Christmas Sunday

Whew! Our final EVENTS of the 2010 Christmas season took place yesterday.

The children's presentation in the morning service and the leadership party at our home last night. Both were such fun. You can't miss with children on stage. And parties with real friends are especially nice.

As always, two little guys stole the morning. Donovan (4) really had to go potty after the second song and he could not understand why his mom - who was looking right at him and smiling - kept shaking her head "No!"

Baccarius was on the second row and couldn't make up his mind if he wanted to stand next to his sister (stage right) or his big brother (stage left). So he simply divided his time equally, transitioning with each song then turning to flash a huge smile at the audience! So cute!

We avoided the classic "nose-picking" and "panty-flashing" which seem to always accompany children's Christmas productions. But only because this presentation was abbreviated, I'm sure. Smile.

Then we dashed home for the final whirlwind of preparations, making ready for our leadership teams to come over. I was so very thankful for the extra help of a couple of young friends and Kristin.

Our friends caught the loose ends; Kristin and Frank decorated. I mostly stood in the middle of the kitchen turning in circles and barking orders that made little to no sense.

It's one thing to love having people into your home. It's another thing entirely to be organized enough not to panic just before they arrive! (Regular readers understand my serious lack of organizational skills. That's why we called in reinforcements. Smile.)

Frank's hometown newspaper closes nearly every "society report" with this phrase, "And a lovely time was had by all." That pretty well sums up our party with the staff and church board!

I did find myself caught off-guard by a couple of exceptionally big waves of grief on Saturday.

Meagan and I were on a dual mission that morning. Time-sensitive Christmas gifts needed to be purchased along with the final food items for our party. (Others might say we "went shopping" but for both of us - it was a mission! We're not big pleasure shoppers. Smile.)

We had split up in Wal-mart, maximizing our time. I pushed my cart with purpose while fumbling through my purse to snag the list. Glancing to the left, I caught sight of a top hanging in the women's section and thought, "Oh, Mom would love that. It looks just like her!"

My heart lurched and before I could swallow and check them, tears began flowing.

I took the deep cleansing breath we all employ when crying insists on pushing its way to the surface. But it was no use. For one brief moment, I considered abandoning my cart and making a dash for the parking lot.

But this was the time slot allotted for the "Wal-mart Run" and hiding in the car would only impede our progress. So, I took the one course of action remaining. I found a gently used tissue in my purse and pressed on - wiping at tears and scanning shelves.

I'm sure several people wondered about the crazy lady crying in the frozen food section.

I must say it was a great improvement being able to cry in Frank's arms later while using Mom's recipe for the sausage balls she baked for every holiday party. Sigh.

Joy and sorrow. Tears and laughter. Two equally important sides of the coin called life.

Hope your coin is heavy on the joyful side today!

One final note. Today is the twenty-third birthday of our precious Meagan Elizabeth! We can't believe that much time has flown by. And we find ourselves more amazed every day at the beautiful, confident woman our "little girl" has become. Happy Day, Meagan!!