Let's all take a nap!

Whew! What a week! I hate the bittersweet feeling that hangs over the day after Christmas. The radio did not greet me with the joyful ring of bells, the tree looks naked without any presents under it, and I struggled this morning waking up. I feel like I should be rushing somewhere or scrambling to finish something for someone. Truth is, aside from visiting my grandmother at my parents' house later on, I have nothing truly on the agenda. It is nice to gain a sense of control and peace again, but I will miss the excitement.

I am exhausted, but my Christmas was fabulous! I fixed up gag gifts for everyone this year, and it made for a ton of fun as each person opened up their gift. My grandfather laughed which is something he doesn't do much lately. We even took a family photo! We haven't done that in years.

The big kicker about this year was having it at my parents' house. When they bought their house, we had Christmas there a couple of years until we found the damage in the bathrooms. The water damage was severe and throughout both bathrooms. Dad began tearing it all out and rebuilding. He was determined to do it all himself and then cancer hit. It put things on hold for a while, and he has slowly built himself back up working on it here and there. He finally got enough time off this year and the weather and his health all cooperated enough that he could finish both bathrooms! They are beautiful!

We had to work hard this week to clear out the remodelling debris, tools, leftover supplies, etc to ready the house for people to come over. My grandfather, being a carpenter has always helped my dad with every project. This was one he couldn't help with. Mom and Dad were desperate to get my grandfather over to the house for his approval on their work. That nod of approval was the best present anyone could ever give my parents! The look on their faces was priceless, and I will cherish that look forever.

My dad's mom came over yesterday, and we all spent the majority of the day alternating our nap and television spots. At one point, I think everyone in the house was asleep except my dad. We finally got up and fixed dinner and opened presents with each other. After that, we stayed up until the wee hours of the morning playing cards and watching movies.

I had so much fun this year. Even Hubby joined in with the card playing for the first time, and for once didn't push me out the door (He's a bit of a Scrooge at times). I hate that all our fun has ended, but it will be nice to get back into a normal flow again.

I hope that your holiday was as fun and fulfilling as mine was!


***Oh yeah, just as an aside...I'm pretty certain that at some point during all the craziness, Sheldon has joined us. Hubby and I did take time to say a special Merry Christmas to him and whisper a quiet prayer that he could stay. I'm not exactly sure how far into things we are this month because we couldn't temp, but I imagine that right after the new year we will find out. It would be an absolute miracle amidst all of the craziness we have had going on, but it would be a miracle under any circumstance, so perhaps we can hold out hope...