- Day #5 of the 12 Days of Christmas Challenge ✔ – Night walk
The boys and I headed out on a walk around the neighborhood last night. Ivan got home late from work and had just walked in the door and wasn’t really in the mood to go back out in the 26 degree weather. 🙂
It started out so-so (~the first 30% of the walk was spent listening to them say, “I’m cold, let’s go home.”). I guess we walked far enough/ fast enough that they eventually warmed up and quieted down and the remaining 70% of the walk was quite pleasant!
A major theme of the walk seemed to be pointing out every two seconds which houses had “way better decorations” than our house. Thanks, guys.
Up today in the challenge: a “date night in” with my husband! Yay!
2. A realization: time off
It dawned on me when thinking about yesterday’s post about the Christmas chaos:
When the boys were little, I was still working as an inpatient nurse. I used to work 12 hour shifts (7 am- 7:30 pm), 3 days a week. I had a set schedule that, when coupled with my every other weekend shifts, worked out so that if I took two 12 hour vacation days on a Thursday/Friday, I could have 10 days off of work in a row. I used to ALWAYS schedule a block of time off like this in early December, around Asher’s birthday, and I used to do a ton of the holiday prep stuff during those 10 days. I had completely forgotten about that!!!
Now that I work Monday-Friday, I very rarely schedule a block of vacation days off unless we are going somewhere. I wonder if maybe next year I should consider planning at least like maybe a Wednesday-Friday off + the weekend to have a 5 day stretch off in early or mid December. Hmm. Might help ease the craziness?
3. Gift idea: Storyworth
If you need a last minute gift idea for anyone, consider getting a Storyworth subscription. If you haven’t heard of it, it’s a service that sends your loved one a weekly journal prompt to their email with a question like, “What was your favorite holiday memory growing up?” or “Tell me about your childhood best friend” or “What is your favorite memory of your mother?”, etc. Then at the end of the year, Storyworth will compile all of the answers into a printed hardcover, keepsake book. I got one for my Mom last year for Mother’s Day I think and she’s been doing it since then. The answers she writes come to my email and let me just say I cannot wait to see the finished product. It is going to be epic!! Just sharing because I think it’s such a cool idea and I know it’s something we will always keep and cherish. ❤
I mentioned that I ordered a couple of Christmas books. I decided to set aside Winterfrost as a little shared Christmas gift to both boys (to read over Christmas break) and we started this one instead. We are about halfway through and it’s just super cute and entertaining so far!! Recommend. The fact that the boys still beg me to read to them and want to snuggle up on either side of me with a book makes me SO HAPPY. You have no idea.
5. Growth is not always what it seems!
I ran across a similar image online last week, and then my favorite positivity blogger Joel actually recreated it and drew his own (even better) version! I LOVE THIS! What you see at first isn’t always what you get. 🙂 Be patient and keep going…
Daily Gratitude:
I am grateful for the people who stock the shelves at the stores. Also, for the delivery workers who are bringing us all of our online orders!
GRATEFUL KAE 
The Grinch is hilarious!!! I love that they only complained for 30% of the time, too. Clearly the lights were fun enough to distract them. You make me miss my days of 12 hour shifts… sigh. I would do the same! I miss those days. Sometimes. 😉 and, that Storyworth idea is awesome…. don’t know if my dad and mom would do it though. Hmmmm… have a happy date night!!
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I love that image! I think I’ll share it with my students when we are back from break. I also like the story worth idea, and I may have to try it sometime.
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I love the grinch! And I am sure that woman thought nothing of you taking a picture. She probably was thinking – oh good, someone liked our grinch! We drove and looked at Christmas lights last night. Will hates the car seat so there was a lot of crying from him when we stopped. But it was fun to do something for Paul. A couple of houses close by have lights set to music on a radio station so that was cool to watch. The biggest hit was a T. rex with Santa on his back though! Paul wanted to sit and stare at that for a long time!
That is a useful realization about time off! I think it is smart to use some days off next December to make life a little less stressful for you! Plus it’s a season you love so it will feel like a good use of days off to really enjoy all the prep instead of fitting it in when you can!
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