Well, I drove down to Illinois between snow storms on Christmas Eve, and the entire Chicagoland area seems to be covered with a layer of ice. Overnight, they had rain again, so today, as I helped Mom take down the decorations, we pondered whether I should head home tonight or wait until tomorrow morning. Since I have no deadlines across the state line, I think I'll probably hang out here and drive home tomorrow, since the fog is supposed to roll in any minute now.

Unfortunately, I didn't bring much with me in the way of projects to work on, though I think I might have a few ornaments in one of my bags that could occupy some time. My folks don't have cable, you see, and we've watched most of the Christmas classics I brought along--from Frosty the Snowman to White Christmas--but I think we might have a classic or two still unviewed to occupy our evening.

If I were really thinking ahead, I'd sit down and write my Christmas letter. I have the cards, the stationery, the labels, and the stamps, but haven't yet actually done the mailing. So that job was part of the "to do" list for Saturday and Sunday. Wouldn't it be great if I could accomplish that tonight?

So in closing, I just thought I'd share that it was a lovely Christmas filled with family and fun. We played Rummy (or 13 for those of you in the family--I've always wondered if those two names actually apply to the same game or if we misnamed them) and I won--an accomplishment for sure since I seldom win at cards. I received some lovely gifts! And I'll be setting up my quilting machine New Years weekend--Merry Christmas to me! Maybe I'll post photos here once I get the sewing room cleared out enough and the machine set up. As for the reflective part that always seems to come this time of year, let me say this. As I helped Mom put away her Christmas decorations, she'd comment on this one or that, and it seemed that many of them either had a special memory tied to them or were from someone who meant something to her. Of all of the quirks and traits that I got from her, all the things that make me my mother's daughter, I'm blessed to value things for the memories that come with them, not the price tag that was attached to them. It's the same reason that I read the Christmas letters that come to their house--friends of theirs who have touched their lives, and mine, for years. Though it's true that there are friends of theirs that I've never met, I've always known about them through their letters and cards, and they are still a part of my life in some distant way. We're all connected, family and friends and even strangers, and I treasure the people who been a part of my life each year in some way, whether in person, through e-mail or snail mail, or even as they flit through my memories or my dreams or across my path. May each of you have blessings abundant in the coming year.