Heart-warming

List of people Jude wanted to pray for tonight:

Uncle Scrooge

Mickey Mouse

Santa

Such a spiritual child.

Such an affectionate kid...

Jude is now using "happy new year" as a term of endearment.  He tells us "happy new year" as he's hugging us, before we put him to sleep.  

He also occasionally throws in a "happy birthday" and "happy anniversary."

I'll take it. 

Ahhh...

I love the holidays: the time with family and friends, the traditions, the music, the food, the communal heightened sense of charity and giving...

And one of my favorite parts of the holidays is when it's all over.  Something about how busy we get, and how the schedule gets turned upside down makes me say, "ahhhh..." when January rolls around.  I love returning to normalcy, getting back on schedule, and finally feeling like my house is in order again.  When you have a child, routine is your best friend.  Children thrive on routines (at least mine does), and while he does fine when we have house guests, or when we're on vacation, I just feel like things go that much smoother when we get back on schedule.  Maybe it's more for my sake than it is for his...

January rolls around, and I want to be better.  Smarter.  More fit.  More organized.  More creative.  Something about this time of year makes me hopeful, like I've got a fresh start.   

And even if I don't always accomplish what I so ambitiously plan to do, at least I'm trying to grow.  Ah, the possibilities...