I took some time to myself last week, to fortify myself against the onslaught.
Thursday, I drove down to visit my sister.
We had a fun day - we did lunch at a cozy little diner, then took a tour of the town.
I always love visiting that area - it feels to me like going back in time to when life was simpler.
I know that's probably a silly thought - I'm sure life is just as hectic for the people who live there, but it's nice to imagine that anyhow...
We went to a new little ice cream shop and I tried a flavor that intrigued me - chocolate pomegranate.
Oh my gosh - it was so delicious!
I had it running all over me before I was finished, but I enjoyed every bite.
My tummy was a little confused by it though, it took a while to process.
( Ha ha.)
I met some of her friends, and we played dolls a little - I have a favorite saying that I rand across years ago - it goes something like this:
"Having a sister is like a little bit of childhood that is never lost."
So true, so true.
When I got home from work Saturday, (after the fiasco of not getting it off for my daughter's friend for her special day) I found out that she had gotten the dates mixed up, and she wasn't planning to go until Monday!
...So I DID make the right choice not to take the day off, because if I had, I would have been sitting home frustrated and angry.
Sunday things fell into place too - even though my daughter in law didn't make it to church, the other guy did. He sang beautifully, and it was a really nice meeting.
He brought his wife with him this time - I haven't seen her in years.
It was like old home week. :-)
Sunday night was our big family party at Grandma's. I usually dread that, because I'm such an introvert and there are so MANY of us - but I really enjoyed it. (I'll post pics when I have more time.)
The hardest part was figuring out who all the kids were! They have all grown since I saw them last, but some not just a few inches, but several feet!
(Wow, when did that happen?)
Earlier, when I drove down to the valley, I had grabbed a couple of CD's to listen to on the road, and one of them just happened to be the sound track from "Home Alone."
This song is one of my favorites on that album:
It made me think of Christmases past, and of family and old friends.
I've seen a lot of them at work lately, and it's been really good to catch up with them a bit, and reminisce about the "good old days." Almost makes the hustle and bustle of the season seem worth while...
Speaking of the past, Sunday morning, my daughter gave me the longest hug and said that she had dreamt of my mother the night before.
I asked her about the dream, and she told me that mom had been trying and trying to get a message to me and couldn't get me on the phone, so she had left a heart wrenching (daughter's words) message on the answering machine.
...The funny thing is that right after my mother passed, I took the tape from the answering machine and put it in my drawer because I knew her voice was on it, and I couldn't bear it if it were accidentally (or otherwise) erased.
Years have passed, and I still have never been able to bring myself to listen to it.
Maybe it's time... (?)
On a not-so-good note, I learned today that I'm getting canned after Christmas.
Pretty bummed about that because, believe it or not, I do like my job.
That's a subject for another day - don't want to bring this post down.
Like Scarlett, I'll think about it tomorrow...
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