I swear the years are going by faster every year!!! Just yesterday I was laying out at the beach and spending time with my friends from Holland. Just yesterday I was eating dinner with my daughter celebrating her 19th birthday. Now it is 4 days before Christmas and I swear time really does fly!!!!!!!
I always say I am going to be done with my shopping a month before Christmas but have yet to accomplish that goal but you know what? I am not going to stress over it!!!! STRESS IS THE ONE THING I AM TRYING HARD NOT TO DO!!!
So I ask myself why am I doing more this year for the holidays than I have done in many years? I want to be around family that is why!!! Last year and this past year have been a very tense year for me and my family. My mom was very sick and closer to going to see God then I ever wanted her to be. She went into the hospital to have hip replacement surgery and ended up being in there for almost 2 months, I think? I can't remember how long it was now I just now it seemed to feel like an eternity!!!
My mother had a very hard road to battle but she did and she won!!!! My father, well let me just say that I love and adore my father and I don't ever want to have to go thru that again with him.
My husband was my rock and I could not have gotten thru it without it!!
My brother Steve came home for a day and night and to watch his face when he saw his mother in the hospital bed about broke my heart. I love my brother......
Then a couple weeks later Steve came back with his wife Claire and that visit just made my heart swell with JOY!!!! First having all of the family together for the first time in a million years, that in it's self speaks volumes!!
Then there was a moment in the day where Claire and I met this older lady coming into the hospital and we have a brief but life touching conversation. This sweet lady was a widow and told us about how she used to be a nurse and some other short stories. Well, Claire used to be a nurse and to hear the 2 of them talking just made my heart smile!!!! Then we parted ways and went to visit my mom. While in the room, Claire started to wash my moms feet and rub them with lotion. Anyone that knows my mom knows that her feet are very sensitive that she has alot of circulation problems so touching my moms feet is a huge thing. I just sat that and watched Claire with total AWE and LOVE!!! I don't think I have ever told her this. (so Claire, you know know!!!) I actually blogged about it right after it happened because it touched me so much. We were all sitting around talking and here Claire is, being the "nurse" caring and loving on my mom!!!! That meant more to me that she will ever really know!!!
So, since I have to end this post now (really have to get in the shower) I am having my family for Christmas and not stressing (well not to much) because I love my family and want to be around them!!! last Christmas was to me a TOTAL disaster and this one will be one full of GREAT and HAPPY memories.
Lynn, I guess it's your turn to make me cry with your post. I didn't even think about taking care of your mother, it just comes naturally to me, I suppose, after all the years I spent doing Clinical Nursing. I'm glad it meant so much to you, and I still have hopes that I helped Marge.
ReplyDeleteI don't want you to get stressed about the holidays or us coming to see you. There are no special preparations to the feeding and care of relatives. Just throw some raw meat on the table and stand back to watch the snapping and snarling begin.
Tell Jim to lock up the liquor. We make mean drunks. Be sure your homeowner's insurance is paid up, and keep a lawyer on retainer.
Notify the local fire department that they may get the chance to practice their skills on your house.
Notify the local police that there are toungue-talking, shouting, isle-running, snake-handling Pentecostals coming for a three-day revival, so they won't get too excited when all the racket starts. It may help to explain away all the rough-housing that's sure to ensue when we all get together.
Buy your neighbors a ticket for a cruise.
Hide all the scissors and knives.
Pull up any nice carpets or wool rugs. I've found that blood just won't come out of wool, but will wash off concrete with a pressure washer. Decks are a little dicey, though, so you might want to invest in a few really heavy-duty tarps to throw down.
Get Jim to nail up some plywood over the windows.
Farm out any pets, birds, or fish you have. Remember, we're a rowdy bunch who are accustomed to swatting lunch back into the wok.
Put your feather pillows in storage. They make a dreadful mess when they're torn open. Go get some cheap foam pillows from Big Lots. They're good for soft targets.
Do not assume that hiding all the guns will prevent 'little accidents' from happening. When the beds get over-turned and the dining room buffet gets thrown to the floor, we'll find the guns. Have Jim take them to a friend's house for a few days. Besides, being convicted felons, we no longer have the civil right to handle firearms.
DON'T have a Christmas Tree. They look so much like a toilet brush, and I've found that I really prefer paper.
Tell your pastor that you sent out the invitations before you googled our criminal records.
Assure your community that the noise will stop around daylight, because we all have to be back in our coffins before the sun comes up.
These simple steps should make for a lovely, fun-filled holiday. Stress goes poof!