Our first full day of the Christmas holiday
started out great – even if it was after just a short nap break in the
action. Tai Chi with Dad, Michael,
Naomi, and Aiden added to the group again was awesome; and then Dad and the
other guys cooked breakfast while the girls got to take turns getting ready for
the day. That put us on the clean-up
crew after we ate; but that was okay with us – and Dad made sure that all of
the cookware was cleaned as they went along; so it wasn’t even that much work.
Since we were having a work day – either at
home or elsewhere; Dad also cooked up a full country breakfast too. That was great, but it was the breakfast
conversation and time with my friends and family that was the best part of my
morning. Michael, Tim, and Rowen all
needed to leave for work or other chores as soon as they could; but Naomi and
Aiden stayed to play with Ethan and Ehlana while their parents were busy
today. That worked out for Mom, Dad, and
me too; since that gave the twins something fun to do while we were busy with
chores and holiday pre-cooking work.
That’s what I did all day – help out with
house cleaning, laundry, and cooking ahead for our family Christmas next
weekend. We had some visitors stop by
now and then too – like Violet and Dillon; so there was some entertainment here
and there that kept the fun level up; but I was happy to spend the time with
Mom and Dad too. The four kids mostly
played in the living room or Ethan and Ehlana’s room. They had one outdoor adventure with Violet
and Dillon while they were here; but I stayed in and kept working instead of
doing that with them.
I didn’t see Michael for his afternoon
break because he had some things to do at home while he was away from the Inn,
but I did meet up with him again at the Inn in time to help out with another
busy, holiday dinner rush. Yes, that
does make it sound like this has been an all-work, not-much-fun kind of day;
but I really loved the work at the Inn too – and the time with Michael and his
family. Rebecca and I especially had fun
as we talked about our respective sleepovers; and I’m really glad that she had
fun with Lucas and his family. Rebecca
told me that Jenny’s having a fun weekend with Lance too, and I’m sure we’ll
hear all about it when she’s helping out at the Inn tomorrow too; but I don’t
think that we need to include any details in my journal.
Michael and I were set free from the Inn
early, supposedly thanks to my extra help tonight, and while that might have
just been Miranda’s excuse for getting us out of there; we were very okay with
the bonus chance to spend some time together instead of staying until close
with everyone else. Mom, Dad, and the
twins were on their own by the time we got home, and we had a little visit with
them in the living room while they took a short intermission to chat with us
and trade dinnertime stories; but then I took Michael up to the lounge to hang
out there instead of watching the last half of the movie they were watching.
We didn’t watch a movie. Today was the first day of the bowl games for
college football; so we tuned in to the current game being played – and then
didn’t watch it at all. With everyone
else still awake and downstairs, our play time didn’t get too hot and heavy –
at first. That did heat up a bit after
Mom, Dad, Ethan, and Ehlana all stopped in to say goodnight to us on their way
to bed after their movie, though; so Michael and I are both very happy campers
tonight.
Staying up late again tonight would have
been fun, but with both a busy afternoon at the Inn and the Christmas concert
tomorrow night at the church; we decided not to do that. Michael went home at a bit after eleven so
that we could both get a good night of rest.
Keeping Michael for another sofa sleepover had been very tempting; but I
resisted the urge – and I really do need to get more sleep tonight after only
being in nap mode for a couple of hours last night. I haven’t had any family business work to do
tonight, and the rest of my nightly computing didn’t take long; so I’ll even
manage to be sleeping before midnight. I’m
ready to get into nap mode now, and that’s all of the news for today, so let’s
do the Christmas music videos; and then I’m out of digital mode and off to
dreamland!
This song gets on my list for making a
difference in the world in a big way.
The original version was recorded to raise money to help the people
affected by the famine in Ethiopia. The
new version for Band-Aid 30 will help the people of West Africa who are dealing
with the Ebola crisis there. Our family
business has more direct ways to help with that than buying music; but I hope
that lots of people do buy the song and help out with that worthwhile cause
this Christmas!
May the Magi Force be with you!
