As the holiday dust settles and we ease into the, for me, hardest part of the year (post-holiday AND seasonal blues with hardly a snowflake in sight), I finally have the chance to reflect on our Christmas and New Year's.
I'm sure you can guess, but we had an absolutely outstanding holiday. Every year we are blessed to get to share the season with our friends and family, surrounded by loved ones, and every year it gets a little bit better. This year was my favorite to date because we got to add Flynn to the mix. As expected, he was more interested in the wrapping paper and boxes than the gifts, but little dude scored some pretty great toys to help pique his educational, musical and chewing interests.
One of my personal parenting goals has been to try not to flood Flynn with a million toys. So far I think we are doing a fairly decent job of keeping the potential mountain to a minimum, and I'm really proud of that fact. Several months ago I bought him a couple of small developmental toys, just so he had SOMETHING more stimulating than a rattle to help inspire his brain while we waited for Christmas. I managed to keep his big gift from Clif and myself, an adorable stuffed rocking moose that has crinkly antlers, squeaky ears and plays 4 different songs about colors, numbers, letters and the awesomeness of rocking, a secret from Flynn AND Clif. Again, knowing Flynn would most likely be ambivalent to the actual gift, I was so excited about it I kept it from Clif so I had at least one person who would be excited about opening it. We plopped Flynn in the saddle and snapped pictures of his bemused bewilderment, surrounded by his encouraging cousins. He still has a ways to go until he can fully engage with his rocker solo, but it's still one of my personal favorites.
Also in the epic Christmas haul were incredible baby booties by Zutano. I had heard about and seen these suckers in action not too long after Flynn was born, but forgot about them until Clif's parents gave us a pair with an adorable new outfit. They are designed to Stay On Always, and aside from less than half a dozen instances where Flynn was caught up in a blanket or his car seat and managed to get them off because of violent and aggressive foot action, they have done just that. We have almost abandoned baby socks and shoes entirely in favor of these things and bought a second pair. They are a touch on the pricey side but worth EVERY penny and are getting added to my baby must-have list. Clif's parents also gave Flynn an adorable set of percussion instruments that are stored inside a clear drum. Each instrument has a letter/insect, are neutral in color scheme, make great sounds that aren't too loud or piercing and tactile stimulating. Other favorites include a drive-and-learn toy (that horn honking is almost irresistible) and several other goodies.
One of my favorite parts of the day, though (and there were many!), was when we made a stop at the Loudoun Birthing Inn for a special delivery. I had decided several months ago that I would take scarves I'd knit as gifts to the nursing staff who had to work on Christmas. I packed up a bunch of them and took Flynn and my mother-in-law on our way to our family dinner. When we arrived I asked the receptionist if she could tell me how many nurses were on the floor, and if she could find out if any of them recognized my name. She remembered me and went in the back to see who was available. Several minutes later she came back grinning, told me they had literally just been talking about me and how last year they came to my room to sing me Christmas carols, and that they would be up front in a minute. The receptionist went back again, and when she returned she had her phone in front of her, I could tell immediately that she was taking a video. Right behind her came the 4 nurses on shift, singing a Christmas carol for us. What a special, sentimental treat! I recognized all 4 nurses and we passed around hugs and joy. I handed off their scarves and some extras for the mothers who were also on the floor. They then sent up Dr. J-C, the one who we first met on that fateful early December day when I felt so steamrolled, upset and overwhelmed, so much so they admitted me to Labor and Delivery for observation that kicked off the whole bed-rest saga. Clif and I love Dr. J-C and it seemed perfect that she was the one working so we could show her how well Flynn and Mommy were doing. She got a scarf, too, and soon we were back on the road to our next stop.
Gifts are nice, but the best present was all of the love, joy and memories that were created on our fabulous Christmas with so many people we love. I know Flynn won't remember it, but I look forward to getting to share the story of his first Christmas with him one day.
Oh, and New Year's? It was lovely, low key, spent in PJs loafing around the house and ended in some bubbly, a kiss from Clif, a fingertip kiss for Flynn, and watching snippets of neighborhood fireworks through the trees from the driveway. In other words, perfection.
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