her driveway in the winter to also do ours. She knows that because I am fully capable and Brian is so busy, I usually do it myself. I was telling her that I was worried that I'd slip on our steep driveway this winter and fall and need to go to the doctor and not be able to get my car up the driveway. (I did slip and fall on the ice while 39 weeks pregnant with Jackson and had to go to the hospital for a day so this fear is justified) She told me she's worried that I'll still try and shovel it myself (She's not totally wrong - I thought about it today) so she took matters into her own hands. She is very generous but I kind of want to tell her that it's too much. I also know it makes her feel good to have people to take care of and it took her a while to let her guard down and not always tell us that she doesn't want to be a bother to us. She has told me several times, once with tears in her eyes, that she would have been a good mother and she's sad that she never got to do that. We feel blessed to share our family with her and are so grateful to have her as a neighbor.
Tomorrow night we'll have our little family Christmas. I let the kids pick the meal and they chose....pancakes and sausage. Yippeee. A theatre friend of mine in Minneapolis is a fantastic cook. He photographs the meals he makes almost daily. Today he had a long thread going about grilled cheese and then Giada made this gruyere and ham and apple grilled sandwich on her show this afternoon. I really want to scratch the pancakes idea and makes gourmet grilled cheese but they are looking forward to breakfast for dinner. Maybe it will be and Us and Them dinner. And then they get to open their gifts. Today Jackson asked me if he was going to "really, really, really love his presents." That's a lot of pressure.
All in all, it was a good day. Despite his numerous time-outs, Andrew declared it the "best day ever" and is working hard to earn his presents back by tomorrow night.
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Your neighbor is the sweetest ever. I had an "Aunt Katie" growing up who was more like a grandma to us than our real grandmas because we saw her all the time. She too didn't have children of her own but loved doting on us.
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