Worth it in the End

So yes, Christmas eve was a mess. But Christmas? Just about perfect. Being closer to the rest of my family (hello Vancouver Island!) would have been icing on the cake, but even without that the cake itself was pretty awesome.

Didn't get the house cleaned beforehand, but our day - after present opening and so on - was mainly along the lines of: read a little, watch a bit of something on dvd (TV shows were part of the presents), eat something, clean a little, play a board game, clean a little...
all very easy going.

A nice quiet day, and the turkey turned out well. It was, of course, ruined in the carving. Because I still can't carve to save my life. It was a little better than usual, though, because I took one of the breasts completely off the bird and sliced it on its own. So there were some non-mangled slices to be had. And - of course! - enough left over turkey to make a pie. I froze that, so we'll have pie when we not so over-turkeyed. The kids had three turkey suppers, not counting suppers of leftovers so I'm thinking turkey later as opposed to sooner is the best plan.

The Boy got me music, one disc of which I've been listening to in the car since I got it. It's a Frank Sinatra collection. The other disc is a jazz disc, but it's a jazz musician playing blues music. Which shows how much thought there was in the choosing. I'm slowly - thanks to The Boy - getting to like Jazz music (although I suspect that I'll never understand, let alone enjoy, free style jazz). I already love the Blues. So what better way to get me to listen to a jazz musician? Brilliant!

The Girl got me pajamas from La Senza. The softest cuddliest pajamas you can imagine. I am the most huggable person this side of the Atlantic. If I could have worn them to work today I would have. I'm guessing that someone might have said something, though. There's casual work wear and then 'what do you think you're doing" wear. People here struggle enough with how often I am barefoot (never, by the way, when I am with clients. Or in the bathroom). I think they'd have a collective break down if I showed up not just barefoot but sporting pajamas, regardless of how soft and cuddly said pajamas may be.

While I'm on the topic of gifts I received, I'd like to say I'm all for gift cards. I heard so much this year about gift cards being a bad/thoughtless idea. I LOVE them. Especially when they are for places that I LOVE to shop at, but tend to not spend money at, because there are things - a million things - I should spend money on before I spend it on myself. So far, I've spent some very enjoyable time just thinking about what to get with the gift cards I received this year. Fun with no actual spending yet! How great is that? So hey - don't knock gift cards, ok?

All in all, it was a great Christmas. And a very happy new year. I hope everyone else had as enjoyable a time with friends and family as I did. Time with family - the best gift of all.