I find that once Christmas is over and the new year is looming I tend to get the post-holiday blues a bit... which then seems to turn into an examination of the previous year, complete with a full analysis of what went well and what did not go quite so well. And, of course, that analysis usually turns into a list of things that I should make happen in the new year...
In an effort to let the past be the past, and focus instead on the future, I thought I would do my best to skip the whole analysis part of things and just be thankful for the best of the past year... because I know that I have much to be thankful for, and I also know that regrets count for very little.
So... here it is... my top 10 for 2010:
10. Olivia goes to Disney World (hard for me, great experience for her; that is why it comes in at 10)...
9. Home Improvements: garage demo; master bed; paint dining room; more windows; projects in sun room
8. My IJL adventures... mostly entertaining for my girlfriends, but some good lessons have been learned!
7. Olivia starts 4K! How can she be so big already?
6. My 20th Class Reunion... good to reconnect with some old friends.
5. O's Princess 4th Birthday Party...
4. Gross/Christman Family Camp 2010... this would move up the list if the weather would ever cooperate!
3. Dad & I road trip to Boston for Thanksgiving with Sara, Josh & Aiden...
2. Sara and I meet in San Francisco for a long, catch up, girls weekend... One of my favorite trips ever!!!
1. A year of good times with family and friends...
Happy New Year everyone... cheers to celebrating the best of the past year and looking forward to all the things to come in the new year!
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Friday, December 10, 2010
The Santa Effect...
Let's face it...the "Santa" window is a very small one. From ages 0 to 3 kids are petrified of the man... he's big, he's loud, and everyone wants you to get right up close to him. You would cry, too...just admit it. Then you move into the next age range... 4 to 8? 9? Maybe 10? Well, during those ages he is everything magical and special and amazing... After age 10 you either pretend that you "believe" for the sake of younger siblings and/or more gifts, or join the rest of the grown-ups who yearn for the days when Santa seemed to be a real possibility.
O is officially in the "believe" stage...she has fallen for the whole thing hook, line and sinker... She asks great questions about him... Does he need photos of what I want? Is he at every event that has a Santa? Where does he keep the naughty list? She has written lists and changed her mind about what she would like several times... And she is VERY concerned about her status on his naughty/nice list.
O's concern about "the list" could possibly be the greatest parental advantage of all time... And, yes, I am exploiting her fear. I remember hearing my own mother tell me that I better behave if I didn't want to end up on Santa's naughty list... And now I hear myself utter the same words... This, my fellow parents, is an opportunity that is short-lived, and that you can not let pass you by. From Thanksgiving to Christmas, at the first HINT of anything sassy, I remind her that she might want to be careful if she wants to be sure she is on Santa's list of good girls. Works like a charm every time...
This really is one of the most magical times of the year... and seeing it all through the eyes of a child is so much better than just going through the motions of it all as an adult. So enjoy the short number of years that your children really and truly believe, and don't forget to use that belief to your own advantage. Merry Christmas!
O is officially in the "believe" stage...she has fallen for the whole thing hook, line and sinker... She asks great questions about him... Does he need photos of what I want? Is he at every event that has a Santa? Where does he keep the naughty list? She has written lists and changed her mind about what she would like several times... And she is VERY concerned about her status on his naughty/nice list.
O's concern about "the list" could possibly be the greatest parental advantage of all time... And, yes, I am exploiting her fear. I remember hearing my own mother tell me that I better behave if I didn't want to end up on Santa's naughty list... And now I hear myself utter the same words... This, my fellow parents, is an opportunity that is short-lived, and that you can not let pass you by. From Thanksgiving to Christmas, at the first HINT of anything sassy, I remind her that she might want to be careful if she wants to be sure she is on Santa's list of good girls. Works like a charm every time...
This really is one of the most magical times of the year... and seeing it all through the eyes of a child is so much better than just going through the motions of it all as an adult. So enjoy the short number of years that your children really and truly believe, and don't forget to use that belief to your own advantage. Merry Christmas!
Thursday, December 2, 2010
Tripping...
I really like to drive... To me, driving is relaxing; gives me a chance to unwind, sing along to the radio, enjoy the countryside. So, you might think I would jump at the chance to go on a road trip... BUT, when my dad suggested about six weeks ago that he and I should hop in the car and drive out to Boston to surprise my sister for her Birthday/Thanksgiving, I was momentarily paralyzed by the thought of that many hours in the car. Massachusetts is far from Wisconsin...really far...1,100 miles far. I told him I would "think about it" and let him know...
Naturally, my first instinct was to buy my way out East... surely I could find a plane, train, SOMETHING, that was available and would get us out there in less than twenty-hours?!? Ahhhhh... How much is your time worth??? Short of maxing out a credit card or refinancing my house, there was no reasonable way to get to Boston. What did I expect when trying to travel on a holiday, right?!?
After abandoning the hope of finding an economical and yet efficient way to get to Mass., I started the task of convincing myself that a road trip of this magnitude was not that big of a deal... as long as we didn't end up in a blizzard... or fall asleep driving... get lost... hit a deer... Okay, rationalization was not helping. Hmmmm...
What finally convinced me? A memory from the past... When I was twelve or thirteen my family took a road trip to Florida... Mom, Dad, Brother, Sister, Me. My little sister was the youngest and she had the job of sleeping and/or doing whatever she wanted to do on the way to Florida. My brother and I had to take "shifts" with one of our parents...he hung out with Mom; I hung out with Dad. Our assignment was to keep them awake... Awake? Yes, awake... My dad subscribes to the "let's drive all night so we can get through Chicago in the dark" theory of planning and executing road trips. Never one to just sit still and chat, I chose to find ways to entertain my dad as we drove. Singing along to the radio, using a stuffed dolphin as the microphone... Dressing him up in different sunglasses, etc. and then taking his picture (I still have a picture of him, all "dressed up", on my refrigerator)... Most memorable was probably my mom speaking up from the backseat "are you two awake?", as we BOTH were napping in the front seat...ooops. Such good memories...
There is nothing more convincing for me than a sweet memory from the past... As I contemplated the whole idea, all I could think was "why not?". Why not have the fun of surprising my sister by doing something a little crazy? If I could not spend the holiday with O, shouldn't I try to spend it with as much family as I could? What an opportunity to spend some quality time with my dad, just he and I, catching up with each other... If I didn't go, wouldn't I be mad at myself later for letting the chance slip by? What would I have missed, if I did not go?
We went...and it was a great trip. A completely ridiculous, mind-numbingly long, sometimes funny, sometimes unreal trip. The reaction from my sister alone (my brother-in-law knew we were coming) was truly worth the twenty-hour car ride. I had one of my favorite Thanksgiving's ever... I know that it was a great decision to go and I value the time I had with my family so very much. And the pictures are pretty good, too (I might have a new one for the fridge...think red boa).
Naturally, my first instinct was to buy my way out East... surely I could find a plane, train, SOMETHING, that was available and would get us out there in less than twenty-hours?!? Ahhhhh... How much is your time worth??? Short of maxing out a credit card or refinancing my house, there was no reasonable way to get to Boston. What did I expect when trying to travel on a holiday, right?!?
After abandoning the hope of finding an economical and yet efficient way to get to Mass., I started the task of convincing myself that a road trip of this magnitude was not that big of a deal... as long as we didn't end up in a blizzard... or fall asleep driving... get lost... hit a deer... Okay, rationalization was not helping. Hmmmm...
What finally convinced me? A memory from the past... When I was twelve or thirteen my family took a road trip to Florida... Mom, Dad, Brother, Sister, Me. My little sister was the youngest and she had the job of sleeping and/or doing whatever she wanted to do on the way to Florida. My brother and I had to take "shifts" with one of our parents...he hung out with Mom; I hung out with Dad. Our assignment was to keep them awake... Awake? Yes, awake... My dad subscribes to the "let's drive all night so we can get through Chicago in the dark" theory of planning and executing road trips. Never one to just sit still and chat, I chose to find ways to entertain my dad as we drove. Singing along to the radio, using a stuffed dolphin as the microphone... Dressing him up in different sunglasses, etc. and then taking his picture (I still have a picture of him, all "dressed up", on my refrigerator)... Most memorable was probably my mom speaking up from the backseat "are you two awake?", as we BOTH were napping in the front seat...ooops. Such good memories...
There is nothing more convincing for me than a sweet memory from the past... As I contemplated the whole idea, all I could think was "why not?". Why not have the fun of surprising my sister by doing something a little crazy? If I could not spend the holiday with O, shouldn't I try to spend it with as much family as I could? What an opportunity to spend some quality time with my dad, just he and I, catching up with each other... If I didn't go, wouldn't I be mad at myself later for letting the chance slip by? What would I have missed, if I did not go?
We went...and it was a great trip. A completely ridiculous, mind-numbingly long, sometimes funny, sometimes unreal trip. The reaction from my sister alone (my brother-in-law knew we were coming) was truly worth the twenty-hour car ride. I had one of my favorite Thanksgiving's ever... I know that it was a great decision to go and I value the time I had with my family so very much. And the pictures are pretty good, too (I might have a new one for the fridge...think red boa).
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