Christmas Has Come And Gone

Christmas has come and gone.  It's December 29th and my tree and all the decorations are still displayed and will be until after the new year.  It seems a lot of people rush to take it all down but I like to enjoy it just a little bit longer.

Our Christmas was very laid back and enjoyable.  We exchanged gifts with my parents last Saturday before they headed to New York to visit family.  My mother-in-law came on Christmas Eve to exchange gifts and enjoy a ham dinner with us.  She also joined us for Christmas Eve service at our church and the night ended with the kids eager to get to bed.  Both of my kids still believe in Santa and they were excited to wake up on Christmas morning to see their new legos from Santa and many other wrapped gifts from us.  We tore into the gifts and spent the day playing with the new toys.  I purchased one of those big tool boxes for my husband, something I've been wanting to get for him for a long time.  It seems I always have trouble getting into the Christmas spirit until it's actually Christmas and then I don't want it to end.  That evening we went to my father-in-law's house for dinner and gift exchange.  The rest of the week has been relaxing.  The kids have been playing with their new toys.  A few days ago my dad called and said he wanted the kids to spend a few nights with them.  This gave me a chance to clean the house, relax and enjoy a nice Olive Garden dinner with my husband last night.  I also enjoyed sleeping in and having an uninterrupted morning of sipping coffee and getting things done.  I do miss them though and can't wait to see them later.  They love spending time with the grandparents and those will be memories they can hold onto forever.

Now we prepare to soon ring in another new year.  I feel like we just welcomed 2018 and now comes 2019.  Time FLIES!   I'm not sure what the new year will bring but I will be taking it one day at a time.  I decided my 2019 mantra will be "Less Is More."  We have a house filled with so much clutter.  Toys, clothes, stuff ... everywhere.  We hardly have the space for it and a messy house gives me such anxiety.  We have so much stuff and don't use most of it so why hold onto it?  So, I will be going through each room of the house and purging as much as possible.  Yesterday I started on my daughter's bedroom and it took three trash bags to make it look so much better.  That girl likes holding onto a lot of junk.  My little hoarder.  No more.

So, if you're reading this I hope you had a wonderful Christmas, or Hanukkah if that's what you celebrate, and I hope that 2019 is an amazing year filled with blessings!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from my home to yours!