After a busy week of our last adoption home visit, a new front door installation, Thanksgiving, Christmas decorating, and a week back in Wisconsin for an early Christmas celebration, I started December feeling already frazzled and hurried. Then I blinked and December was halfway over.
I dove head first into Christmas by pulling out all the decorations. Inside one of the many red and green bins, laying on top of the tree skirt was a sealed envelope with "Remember..." on it in my own handwriting. Inside was our Christmas card from last year with a two column list written on the back. One column for things that worked well and made me feel good last Christmas, and one for things that did not. Last Christmas I'd written it and tucked it inside the bin right after packing up every last ornament. I had nearly forgotten this little attempt to send my future self a few helpful tips and things to focus on, knowing that I'd need it when the holiday craziness set in.
It's amazing how quickly the frantic hustle sets in whether you want it to or not. I've found the only way to combat it is to slow down, and to intentionally plan what you want your holiday to look like instead of letting it happen to you. So that's what I did. I looked up local holiday events and planned a night with Mr. Ladd to go look at a light display. I bought tickets to a local theatre's production of A Christmas Carol for my birthday. We'll go to the play and then out for dinner and drinks afterwards. I also sat down with my calendar and planned out the month, invited some friends over, made some space to connect with people over dinner and around the table. Whats the point in painstakingly decking the halls and setting a beautiful table if nobody gathers there?
I'm scheduling my priorities, making room for a few events that are meaningful around those, and then saying no to everything else to leave room for peace and rest and connection. I also have so many things I want to write about in December and never make the time to write here in this space. So, I'm carving out some time early on these gloriously chilly mornings to wrap up the year on the blog. Tomorrow, an adoption update. Stay tuned.
