still digging out ...

Today I had the good fortune to take an hour to sit down and share a sandwich with my bloggy-turned-real friend swooper ... it was just what I needed amidst the overwhelm of this very rude back-to-reality week (thank you, swooper!). I've worked so hard this week to put away all of our Christmas decor, catch up with vacation laundry, re-stock the kitchen to a healthy and functional level, deal with all of the back-mail and 1st-of-the-month bills, and still save enough energy to support the ladybugs as they face the same overwhelm at school. *sigh*... I wish I could tell you that even one of these checklist items has been crossed out completely but alas ... this house is still a mess ... truly a mess ... and at this point, I'm feeling awfully buried by it all ...

I've been so envious of all the posts I've been reading in blogland this week ... so many deep reflections about the year that's now behind us and so many hopeful resolutions about the year to come. I'd love to do the same, lord knows I have a million thoughts swirling around, but to take the time to harness them all is something that I just can't do right now - not while the house is in disarray. Late to the party - as usual. For right now my only resolution is to take my super long checklist and approach it one item at a time -

Good strategy, right? I'm hoping that by taking it one step at a time, I'll eventually be able to make progress, take a deep breath, and feel a lot less weighed down. We'll see ... one thing at a time, right?

But frankly, the most appealing strategy to me right now is to take the time before I collect the girls from school to reflect upon some of my happiest holiday moments before leaving for Aruba ... wanna hear?

1. Do you remember our sweet little elf-on-the-shelf Toddy?? Well, if you read that post, you remember that my little ladybug had previously made him a briefcase and a provided him with various snacks and treats during his stays with us over the years. This year, the little ladybug decided to give him a gift before his Christmas Eve departure ...

She left him his own gift-stuffed stocking one night and by the next morning, Toddy had opened his beautiful gifts:

It was a hand-knit shawl she had made herself as well as a tiny pair of mittens that were previously used as a tree decoration. I really love my little girl's heart and creativity - here's a photo of Toddy on his final day with us, doesn't he look handsome in his new shawl (you can also see last year's briefcase peeking down at the bottom) ... we'll miss ya, big guy!

2. My littlest ladybug and Manbug are huge football fans - this year, it got to the point where my little bug has a real understanding of game strategy, scoring, and the role of each position. Each Sunday is "Patriots Sunday" and the two of them put on their #12 jerseys and root for the home team ... it's been a wonderful bond between them. So for Christmas this year, the Manbug decided to get the little ladybug tickets to see a real game. And as if that isn't cute enough, the little ladybug decided that she wanted to empty her $200 savings account at the bank so that she could buy the Manbug a pair of tickets as well. Since they both confided in me, I was able to avoid duplication, but I mean seriously?! How cute is that? After a little lesson on budgeting, little ladybug chose instead a bunch of fan memorabilia for him - a mini tailgating grill, car magnets, a snuggie, cup cozies, etc. The big game was this past Sunday against the Miami Dolphins ... total bliss for both of them ...

Here's hunky #12, Tom Brady ...

And here they are in their seats, making good use of the snuggie ... cutest Pats fans ever, right?!

3. My big ladybug has a heart of gold - the girl is one of the most sensitive and compassionate people I know and I couldn't be more proud of this trait in her, she's such a beautiful person.

("Christmas" morning in her new PBTeen beanbag chair!)

Using that same thoughtfulness, she chose a really special gift for me this year. Knowing that we were headed to Aruba (and I suspect further knowing the kind of stress that puts on me to balance the prep for that trip with the holidays), she got me a beautiful little picture book called "Heart Stones". With it, she wrote a card that specified that she wanted to look for "heart stones" on our beach walks together in Aruba. Amazingly, we hit the mother load on our walks and brought 9 heart stones home with us! Earlier this week I got a wooden tray at Target on which to permanently display our tropical treasures ...

Isn't that amazing? I loved everything about this special gift and can't wait to add more heart stones to this tray in 2011 ... thanks, sweet girl of mine ... you and your sister make me the luckiest ladybug of all!

And thanks, too, sweet swooper, for pulling my head out of the sand and organizing our yummy soup-n-sandwich run today ... it was great to stop and laugh and just plain regroup. Just what the doctor ordered. Next one's on me, friend ...