Ready or Not

 Ready or not, 2024 is almost here.  

2023 was one of easing into the change.  It hasn't been the easiest of years but I am going to embrace the positive. Considering that 2024 will promptly take the that was teased in 2023 change and flog me into next December, this past year has been a breeze. 

2024 has been building to be one of huge transitions for our family and I'm terrified. I wish I could say that I'm excited about everything the next 12 months holds and that it will pose the adventure of my life. In reality, the anxiety heralding the changes coming with the new calendar have been keeping me awake for months. 

Ready or not, the seconds are going to continue to countdown to a new year. It will surely be memorable. I'm just hoping it is also manageable!

Bedroom Redo

 Timmy's beloved bunk bed with slide met with an unfortunate fate when the supports holding the slats into place splintered from the frame. We were extremely lucky that the bed did not collapse while Timmy was in it. We were hoping to wait until we moved to upgrade Timmy's furniture but we were forced to speed up our timeline. 

Yesterday Scott and I worked nonstop in Timmy's room. We disassembled the old bed while the boys hauled the pieces out. After the old bed was removed we set out to assemble the new one. The size and weight of the box forced us to unbox outside. The boys ferried the pieces and parts up the stairs and into Timmy's room where I frantically tried to keep everything organized. 

The bed, a bunk bed with loft combo, was a beast to assemble. Scott and I have been assembling furniture from a box together for nearly 25 years. We have become adept at working together to get the job done without creating or harboring hard feelings. Before we start any project we always hug, say I love yous and offer no hard feelings for anything that might be said or done during the assembly. No matter how difficult the assembly process, and we have tackled some projects for which we were woefully ill equipped,  we will not hold onto the anger when we are done. 

Scott and I are good at working together but, unfortunately, neither of us are terribly talented at visualization or understanding minimalist directions. We always put pieces together incorrectly, forcing us to disassemble and reassemble numerous times. Yesterday was no exception, although we felt victorious that we only had to disassemble twice and we only have one 'construction personalization' one the bed. (A construction personalization refers to the situations where we have to improvise with a different screw or piece to make the parts fit together.

Nearly five hours after we started, Scott and I emerged from Timmy's room unscathed. The new bed was upright and sturdy, delighting Timmy. He immediately climbed to the top and surveyed the new view. The project was a beast but his smile made it worth the effort!

Best Present

Yesterday morning our family received what we have collectively decided to be the best Christmas present of the year. Timmy's wiggly front tooth, the one that has been hanging on and frustrating his eating for over a year despite the many efforts to ease it out, finally fell out in the middle of the night. Timmy took a sword to the tooth last summer which pushed it sideways and made it loose. We assumed it would fall out soon but it remained in an awkward position and wiggly state. We were three weeks away from an oral surgeon removing the crushed and stubborn tooth. Thankfully nature, and biting into a piece of prime rib for dinner, took care of the situation.

Liberated from the frustrating tooth, we celebrated by taking Timmy to McDonald's for lunch. He was thrilled to be able to bite into the cheeseburger without the "tooth crunch."  Talk about a Christmas miracle!

Merry Christmas!

 Another Christmas has come and gone. This season has been one of modifying traditions and going with the flow. I should not have been surprised by the unexpected curve ball courtesy of Covid. My nephew came down with Covid, exposing the entire household in Pennsylvania. Because of the recent and active exposure, my Mom and sister were not able to visit us for Christmas. Yet again we were forced to celebrate separately because of Covid.

Despite the pivot from large family feast to intimate gathering, Christmas was a success. Both boys were delighted with their surprises. I was worried but it seems that Santa magic has survived another year. Timmy was delighted with his presents and seemed firm in his resolve that they were provided by Santa. 

Robby transitioned from Believer to Magic Maker Apprentice several years ago. This year he was responsible for hiding Timmy's presents and assembling his stocking. He took his responsibilities seriously and knocked it out of the park! I was so proud when I realized that Robby even ate the cookie and disposed of most of the milk.

This week everybody is on vacation (except for me). I am not anticipating a relaxing week between Christmas and New Year but I am hoping to have some fun. Christmas may be over, but there is still a lot of time to celebrate!

 

Winter Solstice

 Ready or not, Christmas is almost here!

I am definitely leaning towards the "not ready" side of holiday preparations but I am optimistic (perhaps overly) that everything will come together soon. Today is Scott's last day of work before the break. This year he is going several days longer than he has in previous years. Having him working into Christmas week is different for us and it is wreaking havoc with my prep and spirit.  

In addition to being Scott's final day of work before break, it is also Winter Solstice. Every Winter Solstice I can't help but smile as I remember a solstice ceremony my Mom and I attended decades ago. I was in college and I didn't know anybody else in attendance, yet my relative anonymity did little to quell the embarrassment I felt as I watched my mother whip some bongos out of her ginormous purse so that she could drum along with the chanting. 

I do not embarrass easily but I remember wanting to shrink into the wall as I watched my mom happily tapping along on her bongos. (The fact that she just happened to have bongos is a topic for a different blog.) I'm not sure why I was so embarrassed because I remember there were many happy bongo players at the ceremony. There was something about seeing my own mother participating with such zeal that melted my late teen confidence. 

Decades have passed since the bongo experience, yet it still brings a smile to my face. I think every kid needs an experience of being absolutely humiliated by their parents actions- even if the parents are not doing anything overtly egregious. The Winter Solstice Ceremony was mine.

Magic

 I have to agree with Timmy. The week before Christmas takes a really long time! Needless to say, he is a tinge excited about Christmas this year. I look around my house and I feel woefully unprepared for the holiday. My decorating efforts could be interpreted as incomplete, but I'm going to frame it as minimalist. Regardless of the amount of garland I have strung (or kept in the boxes), my kids are feeling festive so that is all that matters. 

Today we are going to take our annual trip to visit Santa. Timmy, whom I suspect is a nonbeliever desperate to keep believing, dutifully made a list to deliver to Santa. I am sad that he isn't 100% convinced in the "magic" of Santa, but I am going to do my best to keep him guessing. I'm hoping that Robby may be able to help keep Santa alive for another year.  

Weekend Wrap-Up

 This past weekend flew by in a moment but I know that I will remember it for years to come. Robby and I went to see Trans-Siberian Orchestra's Christmas show on Friday evening. Traditionally we have gone to see The Nutcracker, but this year we decided to switch things up and to try a new experience with TSO. We had a great time but I am not certain that TSO will become part of our annual tradition.

The first portion of the show was themed on a Christmas Eve story. This left Robby and me, along with seemingly most of the audience, confused and unimpressed. Thankfully the story portion only lasted for about an hour, allowing the orchestra another hour to redeem the show. The second portion of the performance was AMAZING! Between the songs, the energy, the lasers and the fire, we were thoroughly entertained. 

While I was at the show with Robby, Timmy was busy holiday shopping with my sister. He loves shopping for people and he was excited to find surprises with his Aunt. She even surprised him with a trip to Dave and Busters to play games so, for him, it was the perfect holiday adventure.  

On Saturday I met my friend for an afternoon of shopping and just hanging out. It has been a really long time since I've gone shopping with a friend. I certainly haven't been shopping with anybody since the pandemic. I didn't realize how much I missed it until I was doing it again.

Because of the rain and wind we packed up and came home yesterday morning. Today begins the last work week before the holiday. Eeeek. It's hard to believe that Christmas is so close!