Christmas Time is Here

Last night was the final installation of our Christmas decorations- the tree (Balsam Fir) was strung with lights and ornaments hung, all while watching Burl Ives' Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer on TV. It was quite a picturesque moment- SHM and I going through our ornaments,some new and sentimental (a red Adirondack chair from our Nantucket Mini-Moon, a lighthouse from Hilton Head, when we first got engaged, a glass evil eye from Istanbul), some old and sentimental (a blond little tennis boy made out of clay was that very in-style in 1986). We realized with a laugh, that it didn't matter how pretty (or un-pretty) the ornaments were, they were carefully saved because they were given to us by someone special, or bought when we were somewhere special (like the various Boston Terrier ornaments we now have or my blue embroidered camel from Delhi). What's most important to us, is that every ornament on our tree has a story, a meaning or a connection to someone we love.
What a nice way to start the season.

The 2 Week Sprint

When you look at the calendar of an independent school, there is a period of time where there looks to be very little school. That time is between Thanksgiving and Winter Vacations. A mere 2 weeks and 4 days this year, you probably think, "well, that's nice, how much can really happen in that time?" It is becoming scarily apparent that WAY too much is supposed to happen in that time. Because what those of us in the independent school know, that others do not, is that while the time IN school may be only 2 weeks and 4 days, the amount of work to get done is equivalent to the same time without vacation... i.e. 6 weeks: Nov. 23- Jan 4th. 6 weeks worth of work, in 2.9 weeks time. Now that's just crazy.

It is now 6:40pm on Thursday. After a day of running around organizing winter teams, updating summer camp information, planning a 7th grade health event, a senior sex-ed class and entering 150 edits of grades and comments (this alone took over 2 hours), I am sitting with my wonderful husband, enjoying a nice glass of wine and unwinding:) This is the moment that makes the day worth it. Life will always be busy and always be hectic, so I will vent a bit, then move on and enjoy my free time with my family. I only have one day to go until the weekend, and I can wear jeans. Another thing to be thankful for:)