My Poor Neglected Blog

It isn't that I don't love you, or that there isn't much to say; it's just that I am busy, and tired, and it seems at the end of the day I just want to sleep, not blog.

We had a beautiful Thanksgiving weekend. We feasted, we rested, and we did something I have never done Thanksgiving weekend-- we decorated.

I am an Advent nazi. You know the type-- always battling the ever earlier Christmas displays, won't put up the tree till the week of Christmas, doesn't sing Christmas carols until it is actually Christmas. I love Advent. I want to wait for Christmas. All the early celebration leaves my heart feeling like I gorged on candy and cookies rather than a beautiful, well- prepared meal.

I was already past my due date with Bear on the first Sunday of Advent seven years ago. We had a wonderful priest (Fr. Trigilio) who gave a homily that Sunday that has stuck with me ever since. He encouraged us to think of Mary, who during Advent was preparing for the birth of her first child. Oh the anticipation she would have been feeling. Our Advent should have some aspect of that. Mary wasn't partying, or shopping, she was nesting. She was preparing her home in joyful expectation. Being pregnant and on the verge of our next adoption this Advent is such a blessing. It allows me to meditate on that expectation of Advent at a whole new level.

That being said, I am typically the sole decorator in this house. The combination of my perfectionist tendencies and dh's just get it done tendencies have led to my putting up the decorations to keep the marital peace. Much the same way dh takes care of mopping the floor, meal planning, and car maintenance. This year, I just couldn't do it alone. I can't carry boxes up and down the stairs, I can't vacuum my mess, and I am too tired and overwhelmed to get it all done. I needed his help. He was happy to help, but December is going to be a busy month for him at work. He has a very big project due Dec. 31. We also hope to be moving forward with adoption paperwork and packing very soon. So the decision was made to take advantage of the holiday weekend and get done with what we could.

I don't think we had any other choice, but it was hard to be decorating so early. I still won't let the girls turn on the lights, other than during our nightly prayers. I only hope that now that most of the decorating is done we can get down to our real Advent devotions. I also figure it is time for some nesting of my own. My mom gave me my first boy clothes this weekend and it somehow brought out the reality that there are two little boys joining us very soon and I am very unprepared. Clothes, cribs, car seats, all need to be organized, put together, and installed. I can't think of a better preparation for Advent-- making a place in my heart for the infant Jesus, while I prepare a place in my home for our new infants.