Advent…Stop Dog’in me!

Several years ago a good friend gave me an advent calendar she had made. It has clay figures that velcro onto a Christmas tree that is topped by a star on Christmas Eve. I look forward to putting it up every year. Every year but this year. This year those little clay snowflakes, hearts, stockings, and angels are dog’in me.

Every morning I dig another figurine out of its pocket and place it on the tree. One day closer, and a very visual reminder of just how far behind I am! Everything started off fine. I had my Christmas letter written. I bought the cards, and then suddenly things started to fall apart.

I think it all started with Thanksgiving. Our son and his family were making a move and requested a little help in making that happen. It was the weekend before Thanksgiving. No problem! We can have this wrapped up and still have plenty of time for Thanksgiving cooking….sort of. Moving took three days! It involved several hours of packing, not to mention even more hours on the road. First north, then south, then west before I was finally home. Alright. Three days before I need to head east again for turkey. We’re still good.

I was home exactly one week when I got a call asking if I could come up to Melbourne for a little emergency alteration work on Ben’s uniform. Being a family of vertically challenged individuals there is no such thing as wearing “off the rack”! His uniform was arriving on Tuesday afternoon and he was shipping out on Wednesday morning. No time for a professional. He would have to make do with me. “Can do”, but it meant that I needed to power shop NOW for out of town family, where gifts needed to be shipped. I’ve got this!

A four hour drive up, my sewing machine in tow, I went to work Tuesday evening and was on my way back home Wednesday afternoon. But…Friday would be our grandson’s first birthday. I can’t miss that! They asked why I didn’t just stay? Stay? I can’t stay! It’s Christmastime! I don’t have four free days to just kick back and enjoy! There are cards to be written, stuffed, addressed, and stamped. Presents to be purchased and wrapped. No, I couldn’t just stay.

Friday morning I was back on the road. I would be there for my grandson’s 1st birthday. We had plans! A trip to the zoo, followed by a very special birthday cupcake, and lots of presents to open. It was all good fun and worth the effort. Saturday morning though, I needed to head back to Naples. Kim had a new job and the company Christmas party was that evening. If I left before lunch I could squeeze in a nap before the festivities were to begin. Of course dinner was scheduled for 8:00! 8:00?! What am I, 20!? Now was not the time to make a fuss about my bedtime being closer to 9:00, and that 8:00 was a more appropriate hour for coffee and dessert. Instead we would have a snack and pretend we were cosmopolitan. Dinner at 8:00, followed by a show starting at 10:00 was perfect! Oh dear!

I forgot to mention that a few days earlier my son-in-law called and asked if I would mind coming to Boca on Sunday to help him study for his paramedic final. Of course I would be happy to help! If cars had frequent driver miles I would be racking them up! After being up to midnight the night before I set the alarm for way too early. Dusty needed study time and I needed to make sure that two hour drive didn’t cut into it. I arrived early and we studied late. Monday morning Dusty was well prepared and on his way to class, and I was once again on my way home.

This time I would be home a week before packing the car once again. Saturday morning the entire family would be off to Disney World. A combined late birthday celebration for our grandson, and a family Christmas gathering. We were all looking forward to it, but that meant I needed to finish shopping for our son and his family. Because of work schedule conflicts we wouldn’t be able to share Christmas with them until the 26th, but that didn’t mean their presents needed to be late. I just needed to shop faster! Pressure, pressure, pressure!!! Turns out Ben has to work Christmas day, so all my extra efforts were for naught, but that’s besides the point!

It was a fabulous weekend! Magical as always, and extra special because we were all together. Finally a break in the craziness so that it really felt like Christmas.

Upon returning home Sunday evening, it was time to attach more figurines to the advent calendar, to get caught up on the days I had missed. Whoa! Are you kidding!? Only four more days till Christmas Eve!? I have shopping to do! One more gift was needed for Kim, and I hadn’t even begun to shop for Mariah and Dusty! How did it get so late?! How did it slip by!? I have never been this far behind! Yet there it was, staring me in the face! That darn calendar! Tick, tick, tick! Well, looking at it isn’t going to change anything. Grab the checkbook and the credit card. I gotta get going!

Tuesday I finished with two days to spare! That’s right! I’m amazing! That morning I walked into the kitchen and placed the second to last piece on the advent calendar. For the first time in a month it didn’t seem like it was taunting me. For the first time in 23 days I could listen to Christmas music with joy in my heart, memories of Christmases past, and the hope of what’s to come. For the first time this December I looked at that advent calendar, placed another figurine on the tree knowing we were one day closer to that all important day, and thought of my dear friend who made that calendar for me those years ago as a marker of anticipation, not dread. And now it was.