Gee whiz, the past few days have been a whirlwind of activity; first with all the cooking and baking I did then with the Christmas celebrations.  I have to admit, despite the sadness I've felt lately, this was one of the best Christmases I can recall.  My family focused more on one another than we have in the past.  My siblings and me pooled our money to purchase Mom and Dad a frost-free freezer.  Mom was upset with us at first, for spending the money, but once the freezer arrived and she realized how much work and energy this will save, she began to come around a bit.  I'm afraid she'll have to continue getting upset with us all because we plan on going in on gifts for her and Dad's birthdays as well as Mother's and Father's Days. 

Sara, Caleb, & TylerChristmas Eve, my two sisters, my niece Elyssa, and my brother Bob and his four kids (two have spouses), and two grandchildren came to dinner.  This is the first year in so long that they've all come and it made Mom and Dad so happy.  I got a lot of compliments on dinner and I think everyone had a good time.  Susie and I kicked Mom out of the kitchen so she could visit with Bob and his kids. 

Matt, Keldi, Jaxton, & BobThis was a hard Christmas for Bob, and I was happy to see his family rally around him.  His wife Kori is divorcing him due to problems she had with Bob's daughter, Heather.  He also said it all was a matter of bad timing - they remain friends - and who knows, when her son grows up and Heather does too (18 and 19 respectively) and they won't cause problems. 

After our dinner was over and Bob and his kids left, Mom, Dad, Susie, and Elyssa went to my brother J Dee's house.  I got my Christmas wish of having a white Christmas - it was wonderful!  Although driving in the blizzard of snow, up several hills, gee whiz, I could have used Santa's sleigh with Rudolph, but Santa needed it more than I did on his busy night.  When I arrived, feeling like I'd taken a dive, head first in the snow, Santa called out my name to sit on his lap.  I can't tell you what I wished for *snicker* but he and Mrs. Claus gave me a wink.  We saw all of J Dee and Patti's kids and grandkids while we were there. 

Chelese & Adam taken earlier this yearI also was able to congratulate my nephew Adam and his new fiance', Chelese; Adam proposed to her on Sunday night.  It was wonderful to see all my siblings, nieces, nephews, and grandnieces and grandnephews.  My heart was filled with love and happiness, which felt so good. 

Me holding Sweet EliSusie was holding sweet Eli and pointing out the fact that she had her and I didn't.  Right then, Eli decided to cry and Susie handed Eli over to me.  She calmed right down - proving once again, I have the magic touch and that Eli likes me and we have a special bond. ;-)  I cuddled Eli, talked to her, and she cooed back while I stood and rocked back and forth.  Pretty soon, her momma, Sara, covered her up with a blanket and she soon fell asleep. Gee whiz, that little girl has a hold of my heart strings.

Elyssa and vanityAfter Mom, Dad, and I got home, Mom and I finished cleaning up the dinner mess and then stayed up until midnight playing the roles of Santa's Elves to put Elyssa's lovely vanity together.  It was a labor of love, if not a royal pain!  Seeing her face Christmas morning was worth every bit of frustration we had.  I even had fun playing with the hair dryer, lipstick, cell phone, and scissors because it played noises when each one was lifted up.  What a hoot.   

After we opened gifts, I decided to go out and do some light shoveling (gee whiz, I think that is an oxymoron); we had another six inches of snow that fell during the night, which makes about 10-12 inches out of the whole storm.  It felt good to be outside in the lovely sunny day with everything covered in snow and breathing in the lovely fresh air.  I shoveled 1/3 of the triple car driveway then the front steps and walkway and was about to leave the rest for my brother when two neighbors walked over and finished the driveway and helped me finish the front sidewalks.  I offered them some treats but they both laughed and said they were shoveling snow to work off the Christmas goodies they had already eaten. 

The rest of the day, I relaxed and napped a bit, while begging my body to forgive me and to quit hurting, but alas, it did not.  I felt better yesterday and my muscles were sorer than my joints so I figured I was forgiven since I slept twelve hours that night.  

Today, I am working a 12-hour day (oh joy) and then another weekend will begin again; gee whiz, I could get used ti this.  Lots of snow is in the forecast so we'll see if it's a white New Year's too. 

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas with your families and those special to you.