twelfth night

Here it is, the end of the Christmas season. I have photos and stories I would like to share but there's not time for that right now. I am feeling a delightful fullness at eleven p.m. What a long, full day it has been, but satisfying. The lights and ornaments on our beautiful tree keep me company as I reflect on the day. It began, atypically, at 6:30 a.m. I woke, dressed (with lots of layers), drove across town to order and pay for our milk and eggs, drove back, woke Henry at a little after 7:00, watched a bit of Curious George with him, ate part of my homemade yogurt, homemade granola and crunchy apple breakfast, zipped out the door at 7:30 for a three mile walk--yippee!, came back, got ready for our dear neighbor to come over and play with Henry, watched the boys play as I tried to get a few things done around the house. Had a mid-morning sweet potato, red pickled cabbage, pickle, broccoli snack, took them out on an errand, came back home, ate grass-fed t-bone steak and sweet potato and more broccoli an pickle for lunch, hurried, hurried, hurried out the door to get Henry to the nature center in time for our class. Enjoyed the class conducted around the theme of "Duck, Goose or Swan?" that included a jeopardy-style contest between parents and children--so much fun and challenging to my limited powers of observation, enjoyed a slow ride (with apple, nuts and chocolate chips) to the doctor's office as my I-wish midwife and for-real doula drove Henry and her boy to art club, savored the doctor's words to "keep it boring," (that's just soothing to me because he seems to think my having a vbac is so profoundly uninteresting...which is just what I was hoping for in a doctor), sat down and visited with my friend/doula (yippee again), had delicious gelato with the boys and the doula friend at a nearby cafe, hurried home, let Henry off at the front door, zipped to Hesston, where I pretended to lead the retirement community's men's chorus, stopped by to see my parents in their new apartment, drove back home, stopping by on the way to pick up our milk and eggs, groused and yelled when I walked in the door about the table not being cleared of lunch dishes and socks being on the floor (what good that did, I really don't know; think it was useless, unwelcome complaining), watched a little of a special on the advent of Buddhism on PBS, helped Henry get ready for bead, talked with his two Webkins and watched him draw in his diary, began to read chapter 21 of Little House on the Prairie, went to the bathroom while Joel read on, kissed Henry good night, came to the kitchen to make something to eat...more sweet potato, this time festooned with some cilantro, green onion, some chunks of elderly avocado, plenty of salt and butter, some more pieces of t-bone steak, finished off with the last piece of Sara's Christmas baklava. Now it is time for bed. Whew! Thank you, God. Thank you, life.