I'm not really sure that I'm ready for the holidays to be over, for a number of reasons. The lights and decorations are so cheerful. I really love the way Christmas lights reflect off the snow. . . or through the snow. When the lights disappear, we are just left with the cold of January. The best part of the holiday season is time spent with family. It becomes even more important now that I'm an empty nester. Bob and I have no family in the state of Idaho, just each other.
On November 19, Bob flew to Florida to stay with his mom then drive her up to North Carolina. She had a stroke in April and is unable to travel alone. I flew to Raleigh on Nov. 21. It was an uneventful, fairly quick trip. Laura and Ian picked me up at the airport. (Her hair was streaked with turquoise this time - at least she warned me.) Laura and I got up early the next morning so she could go to the barn and ride Rocket. It was freezing out, especially for Raleigh! I watched Laura ride, took photos, and tried to keep warm. Her young instructor was there, too, and I got to see her jump. This is something Laura really loves, so I'm glad she found a place to ride. That evening the two of us went to see the new movie "Twilight". It was true to the book (which Laura had asked me to read) and very entertaining. On Sunday Laura and I attended her church (Ian slept in). Afterwards, we went out to lunch with the young adult group, a nice bunch of people. Laura and Ian both had to work on Monday so I tagged along with Laura - sort of a "take your mom to work day". I was a bit surprised that her boss was so willing to have me there. Most of the time I sat next to her at her computer and watched her work. I was even recruited to help test a game for a short time, a group test. That was fun although I'm not a video game player and had no idea how to use the controls. Laura, her boss, a female friend from the art department (one of the few other women) and I went to lunch. All in all, an interesting day. It was a nice few days, good mother/daughter time which I treasured because it happens so seldom anymore. Shortly after we returned to their home, Bob and his mom arrived.
Laura picked up her sister, Erin, at the airport on Wednesday afternoon. Finally we were all together. Thanksgiving was a whirlwind of activity with food preparation and figuring out how to seat 10 people in their little dining area. This was a huge change for me. It was the first time in 20 years that I did not have to make Thanksgiving dinner. Of course, I helped and offered advice, but this was Laura's show. She was hosting her first holiday meal in their own home, a big deal. She was nervous, but it came off well. Her childhood friend, Liz, who is attending graduate school at NC State was present, too, and was a great help. They had two small turkeys and the two of them worked on them together, Laura learning from Liz who had done it before. They had fun working together. Laura's inlaws, and Bob's brother, George, also came to dinner. It was a special time with everyone together.
We were able to stay until Monday when Erin and I flew off in our own directions while Bob and his mother headed back to Florida. It was hard to see my mother-in-law moving so slowly and struggling in frustration to do what she used to do easily. However, I was pleased to see her determination and progress, amazing for someone 85 years old. It was hard to say goodbye to her since I don't know when I'll get to see her again.
Erin arrived in Boise on December 18 for her Christmas break then Laura and Ian followed 2 days later. The week went so quickly! Although they arrived late on Saturday (actually early on Sunday), and we all got to bed late, everybody was up bright and early for our special church service. The choir, with Bob as a bass, sang a cantata which was lovely. I contributed to the service by assisting with the reading for the lighting of the Advent candles (including an angel costume and thank goodness no photos were taken). On Tuesday night we all went to the Idaho Botanical Garden's "Winter Garden a Glow". We had attended this event years ago but this was a totally different experience. The lights were plentiful and beautiful plus we were able to warm ourselves by the small warming barrels and sip hot chocolate. My camera didn't like the cold temperature but I was able to get some great photos. Afterwards, we enjoyed a late dinner at Applebee's.
I had to work on Christmas Eve day but that evening we ordered our traditional Chinese takeout. We decided to attended the late service at church. It had begun to snow earlier in the evening so the attendance was low. It was a nice, quiet, reflective service, and the drive back in the snow was lovely, although a bit wet. Christmas Day was spent at home, opening gifts, eating, and just enjoying each others' company. We did go out later in the evening to look at Christmas lights, our last chance.
On Friday afternoon we rented snowshoes from REI and headed up to Bogus Basin. Ian had never been on snowshoes before so he was really excited. We nixed Bob's idea of walking along the XC ski trails and headed off on snowshoe trails instead, which included very steep ups and downs. The snow was fresh powder, just wonderful, and decorated the trees surrounding us. We spent about 2 hours out, and got back just before dark, and just when we were getting a bit tired. It was a good family activity and lots of fun.
Laura and Ian left early the next morning. It was hard to say goodbye this time since we don't know when we'll see them again. Laura said they'll come out next Thanksgiving but that's so far off. I sure hope we see them before that. It's hard to have them so far away. Thank goodness for e-mails, cell phones, and instant messaging. Erin will be here until January 18 so we aren't back to being empty nesters again yet.
