Delighted and delightful

My sincere apologies (partly tongue in cheek) for not requesting anyone’s help on Thursday night with the whole key debacle. It honestly didn’t even occur to me to ask someone else to do it for me but I promise you I will the next time (although we do try to learn from our mistakes and hopefully there won’t be a next time!). It actually all worked out okay. I bundled Braedan up (in the thirteen degree weather, not 18 like I’d thought) and we drove around looking at the holiday lights while waiting for Austin to be released. At 10 o’clock, we pulled up to the hospital entrance and Mark delivered a very awake and excited Austin to my warm cozy car. The two boys literally shrieked with delight at seeing each other and squealed the entire way home. We let Braedan sleep in Friday morning and I brought him to school after 10.

And additional apologies (again somewhat tongue in cheek) for my multicultural faux pas with the Menorah lighting. Braedan told me last week that Hanukah started “on Friday” and so, fully trusting my five-year old as a valid source of information, we lit the first candle last Friday, the 4th! We had made it through four candles before I realized the start of Hanukah was actually yesterday, the 11th. So much for my attempt at religion ….

Enough apologizing — our weekend has been lovely. Mark and Braedan went to the Cavs game last night (another source of squealing delight) and several of my girlfriends came over with wine and chocolate after Austin went to sleep. There was much laughter and some tears and way too many bottles of wine consumed, which added up to a near perfect evening.

This morning, the boys were picked up by their favorite family friend “Uncle Pauly” who took them on a “Dunkie’s run” for breakfast donuts. Then they went back to Caryl and Paul’s to make gingerbread houses, an activity they worked hard on for many hours. This was good because we had a showing this morning and another tomorrow afternoon — our first showings in weeks, how’s that for great timing?

Now we’re making lasagna and awaiting the arrival of Mark’s parents. We’ll traipse over to the General Electric plant at Nela Park to see the best lighting display in town, one of our favorite holiday traditions and then show off all the progress on the new house. After dinner, I’m off again with my friends to the alumni holiday party for our high school.

The boys are just delighted with everything lately. Austin is jumping and laughing and cartwheeling (yes, he knows how to cartwheel) more than usual, they’ve been bickering a little less than usual. Our Charlie Brown Christmas tree is up and decorated. Wishing stars have been arriving from near and far. All is good in this house. All is good.