I’ve decided to keep the Christmas Letter electronic.  I like that it uses less paper and gives me some creative options that I don’t have with the traditional letter.  So here goes.

Dear friends and family,

This year has been a much less dramatic year.  I think, if there’s any theme, it would be an attempt to return to normal.  Which normal, you ask?  For me, it’s one where cancer isn’t at the forefront of my brain each day.  And it’s not.  I attempted reconstruction this year, but it failed.  It doesn’t dominate my day.  I’m trying again next summer.  It is what it is.

L is loving first grade!  She is definitely her parents’ daughter who loves to read and sing.  She made me laugh the other day when I asked her what she going to ask for from Santa this year.  A Nintendo DS, she said.  I balked somewhat because I’m pretty sure she’s just trying to keep up with the neighbors and has never played one in her life.  Oh, I said, that’s a pretty expensive gift…  I know, she interrupted, that’s why I’m asking SANTA!  Heh.  I told her that I wasn’t sure Santa made those sort of things.  Luckily there’s plenty more on her list.  Plenty.  🙂  You know, like a horse.  A real one.  No really.  She asked for a horse.  Don’t see that one happening either.  Maybe the Zhu zhu pet.  We’ll see.

J is in his first year of preschool and doing really well.  Whenever the preschool teachers tell me how wonderful he is in the classroom and how well he follows directions I have to resist the urge to say, “Um.  Are you sure you know who my son is?”  I realized the other day that Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer is a mouthful for kids who don’t do “r”s.  Though it’s pretty cute.  🙂 And his favorite Christmas song.  So we hear a lot of Wudolph at our house.

Things are pretty good for John and me too.  This year instead of tangible gifts, we decided to do gifts of relationship.  A date night once a month from him and spending 2 hours a weekend cleaning/organizing from me.  We felt that this sort of thing was especially important with all the other things going on in our lives, his work, my new job, the kids’ activities.  It’s so easy to let our relationship go on the back burner with all that going on.  He’s been amazing with all the craziness that has been our life post diagnosis. Love that guy.

Looking back at my posts, this year was actually fairly un-normal.  I spent quite a bit of it wearing a drain. I got to sing in public.  A lot.  Sometimes wearing a drain. 🙂  I interviewed for and got a job.  I knit a lot of hats.  And socks.  And an arm.  Got to do fun things with my family.  It was a good year.  So if that’s my un-normal, then un-normal is just fine.

Merry Christmas and/or Happy Holiday to you and yours!  And may your normal be beautifully un-normal.

Love,

Nicole

PS The gift of relationship thingy, we got the idea from the Advent Conspiracy.  Worth checking out.  🙂

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