It would be hard for me to complain

Yes, stop reading now if you don’t want to hear how happy my life is.  I don’t blame you.  I wouldn’t want to hear this cheerful news either.

I just enjoyed the BEST holiday season EVER! It was a pretty normal holiday, but it was contrasted by the year before, when in 2020 I was still in the midst of chemo for a pretty agressive breast cancer and also in a wheelchair after a freak tibia break the night before Thanksgiving.  2020 I WAS the Grinch!  I didn’t give (or recieve) any gifts.  I did not decorate anything.  We did not gather significantly as a family.  I decided not to have Christmas, and I did not. BAH HUMBUG!!!

But this year, I was all in for all of Christmas and all of the holiday traditions!  I reinstated my holiday open house for local friends and also the invite to a holiday christmas cookie invite for all of the neighbors on my street.  Both traditions are special to me, and both were attended this year at about 60% particiaption, which is a win in these days. (I advertised that all in my house are vaccinated and boosted before both parties.)

My youngest daughter and her husband welcomed their first child into this world on November 29.  We took our other grandkids on a ride on the Polar Express (Texas edition) for our gift to those 3 kids including pj’s for the clan plus a Shutterfly memory book. (that’s the pic for this entry in case you did not notice)

I sent out an annoying holiday card with photos and recounts of our travels for the first time in five years!

I baked cookies.  A whole slate of selections.  But I also baked my gingerbread.  My speciality, which now my daughters also do, because… it’s Christmas…