Still standing...

How has it been 2 weeks since I last put up a post? Sigh.

Well, we're still standing and the tree is still there and everyone is still speaking to each other, I think. I think but I'm not sure.

My husband gave me the best gift on the 23rd by taking our daughter out of the house for a few hours so I could wrap and clean. I only needed 2 hours, but he gave me 4. By the time they came home I was actually missing them and a little worried. Still, I felt a weight lifted from my shoulders and was grateful for the peace he gave me.

On the 24th we saw my mother. We picked her up, called the restaurant to be sure of a table, and went out for lunch. Then we stopped at a grocery store, and finally came up to our house. The whole process took longer than we expected, but it went fine. Everyone behaved mostly, in spite of a few rude comments from my mother. My mother gave us exactly what we had asked for regarding gifts, with only a few weird things thrown in. In the end she decided she didn't want to go to church after all, so I drove her home just before suppertime, and then found a parking lot with internet so I could check a few things online. When I got home, I ate some dinner, and put my daughter to bed. Did my Santa thing later in the evening, and actually got some sleep.  On Christmas Day we had our planned Christmas morning, which went fine. Then in the afternoon my dad and his girlfriend came over. I like her, and my daughter is very comfortable with her so that went well. It wasn't until after they left that I realized it was the girlfriend's first visit to our home.

Oddly none of our guests ended up eating in our house, so all the snacks and extra foods that we bought... we are still eating. Oh well.

Of course good times never come without some pain, and the day after Christmas we got our property tax bill and credit card statement. I hate money in January, it's always rough.

Meanwhile my mother had planned to spend Christmas day with my brother's ex-wife and her children, and possibly my brother. I'm not really sure what happened, but a series of phone messages that she left tell me that things did not go well. My mom has this annoying habit of not answering the phone when I call. She lets the answering machine "screen" all her calls. Then she calls back and says "Sorry I didn't hear the phone ring." Personally, I think it's bulls---. I have caller ID though, so when she gets particularly ugly, I ignore her calls myself. However, she makes a game out of it. One night this week she got this game going where she had called me when I was at work, and when I called her back, she didn't answer the phone. Then she called me back when I was busy with supper so I couldn't get to the phone. When I called her back, I got her machine again. Finally, she called back and my daughter decided to answer the phone. I wasn't near enough to stop her, but my husband could have. He decided not to stop her though, and I guess the conversation was somewhat comical. Evidently my daughter told my mom that I was taking a break, and that was the end of it. I called my mom back one more time, and she gave me the machine again. Stupid game in my opinion. That was a few days ago, and I haven't talked to her since.

For New Years Eve we are expecting a snow storm. My husband might go out anyway, might not. I plan to stay home with the kid and drink some sparkling apple juice or something. Nothing exciting. On Saturday we'll celebrate Christmas with friends at some point, and maybe on Sunday I'll take down the tree. Or maybe not. We'll see. I'm not in any hurry.

Happy Holidays! May your New Year be healthy and happy.