Weekend- That's A Wrap!

Hello and happy Monday!

Folks - we are just 10 days away from Christmas!*!*!*!**!*!*! Wahoo! How are you doing? Everything wrapped and under the tree? Is your even tree up? Are you able to sit every night and enjoy your Advent readings? Have you not lost it with the long lines or argued over a budget with the hubby?? Yea - me neither! Its a little haphazard over here, so this week’s theme - soak it up! The stress is going to be there, the money is going to get spent, the lines are going to be long - how about you say it with me - MERRY MERRY! I am in a mode of every time I want to lose it I say Merry Merry and just try to remember we all feel the crazy of family to dos, end of year work to dos, budget frustrations, family irritations - but the season is here and it will be gone so quickly!!! Please soak it up with me! Let’s laugh at the stress, let’s pause when we want to scream at our loved ones to HELP! We will smile and remember there is a holiday memory that is wrapped up in all this frustration somewhere….so let’s focus on those being made and those to come!

This weekend we missed some of the fun, we had some unexpected of our own, and I had to finally put the to do list away last night and cuddle up on the couch with Danny - but I did it and woke up refreshed. So I am letting myself off the hook this year…and I would feel a little better if everyone else did too?? Deal??? Deal!

Friday Danny’s IV failed and he pulled it out himself. Now it was only a peripheral so not as complex as some of his other lines, but still not the safest thing he could do. He said he was tired of being sick and just needed a break - how can i argue with that? Plus he seemed to feel better and needed a good night’s sleep without being tethered to the meds. So out it came….and Dan was off to the next thing - hockey. The game later in the evening and located a little closer to home than usual so we were able to ride over together. The team plays mostly in the 4-5PM range, making it a little hard for me to attend, so I always relish the chances I do get to watch Danny do his thing.

Seeing him interact with the players, get animated at the game, take his notes for his many spreadsheets afterwards….it is awesome. To know he is living out a passion and to witness his experience, I feel like I am catching a glimpse of what God has intended for his life. I am suddenly privy to His plans for us and how bright Dan’s future in this world would be. I pray as I watch these moments that they only multiply and his enjoyment and passion for the game and coaching only grows.

I met up with Dan after the game on cloud 9 eagerly awaiting his hug and game assessment. This particular evening his parents and family friends had come to watch too, so his smirk was exceptionally prominent and those dimples so deep….but his eyes looked tired and pained. We all visited for a moment and then headed home….but before we even go to the car Danny said the game wiped him out and his energy had gone from endless to empty. He felt tired and nauseous and very weak. Poor guy had gone from serious couch time to 90 miles an hour in one afternoon, so my plans for the weekend started to be cleared as I crafted text messages to our dear friends with holiday parties on Saturday. You win some and you lose some….I just did it and had to move on. Always next year….

Saturday came in under a deep fog. We had slept in pretty late - certain hour holiday errands and few parties would be put on hold. I got up and started doing a few things trying to determine what I could get done from home. Starbucks in hand I started to plot and plan - saddened to not be able to enjoy my reindeer sweatshirt or share the one appetizer I had planned to make - but on the other hand….my family who we are currently living with had all left on a Christmas Trip to Puerto Rico (my mom and sisters had accompanied my dad on a business trip as their Christmas present and Danny and I had 5 days to ourselves at home) - and it was quiet. It was actually really nice to sit by my mom’s gorgeous decor, sip my coffee and shop for my secret santas and sweet Husband. Lemons out of lemonade was feeling good.

Danny got up slow…taking it easy, doing his treatment….trying to ease into the day….and then all of sudden something clicked. His pain meds, his treatments, the IV meds paying off….and Dan got out his to do list. He started marking things off! Then he asked that we put the computers away and do some serious clean out - dust, vacuum, clean off our many to do piles, boxes that meds had come in over the summer were broken down and discarded. As we worked we talked - Dan was sure to take good breaks- and we agreed that we needed to go into 2015 with a clean slate. We need to really focus on healthy habits from avoiding extra stress from unplanned errands and late bills, extra to dos or having bits of clutter. We need to remain as much dust and pet dander free for clean breathing. We would start fresh today and work our darndest to keep it that way….and the best part we did point fingers or blame or get frustrated, we looked at each other and said, and promised, we will do it together!

After our cleaning and reset frenzy I got ready and he rested. The evening brought a date to the grocery store and dinner made by my love. I was able to relish some amazing brie with mushrooms and watch Dan make his way around the kitchen. We then did some decorating for Chirstmas and went to bed embarrassingly early. It was the most simple, yet perfect day. Just us two, feeling the groove of being a couple and enjoying the simple pleasure of laughing our way through the grocery store or dreaming of decorating our own place next year- we thought just getting cleaned up was what we needed - but really we just needed to be together and feel some normalcy - we needed to reaffirm this is our life together, despite all the noise.

Sunday we slept in again and lounged a bit while planning our Christmas shopping, working on this year’s craft project, and catching up on my contract work. We did laundry, talked about the week, compared calendars and as the evening darkness settled in we headed to mass together. It was a perfect mass message for our weekend - to be a source of joy for those around us, not just at Christmas time but always. Mass followed by a few errands, dinner and then one of our favorite family of three traditions- Christmas movie marathon and new Christmas PJs. Normally we reserve a whole day for this - but since a lot of movie and couch time had been logged, we opted for just one movie - a favorite from my childhood, Miracle on 34th Street. Danny is a lover of so many movies, but older movies has a special place in his heart and this one was a hit! In that moment, on that couch I knew this was a memory…this was a moment frozen in our life to relish…and we did.

Our weekend was as quiet as quiet can be!! We missed seeing our friends, we missed soaking up the season around us! We talked about going downtown to see the Christmas trees or loading up in the car to drive and view the lights….but instead we just did a little bit of normal life. Just the two of us….and it healed a part of us that has been struggling for weeks. We have felt that we are constantly going different directions or derailed by health or overwhelmed with work or just on opposite ends of the spectrum - I want to rest and lay low when he feels up and when he is feeling sick I want to be out and about. But this weekend - this gift of a weekend, we found our stride…..and the smile I have painted on my face all throughout this Monday has told me - this was exactly how we were supposed to spend our time.

And just to sweeten this weekend up just a bit more…..Danny had hockey this evening in Rockville, near my grandmother - so he is planning to pop in on a dinner date. I have been blessed to have such a good relationship with my grandmother and since their first meeting, Danny and she have also had a connection. Their love of sports was a great foundation and from their over our almost 10 years together they continue to get closer. It does my heart so much good to see my husband cherish my grandmother like I do. Can these past few days get any better??

A sweet friend sent me an email as we lamented that we won’t be able to get together until January. - She hopes I am cranking up the tunes and enjoying the season! She reminded me that of all the crazy that is going on, it will quickly vanish as fast as it came. Am I enjoying the season? Am I loving on my family? Letting the tunes wash over me?? I am by no means perfect, but in the gift of this weekend, I was reminded that Danny is the best gift I have ever imagined….the rest is not important - and time is so fleeting. We were so blessed to have had this break - that we never even planned and it worked out for the best! It is the little things that can make life so perfect. Five Christmas Eves ago, Danny asked me to be his wife…..and as the best gift I could have ever received - how amazing to be reminded what I can give to him everyday by enjoying and loving each other…..through all the little normal things.

Our sign was one I picked very specifically this year…..you are responsible for the Christmas you have….make it a great one.