Looking back over the past three weeks.

At this time of year, we usually look back over the year that has passed, perhaps mentioning high and low points as we anticipate the year to come. How about we keep it simple and take a nostalgic look back over the last three weeks instead? Here are some extremely random bullets of what's been going on at Casa Juniper.

Although we know it is not The True Meaning of Christmas, E totally scored in the present department this year. Here he is with the best one: drum set from Grandma. Yeah, grandma! He like to try and play along with Obvious Child. Not easy for your first gig. He's jumping in with both feet. Also, a Lego Star Wars Video Game (how many layers removed from reality is that? I lose track) that he loves and a head lamp that he would like to wear all the time. I had to draw the line at wearing it in the car. That little light in the rearview mirror is killer.



Speaking of the True Meaning of Christmas: the Christmas season in general = very weird. Because snow kept falling, we kept rescheduling and cancelling things at church, which took a surprising amount of energy and was sadder than you'd think.

Speaking of sad: However, the opposite of sad was lots of time at the sledding hill (which was all joyous and extreme fun, except for that one walk home where I actually told a cold cold wet wet child that I "WOULD ask for a ride home, but you are being so whiny that I'm embarrassed." Yikes. Who is THAT lady?).

Speaking of interactions with our children that we would actually like to remember: the little Methodist church across the street had a Christmas Eve service, so we got to go and hear the scriptures, and sing the songs and I reflected (not for the first time) that with a story that good, really no-one needs to preach on Christmas Eve. (Ignore this if you love the Christmas Eve sermon, but if you hate it, go ahead and add a couple of carols instead next year. Everyone will thank you for it.) Anyway, getting to hold my boy on my lap while we lit our candles and sang Silent Night was totally sweet, and I treasured it.

Speaking of things we treasure: If there's anything cuter than a 6 year old telling you he has a "twick up my sweeve" and that twick turns out to be secretly reading after lights out by the light of the nightlight, I ask you to show it to me.

Speaking of cute family members: As a reminder that I am known and loved just as I am, Mr. Juniper sent me this quote, cause he knows I'm nerdy like that:
The Cavanagh Company of Greenville, Rhode Island makes about 80% of the communion wafers used by several Christian churches in the US. Some customers say the Cavanaghs have such a big market share because their product is about as close to perfect as earthly possible. "It doesn't crumb, and I don't like fragments of our Lord scattering all over the floor," said the Rev. Bob Dietel, an Episcopal priest.

Speaking of scattering fragments of things: someday I know it will be a hilarious story how, running out of the house but worried that our slippery front walk would jeopardize the present-getting, I quickly dumped a lot of what I thought was grass seed from a half open bag I found in the shed, but it turned out to be fertilizer (read "poo"), so then I thought I'd fix it, which I did by dumping some cat litter on it we had left over from the Great Cat Experiment, but I grabbed the nasty scented stuff by accident, so then whenever anyone entered our house for the next three days they had to basically walk over 8 feet of used cat box, until I scraped it all away. One day that will definately be a great story, but I'm just not ready to laugh about it yet.

Speaking of great stories: I got a call from the Ibot company that stopped my breath briefly when they said they are going out of business. But luckily, we are in line to receive one still, if we can get it ordered in time, which is the end of January. We are one step closer to that, because for a Christmas present we got a letter from our insurer saying they would actually pay for it, which, as it is violation of their policy to pay for this kind of technology, we did not expect at all. But keep your fingers crossed for us, if that is your spiritual practice. A few more paperwork hurdles still need jumping.

Speaking of things that come in the mail: We did not receive hardly anything we had ordered by Christmas day (our friend who works at UPS says stuff was coming in and they were just stacking it up in a corner and delivering to businesses only during all the snow the week of Christmas), and our tree looked very sad indeed. So Santa, with whom, as you know, I have a very love/hate relationship TOTALLY saved us. We ended up writing lots of little notes from Santa about how the sleigh kept getting stuck in snow, yadda yadda yadda and that's why he (E) would not be receving a drum set TODAY, but that he (Santa) was keeping an eye on things and would make sure that everything arrived in the due course of time. Which E actually really liked, and he ended up reading those little letters several times throughout the day on Christmas. So, thanks, Santa. We owe you one.

Speaking of gratitude: Life is so very sweet. Not making any resolutions, unless it's one to notice that more often.