Christmas 2014

The end of the year flew by.  My "under the weather" pun costume for Halloween turned out to be a bad omen, as I dealt with medical problems for a good chunk of time after that.   Nasty kidney stone, critically-low potassium, a cold, and then the flu.  I had been given tickets for a Red Wings game, but I was too sick to go.  At least my husband and his friend made sure the tickets didn't go to waste, and my husband was kind enough to bring me home some of my favorite pizza.

I didn't get to do nearly as much as I wanted for Christmas.  I did manage to get out all of my Christmas cards.  One Vicodin and five hours allowed me to crank out over 80 cards.  I knew I had to take advantage of having a stretch of time when I was feeling good.  I don't feel obligated to send out cards, but it's one of my favorite traditions.  I enjoy doing it and would be very disappointed if I were unable to do that.

I also managed to get special cards and gifts for my immediate family.  The one thing I really wanted to do this year was get gifts for everyone at work.  This was the year I was going to hit the kitchen and hopefully get a little crafty.  Unfortunately, all of my issues with illness made it impossible.  I swear, this year every single co-worker and boss got me something.  On a few occasions, I made a remark about how I felt bad and how embarrassed I was that I didn't have anything to give.  Everyone was kind and said something sweet to make me feel better.  I appreciated it, but I sure hope I can pull something together for everyone next year.

My son turned two last month.  He is still too young to really get into the gift opening portion of Christmas, but that was actually kind of charming.  I expect that next year he will be ready to shred wrapping paper as soon as he gets to the tree.

It was a sweet and quiet Christmas.  My flu had improved greatly by the holiday, and I actually felt good all day.  I hope I'll keep feeling good for 2015!

Flag Day

On the first Saturday of every June, our little community goes nuts over Flag Day. It's our big celebration of the year. The big events are the parade in the morning and the fireworks at night. It's a small parade on a short route, but that doesn't stop people from flocking in for the fun. Matthew was only about 7 months old on his first Flag Day, so he was able to enjoy it a little more this year.

Sometimes, I get sad that I don't live in my hometown anymore because I wish Matthew could experience things that I grew up with on a regular basis.  This is his hometown though, and I think the annual Flag Day festivities will be part of his childhood that he will fondly remember as an adult.

Mother's Day

I wasn't expecting anything on Mother's Day.  Ernie isn't one to make a big fuss of holidays, so I was just looking forward to another nice weekend day at home.  Ernie was kind enough to get up with Matthew in the morning and let me sleep in (which he actually usually does on the weekends, which is awesome).  When I did come downstairs, he immediately asked me if I'd like to go out for breakfast.  It was still some what early, so we figured we'd beat the Mother's Day crowd.

Ernie and I had excellent omelettes.  We ordered French Toast for Matthew, which he'd never had before.  We sampled it, and it was really good, but Matthew was happier nibbling on some of my wheat toast.  At home, I opened my cards: one from Matthew, one from Chewie.

I chose to make one of my favorite recipes for dinner: Mexican Stuffed Shells.  It's an easy recipe, but it takes a little time, so it's not an ideal recipe for a weeknight after work.  It's a perfect Sunday dinner.

It was a beautiful day, not too hot outside.  We spent time in the backyard playing with Matthew.  I blew bubbles that he had a blast chasing, and we also kicked around a ball.  Matthew loves being outside.  I am not an outdoors person, so I'm trying to adjust for his sake.

I spent the majority of my life planning on never having children.  I was perfectly content with not being a mother, and my husband also didn't want kids.  For some unknown reason, we both changed our minds in 2010.  We got engaged later that year, married in 2011, and Matthew was born in 2012.  I can't believe I spent so many years not wanting this.  Being a mom is hard, but it is so incredible.  I feel so lucky each and every day.