Countdown

Where have all the days gone?!  Our Christmas celebration always starts on Christmas Eve day, so we're down to one more day of crazy preparation.  We traditionally spend Christmas Eve Day with Casey's family about an hour north of here, then my family will converge on Freistadt Road on Christmas Day.  It's even more frantic this year because, in addition to being gone Christmas Eve day, all four of my siblings and their families will be here, so about 17 people will sweep through, eat, open gifts, and be on their merry way to other festivities.  I do love it while it's happening, but oh, all the things that need to be done beforehand!

I've been living off lists, which only seems to help when I actually remember where I put the lists (!).  And if it's not on the list, forget it.  I've already left my wallet behind (thank you, Hannah, for finding it), somehow misplaced a bottle of wine, and I hope not to set foot into another Target until next year.  I technically finished shopping last week, have all the gifts wrapped, tagged, and bagged to go.  And still, more names and gifts to buy keep popping up.  Today will be spent cleaning house and preparing as much as possible for our Christmas feast on Friday.  I better put "breathe" on my list of things to do.

Miss Z and I have spent the past few weeks making gifts and other fun things.  She is already so crafty and creative, it boggles my mind.  I'll say, "that looks great," and she'll respond, "it's not great yet."  Making gifts may take a lot more time and planning than just browsing store shelves, and thank goodness for 40% off coupons at JoAnns, but I'm quite pleased with the handmade gifts we were able to create.  Who needs an overpriced plastic ornament from Hallmark when you can have a lovely Miss Z original?

The downside to all this is that my insomnia is back.  Because, of course, I've been crazy with all my Miss Marketing things at work, and Miss Z's terrible two phase has decided to take permanent residence, and blah blah blah its never ending.  I'm hoping the insomnia is just taking advantage of the stress of the season and will pack its bags soon after the new year.  At this point, I'm flying on adrenaline and refueling with caffeine.  But truly, the joy of the season is so evident on Miss Z's face that it's worth everything.  I can hardly wait until Christmas morning when it's just me, Casey, Miss Z, and Simon doing our own thing before more madness ensues.

So if anyone is still reading this, we wish you a Merry Merry Merry Christmas! (Which reminds me of a t-shirt a friend of mine saw at the airport: "More people are reading my t-shirt than your blog."  HA!)