You guys,
Each December, Sam and I fly to New York City, then drive to New Jersey, then drive to Long Island before flying back home to North Carolina. We dress up, smile, and hope to have meaningful conversations with the family members we only see once a year. We eat too much. We drink too much. We barely sleep.
This year we said goodbye to those traditions and celebrated a very merry COVID Christmas. There were only five of us: me, Sam, George, my mother-in-law and my father-in-law. No stress of flying, of making time to see everyone, of the dreaded sibling dinner with my brother and three sisters (no spouses allowed - it’s awkward). I didn’t even pack my makeup bag. Or shoes. It was a nice change of pace from the usual hustle and bustle of the holidays.
And of course, we had George. He’s only 4 months old but I still loved seeing Christmas through his eyes. How he was mesmerized by the Christmas lights, how he seemed to read along as we read him The Night Before Christmas, how we all wore matching pajamas (yes, we were one of those families) and he looked so cute I could have eaten him up.
Christmas was as magical as ever. I hope that amidst everything, it was for you, too.
Essay of the Week
Sam and I told our parents we didn’t want George getting a gazillion presents for Christmas.
So I was a bit overwhelmed when we opened gift after gift for him on Christmas Day.
It led to an uncomfortable conversation. We wanted to be grateful but also wanted to be clear that so many gifts are not acceptable moving forward.
I wrote a short essay about why it’s important to limit the quantity of gifts and focus on what’s really important.
Best Gift Ever
I have horrible posture. I’ve had it for so long that it feels too difficult and daunting to change it. But bad posture has consequences, like making my chronic neck, back, and TMJ pain worse than it already is.
I was sitting on the floor slouched over when I opened my Christmas present from Sam. It was a posture corrector. As soon as I realized what it was I exclaimed, “Oh!” as I sat up straight.
Did you just sit up straighter when you read that?
Maybe you should get one, too.
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Have A Happy New Year, Friends!
Charlie