It always amazes me how fast Christmas hits. It’s filled with wonderful memories and traditions but it’s also a very difficult time for some. This year we are part of that “some” but we are handling it the best way we can.
Now that I am off from work for a while, I hope to take a day or two to get organized and then pile the good things on top of everything else so that we can have a Merry Christmas before the big kid heads to Orlando. I love the image above because it’s so festive and fun. That is what the holidays should be.
Right Now:
Just drinking my coffee while checking out my calendar.
This Week:
I’ve got to figure out what I plan to read before the year ends. This is a big deal because you don’t want to end the year with a dud.
Reading:
I am very close to finishing The Visitors by Catherine Burns. It’s pretty good but it all depends on how it ends.
I am halfway through Hunger by Roxane Gay and it’s so, so good.
Watching:
The Walking Dead is over for now so that leaves me wide open for Stranger Things – Season 2. I also have a list of Christmas faves to get to before the holiday hits.
Making:
As soon as I toy with the idea of going vegetarian again, I get hit with a craving for steak. I haven’t had one in a long time and it does sound good. Will I make it though? I am also craving tofu so who knows what my taste buds are doing right now.
I have no cooking plans for this week but I am craving casseroles which are tricky when you are gluten-free. All the soup-based ones usually have wheat or something crunchy to go on top so those are usually out. Maybe I will pull out my sheet pans and cook up some roasted veggies and chicken.
Grateful for:
As rough as last year was with my mom passing away, I realize now how that experience prepared me for what we are experiencing now with my BIL and my SIL. I’ve been calm and thoughtful about the whole thing and just hope that I can remain so as I support The Hub and his family over the next few weeks.
Here we go. Are you ready?
Book Chatter 
Christmas has been kind of bittersweet every since my dad passed away during the holidays in 2010 so I know how you feel. Still, I know he’d want us to be happy so we try to make the best of it.
Enjoy the time you have left with the big kid. Things change once they go away (much of it for the good) so.
Christmas has been different for me since I moved to my condo after selling the bigger house in the foothills. In that home, the “grown” kids were in and out often…and it was always busy.
But I’ve adjusted to my new and quieter life…and blogging has filled in the spaces for me. And sometimes long term visitors arrive from Europe (my eldest son and DIL).
Enjoy your holidays! Here are MY WEEKLY UPDATES
Is it because as we get older…things change so much? I could not imagine life without my mom and dad and going home for all holidays and now it’s normal and my sister and brothers are so far away that a get together is rare. My sister and I try to stay close but this past year I have not traveled at all…but when we are together it feels so wonderful…
I hope you have a wonderful holiday with your family. We are so in limbo as we’ve been evacuated and aren’t sure when we’ll be allowed back in the house. Wednesday maybe? Luckily my daughter is still at school until Wednesday afternoon. We haven’t even really begun to think about Christmas yet, which not fun as I love Christmas!
My mom LOVED Christmas and always made it a very big day. I still love it, but it’s definitely not the same since she passed.
Praying for you and your family.
Ti — so sorry to hear about your BIL and SIL. Glad though you can be with your kids & hub. We are headed to the OC on Tues. And I’m hanging onto my parents as they are very dear at 82. It’ll be a quiet Christmas just 4 this year but sometimes that is nice. I wouldnt mind rain there. We will do some shopping & maybe go to some movies. I hope your days turn better. Is recovery for your BIL still possible? take care.
My BIL just passed away. We are okay. I just wish things could have gone differently.
I just saw this. I am SO, so sorry, Ti. Please extend my condolences to your husband too.
I hope that you enjoy your time off and read some good books as well. I want to try The Visitors. Sorry to hear that your BIL and SIL are not doing well, I’ll be thinking of you at Christmas.
Holidays that revolve around family are always tough when you lose a family member. I have a feeling that we will never be with my mother for Thanksgiving again, as her way of coping with her parents passing over the Thanksgiving holiday is to go far away from home and not have a traditional holiday celebration. I hope you are able to enjoy your Christmas and long break from work in spite of the loss of your BIL.
Take care of yourself, Ti! This is also the time of year when it is so easy to get burnt out trying to do all the things that make this time of year so special!
I’ve spent my vacation so far cleaning. It relaxes me even though it doesn’t seem like something I should be doing with all this other stuff going on around me. My daughter and I have gone to lunch a few times, run a few errands like taking the pup for shots, etc. This time of the year always makes me feel as if I need to make some big changes because it shouldn’t takes weeks to feel like normal. I must be so exhausted and not realize it.
First, I am continuing to pray for you and your family. Please extend condolences to your husband.
Second, and much less important, we just received your Christmas card. I didn’t realize the Otter Pup had a name or your husband either. 😉
Or my daughter! 😉
BTW, thank you for the prayers. We still need them as we can’t get this service scheduled with the current health status of my SIL.
I love Christmas.