So much to be THANKFUL for....I am digging deep....found it!...oh dear...Christmas is just around the corner!

...home sweet home....that is what I was saying at 11:30 am when we pulled into our driveway from a wonderful Thanksgiving with Jerry's family! There is something to be said about traveling to spend precious time with your loved ones that you just do not see often enough.....there is also something to be said for coming home! Mette knew that when Thanksgiving was over and we got home it was GAME ON.....CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS GALORE!!! She must have asked at least 10 times if we were there yet and made sure to drive her point home that I was NOT to do any cleaning or decorating without her (she needed to take a LONG soak in the tub before anything else!)
We got home....unloaded the mini van that was filled with what seems like never ending "crap" :-), put away groceries, unpacked the bags of clothes both clean and dirty, got down the Christmas trees and bins from the storage above the garage....mind you Mette is repeatedly telling me NOT to do ANYTHING without her- I guess my repeated reassurance in the Van on the drive home was not enough....Gabe was out shoveling the driveway- OK he did about 3 swipes and was over his need to be outside after a long car ride. 
Fast forward....baths and showers are done for the kids, everything is cleaned up and we are ready to decorate....first up the BIG tree upstairs.....OH LORD GIVE ME PATIENCE and I MEAN NOW!!!!! Really, I know Gabe and I are a LOT alike and this can be good or it can be the end of a wonderful moment...today...it was the second of the two (at least at first). Just unpacking the damn tree was a battle between us....Mette is quietly standing by as Gabe and I go round after round ~ back and forth ~ him questioning EVERYTHING that comes out of my mouth! DRIVES ME NUTS!!!! Jerry, mind you, is steering clear of the whole mess...as he finishes the driveway job Gabe started and a few other odds and ends outside before coming in to referee the match!
I had to take many deep breaths and apologize for hooting and hollering at Gabe, but we managed to get the tree up and decorated! It looks WONDERFUL....So I think I should be done for the day! BOY WAS I WRONG...my kids had other ideas! They wanted to do THEIR tree downstairs. The family tree with all of our personal ornaments on it. They get to decorate it each year however they want! After the episode upstairs I was dreading this! We did have our moments where we could have choked each other...but when all was said and done we had a SECOND tree that was BEAUTIFUL!
By now it was dinner time....we all sat down to a wonderful and very yummy grilled feast prepared by my husband. Then it was family movie time....(I swear to God that this is Mette's most favorite thing to do!) After watching The Santa Claus and making popcorn for the kids and Jerry I was able to reflect on the day....
I have so many things to be thankful for...first and foremost my kids and husband! Each day is an adventure ~ yes we have our ups and downs because we are so much alike, but at the end of the day I would not trade any of it for all the riches in the world. I am also thankful for being able to spend time with Jerry's family. Seeing Jerry's dad for the first time with his new set of chompers was GREAT!
....So after the movie and the kids were fast asleep (which took all of 3 seconds for Gabe and well, Mette missed the last 15 minutes of the movie as she was passed out on me!) I was feeling in the festive mood still as the Christmas lights twinkled in the dark and all of our wonderful family ornaments that were hung so carefully by my children (all crammed into different sections of the tree) I decided to crack out the wrapping paper, dig out the bags hidden in my closet and put a HUGE dent into wrapping gifts! Well....lets just say that I am pretty proud of what I got done! All the gifts that have been bought ( I have been trying to be a head of the game this year...instead of impulse buying as Christmas gets closer) Gabe is DONE....Mette is very close to being done....Jerry and I are DONE....my parents are 1/2 way done....my God daughter is DONE....my sister and Dana (no frickin clue what they are going to get)...Gabe's godparents DONE...my grade level coworkers are DONE! With that said....I only have a few more left....and not only are they DONE but they are all FRICKIN' WRAPPED!!!
~ Now I am beyond exhausted and I need to go to bed....for tomorrow will for sure bring more adventures and more things to be Thankful for - and my " TO DO" list will be a little shorter after the productive day we have had....on the list for tomorrow...Christmas letter to go with the photo cards sitting on the computer table, baking cookies with Gabe and Mette (the KISS cookies),  cuddle time with Vivi (my god daughter), watching the VIKINGS...lord help us all if they do not win, and trying to enjoy every moment and remembering to be THANKFUL for all that we have...for we are VERY BLESSED!