Christmas Cheer!

It's been raining in L.A. for days. Sean finished his finals last Thursday, and flew home on Monday for Christmas. I'm still in Los Angeles because I have to work through this coming Thursday. I have to confess that I was struggling with having a major pity party for myself about this week.

My husband gets to go home, and I have to stay here all alone and work four days in a row, and come home to an empty house infested with ants because of all the rain. And last year I got six weeks off for Christmas...Where's my Christmas break?????



These were some of the thoughts running through my head on Sunday evening as I prepared for work the next day, and Sean got ready to leave. I thought I was going to be miserable, but I temporarily forgot a couple things.

1. I forgot that it's pretty much hard for me to be miserable anywhere (except in Hollywood). Ever the optimist, I just LIKE enjoying myself, so I always try to have fun.

2. I forgot that the kids weren't going to be in school. This means that a ton of pressure is taken off both me and the kids, and better yet, it means that we get to relax and actually spend TIME together, which is wonderful because I love these kids!

And after only two days of working, I know that I wouldn't trade these days for anything in the world. There are special moments, hilarious situations, and inside jokes that make my whole 12 hour work day worth it in a split second. Like Monday morning, when Giuwels asked me if she had school that day. I told her no, and an enormous smile appeared on her face as she said...the good news slowly dawning on her..."That means we can PLAY!"

Yes, my dear, yes it does.

Giuwels has been so much more affectionate than usual, which is so sweet. She's always hugging me and wanting me to pick her up or hold her. Monday morning I told her that she needed to go get dressed for the day, and she said, "Ok, but first I want a hug!!!" and she wrapped her little arms around my neck and gave me the biggest hug ever.


Monday afternoon the four of us went to see Yogi Bear in 3-D...Haha, not my first choice of a movie, but hey, we got to get out of the house, walk around the festive mall, and relax in a movie theater for almost two hours. On the way to the mall, we were listening to Christmas music on the radio when Feliz Navidad came on...We listened for awhile, and then Vinny goes, "What the heck is he saying????" I told him that Feliz Navidad means Marry Christmas in Spanish, and he goes, "Ohhhh....I thought he was saying 'Release Naveda' like Naveda is a person who needs to be released." I'm not entirely sure why, but this sent all of us into gales of laughter--which only got louder when the next song "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town" came on the radio and Vinny said, "Santa Claus is coming to town to release Naveda!" So that's our big Christmas joke for this year, along with the fact that whenever one of us does something particularly clever we say, "You're smarter than the average bear!"

Another thing I find so precious is Giuwel's fear of flushing toilets. She hates the loud noise they make. Luckily, the toilets at their house are completely silent, so no problems there. But when we're out and about we can run into difficulties. Usually she goes to the bathroom then gets up, walks as far away as she can and covers her ears while I flush the toilet for her. Yesterday at the mall, Vinny and Giuwels both had to go to the bathroom. The nearest department store was Nordstroms so we ducked in there to use their restrooms. Giuwels and I walked into a handicap stall together, I'm just standing there, happy as a lark, waiting to help her with whatever she needs when she says in a serious tone, "It's an automatic." At first I didn't even know what she was talking about, and then I see that, yes, the toilet is one of those new-fangled gadgets that flush automatically. These are the worst kind because Giuwels has no control over when they flush, so they catch her off guard and scare her. This precious five year old toilet connoisseur looks at me and says, "I'll just go at home, Carolyn." And, bless her heart, that's what she did.

We spent today making sugar cookies. Lots and lots of sugar cookies. I told Giuwels' friend Georgia's mom the other day that I was looking forward to Christmas Break so I could make cookies and do other fun stuff with the kids. She was like, "Wow, I'm glad you think making cookies is fun, I think it's so stressful." I can understand that--if you try to keep everyone in order and have the kitchen stay clean and the cookies turn out perfectly, then yes, it will be stressful. For better or for worse, I expect the most chaotic events when cooking anything with children, so I'm generally not upset when flour flies everywhere, and six grubby hands land in the dough before I remind them to wash their hands. Yes, Michael and Vinny both had to shower after our baking experience, but why not? We had a blast, and the kids made some amazing cookies!

I'm looking forward to tomorrow and then Thursday, and Thursday night I'm catching a plane to the Bay! I cannot wait!