A Perfect Way to End the Year

 

Photo by Jude Beck on Unsplash

This Christmas was the least stressful holiday I've had while being a mom. With 3 grown boys, 1 with a household not far from here, 1 living out of state, and 1 living at home for a while, I knew things were going to be quiet. Especially with "the virus" (as my school kids call it) putting a damper on things, I was expecting a peaceful, quiet holiday. School was scheduled to end on the 18th, but we received a little gift from the school board: an extra day off. Numbers were spiking here, so we were in school 2 days, virtual 2 days, and off on Friday. I actually had everything done before I usually do, so I was able to work on something for my online teacher (SLP) store. I wanted to get some of it done so I could completely take the last week of the year off while we were on vacation.

The weather forecast for Christmas Eve into Christmas Day hinted at a white Christmas. Yeah, right. I only remember maybe 2 white Christmases in my life. When you live in the Tennessee Valley, you learn to take the forecast with a grain of salt and not believe it until you see it. WELL...when I left for the 5:00 Christmas Eve Mass, it was snowing and had just begun to stick. It snowed all during Mass and when I walked out the door, it was still snowing and everything was covered. The 6:00 bells were ringing, most of the people were already gone so it was quiet and most everything was still. It was absolutely gorgeous!

YS moved back into the house a few months ago, and (just in case you don't know) he's an excellent cook. I had everything ready to pop into the oven before I left, but he had everything heated up and cooked when I got home. He also did this:

It just filled my heart with the joy of the season to see that! This isn't something we see very often:

I wish I had asked YS or CH to turn off the lights in the dining room and living room...it would have made for a better picture of our tree. Before I went home I drove by the tree in the park, which is right next to where I live.

Our backyard looked just as enchanted; like something out of Narnia:

Around 8:30 pm, I happened to notice a vehicle pull into our driveway. I went to the side window, looked out, and saw MS getting out of a taxi! He flew in to surprise us for Christmas! (But can you believe I didn't take any pictures of the boys that weekend???) That was the icing on the Christmas Cake!

I take Gurl Dogg (remember her?) on a daily walk in the park. There was still plenty of snow to be found.

See what I mean? A beautiful Southern Christmas Snow...MAGICAL! By the time I walked GD, the kids had already sledded. The next day there were still signs of the laughter:

With all of the craziness of 2020 and the unsurety of 2021, it made me smile to think of the joy that the little ones were able to experience on Christmas Day!