A New Kind of Christmas

The Christmas season has been a different one for me this year.  Deciding to have my knee surgery 2 weeks before Christmas may not have been the best plan.  You don’t realize how many last minute things there are to do until you are stuck at home unable to do a lot of them.  I’ve had to rely on my sweet husband to do most of the wrapping and cleaning.  I did make dinner last night so at least I am making progress.  It also doesn’t look like Christmas with the gray, rainy days.  We were lucky last year and literally got snowed in.  In my experience we have a 50/50 shot of having a white Christmas and it’s not looking promising right now.  Fingers crossed!

Since we are downsizing we have asked the kids not to give us “things” that we will struggle to find room for once we move.  We already have so much we are parting with.  Instead we asked them for the gift of their time.  Going forward as we all move into our next chapters we will be busy and farther apart and spending time together means more than anything you can buy at a store.  I’d rather have them surprise me with a trip home to visit than anything else.  Or make plans to meet in the middle for an afternoon, go to the zoo or a baseball game.  It requires a little more effort and planning than picking something up at the store.  But that makes it all the more special.  Hopefully the kids feel the same way.

[Speaking of kids, Cassie and Austin and our grandpups are here today to do our Christmas together.  Chad is so cute with the dogs.  He bought them bones just for today and has a cozy spot all set up for them by the tree in the kitchen.  He talks to them in a little kid voice and slips them extra treats.  He is gonna be an awesome grandpa one day.] Sidetrack over- back on track!

In a couple of weeks when we take down all of the decorations we have to sort through them and decide what we are taking.  We have always been a bit over the top with Christmas decorating.  At one point we had 3 full size decorated trees and several small ones.  Over the years we have scaled it back but there is still too much for just the 2 of us next year.  We are going from 2200 sq ft to around 1200.  So some tough decisions will need to be made.  The kids will take what they want from the leftovers and then the rest will be donated.  Operation downsizing will commence.  It’s bittersweet looking at things thinking this will be the last year we do this, or decorate with this, or bake cookies altogether like this.  But it has to happen in order to move forward.  The kids grow up and move out and start their own traditions.  I just hope to be part of some of them while creating new ones for Chad and I.  We hear East Tawas does a pretty cool NYE bar crawl !

Over the next few days we will be getting together with family and enjoying time together.  I hope you are able to do the same.  To you and yours from me and mine, Merry Christmas !!