Are the holidays over yet?

Not to sound like a Scrooge or anything, but it's been a busy holiday, and I'm about ready for it to be over. Everyone got at least a little bit sick, and we had many parties, but it's all winding down now.

Christmas was good, but weird. I've never in my life had a Christmas with so few people around. It was just our little family of five. It was nice not to be on the road, and not to pack all the presents and stuff and have to haul them around. We had a quiet day and basically got ready for our party the next day. Ryan's cousins on his dad's side always get together on Boxing Day, and this year we hosted the shindig. A couple of Ryan's cousins are married to women I really like and enjoy being with, and they came out, so it was a good time. All of Ryan's siblings made it, and some stayed overnight. On Dec 27 we opened our home to an annual gathering with friends. It used to be hosted by friends who moved to Washington this summer, so we volunteered our house as it would already be in party mode from the Boxing Day bash. That was also a good time.

We did some post-Christmas shopping, ate out a lot (Ryan decided to steam clean the carpet in our living and dining rooms, and we still haven't finished putting things back) and rested. Last night we went to a small New Year's gathering with friends, the first such gathering without kids in many years (we brought Rylee, but all the rest of the kids were with babysitters).

Rylee continues to sleep well, although she normally doesn't fall asleep until 11 or 12. She will stay asleep for 6 or more hours, though, so it's hard to complain (and REALLY hard to get sympathy from other moms of babies!) We couldn't get her to settle last night at the party, though, so she was exhausted today. She's asleep now, but I don't know how long it will last. She also eats well and seems to be gaining weight and is generally content, so I guess all is well.

I haven't really made any resolutions this year. I would like to lose the last of the baby weight, and get some muscle tone back, ideally by late March (I have a conference to go to and would like to be back in my regular clothes looking good by then, plus I start back to work in April), and would like to get Hailey potty trained by the time I go back to work, but that's more about her than me. She will be three next week, and insists she's not a big girl yet, and doesn't want to be.

Ryan's youngest brother is getting married in September, and he and his fiancee have asked Sammie and Hailey to be flower girls. Hailey said yes and Sammie said no, but we told them we'll change her mind by then. She is just painfully shy sometimes - she wouldn't even open her Christmas presents from her godparents with all her aunts and uncles around.

There's probably more to tell, but I got a whole lot of books for Christmas, and I just heard the kettle boil, so I think I'll go have some tea or hot chocolate, some of the chocolate cake Ryan's mom sent, and hang out with my husband, watching the Leafs or reading or something. When I remember what else has happened that's worth posting about, and have some time, I'll post again.

Oh, one more thing - my grandmother is not well. She has an upper respiratory infection. She is my last surviving grandparent, and the only one I've ever felt I really knew. Please send happy thoughts and well wishes her way.