Day 11

We got to see someone really special to us today. Someone we haven’t seen in over a year. My nephew. He has been in California and on deployment. He is a Marine and we couldn’t be more proud.

My daddy was especially emotional when he saw him, tears of joy and sorrow. The last time we laid eyes on him was at Momma’s funeral. She would’ve loved seeing him today, she was so proud of her Marine grandson. She even had the bumper sticker. “My Grandson is a United States Marine.”  So, when daddy hugged him it brought a mixture of emotions knowing that momma wouldn’t be there to hug him too. Bittersweet.

The entire family travelled to daddy’s house today. My sisters and their husbands and all the grandkids. We opened presents, ate too much food and talked well into the night. It has been so long since we’ve all been in one room, it was the greatest gift I’ve received this year.

Family.

I loved watching everyone open their presents. And for those of you who are my friends on Facebook, my brother-in-law appreciated the doe pee in a can. He promised me it would be put to good use. Not sure exactly what that meant, but I’m glad he liked it.

But, honestly, I would return all my gifts to spend more time with the ones I hold dear. I read a quote recently that I love so much. Something like this, “it’s not what’s under the tree that really matters, it’s who’s around it.” The older I get the more that resonates with me. Stuff can be replaced, but the people in our lives are priceless.

I don’t know who is in your life this Christmas, whether you have lots of family or a just a few or maybe you have friends that are like family. Whoever is around your Christmas tree this year, let them know you love them. Time is fleeting and people come and go from our lives. We’re not promised tomorrow.

So, today, again, I laughed and I cried. Another successful day.

Oh, and I made mocha punch, the same drink I had a Christmas party recently. It was a huge hit!  Let me know if you want the recipe. A friend passed it on to me and I will gladly pass it along to you.