Wintry Waiting

Remind me in the future that jumping into Christmas prep before the end of November might not actually be the best idea.  Excitement for the holiday is reaching a fever pitch around here and we are still two weeks out.... we might not make it, folks.  On a positive note, the house is cozy and lovely and there are moments of peaceful waiting to be enjoyed.  Reading by the tree with some coffee, lighting our advent wreath on Sundays-- reminders that this is a holy time.  Other times are not so relaxing, when our sweet children, suffering from the delightful combination of boredom and anxiety, swing from keyed-up and joyful to snappish to sulky, changing moment to moment.  Ivy has pinned all of her hopes for the future on Christmas, it seems, and her anticipation is pretty much running the show these days.  

And so we are trying to find our Advent balance, where we can enjoy the reverence of the waiting, and also keep busy enough to take the edge off for everyone.  And even in our shut-down world there are wintry festivities to be found.

We had a delightful time at the Penitentiary Glen "Wild Winter Nights" event, where we went on a night hike, met some wild animals, chatted with a naturalist, and threw snowballs at each other.  We do best as a family when we are outdoors together, it never fails.

As is the case at most of the wonderful nighttime events at Penitentiary Glen, the pictures do not do it justice.

We got to bring gifts for the animals in the wildlife center, which was super sweet.

Managed to make a snowman during the tour of the rescue animal habitats, because that's how we roll.

I think we are looking at a possum in this picture. I am not sure.

Took the kids out for a walk at Wade Oval on a steely grey Sunday.  They were not particulary enthused.

But thanks to interesting art, big rocks, ledges to balance on, and cold fresh air, we had a delightful time.

This week was full of long days at work and late nights wrapping as we prepped Christmas to mail to our far-flung friends and family.  There is a certain melancholy to packing these boxes, as it is confirmation of the fact that we cannot all be together this year.  But there is also a significant amount of joy and gratification as we send off these tokens of our love.  Worth the rush.  Fingers crossed the packages make it by Christmas!

The Rink at Wade Oval opened this year, and we are thrilled.  Like most things during Covid, you have to make advance reservations, which is a bit of a challenge for us.  We are accustomed to spontaneously deciding what to do based on weather and mood.  But we went for it and reserved some Friday night tickets and it did not disappoint.  

The little rink is as magic as always, and perhaps even more enjoyable (if somewhat less festive) with the limited crowds.

We've already got another day reserved.

The cat loves this tree. She messes with it, but gently.

Yesterday we helped Gram decorate her tree, and then snuggled in for a Christmas movie together.

It was fun to watch my mom teach my daughter the fine art of arranging decorations.  Perfect Ornament Placement Disorder is apparently genetic. 

Then Ivy and Winter and I joined our Community of Hope friends downtown to see the lights. 

We sang carols and wandered among crowds of people at Public Square.  There wasn't an event or anything going on-- just people who want to be out doing something to celebrate the season.  People were happy and friendly and all wearing masks and between the music and the lights  and the people and the magic reflected in little baby Empress's wide eyes, I was feeling the Christmas spirit for sure. 

 Today, we prep cookie dough for our swap next weekend, prepare for our last week of teaching and learning in 2020, light the third advent candle, and try our best to enjoy the waiting.