The chaos

What is it about the Holiday season that sends a cold chill up my spine? The chaos of it all is palpable. My heart quickens, my palms are sweaty and I feel myself coming down with a fever. Even the task of opening the advent calendar each day give me a sick feeling in my stomach. Always too much to do, so many to greet and what seems like a festivity to attend every night. All on top of the normal, already hectic life. It's suppose to be enjoyable, it used to be enjoyable but this year, not so much.

I find myself constantly forgetting and the only thing worse than forgetting is remembering. Remembering things I have forgotten. Aaaack!

Even with early preparation; the trees have been up since Halloween, some gifts have been ordered and shipped to the US address months ago and most are on their way now. Even as I write this my mind is buzzing with what else needs to get accomplished. Maybe it's the travel of last month mixed with the travel of this month. This will be our first time traveling "home" over the Holiday. We have become accustomed to the Island Christmas, laid back and at the beach! Clearly that is more my style.

The first part of this post was written a few weeks ago and of course, I forgot to post it. Remember; the forgetting. :) Things seem to be a bit more under control now. The final planned party of the year is out of the way, all the gifts have been sorted, the cards printed and ready to be delivered. Santa's letter has been sent and the kids are eager to get back to the loving arms of their grandparents.

With only a few things on the agenda, I can now countdown on one hand. Two days of running left, one day of tennis, one more playdate, the last batch of cookies, one more round of golf and a few random things. I am still hoping for SNOW (please don't let us down Utah!) and the warmth of the big fireplace. I love climbing into a a cold bed in the middle of the winter and snuggling down into the layers of blankets. I look forward to getting up in the early morning and feeling the cold floor underfoot. I'm looking forward to the smell of winter and the way that the cold air feels like icicles in your nose and the way Christmas lights glow when they are under a thick layer of snow. Home cooked classics, funny stories and staying up way too late. Christmas carols are starting to bring a tear to my eye because I know what it's like to dream of a white Christmas. So, I suppose the chaos is well worth it. Especially on that "oh so early morning" when the magic lives on in our children.