It’s Christmas night at 11:30 and Tyler just left to head back to his apartment. Rick’s in bed and I’m sitting in the living room by the fire enjoying the tree and cuddling with the dog. What a nice day! Really enjoyed seeing the friends who dropped by to have lox and bagels and mimosas. Lots of laughter, lots of fun!

For as long as I can remember, if Rick was asked what he wanted for Christmas, his standard answer is peace and harmony. And that is the best way to describe the day. The not having to outdo one another with expensive extravagant gifts and keeping our Christmas gift giving to a minimum, made for a much nicer holiday. Really thinking about what the kids wanted and needed and getting it exactly right was so much fun! And the gifts from the kids were so thoughtful and wonderful. I feel so happy and content! It would have been great to have our daughter here, but it doesn’t seem to be possible since she moved to Texas…..we did get to FaceTime with her and that was really nice! We are heading there in a week and a half for a visit. So looking forward to it!

Can’t believe Christmas has come and gone, but thoroughly loved it! There’s a lot to be said for peace and harmony!

God, I love this time of year! The decorations, especially the decorations. Who doesn’t love all the lights and red and green? Tamales. The weather. The street fair. Sweaters. Jackets. Boots. All of it!

I feel like I really need to write something positive. I just went back and read my last post about my friend Valarie. Wow. That was almost harder to read than it was to write. I apologize for that. What a downer.

Sooooo-It is December 10th and I have my Christmas shopping done and the presents for our daughter and her boyfriend were mailed to Texas this morning. The ones for here are wrapped and under the tree. Back when I worked, hearing someone say that this early annoyed the hell out of me. When you have all the time in the world, stuff gets done. Quickly. It helps that neither Rick, nor my mother, nor I want anything. I never would have believed that I would get to the point that there is nothing I want. Or need. In fact, looking at the massive amount of stuff my stepdad had when he died (and trying to figure out what on earth to do with it all), really made me realize we all have way too much stuff. At the risk of sounding sappy, I truly enjoy getting things for the kids that they want or need or making donations to my favorite charities. Yeah, that happened. I think that means I’m old. Crap.

Instead of buying more stuff, we are focusing on experiences. More dinners with friends. Travel. Duh! Live music! That never gets old. And takes no room in the attic. (We really do have an attic. And it is a disaster! I digress……) Staying up late. Sleeping in. Going to the gym (to be honest, I like leaving the gym more than going TO the gym, but I do love the way I feel when I exercise). Cooking good food. Eating good food. Good wine. Tasty cocktails. Enjoying the wonderful people in our lives. Our adorable dog, Idgie. Reading. Appreciating what we have!

A side-note….I finally found a way to avoid spam comments! Wish I would have a long time ago! When I signed in to write this post, I had 1025 comments ready for moderation. Geez! It was total BS! So, now, if anyone submits a comment I will actually be able to see it instead of all those crazy ads.

Enjoy the holidays! Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukah or whatever you choose to celebrate! And make the most of what’s left of this year……another one is right around the corner!