Skip to main content

My Christmas wishlist

Yesterday I learnt that some people are already erecting their Christmas trees. Sounds like a fantastic idea to get into the Season - if you don't have a two busy kids!

For the past couple of years, I've really enjoyed having our tree decorated with (my favourite) fairy lights twinkling in the night - and sometimes day - and all the festive cheer that comes with it. We normally pack it all up 1 week later and it just feels short-lived.

We've jokingly noted that this year we'll have to suspend the tree from the ceiling because of all the children around. What about a couple of wreaths hung on the wall? In my house, storing gifts as high and out of sight as they can be is probably the only way they'll survive until 25 December - safe from children and adults alike!

This year, my Christmas wishlist is quite long...

I'd like:

1. A relaxed morning, as we prepare for the Church service, reading the story of Jesus' birth in Bethlehem and thanking God for sending His Son. I want to exchange more hugs, kisses and smiles than anything else.

2. I'd like to walk into Church on time and wearing a smile - also some comfortable clothes, belts that fit and shoes that I can balance on.

3. I'd like to celebrate with the believers as we remember the first Christmas and sing familiar carols that reignite our hearts with praise and thanksgiving.

4. For lunch I'd like to sit and eat. Be it on the floor, on the grass, or at a dining table. I'd like the food to be cooked with love and eaten with appreciation.

5. After lunch I hope for more music and laughter as we exchange gifts and cards, visits and Skype calls as tokens of our care for our friends and family.

6. And before bedtime, I'd like to be tired but not cranky. Moeg but not uitpyp as we round up the kids - filthy, sticky, sweaty and sleeping (I hope) - and hold them tightly as I thank God for their place in our family. And ask Him to take His rightful place in our family.

And then smile to myself as I fall asleep...

"I don't want no plastic Christmas!" - Andel Klaasen

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Papu Comes to Visit 3

Since the last post we've had two more weeks of Papu visiting with us and then one very long week since we dropped him off at the airport. In mid-July we went to Burlington Airport en route to my final exam, and recreated what should have been his triumphant arrivals lounge experience in June. PJ took him to Lake Champlain and surrounds while they waited for me to complete the test and then treated me to "the test is done" lunch. We spent a rare hot afternoon at Silver Lake Park swimming with friends, we shopped 'til we dropped at The Vermont Spot, we were able to see the clean-up operations happening in flood-stricken Montpelier and even managed a quick stop at the Vermont State House.  We visited the Trapp Family Lodge in Stowe and enjoyed Ben and Jerry's ice cream at their factory. We took a drive around my old VTC campus in Randolph and Gifford Medical Center where I practiced this past year. We drove through the Dartmouth campus and the Boat House on the Conn
1 comment
Read more

Papu Comes to Visit

For the last 10 days we have been enjoying having Papu here with us so much that we completely forgot about the plan to post daily blog entries about his trip!  Yes, I considered this special visit the perfect reason to resurrect the blog and write more... Well, it turns out that when your Dad is visiting from overseas, you don't have much time for anything else besides trying to do 180924523093284 things, be in the moment, and take a photo of it! Here are a few photos of the first week-and-a-bit: Day one. The equivalent of driving to Plettenberg Bay I'm told! We experienced smooth open roads in some parts, midday congestion in and out of Boston, heavy downpour with flash flood warnings towards Burlington, and some interesting GPS navigation. But the passenger and his luggage reached us safely at the end of a long day. At last he was able to wrap his arms around Papu! Ethan and Adrienne arrived back from their trip to Lake George the day after Papu arrived and have been doing
1 comment
Read more

Papu Comes to Visit 2

 It's been another 10 or so days of Papu in Vermont with us, and he's experienced more heat, severe flooding, Summer holiday camps, a long-awaited touristy activity, and many, many late dinners!  We returned safely from Plymouth VT just before mudslides, flooding and road erosion caused all major routes between there and home to be closed. It's been raining nonstop some days! The snack shack that we visited in Papu's first week suffered flooding similar to what they experienced in 2011's Hurricane Irene, and many more surrounding towns have been struggling to get on top of water diversion and mopping up efforts. We are fortunate to be safe and able to access necessities, and bar one wild drive in a thunderstorm last Thursday, we are trying to time outings around extreme weather forecasts. Of course, this means that we haven't been out much! Last Saturday, however, the sun was shining, and PJ took the crew into Boston for a bit of sightseeing. They visited Fenway
1 comment
Read more