Here it is -- 2011!

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Although I know that 2010 had it's great moments for me (my wonderful international students; my trip home to NL, friends, gardening, etc); when I think of the end of 2010, it conjures up images of saying goodbye to my childhood home, the pain & frustration of a broken foot, and a somewhat crabby Christmas.
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Not all of Christmas. Most of it was great! But for the first time ever, there were moments during my Christmas that I did not enjoy! And I'm a Christmas person!
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But I made a discovery this Christmas about myself. A not so nice discovery. I suffer from "Norman Rockwell syndrome" ... you know, that state of thinking that Christmas will be wonderful and fluffy and loving and perfect just like the Norman Rockwell pictures. Yup! And I was bitterly disappointed when the dream was not a reality.
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Anyone else out there suffer from this disease?

How do you deal with it?

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It began with children who were excited to be back home again ... yet spent most of their time with others! (Cue music for sorry, sad, lonely, broken-footed, self-pitying Mommy.) It moved on to indignation when there was a lack of interest by at least half the kids in participating in our annual cookie-making day. ("But we always do this! It's my favorite family tradition!"). And it went on to full-blown crabbiness when I seemed to be the whole cheerleading squad for our usual Xmas Eve meal & celebrations. ("Come on! You want Chinese food, don't you? Yes, let's hold hands while we ask the blessing. Anyone want to go to the candle-lit service with me?")
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Oh yeah!! They all wanted to get up Christmas morning and have a special breakfast and open gifts. So, on Dec 25th with the turkey roasting in the oven and fresh cinnamon rolls & fruit salad on the prettily-decorated table, I waited. But no one mentioned that they weren't interested enough to actually set their alarm and that they expected me to hobble up and down stairs to wake them!
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Boy! If Sandra Claus had only known a little earlier how these spoiled, ungrateful kids would take advantage of their hard-working, self-sacrificing, only-wanting-to-make-it-perfect Mommy! Well let's just say that there would have been more coal and less chocolate in the socks!
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So, while the 1st child up was waking the 2nd, and the 2nd the 3rd, and so on; and while these kids came bleary-eyed & staggering from their warm beds; I found a little corner by myself and prayed. "Please God; help me to put aside my frustrations. And help us to have a wonderful day!"
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He did! And we did! Christmas Day was great, really great! There were presents galore, glorious food, lots of laughter, and the kids did the clean-up! I was then, as usual, off duty for the rest of the season. I now had time to sit and relax. And God got me while I was relaxing.
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You know how when you ask God to help other people straighten up, He will bless you for your thoughtfulness in strange and wonderful ways? Well, while I was busy observing the speck in my kids eyes', He showed me the yule log in my own eye! The rather large, ridiculous yule log that had been keeping me from seeing that a wonderful Christmas for my kids was just being home with me! That the security of home and mother was a huge gift to them. And that the rest of the "dressing" wasn't that important to them and was actually for me! ("Turkey dressing" would be appropriate, I believe! And we could add a little humble pie for balance!)
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God spoke to me about letting go; about how giving the girls memories of a house full of love and peace is far superior to memories of pretty decorations and a crabby mother. Cookie-making day may not necessarily be gone; perhaps it's just put aside for a while!
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What a dork I can be! It's a good thing my kids love me. It's an even better thing that God loves me! Ladies and gentlemen! I am a .
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Was I able to immediately stop being crabby after God's talk? No, not always. And I'm sure that the continued (but somewhat lessened) pain and frustration of my broken foot didn't help things! (But the wine, turkey sandwiches, jig saw puzzles and the chocolate sure did.)My girls had to have a stern talk with me at least twice. "Mom, relax!" "Just ask us, Mom." "We love you, Mom."
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And if I did find myself becoming crabby, I was now able to recognize it and keep my mouth shut as I prayed again. (This also helped me to curb my overwhelming impulse to blugeon the so-called offender with my turkey drumstick and/or return all their Santa gifts for a cash refund.) See, I'm not beyond hope or redemption!
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Thanks God! You're the greatest! (And I am but lowly worm sweat!)
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So, Happy New Year fellow bloggies!
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I'm sure you all join me in embracing the wonderfully clean slate of 2011.

(Day 4 and the slate's still clean! So far, so good!)
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