Our {not so} perfect Christmas.

I had big plans for Christmas this year.  Big.  I put a lot of work into simplifying our holidays.  Why does it require work to make things more simple?  Not sure, but it took work.  I knew we were going to have a couple of our family Christmas parties done before Christmas so I envisioned the week after Christmas as this wonderful family time filled with puzzles, games and lots of snuggling. 

That bubble burst Christmas morning when we woke up with one droopy Isabella.  By the time we opened packages, she was throwing up.  Anna wasn't feeling much better and began throwing up the next morning.  Diarrhea (or as my children affectionately call it - "loose poop" hit our house on day 2 as well).  Three out of four kids were affected by something.  Good times.   Sick children do require a lot of snuggling.  It's just accompanied by moaning, sighing, and holding their hair back while they throw up.  Then disinfecting.  Lots of disinfecting.  Not how I envisioned my perfect Christmas.  This is day 5.  I'm hoping it is also day one of no more throwing up.  Hoping.  So far, so good, but it's only 9:30am.  At least they all look better - that's a start!

Planning for the perfect Christmas was a good idea.  It made me take time to focus on what really mattered and what didn't.  God matters.  Family matters.   The perfect gifts, homemade treats, beautiful decorations, and making everyone else happy -- well, that's all good, but it doesn't matter as much. 

And we definitely did simple this year.  We've napped.  A lot.  We're well rested so that's a bonus.  And maybe that's what God planned all along.  Maybe as simple as I had planned things, He knew I'd still mess them up, get busy, get distracted and forget about simple.  Maybe this was His way of slowing us all down.  Making us just stop what we were doing and rest.  I know I needed it.  And the kids did too.  Now I'm hoping we have a few days left of break that we can have fun together, see a few more smiles and maybe work on that puzzle Chris started.  Or, maybe we'll just take another nap!