Savoring.....

I read somewhere the other day that rather than count the days that are left until the next "big" event, I should be making every day count until then.  This will be David's last Christmas as an only child, so I wanted to make sure that it will count as a memorable one in his book.  I wanted to make sure it was special.  Sometimes I can be so laid back and simplistic that I forget to look at Christmas through his eyes.  I tried extra hard to really "listen" this year, finding out what things stick out to him and mean something to him about the season.  We won't be a little family for much longer, and as consumed as I have been lately with expanding/reuniting our family as soon as possible, for the moment, I just want to savor the moments we are spending together still as a little family.  

We followed our normal tradition for Christmas this year by attending the Christmas Eve service, stopping for pizza on the way home, then opening our presents.  Yep, it's not even Christmas yet, and every gift has been opened.  David did not get the one thing he asked for, but he got so many surprises that he ended up a very happy boy.  Right now he's working on a little model car while watching one of his favorite shows.  Mike loved the gift that David got for him, which is a big sign that says FORD SERVICES--CARS, TRUCKS, AND TRACTORS.  I loved the new warm, fuzzy socks that Mike gets me every year, and I think one of my favorite gifts was my new coffee mug that says Kloppmann Architects.  Now I can think of my brother every morning when I make my coffee. :)  After we opened our gifts, we enjoyed a Candy Cane pie and some sparkling cider.  It's been a nice evening.  Not that we didn't want to be around more family, but since my brother's still sick with pneumonia, it worked out for us to spend a quiet little Christmas Eve at home.  This adoption has consumed me in so many ways (mentally, emotionally, spiritually, psychologically, financially)--the mental break from it until the holiday is over can do me a world of good.  

We plan to sleep in tomorrow morning, make a big breakfast, and then we're headed to a movie (another one of our traditions).  We'll come back and make a nice meal to enjoy for our Christmas dinner after that.  

Making it count.