Catching Up

I looked at my blog this morning and realized that I had not put any entries in for a while. I guess I have been busier than I thought! Thanksgiving was a nice day. I had the entire morning to quietly putt around, Macy's Parade on the TV, no one else in the house and no meal to start until noon. I think it was the best Thanksgiving morning I have had in my life!

David went out to watch friends play football. He was unable to participate because of a ruptured tendon in his right hand that will require surgery if he does not allow it to heal properly. He said he had a great time taking photos of his friends and they got caught up in posing for action shots, which meant the game was not really a game but a photo op!

Anya, Adam, John and Ella were going to Adam's brother's house but they planned on being at our house late afternoon. I planned to put on a spread at 4 pm, for David, Anya's family, and Jon and that is what I did. We had turkey, sausage stuffing (non-negotiable in our family), mashed potatoes, gravy, rolls, carrots, peas, green bean casserole, parmesan-sage sweet potatoes, butternut squash, corn pudding, finished with pumpkin and apple pies. I still can't figure out how to cook for less than 20 people!

We then watched football for a while. David went to bed real early (7 pm) because he had to be up at 2 AM for the store opening - it was to be an 18 hour day for him! All were gone by 8 pm and it turned out to be a pleasant day.

Anya and I did the marathon shopping on Friday, getting started at 6 am. That Friday I got almost all of my Christmas shopping done, put up the tree, got it decorated. As of today, I only need presents for one person, to get out Christmas letters and to do my Christmas baking. All presents are wrapped, all decorating is done. When I am working and the holidays come, I have to be a machine to get everything done that I want!

Work is crazy with year end. There is all kinds of drama, with employees and conspiracy theories and paranoia. Tons of work and lots of politics. I am proud to say that I am remaining removed from most of the drama and conflict, and I have remained true to my commitment to myself about work hours. I have not put in more than 46 hours, averaging around 42. Compared to past years, that is almost part-time!

In the coming weeks, we will be discussing whether I will remain with IIA College permanently. For my part, I am thinking very carefully about it. I am leaning towards a "no" but my survival instincts want me to say yes, to get a steady paycheck and good benefits. The rest of me says that the pressure to work more and all of the drama makes it an unhealthy environment. Time will tell. Right now I am just watching to see how things flow, without locking into any one viewpoint.

I have invitations to two Christmas parties - 2 more than last year! Hope that means that I am getting more socially involved. I really need to work on that. It would be so easy to become reclusive in the off hours but it really isn't healthy and I continue to try to improve my life for me!

In all of this, I am still getting to the gym, usually 2x a week. The other day, I did 10 miles of cardio, so I must be getting healthier although the scale tells me I am just getting more solid. I work around the house and the garden and seem to be keeping up with things for the most part. I even have a little extra energy to help Dave with his laundry!

I think that gets things caught up. Some people find the holidays stressful, but I like to wrap myself in them like a big, comfy blanket on a cold day. Music, food and holiday cheer help to push away the gray days and the blues. Those come and go, but last usually only for minutes. That means the blessings of the holidays continue to find me and I am thankful. I hope they find you as well.