Shelved

Inspirational song: Deck the Halls (Traditional Carol)

This elf is done. I finished nearly everything I needed to before the gift exchange. (The new swim trunks I made for the Mr weren't all the way done, but I need him to try them on before I add the elastic anyway. I think I made them way too big.) I stayed up until 0230 this morning finishing a gift for one of the kids. I was supposed to wake early, and I overslept until about 0815. Prepping for breakfast and gift wrapping ran a bit late. It all worked out, though. We had our crepes and coffee at the kids' house, with a mellow gift exchange after. 

We were all begging each other to scale down how much money we spent on each other and how much stuff we accumulated. Around this place, we are trying to lighten our load of how many material things we are carrying around, even though we aren't having to load it into a moving van every three years anymore. For me personally, I have set a goal of donating as much as 20% of the items in this house next year. It's a big goal, but I plan on getting at least halfway there by early summer. I have the expectation that it will make me a happier and healthier person to thin down the clutter. Less stuff to store means less to clean. Less to clean means more free time to relax. More relaxation means better sleep, right? And then better sleep means more energy and less pain in general. I do not see a down side anywhere in this equation.

I hope you all had a peaceful holiday with people whose company you enjoy. I hope family time was surprisingly unstressful. I hope if there was one special gift you wanted, you got it. I hope at least one person told you how much they love you today. It is too grandiose for me to wish for peace on the entire earth, as is the traditional sentiment this time of year. It is entirely appropriate for me to think of each and every one of you having a quiet experience of joy with loved ones or maybe just in a stolen moment of solitude with a glass of wine and no one watching you for the first time all day. Please have a Merry Christmas, Happy Hannukah, Joyous New Year, Happy Festivus, Io Saturnalia, and any other glad tiding for this holiday season that you can experience.