All I Want for Christmas . .

We recently took a trip to Florida to visit my dad. He is always instigating riots with the kids and rough housing with them. Now, I know where my son gets his talents!! On this specific trip, he was sitting on the couch with my big 9 year old son on his lap. They were tickling and punching each other and my dad bent down toward the ground with my son in his hands and dropped him. Unfortunately, my son bonked his head on the coffee table. He bonked it so hard that he ended up getting a big goose egg on the back of his head. My dad felt really bad and assisted in soothing my son and getting a bag of ice for his head.

The next night, my youngest daughter was sitting on a bar stool eating a snack at the counter. My dad, being the instigator he his, started picking on her and tickling her. My daughter being the goofy girl that she is, started wriggling and laughing her way away from him. She inadvertently knocked her nose on the counter top and she too ended up with a boo boo from my dad. Her little gash on her nose actually bled. I told my dad that he had to keep his hands to himself for the rest of the visit or my last, uninjured child could end up with Lord knows what happening to her.

When we got home from our visit, a Christmas present that my dad ordered online for us was sitting at the front door - it was a family gift of a camcorder. I was opening it up in the study in my big, black, highback chair. This is the conversation that took place:

Gabi: Momma, what's that? (she is standing next to me but where I can't see her because of the highback chair)

Momma: It's a camcorder from Pop Pop for all of us for Christmas.

Gabi: Well, it's not for me. I won't be allowed to hold it.

PAUSE

Gabi: This is all I got from Pop Pop for Christmas.

I turned around to see her pointing at her little gash on her nose. Poor baby Foo.

My Point of View (Part Deux)

This is my most favorite place in the world. I could sit here for hours. Just sit. Sit and think, sit and daydream, sit and work through life's problems, sit and watch my kids romp and play in the water and sand or simply just sit. And do nothing. Clear my mind of the daily exercises. Clear my thoughts of nothing and everything. Relax my being and melt into the sand. I've sat here for years. Granted, it hasn't been as peaceful as it is today. Today, I have a 9 year old, 7 year old and 5 year old that can surely entertain themselves. Occasionally, I am asked if my feet need cleaning or am shown a sandcrab or asked to take a glance at a newly created sand castle.

I reflect on days gone by when my kids were babies. I still sat here. Then, it was with a stroller next to me and a baby inside napping, or trying to nap, or just sitting enjoying the sound of the waves. Once and a while the tide would come in and I would have to jump up and rescue the stroller from the oncoming water. There was a time when they were toddlers that I would sit here and just watch them run in and out of the surf. Then, my time here was limited. But I still took advantage of it.

My hubby likes to walk the beach. I hate it. I sit here. That's my thing. As I sit here today, my mind goes to mush. I am thankful that I took the time to take this 2 day jaunt. My hubby had a 10 day break from work and I feel like I dwindled it away and didn't take advantage of the time that I could have spent together as a family. I worked 4 days in a row (being a stay at home homeschooling mom, I usually only work 2 short evenings or mornings), then I took 2 days to go to NY to help my sister paint her first home. Add it up, that leaves 2 full days at home. The painting in NY was an absolute necessity, my sister needed me and there was no question that I needed to make time to be there. The 4 days at work I could have done without. My oldest daughter clung to my leg on day 3 and asked when I was going to stop leaving and stay home. No lie, she really said that. That comment hurt. And it was said again to me on day 4 and to my hubby when he put her to bed that nite. I belong at home with my kids and if I've ever wondered if they notice that is my role or not, it was certainly made clear with my daughters comments. So, as I made the flight home from NY after my painting excursion, I made up my mind that we were going to Florida. It would only be for a little over 2 days but we were going. To be together and just be us. No distractions. Just us. We've always found this place as a retreat and I need it more than ever right now. My life is fast paced. I have accepted that and deal with it very well on a day to day basis. But there are times when I just need to sit and be.

And today I have accomplished that.

The Annual Lighting of the Kids

It probably looks strange and some odd way of torture but it is actually a tradition that we started back when Jake was a baby. Don't worry, the lights are cool so they don't burn my precious ones. What can I say, they're odd. They like this annual tradition and whenever I get the lights out, they all flock towards me and wait to be wrapped. They have to complain just a little that the lights are too hot or 'it's touching my neck'. But I wrap first and then turn them on to take the pictures.

Our season is officially kicked off.

The Christmas season has begun.