Life as a Lewis

I feel certain this is true for everyone, but December is a marathon. However, if you can make it through all the sporting events and holiday parties and recitals and programs, not to mention a regular work schedule, then time off during the week of Christmas is your reward. Everything comes to a screeching halt for our family the week of Christmas, and I anticipate this week all year long. Brian's parents came for a quick visit this past weekend; kids had exams, and I attended 2 work parts. We also hosted a small party at our house Saturday afternoon. It was a lovely way to close out the busyness of December. Brian and I deliberately planned for down time beginning Sunday afternoon and it has been wonderful. The kids are sleeping until noon; we're watching movies and playing games. I'm reading book #68 of the year, and I have cooked zero meals. We will open presents with the kids Christmas morning and then join my parents, grandparents, and Liz for lasagna; Becky and

We almost always travel for Thanksgiving, but for multiple reasons, we spent Thanksgiving at home this year. It was lovely, and we gained much-needed time in this short break by not spending it on the road. Becky flew in for a much too brief visit; Uncle Dennis and Aunt Dana, Corey and Diane drove up just in time to eat lunch, spend a few hours chatting over many, many desserts. No, really, we had a lot of desserts: chocolate cheesecake (Dennis's specialty), chocolate birthday cake for Becky, vanilla cheesecake for Diane's birthday, and pumpkin dump cake because Thanksgiving. Our Thanksgiving holiday included too much eating, two intense games of Nertz, less intense games of dominoes with Addison. Becky was here just long enough to have one quiet morning at Liz's house, mom and dad's, and our home. The adults left the kids at home (isn't it amazing to be able to do that?) and went to see It's A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood at the theater. The conse