It was wonderful having Nicholas home for 11 days (I love having all my guys home!) but since he was scheduled to work December 26 he needed to drive home on Christmas day.
So bright and early on Christmas morning (so early that we almost discovered Santa scrambling back up the chimney), we gathered in our family room to exchange gifts and have our traditional Christmas breakfast of homemade sticky buns. Then, we helped Nicholas pack his car and we watched him drive away.
It was 7:30 a.m.
When we trooped back inside Jonathan and Timothy looked through their stuff, Joe organized his new tools, and I curled up on the couch with a cappuccino. It was different being done so early, and I missed seeing Nicholas and Jonathan bent over one of their strategy board games on Christmas afternoon, but I know we are entering a new stage of our lives in which traditions of old will always be honored, but perhaps in different ways. Maybe we will even create new ones.
Nine hours later Nicholas called to say he arrived safely. He had already unloaded his car, set up the Fontanini nativity set he received as one of his gifts, and was looking forward to celebrating Christmas with his girlfriend.
And curled up on the couch (no cappuccino) watching a Star Wars movie with the rest of my guys, I embraced this Christmas day which, while a little different, had been so, so good.
Nicholas with Nonna and Nonno, Christmas Eve
2 comments:
Merry Christmas Maria! We had transitioning traditions too this year, I strongly felt a mixture of nostalgia for past holidays and enormous pride in the adults my “children” are becoming. Satisfaction, too, in adapting to and embracing the changes. Parenting in a nutshell!
Hi Lori! Transitioning traditions can be hard, but exciting too! That's the roller coaster ride of parenting! Merry Christmas to you and your family!
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