I'm sitting on the couch between my middle 2 kiddos... both with a fever. They've been napping for 2 days & finally woke up this afternoon. But cold & flu season is among the things I HATE about winter. I know, HATE is such a strong word, but truly that is why I use it in reference to this horrid season. Haha! So, in light of my disdain for the cold, I am going to list my top 10 favorite things about winter. Perhaps this could distract me from my crankiness toward the winter... or at least postpone any further negativity! :)
1. The first big snow!
It's beautiful when it snows over night & you wake up to find your street just covered in a blanket of white! We just had 2 snow days in a row this past week. They were just magical! The kids woke up, got into bed with me as we watched the snow fall for a bit, then went downstairs to open up the back windows and watch the snow some more while we ate breakfast. We made snow ice cream. We ate only things that were shaped like snowmen or were white like snow. We played in it. Michael took Efton sledding at the park! We got 10 inches, which was simply fabulous! Nothing beats a good snow in January!
2. CHRISTMAS, of course!
Oh, yes... the most wonderful time of the year! I just love how at Christmas, everything is exciting, especially to the kids! I love remembering Christmas as a little girl with my brothers. One year, my brother & I woke up in the middle of the night on Christmas Eve to just sit & look at the tree with all of our presents under it. We didn't touch, because Christmas tradition is just too important to mess with. He & I take Christmas very seriously! We take our trees very seriously, as well. I have my trees up every year the day after Thanksgiving. One tree I let the kids decorate, with as much STUFF as they want... colored lights, bubble lights, tacky ornaments, ornaments with our pictures on them, construction paper crafts, candy canes... it's loaded with all the mismatched things that make it look like a gingerbread house threw up on their tree. And then there's MY TREE! It's bright & sparkly & OH SO CHIC! Haha! It's jewel-toned, hot pink & lime green decorations, with silver beads & white lights. It has a big, silver star at the top & a few pink poinsettias scattered on it. I ADORE my tree! Efton got to help this year, but only under strict supervision. I know he is as OCD as I am, so I let him stay up... but only if he followed orders! :)
3. Black Friday
I know most people hate it, but I thrive on the excitement! My husband & I stay up every year on Thanksgiving scoping out the ads online. Then we compare & plot where we will go. My mom stays with the kids that morning so we can get in line early! We are shivering & freezing, but about 15 minutes until those doors open, I start to get really pumped! Michael laughs at me every year. I love it!
4. Christmas Sunday
The Sunday before Christmas is when the kids' program is at our church. I remember performing as a little girl. I always had a solo to sing & when we first started the church, I was the only girl, so I got to be Mary for probably 5 years in a row. Haha! I thought it was because I looked so pure! BAAHAHA!
A couple years ago all of our toddlers and preschoolers were baby animals at the manger. They were in farm animal costumes... well, the "cows" got restless & started roaming all over the sanctuary... PRICELESS! Always priceless!
5. Starting fresh in January
No matter what the past year has held, we always get to start over new! I love staying up late and shouting HAPPPPP-Y NEW YEAR!!! It means that as of today, we forget the last 365 days & focus on the next. WHat will they hold? Who knows! That's why it's so exciting! Michael & I got married on the 30th, for that very reason! We needed to start the year fresh as a family! The year we got married was a looong, rough year. We learned a lot & grew a lot FOR SURE, but starting that new year out together... past forgotten, looking to the future, was such a blessing!
6. Organizing your life
Along with that new, fresh start comes this desire (at least for me) to clean everything out of our house & organize it! Haha! Its like I can make it through the holidays, but then life has to go on & we have to get some order back into our lives! This year, I have been determined to get EVERY area of our lives organized: work, school, family, personal... watch out... I'm on a rampage!
7. Valentine's Day
Is right up there with Christmas on my list of holidays! I LOVE to celebrate LOVE! I always decorate our house with pink & red, make anything heart-shaped I can think of & then I throw a Valentine Party for my kids & all their cousins (there are 12!). It just is a really great excuse to go OUT OF YOUR WAY to show and tell everyone how much you care about them.
8. TAX RETURNS!!!!!
Yes, I know... how shallow and materialistic! Whatever! :) Every year I am anxiously waiting for that W2 to come in the mail so I can sit down with Michael one night & do our taxes. I hate money and numbers. I am terrible at math, so Michael does it all. He has this sick fascination and love for math... yuck! BUT somehow, I "get" the math when I see the numbers at the end! Yeah, baby! It's just comforting to know you can breathe for about a week before you spend it on whatever you spend it on. For us, it always seems to pay bills & buy clothes for our kids. But I do always make sure we get to go out to eat just once with it before we rifle it away on more "practical" things.
9. SWEATERS
Although they are itchy & awful, everyone just looks so cute in sweaters. That's all I have to say about that. I'm sick of them by mid-January, but they sure are adorable!
10. FIRES in the fireplace
aaaahhhh... so toasty & warm!! Almost makes me like winter. But not quite enough! :)
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