the eugene bean

All of our packages were safely delivered, huge sigh of relief all around, and hopefully some happy people in New Orleans and the surrounding areas. I even found out that our holiday cards arrived back home, when I was sure they wouldn't arrive till after the Big Day. You'll still have to wait for the PO story, because not everyone has opened their gifts and I don't want to give away what's inside.

A special thanks to Lisa, who reminded me through her blog- that you can read right over there if you take a moment to click on it- that kids aren't all bad all the time. So I thought I'd take a minute to be thankful for a change.

I enjoy having E and J home from school all day for the holidays because:

• E is around a lot more for long snuggles and back scratches
• I can watch J play and interact with his friends
• I can make books with E entitled Amimal Adventures
• J and I can sit on the sofa and watch a PBS cooking show
• I can listen to them play together in the most imaginative way
• We can bake cookies together
• I can sit around with other mothers and gossip while the kids play
• I can write a story on the computer with J about a brave knight named Sir Johnson (Go ahead and laugh, he's not sitting right in front of you. I had to keep a straight face.)

I'm finally getting a hint of Christmas spirit, with lots of fun planned in the upcoming days. The Snoopers should sneak by the house tonight and leave treats for the kids, a sure sign that Christmas is around the corner.

We plan to have Christmas breakfast tomorrow morning with our neighbors; a couple and their 2 children that I really enjoy spending time with. I'm looking forward to it.

Ty went to the store and bought a roast and potatoes and asparagus for our Christmas Eve meal. I'm going to make Creme Brulee for dessert, and then we'll open presents from our relatives. Although I really miss family in New Orleans, I'm happy to be spending Christmas with my family, making new traditions and figuring out just the way to make the holiday special.

And I'm so excited about the trip we've planned! I checked the weather there and learned that they are expecting 2-3 inches tomorrow night and 2-3 inches Christmas day. We got our snow tires and we're ready to go! Exciting!