With Christmas just a couple of days away, I find myself taking cover and hiding from the hustle because my fuse has been very short and I don’t want to head into the holidays angry. I’ve had the past few days off to get stuff done and now I just want to transform into a slug.
Right Now:
Nothing. I am not doing anything because I am really worn-out and just need to sit. We have nothing planned for the day.
This Week:
We attended Christmas service last Thursday but on Christmas Eve we will make a short trip to say “Hi” to some friends who are working at the church that day and then head over to my MIL’s. My nephews are down and one of them has small kids so it ought to be fun. I’m bringing the mashed potatoes and boat loads of butter and cheese are a must.
Christmas Day I am cooking a Prime Rib roast with all the trimmings and then we are heading to the movies, probably to see the new Mary Poppins movie!
The Hub has off this week which is very rare and although we had hoped to head out-of-town we will be doing some day trips to places we’ve not been or to places we haven’t been to in a while.
Reading:
Finishing up Force of Nature. I had not planned to pick this one up but the book I wanted to read “fell” off my Kindle and I was left with nothing to read so I dove in. I want to end the year with Michelle Obama though.
Watching:
Christmas movies and shows. So behind on them.
New Things I’ve Tried:
I haven’t tried any new products this week but this year I tried to tone down my Christmas spending and I’d say I was about 60% successful. I went to the mall for two small things and left, totally disgusted by what the holiday has become. I saw a lady at the PINK store who had wads of cash out in plain sight, and she was making a sale of over $1500. At an underwear store, people. I think it was admirable that she was paying cash but I seriously feared for her safety because it was clear to me that she had thousands more to spend.
Gosh, the majority of us do too much, spend too much and just fall apart at the end of the year. It’s not supposed to be like that at all. It doesn’t have to be. I’m hopeful.
Grateful for:
I am grateful for this time off. I can’t even begin to tell you how grateful.
What does this weekend look like for you? Are you doing okay? Do you need some encouragement?
Book Chatter 
I did not have energy this year to do anything extra this year and Den and I opted for one memorable meaningful surprise gift each. But I still bought us both all of the things I would normally wrap…I just didn’t wrap them…something is really wrong with my thinking…I am thinking. We even simplified Christmas dinner and I did not have any energy for baking. I guess for me this year it’s all about energy.
Some people really get into wrapping but I am not one of them. I like to see all the beautiful photos of wrapped gifts under the tree but when I actually do it, and I had to for that family we adopted, I was so over it by the time I was done and my back was seriously killing me. LOL.
I hope you had a nice Christmas. It sounds as if you did. That gingerbread cake!! Wow. Good luck with the scan tomorrow. Praying for a good result.
Thank you…I am not as nervous about it as I usually am which is beginning to make me nervous!
It’s stressful here. Not that anything has happened. Just trying to keep everyone, including myself, calm. However, sometimes the holidays seem to magnify other things that maybe need to be addressed, but not now. Unfortunately, it’s never “now”…until the next crisis hits. Then I think about my turning 50 this coming year… Like Kit kept telling himself in Bowfinger, “keep it together, keep it together.” Sometimes it’s hard to remember the reason for the season, but we’re trying.
I turned 50 last September and it didn’t sit well with me for awhile but I am okay with it now, I guess. I just don’t think I deal with stress all that well anymore. When I get time off like this I realize just how exhausted I am and I know that contributes to my short fuse and lack of overall stamina. I hope now that Christmas is over we can both settle down a little and relax.
Amen.
I went to a Christmas party yesterday and have another one to go to tomorrow. Christmas day will be spent at my son and daughter in law’s house with my other son.
I’ve been watching a whole lot of Christmas movies. More than I’ve watched in previous years together I think.
My first book of the year has been decided, at least in print. The Lido by Libby Page which I didn’t get to read this year before it had to go back to the library.
Merry Christmas to you and your loved ones. I hope you get the rest you need.
I hope you had a lovely Christmas. I love the idea of Christmas parties but I am a little weird. If I get an invite, I immediately don’t want to go. It has to do with how tired I seem to always be but if I push myself to go I always have a great time. I did that twice this past month. Had a great time at both, of course. We just got invited to a New Year’s Eve party and even though my kids have plans of their own, my husband and I will go because we usually just sit at home because of the fireworks and the pup being so nervous but we’ll go and come back before it gets crazy.
Have a very Merry Christmas Ti. I do hope you can relax and unwind. Becoming was incredible. I think Winter in Paradise, Hildebrand will be my last book of 2018.
I am really just now getting to Becoming even though I’ve been saying it for a week. I picked up one other book because I forgot Becoming one day and I felt the need to finish that lousy book first. LOL. I wish I had just ditched it.
Sorry you’re so worn out. It’s an awful feeling. I’ve been the same as you with a short fuse. The holiday time is nice but it’s nice when it’s all over too. Sounds like you have some good things planned so hopefully that will lift your spirits.
It’s been a week and I am just now decompressed enough to function. Isn’t that horrible?
Christmas is stressful, especially for women. Since we have a retail business, we’ve been extremely busy and don’t have a lot of time to really enjoy the season. We hope to stay in our pajamas all day on Tuesday. Merry Christmas to you and your family.
Were you able to stay in your jammies? We ventured out to see Marry Poppins Returns but spent the entire day inside so we were all happy to take a drive.
Merry Christmas to you and yours, Ti! Yes, it’s a tough time to relax for sure. However, I’m sure grateful that I’m not in the same situation as I was in last year when my husband was recovering from heart surgery. That was definitely a quiet Christmas. We’re hosting family this year and then having another ‘family gift exchange’ on Saturday. Since the kids are all grown, we have to share with other families and jobs. Having a popcorn bar on Saturday with 8 kinds of popcorn. Think that will be fun. Take care – get some rest – enjoy your time off. Sending thoughts of peace your way. 🙂
Last year the holidays were difficult with the sudden passing of my BIL. No one was really expecting that. The year before my mother…etc. This year was better in that regard, even though my husband was sick! Yep! First day of vacation for him in I don’t know how long and he got sick! He’s on the tail end of it now. I hope you had a wonderful Christmas!!
This year more than ever, I am feeling as if we don’t need any more stuff added to our lives. I think it will be a minimalist Christmas present-wise. We have family visiting from the UK so that’s our emphasis. Merry Christmas!
I felt like we kept it pretty simple but when it was all said and done, it was more than I thought. Next year, I plan to trim it down more
I hope all is well. No time off for me, except half a day to take Kat to the orthodontist.
No time off at all? That rots. I’m sorry about that. My time is flying by. I am trying to make the most of it but my husband got sick and that has put a damper on things. He’s feeling a little better now.
There are so many expectations at the holiday time, and these can never be achieved. That leaves us feeling disappointed all the time.
Well, that’s simply not the way I want to live. Out with the expectations. On with the day-to-day joys and struggles.
Happy holidays!
True. It does have a lot to do with expectations. Overall, my break was very good. I read, cleaned the entire house because of that Marie Kondo lady and got to do some things I’ve been wanting to do. But I am back at work today. It had to happen eventually. LOL.
I’m sorry you’re feeling so exhausted! My family has been trying to downsize for the past few years, and we finally achieved what I consider to be QUITE A CHILL CHRISTMAS this year. I hope you’re recovering okay by now! I hope you’ve had enough time to relax and read and not be stressed about holiday plans.
I struggled pretty much the entire break. Everything was good as far as holidays go but I just didn’t realize how much work was affecting me. It took me a long while to recover and of course today is my first week back and my neck is already a bundle of knots even though nothing has happened today. I am home tonight though. Nothing planned so I will just hang on the couch with my book. How was your holiday?