And So It Begins...

It's December, and I'm a little stunned by this fact. Thanksgiving is behind us, and the holiday season has officially begun.

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving, with a little exhaustion and stress mixed in.  I guess that just goes with the territory when you cram a house full of family. My low point came about 5 minutes before the big meal, when my kids started whining about not wanting to sit at the kids' table. That in and of itself wouldn't have bothered me so much, but those crucial minutes when you're trying to get everything on the table - and preferably warm - at the same time are stressful enough without listening to whining on top of it. So I did what I sometimes do - I yelled. And this is how our Thanksgiving celebration began, I'm ashamed to admit.

Thankfully, I regained my composure a couple minutes later, and we pulled stools up to the table and crowded everybody around.  I read the feathers on our soup can turkey, on which everyone listed things for which they are grateful. That's a nice way to start a meal. Largely due to the little-kid factor, the meal itself seemed to last about 10 minutes.  I'm looking forward to the day when we are able to leisurely enjoy conversation around a big table. But of course when that day comes, I bet I'll look back fondly at the chaotic holidays with little kids. That's the way it goes...

Overall, we enjoyed several fun days together. We played in the snow, went sledding, watched movies, played games, and we even got a kid-free night out at a Bruins hockey game in the city. It flew by, and now the house feels a little too empty, too quiet.

What seems too quickly, we turn our attention towards the remainder of the holiday season.  We decorated the tree, watched Elf and Charlie Brown, we discussed lists and presents and New Year's plans.  We went back to work today, with a full long weekend behind us, a beautiful month in front of us, and memories with us forever.

There's not much more exciting than getting the sled out for the first time.

Football in the snow.  That's an awfully cute huddle.

The annual soup can turkey.  So much to be thankful for.