The Twelve Days of Christmas

Whew! Life has felt a little nutty lately.

I so badly want to soak in and savor the season, but it seems to be flying by so quickly I can barely catch my breath. We went up for the week-end to attend a "Quint Family Christmas Party." That was something. It was fun, slightly uncouth and off-color - as we're all hoodlums, but really nice to see the extended family. We also went to a really nice Christmas concert and took the kids for a really fun four-wheeler ride, as there was no snow yet. That made for a crazy week-end, though, and it makes me feel behind going into this week.

So, because of feeling this way - I cancelled two appointments that I had this week that can just wait until the start of next year. And already I feel better. :0)

I've never had a newborn during the holiday season, either. So, that makes things a wee bit busier. It also makes me sloooow down and focus on the things that are really important. For that, I am thankful. And he is just a delicious little bundle of joy. He really is. I can almost say with confidence - not yet, because Kaden's screams came later in his infancy - but I can almost believe that he is going to be a fairly mellow baby. Or mellow-"er," at least. I'll take mellow-er. He still isn't a fantastic napper during the day, but he does awesome most nights. He usually only wakes up once in the night, and last night - for the first time - he gave me an eight hour stretch! Wow - didn't that feel like Heaven. I'm not holding my breath on that one, either. We'll see if it stays consistent.

Anyway, back to the title of my post.

We always head up North for Christmas day, so our little family celebrates our own Christmas with just us sometime before then. As of yesterday, our Christmas was 12 days away. Each of these days, heading to our countdown, I want to do something fun with the boys to get us in the Christmas spirit. Some things will be really simple, some more elaborate, but the whole point being just to have fun with the kids and make memories together.

Yesterday, being day 12, we went to a family's house and made wreaths with a whole whack of people. The boys had fun - which was my goal - but it was a little hairy for me. A lot of chaos, a lot of pitch, a fussy baby, a huge poo explosion - you know the drill. I was wiped for the rest of the day! But, we got a rockin' wreath that Kaden and I made together, so that's cool.

Today, Daddy took the boys to breakfast, and when they return we're going to make a gingerbread train together. I like to decorate them and have them sit out and be admired for a few days. But, I know how this is going to go down. We're going make it, admire it for .2 seconds, and then the begging to eat it will begin! That's okay, I guess.

So, we'll see what the rest of the days hold for us. Happy holiday season, friends!