Christmas Vacation

So much happened over our 'Christmas Break' that I am not sure where to begin. Because Damien and my families live in different states, we have to flip-flop holidays and this year, we were slated to be with my family. We planned our 10-day trip and it was a bit stressful due to us getting the keys to our new house the night before we left, prepping our old house for an open house when we were gone and packing all 5 of us for Christmas as well as gathering all the gifts I had purchased for family and friends. Even though there were minutes, okay hours, where I thought I was going to have a nervous breakdown, we did indeed make it up there. It was such a relief to have the travel behind us and to know that for the next 10 days, our one goal was to spend time with my family and have a whole lot of fun!

The first thing on the agenda was seeing my parents' new house! We have seen their extensive remodel in stages over the last 9 months, but I was anxious to see it now that it was 95% complete. Walking into the house was so surreal. Once I made it up the stairs into the great room, I couldn't believe my eyes and actually got a little dizzy from being so disoriented. It is still the same house, but it is SO different. I am so happy for them. For so many years, they found a way to make ends meet and make their 5 children happy. Now it is their turn to live the good life and have a home where their kids can bring their kids and we can all be together as a family.

Due to the fact that I am a giant home body, we spent the first few days sipping coffee, chatting, and staying in our PJs until noon. My mom made sugar cookie dough before we came up there and then she and her grand kids decorated the cookies to leave for Santa. Matthew thoroughly enjoyed paling around with Kyle. He was really captivated by the sounds and movements he made and within the first few days, started mimicking him. Knowing that Christmas is such a busy time, I relished the quiet days and enjoyed getting more familiar with my parent's house.

I did a lot of my Christmas shopping before we flew up to my parents as well as an enormous amount online (shipped to my Mom's). I was so happy I only had about three people left to shop for. Shopping was more complicated this year with Matthew. My two older kids are shopping pros and navigate the mall well. Matthew on the other hand, didn't care what sales Nordstrom was having. He'll learn in due time! We shopped a little bit but mostly enjoyed the carolers, holiday decorations, and the coffee shops that are on every corner up there. At night, we returned to the same outdoor mall to take a ride on the Christmas train and get Matthew, Michael, and Kyle's haircut. We followed that with dinner at an Indian restaurant. A little side note here . . . When Michael was born in Paris, Damien took me to an Indian restaurant. I was, let's say . . . less than thrilled. Indian food and I didn't go together, or so I thought. The experience at that restaurant changed me forever and now I welcome the chance to go to any Indian restaurant and try a few new things. My sisters had never tried Indian food before and naturally were a bit reluctant. Although they weren't wowed by the experience, I know that it opened them up to the possibility of trying it again.

The following night, Jill took Claire to a Christmas party at a friend's house while Damien, Michael, Matthew, and I went to Gina's new apartment. In September, Gina bought a great apartment and is now a homeowner! I could hardly wait to see her place and when I did- it didn't disappoint. It was so comfortable, well decorated, and just perfect for her. For a house warming gift, I bought her The Joy of Cooking and I thought it would be fitting for us to make a meal from it so we would always remember our first dinner and also so Gina could see how to make a new dish! We had a lot of fun! Gina and I were busy in the kitchen while the boys roamed her place and watched The Wizard of Oz on television. Dinner turned out delicious and we really had a nice time. I am so proud of her and the way she has focused her life and taken care of herself. Gina buying a house was just another reminder that we are all getting older, but thankfully- we are all getting older together.

That evening, I noticed that Matthew was a little warm. I got that sick feeling in my stomach that he was going to have a fever. My suspicions became a reality in the middle of the night. Poor Matthew was sick. Sick right before Christmas. Isn't that the way it always happens, though? Kids never get sick at a convenient time. But Christmas? Oh, man. We were in for it. We woke up the next morning, medicated Matthew and went to church with my whole family. At this point, his fever was low-grade but he had 'sick eyes'. I can always tell if my kids are sick by their eyes, and Matthew's eyes told me he was fighting some kind of sickness. But with babies, you can't tell if they are fevering from teething or from something else. So we went on and hoped for the best. Mass was wonderful and we were all getting ready to leave when I noticed that Kyle was spitting up. I told Jill and as she was turning him around to check it out, he threw up all over the place. Three or four times everywhere. Poor baby. My whole family did damage control as this happened when everyone was trying to get by us to leave the church (of course). Jill swept Kyle out to the car and we all hoped that he was just overfed and not sick.

Between tending to Matthew and Kyle (who we kept separate from each other in the hopes of not spreading anything), the rest of that day was pretty much shot. It was the 23rd of December and tomorrow was Christmas Eve Day. We hoped the two would get better so we could have a healthy Christmas. The next day, Matthew actually seemed a bit better. He still a low grade fever, but he seemed to have more energy- perhaps brightness in his eyes. We all carried on and got ready for Christmas Eve Mass. The kids looked adorable in their outfits. Damien and I managed to get ready as well and made it to Mass on time. Christmas Eve dinner is always at my Aunt Carol's house. It is a big traditional Italian dinner loaded with tons of seafood, pasta, calzones, breads, and salads. It is phenomenal and I look forward to it so much! All was going well and dinner was almost ready. I noticed Claire looking a little frazzled. When she saw me, she darted over to me and said she thought she had to throw up. I thought maybe she had too many gummy bears (which are a staple on Christmas Eve). But she said she didn't eat that many. After a few minutes with her in the bathroom, Claire proved to be right in how she felt. She got sick. Now what? We couldn't keep her there and expose everyone to the stomach flu. Obviously, Kyle had it the day before and now Claire had it. It turns out that a child at the Christmas party two nights before had the stomach flu, hence Kyle and Claire getting sick. Damien offered to take Claire back to my parent's house and let me, Michael, and Matthew stay and enjoy the rest of the night. (Note that Gina offered first to take Claire home, but Damien felt that she should stay and enjoy herself. Just wanted to put that in, Ween.)

The rest of the night was really nice. Santa came and visited and Michael and Matthew (obviously Michael more than Matthew) loved seeing Santa. It is always the true highlight of the night and it didn't disappoint. I was sad that Claire and Damien weren't there for that part, but I thought it was the right call to make to take her home. We left shortly after Santa did and joined them back at home and gave Claire all her presents. She had tons of energy when we got home and gave us all hope that she wasn't going to be barfing all night long! The kids put out the cookies for Santa and Claire made sure to leave carrots for the reindeer. Sometime between the time we went to sleep and woke up the next morning, Santa and all of his little helpers managed to get 11 stockings filled with goodies. What a guy!

Matthew happened to have a horrible night of sleep and I was awakened on the sofa upstairs by Damien telling me that the kids wanted to look in their stockings. I quickly rallied and up the stairs they came with excitement. Claire asked Santa for a Hannah Montana doll, a Snow White Costume, and Butterfly Boots. Michael on the other hand, took a more open approach and said, "Santa knows what I want so I don't need to ask for anything. He already knows." I am sure that this made Santa a bit nervous to figure out all the things Michael would want for Christmas. It was too late to worry now. The kids were ripping into their stockings and enjoying their gifts. Traditionally in my family, we look in our stockings and mingle for a little bit until the coffee is made and everyone has made their way into the living room. Then, one by one we open up the gifts we all got each other and have a very relaxing Christmas morning.

Once we were finally done opening gifts we looked out the window and it was snowing. We were having a White Christmas!!! It hasn't snowed up there on Christmas since 1996 and what luck we had to have snow this year! This was Damien, Michael, Claire, and Matthew's first White Christmas and they were going berserk! It was really cool and we all went outside and enjoyed the snow and it's beauty. We were all getting ready to head up to my Uncle's house where we celebrate Christmas with my Dad's family when that blasted stomach flu took hold of my Dad. So with my Dad in spirit, we headed out for more celebrating.

Christmas with my Dad's side of the family is always wonderful. Again, it is an Italian Christmas in that we have pasta, meatballs, brigole (spelling?), and good bread for our Christmas feast. When Damien knew he was going to marry me, an Italian, he had no idea that his Christmas' with my family would be inundated with pasta, etc. He is a good sport though and we thoroughly enjoyed the delicious food, the wonderful conversations, the hilarious game play (My Uncle Bob always has some game planned for the day) and so much more. All was going well until my sister Laura felt like she had to throw up. Luckily, she made it to the bathroom and as the song goes . . . Bum Bum Bum Another One Bites the Dust. Dang that stomach flu! That pretty much put an end to our lovely celebration there and we headed back to the house. Poor Matthew was still fevering and on top of that, we were all scared that we would be the next victim of the Holiday Heaves.

Things quieted down on Christmas night. We put the kids to bed and then Gina, Natalie, my Mom, Damien, and I played a fantastic game called Mad Gab. Seriously, if you want to laugh so hard your stomach hurts- then buy this game. It is a game where teams work together to decipher groups of unrelated words into real phrases before time runs out. For example, Eye Mull Of Mush Sheen. Say it over and over until you figure it out. It will seriously leave you wanting more. We have played it a lot and the laughter was exactly what we needed that night.

So, Christmas played out a little differently than we had planned. But when it was all said and done, it was memorable none the less. And in case you were wondering . . . Matthew's 4 day fever? A double ear infection we had diagnosed the next day at a clinic. Sickness is never convenient and we know that when it starts, you just better put your head down and keep moving forward. Merry Christmas to all. Russ, where's the Tylenol?