It has been a super long time since I had time to post an entry here. I guess I will start by telling a bit about Christmas...
Sam LOVES his 4-wheeler. He wants to ride it all the time. Brad has been great to let Sam ride wherever he happens to be working on the farm each day. That way Sam gets to ride and he has someone to watch him ride. I feel very comfortable with him riding it. He does a good job and Brad and I have both been very stern with him about how important it is to be careful on it. I was sad to see Sam get to that stage in life that I suppose all kids reach where they are all about the presents. On Christmas Eve at Grandmomma's, we heard little comments like, "Is that all of my presents?" and "She got more presents than me.", etc. Oh boy, talk about MAD!!! Brad and I both really let him have it about that. After we talked to him on Christmas Eve about it, it really did seem to get better. He was careful to say thank you to everyone and I didn't hear any more spoiled brat comments from him.
Miss Lily, on the other hand, was a joy to watch this year. She couldn't have cared less that she had fourteen more presents to open... she unwrapped one and then she played with it. She didn't go to the next gift until she had played for a while with the last one. She loved on her baby dolls and she poured pretend tea for everyone and she played store with her pretend cash register... it was so much fun. She tried so hard to play with Sam but he is so difficult these days.
On my birthday, Brad and the kids gave me some new Vera Bradley bags. Grandmomma kept the kids so Brad could take me out to eat and to a movie. Beth and Alex went to eat with us at the Outback (of course) and then we went alone to the movies to see National Treasure 2. It was pretty good.
Then Friday morning (the 28th) I met several of my friends from school and their children to visit the Catawba Science Center in Hickory. We ate lunch at Chic-Fil-A and then we went to the CSC. They have really cool exhibits and best of all, they have a small aquarium with a touch tank and a planetarium. It's all free except for the shows at the planetarium and they are only $3. The kids were wiped out after a long day and Lily napped in the van all the way home.
Friday night, Brad had a sleepover at the boy scout hut so I had Billy and Lea over. We rented a bunch of movies and picked up some supper from mom and dad's. They slept in the recliners that night then I took them home Saturday morning while I took Sam to basketball practice. Brad took his dad to the Wake Forest Bowl Game in Charlotte Saturday for Christmas so he wasn't home all day. I picked Billy and Lea up again and we went to WalMart before picking up lunch from mom and dad's again and coming home to watch the last of our movies. Then (whew) when Brad got home (around 6) we got ready and went to our friends Katie and Greg's house for supper. Beth and Alex and their kids were there, and so were Becky and Daniel. We had a really good time just hanging out.
This morning I got up and cooked some sausage links for breakfast and I started some vegetable soup for lunch and supper since it is such a dreary, sleepy day. I played hookey from church with the kids. Brad had to go teach Sunday School and then he was going to go by his office and check on some things before coming home. So far, Christmas break has been really good. I have stayed busy but nothing too stressful. I am beginning to dread Wednesday and the return to work. I know it will be here before I know it. But while I am home, I refuse to worry about it. I am enjoying my break and knowing all the while that I deserve it.
One other thing before I end this... mom and dad closed their store yesterday. They have worked their tails off for over a year and they actually seem to have a pretty good business but for many different reasons, they had to finally close the doors. I will have to admit, I am very happy about it because I have been really worried about their health and what it has been doing to them to work the long hard hours that they have been working. They have plans to open the lake back up and have a smaller version of the grill down there. For me, this is a return to "normal". I can't help but feel very strongly that this is what they need and it is also what our family needs. I am happy about it for so many reasons. I have only one thing that makes me sad and that is my daddy... I think he is very disappointed to have to close the store. I know how he is and he is definitely not one to throw in the towel on things, and sometimes that is a downfall. Sometimes, you have to know when you've given something your best try and you have to know when to quit while you still can. I hope he can find some comfort in what I think will be a more relaxed and satisfied life after all is said and done. Change is never easy, for anyone, but I think this is a change that will ultimately be for the better for everyone (except maybe for some of those neighborhood ladies who have enjoyed a break from cooking, thanks to the grill). Just pray for my parents as they go through a lot of change in the next few months.
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