Christmas Chaos

Well, clearly the past few weeks have been INSANE, as I haven't had time to even consider writing a blog post. So let's see.....

December 20-23 consisted of frenzied packing. We're lucky enough to have fantastic family and friends who helped immensely. Late on December 23, I picked Brian up from the airport and our little family of three reunited once again. And then, the holiday chaos began.

December 24 was made up of haircuts for the boys, a visit to Santa for Brennan, last minute gift-buying, and then off to Brian's dad's side Christmas gathering. It's a tradition to celebrate at Brian's grandma's tiny little house, which is crowded with just us adults. But this year, all of the great grandkids were also there. 15 adults + 4 4-year-olds (3 of whom are triplet boys) + a 14 month old + a 10 month old = mass chaos. But, it's fun. We get along really well with Brian's cousins on that side and we're usually laughing and enjoying Gram's cherry bounce til late in the evening. This year however, while we were driving home, Brian mentioned that this year was very different. But that's what you get when all of the adults are making sure that nothing gets broken or spilled on Gram's carpet, that the little ones aren't getting trampled by the big ones, and that Gram herself isn't getting knocked over by any of them. All of the policing leaves little time for adult conversation and cherry bounce consumption!

Christmas day was much more relaxing. We had a relaxing morning under our tiny tree that I managed to put up amidst the packing. Then we headed to church to celebrate the birth of Christ and to hear my dad preach. After church, we had brunch with some very close family friends and headed back to my parent's house for presents! The day was calm, with no rushing from place to place, and we were able to enjoy the holiday. My mom's dinner was amazing as usual.

On December 26 we headed to Brian's parents' house to celebrate with his parents and his sister and brother-in-law, who were in town from Virginia. After all of the presents were opened, we were off to his aunt's house for Christmas with his Mom's side of the family. Gifts were exchanged, food was eaten, and we headed home. Once home, our very best friends came to help us pack and between the packing and hauling, we managed to celebrate with them as well. Finally, around 2am, we settled in for our last night in our house.

Morning came early. But, there was lots to get accomplished, so we got to work, joined by our family and friends, and moved all of our belongings into our garages. We scrubbed the house from top to bottom to ready it for our new tenants. When all was said and done, we said goodbye to our house and headed to my parents' house for the night. We were exhausted, but had to finalize packing for Mexico the next morning. I think that God knew what He was doing when He made this week so hectic for me, because I didn't have any time to dwell on the sadness of leaving our house or the nervousness of leaving Brennan for a week. We went to bed looking forward to warm weather and relaxation the next day!

Busy busy buusy bsuy buasdf.................

The weekend flew by way too fast. Spent Saturday celebrating Christmas with my Mom's side of the family. It was, as always, delightfully loud and tons of fun. But this year was different without Brian and with Brennan as active as he's been lately. Luckily, my parents are always willing to run after him so I can sit down for a minute or two. Judging from this family gathering, I can tell that the rest of our Christmas gatherings will be shorter than usual. First, they usually prevent Brennan from getting his normal nap in, so he's extra cranky. Second, he just gets overstimulated. He's loving his newfound independence now that he's walking, and he doesn't want people holding and squeezing him. But of course, no one cares if they piss off my child. I'm the one who has to deal with it. Argh.

Sunday was equally as busy. Brennan was up and down all night from a lack of routine on Saturday and he slept til 9:30 Sunday morning. We headed to Mom & Dad's where Brennan stayed for most of the day while my sister and I went shopping and then I headed off to my last night of bowling (yay!). I was able to snag some cute new clothes and hopefully get rid of some of my boring, frumpy "mom" clothes that make me feel so crappy about my body. I know that I should feel proud of the weight I've lost and will continue to lose, and hopefully a refreshed wardrobe will help me do so!

Today has consisted solely of packing. My MIL came over for a few (five) hours and finished up the kitchen. Tonight, a few (fantastic) friends came over to donate their muscles and fabulous packing skills and we got TONS more done. I'm so lucky to have friends and family who will give up their valuable time to help me!