Merry Christmas! Staying Sane Edition.

I'm doing Christmas dinner tomorrow, and I'm going low maintenance traditional. I've made the oyster stuffing my father always talked about, and homemade cranberries because damn, any idiot can put cranberries, water and sugar in a pot and boil. Next up will be spicy-sweet roasted brussels sprouts from a recipe found on Pinterest. Mashed potatoes? Those are from a refrigerated package, because seriously, nobody in my family can taste the difference. The Pillsbury doughboy will be doing the crescent rolls and the pie crust for the apple pie everyone who tasted it raves about when I bother to make it. Baked brie and a small wedge of gouda and olives and crackers and opening gifts will get us through the first hour or so while the main event cooks, and the main course will be a "roast in the bag" turkey breast, and a teeny tiny ham for Delaney who doesn't like turkey but hasn't been told what ham is. I'm not going to be the one to do that. I'll eat a small slice of turkey to judge quality, and otherwise stick to the sides.

But after tomorrow, everything changes. I'm not even waiting for the new year.

Have you ever experienced a convergence of things that make you think you are REQUIRED to follow? I had that experience in the last two weeks. A yoga program and a plant based eating challenge both just forced themselves in front of me within 24 hours of each other. Then there is the virtual 5K stuff. My daughter and her friend have been doing these "virtual 5k" races as training for actual Disney races, and damn, they look like fun! You don't have to run the entire length, walking is okay, and the distance is nothing for me, so hey, fun! These are NOT New Year's Resolutions; these are plans and goals and FUN.

Delaney spent the night last night, and I introduced her to Harry Potter (she decided it was a bit too scary; she took it all really seriously, like she had to memorize it all for a wizarding world history exam) and then ET (she loved it). Her baby cradle has been assembled, gifts are wrapped, and I'm so ready to go to bed already you have no idea. She was impeccably behaved and no problem at all, but she was restless all night, so I got little sleep. She finally fell truly, deeply asleep right as I decided to get up and turn on the coffee. It was one of those nights. I love our sleepovers, but yeah, once a month or so is enough. Sophie is fine with these sleepovers now, she snuggled up and snored, but Ellie ventured out at dawn when I turned on the coffee maker after spending the night under my bed. We are all looking forward to a quiet Christmas night. Tomorrow will be fun and festive, and then I'm still OFF ON MONDAY!

Merry Christmas, the few and the faithful! I love you all!