Christmas, A Week Early

Saturday the 18th we  celebrated  Christmas.  This has thrown my thinking off kilter.. I keep thinking this week should be the week after Christmas Day and New Years Day will be this Saturday.  Wrong, there's still 10 more days until the year 2011 beginnings.  That means I still have a few more days to finish what I had on my list to complete in the year 2010.

Do you make New Year resolution or Goals for the coming New Year?  I do, and I try to keep tabs on them during the year, to see how I am doing..  but, I think I will put that to the side right now, after all, I still have at least 9 more days to think about what my goals should be..  Instead, I'll just enjoy thinking and typing about my Christmas last Saturday.

My sons and their families were coming home for this special day.  My daughters live too far away in other states to come, so I mail them their gifts and make phone calls.  I will miss them.

Mark lives up north with his wonderful wife, Shelly, and his daughter, Katelyn lives a few miles past that, with her Mom.  They arrived here late Friday night, there was some snow, but lots of rain on the roads, so the traveling was slow.  They were tired when they arrived, but felt good to finally be here.  They brought their things in, got settled and then we visited, and of coarse, we had some frozen peaches to eat.  Mark and Shelly took the Blue room and Katelyn had the Red room, but she really wanted the Blue room.  She said, that was her room, for that's the room she usually stays in when she is here, and besides, her picture is in that room.

Now Brad and his sweet wife Susan only live a few miles from here, so they arrived around noon on Saturday.  My granddaughter Carey and her boyfriend Adam already had arrived at her Dad's home late Thursday night, so they all came together...

We had a fun day, I was busy fixing the Christmas dinner, with the help of wonderful daughter-in-law's and my son's and Grandchildren were busy playing games in the front room.  My dear husband was back and forth from the bedroom, to the front room and then to the kitchen, keeping track on what was going on.  The ball game was on the T.V. in each room, so everyone could keep tabs on the game and the score...

The dinner table was set with white table cloth, red napkins, a Christmas table runner, red candles in crystal candle holders, Christmas dishes and red water goblets.  Our dinner was ham with lots of side dishes and pie for desert.

We sat around our table, enjoying the good meal, talking about how good it was to be together, and memories that came to mind..  My husband, expressed his love and gratitude for his sons, as he talked about our new home.  How much our boys helped us on building this home.  Brad with the framing that went on, the installing of the rafters, the building of the loafs in the garage and work shop.  Mark with laying the wood floors in the different rooms, the tile work that both boys did in the kitchen along with Katelyn's help in "buttering" the tile.  Mark with our long road from the street into our property and then all the rock walls around the outside.  We are truly blessed to have such wonderful children that are so willing to help their parents, and to help make their lives a little better and a little easier.

We have wonderful daughters too, who have taken time away from their families to come home and give some help, especially to me, when I need it most.  What a wonderful feeling it is to know, that your children love you and are there to help you whenever there is a need.  How blessed I am, for I am a Mother and my children love me and their father.. I know this to be true, by the things they say and by the things they do, for each of us.

We finish our Christmas night by clearing the table, putting the extra food away and then it was present time.  With lights on the Christmas tree, Katelyn played Santa by passing out the gifts and everyone ooh' and aah' as we all took our turns enjoying the special gifts and thoughts that was giving to each. 

The evening came to an end, with my son's doing the dishes and with Katelyn helping too. 

Later on Katelyn said to me, "Grandma, how long do you think it took us to open up our gifts?"  I think it must have taken at least 2 hours, there sure were a lot of presents.  But it was fun.

As I went to bed that night, my heart was full.  How wonderful it is to have family, to be able to have some of them come home for Christmas.  This was the first time that Carey has been here for a number of years and it was good to have her, I missed my daughters, but I had them in my heart.  I love them all.

and so I say, as I get ready to post this blog, "Merry Christmas to all and too all a good night."