I was hurt because that was the first year of my life that Thanksgiving and Christmas were not complete extended family affairs for my mom's side or my dad's side. Normally, we have to run around like crazy to meet with group after group of our extended and blended families. It's a bunch of craziness. I love it.
We did go to my parents' and Rodney's grandparents' houses and celebrated Thanksgiving and Christmas in 2010, and it was lovely. But none of our extended family got to meet our babies. I had imagined getting to proudly introduce our biggest blessings to every single person in our families. I thought everyone would be dying to meeting them. I'm sure they were, but that's not how it worked out.
At the same time, I couldn't help but be a little relieved because my fears about the babies getting sick were lessened knowing that it was a small family gathering. We were also packing a ton of stuff and it helped that less people would be tripping over all of the baby gear. Plus, that Thanksgiving, the babies still had their heart/apnea monitors. Those were a potential tripping risk as well, with all of the wires times two. A month later at Christmas, the monitors came off. I felt like dancing all around the living room with the babies just because I finally could without throwing monitor bags over my shoulder or getting wound up in wires. They were a pain but they made me feel secure. I slept a lot easier knowing that an ear piercing alarm would sound should one of the babies stop breathing. But no monitors meant the babies were getting stronger and healthier, that things were moving along as they should.
Our family has grown a lot in the past decade. We are currently in a marriage and baby boom. There have been two sets of twins born in one year. There are still many babies to come, I'm sure, and if we're all going to start having them two at a time, then we might just have to start renting a warehouse for our holiday festivities.
By the time Christmas rolled around, I was feeling exhausted. I just couldn't find the energy for anything. I wasn't depressed. I was just...not festive. But it turned out to be wonderful anyway, thanks to my husband. He did all of the work to make Christmas happen this year. He put the lights out on the house and even decorated the inside of the house. He hung the stockings. He brought the tree in from the attic. He did the shopping online. He even provided a crappie Christmas dinner at his grandparents' house.
The babies watched me decorate the tree and they thought every ornament was a new toy I was denying them. They cried almost the whole time because their mommy was hogging all of the "balls" and hanging them all out of reach on a beautiful lighted and forbidden tower that stood high inside their pack-n-play.
Instead of fancy Christmas clothes, they spent all day in their comfy Christmas pj's.
The babies were finally able to meet almost everyone for the holidays this year and now it just feels complete. It feels like they were finally and officially initiated into the family and our traditions.
And now, Emma and Ethan, I pronounce you Nelsons and Robinsons, Garlands and Hodges.
Christian had an apnea monitor when he was a baby too & it was the scariest piece of machinery I had ever seen. To this day I hope to never see one again...too many bad memories.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad the babies helped you find some holiday spirit! That had to be so fun for them to run around & meet people together.
Christmas of 2011 was a Christmas to remember. I think we were in crisis mode during the 2010 holidays but we felt the babies were "normal" now (in a very special way of course)
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