Wednesday
I usually would have gone to the office for the morning, but due to weather concerns, we left early for Fort Wayne to give ourselves plenty of time. It was pretty rainy, and windy, but made it there no problem. That night we went with Jackie's parents and brother to her Aunt's place for sharing with some extended family. Its always a good time, albeit a little loud - one of Jackie's cousin has three boys, all under the age of 8, and they tend to be pretty wired for Christmas. Excellent time with family, good food and sharing. After that, we hurried out and again braved a fierce wind and headed to Jackie's parent's church, Good Shepherd United Methodist (actually the church Jackie and I got married in, so its always a bit special to return there), for candlelight worship. It was a great service, very good message from the Pastor, and just full of good reminders on perspective - my main personal reflection following was just how incredibly grateful I should be...I worry about making better choices in eating and being better fiscally, but I don't have to worry about having a job, or having a home, or putting food on the table...much, very much to be thankful for.
Thursday
Christmas day. Opened up presents with Jackie, her parents and brother, along with their fun loving dog, Gracie. Just another great time and another reminder of how truly blessed Jackie and I are. After a lunch that included Jackie's grandfather, most everyone (actually everyone but me), ended up taking a nap. After people awoke from the afternoon slumber, Jackie and I, along with her parents, aunt and uncle, and another cousin went to the movies to see Marley & Me. First movie I've seen at a theater in maybe a year and a half, and I remember part of the reason now...man its expensive. Good movie, very emotional for both Jackie and I (more for her), as it somewhat relived our past experiences with our dog Toby and his passing in September. Very emotional, cathartic in some ways, but also a reminder that neither of us is quite ready for another dog yet. After the movie, we just went back to her parents place and crashed, ready to hit the road the next morning.
Friday
Supposed to be an easy day. Get up, pack, breakfast with friends, head home, maybe go into the office for a bit, then chill before heading up to Lansing on Saturday. Well, after a good breakfast with some friends, we get on I-69 to start the trip back. We apparently got on the Interstate right before they started closing exits, which was done because a good portion of the road around Auburn was all ice. We couldn't get above 25 mph without sliding like crazy, got stuck for about an hour and a half - first due to an accident and then because they wanted salt trucks on certain portions of the road; saw about 15-20 slide offs before getting off and taking US 20 back home. Normally an hour and half drive took almost three and half hours. By the time we made it home, I was too exhausted to make into the office, and still had to cook some potatoes for my family's Christmas. In addition to the somewhat stressed mood, I mailbox was hit by someone while we were gone, resulting in a swinging open door and leaning at a 45 degree angle. Tried to shrug that off best I could and just made the potatoes and tried to chill before another round of traveling.
Saturday
Got up and headed up to Lansing to my parents' place. The drive up had no snow and little rain, but some really bad fog in places that made it a bit more interesting than necessary. Had Christmas there with the folks, along with my sister, brother in law, and nephew, Gavin. Great time, fun to see Gavin react to all the stimulation that Christmas brings, and yet again another reminder of how blessed Jackie and I are to be part of our two families. After some general relaxing, including a win by my mom and I in canasta, sat down with my dad to watch Donovan's Reef, a John Wayne movie that he likes to watch every year during our Christmas time together. Its a good tradition - nice to have some consistency in the midst of how hectic the time can be. Stayed up a bit with my parents just talking about things before heading to bed.
Sunday
The end was finally near. Got up, loaded up the Sportage yet again with Christmas loot, went to breakfast with my parents, and then headed back home. The drive actually had no bad weather to deal with, which was nice. Got home, unloaded, then started our usually Sunday afternoon routine of Jackie cleaning the office and running errands. The errands included running to Lowe's to pick up a new mailbox. Got home, and luckily the ground was soft enough to get the mailbox in, although putting it in while it is 30 degrees out was less than fun.
Now, just sitting at home, finding homes for our gifts, and trying to unwind from an exhausting five days. I think its all the more tiring due to the fact that we've been gone every weekend since Thanksgiving. I'm very much looking forward to next weekend, and just staying at home for a change.
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