Christmas is my favorite holiday. There's something almost magical about coming home to a warm house in the snowy countryside filled with good food and the people I love most, a feeling of completeness. As if everything else in the world fades away and there's nothing more important than spending time with one another. And there's something about Christmas morning where, at 27, I was almost excited as I was when I was 7 to run down the stairs to peek in the stockings while we waited for Dad to finish chores. When we were kids my sister and I would get up early to do the chores for Dad, saying it was his birthday present (his birthday is Christmas day), but we had other motivations--the sooner the chores were done the sooner we could open presents. The anticipation, the excitement, the feeling of being a kid at home again...
"Christmas break", as it were, was great. We headed to my parents' for 4 days and had some quality family time. Rick and I took my cousin's kids sledding (and had a lot of fun ourselves), Darby loved playing in the snow with the other dogs, and Christmas eve and Christmas day was spent with family. We cooked a lot (and ate just as much), played games, enjoyed our new gifts. We came home the day after Christmas and Rick's parents came up to visit and we had a lot of snow to show them! Roy and Becky stayed for 4 days; we exchanged gifts, went out for a movie and dinner for my birthday, and they loved getting to meet Darby. We had a great time with both families and the friends we had over for New Year's, but I would be lying if I said we haven't enjoyed the quiet time when it was just us and a 4-day weekend and nothing to do. Going back to work might be rough tomorrow, though I am getting a little bored. Now if I could kick this respiratory infection I might be more productive with my time off.
I was thinking the other day how great 2010 was: we got married, bought a house we love, I got a new job and then another that I love, I "reconnected" with Maggie, took 2 great trips (Hawaii and Yellowstone), I was published twice, we adopted Darby who has been a great addition to our little family, we have been healthy, and we got to spend quality time with friends and family. I'm sure I've forgotten something, but I think that even if I did, that list still makes me smile and grateful for all that we have. I hope 2011 is just as good.
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