Preparing

There is a lot to do to prepare for the holidays. The shopping, the decorating, the cooking. It is a lot to think about and a lot to get done.

Now that Thanksgiving is over, I feel a little less pressure.  Most years, the preparation for Thanksgiving is minimal, and it's Christmas that requires all of the work.  This year, thought, since we had Thanksgiving Dinner in a house that wasn't fully ... operational...  after a storm that left everyone out of commission for at least a week... well, Thanksgiving required a lot more work than it usually does.

Now that Thanksgiving is over, I can move on to Christmas.  And I'm keeping that much more simple than I usually do.  Because for one thing, my kids aren't little anymore.  So I can do less and not feel bad about it.  Christmas is for the children, in many ways, and now that the children are adults, I'm not as concerned about it!  (I don't think THEY would be happy to hear this!)

So this weekend I decorated - but not our usual home, I decorated the cabin, instead.  And I guess I'll decorate my other home, but I'm gonna have to get some help, or it isn't going to be too decorated.  Nick's girlfriend is willing to help me there, so I'm happy... I might not decorate there at all if it wasn't for her.

I also went Christmas shopping, and got some great gifts for some great people in my life.  I still have quite a few things to get, though...

 I'm preparing.  But I'm keeping it minimalistic this year. 

I would send this as my Christmas card photo, if I was going to send Christmas card photos out!