"Ho, Ho, Ho" or "Ho Hum" ?

i just returned from my last training engagement for the month. I am now sitting in the midst of christmas cards that haven't been written, gifts that now have to be sent by FedEx ($$$$!!!), the pajamas patterns for the children and grandchildren cut but not yet sewed (7 of them) and a lovely Christmas tree aglow with lights, but with nary an ornament. The nutrolls haven't even gotten to the ingredient-buying stage. No stockings hung on the chimney with care (where are they, anyway??).

Someone asked me yesterday if I was ready for Christmas. I wasn't ready for Thanksgiving, but it came anyway. That's the way I feel about Christmas, too. It will come whether I'm "ready" or not. Thanks to my husband, the lighted wreaths with their beautiful red bows are already in place, hanging outside the upstairs bay windows on our old historic house in Savannah. What is "ready"??? How ready do you have to be, and who decides?

My son is coming tomorrow for a quick visit with two of my grandchildren. Next weekend, we will have the little girls, my husband's two children, and the following week, my two children and four grandchildren will descend on us for two days of welcomed chaos. Am I ready for that??? Absolutely. I can't wait.

Sometimes we let the preparation and some arbitrary standard of "readiness" measure our excitement or enjoyment of an event. The house has to be pristine, the decorations up to Southern Living Magazine standard, the food worthy of recognition by the Food Network. We lose the "Ho, Ho, Ho" merriment and enjoyment of the moment by exhausting ourselves with preparation, wanting that approval or adulation of what WE did instead of focusing on the mere joy of being together for a time in a special season.

This year, my decorations may be "Ho Hum", but when we open the door to family and friends, my heart will be singing "Ho, Ho, Ho." Don't miss the magic amid all the crazienss. Determine your own standards. Clear the clutter off the dining room table, dust off the good china, and really look at and talk to your family and guests. Give a few extra hugs, tell someone how much you love them and what they mean to you. Don't stress over the chocolate stains on the couch or the candy cane stuck to the curtains. That's what Resolve carpet and upholstery cleaners are for. Happy Holidays!