The Cozy Joys of a Full House

I have done very little gift shopping and here it is the 14th of December. I'm behind in my consumerism--mostly due to a lack of discretionary income, but there's time. Meanwhile, there have been plenty of festive activities and amazing visits. My kids have been around a lot and I've been absolutely loving the laughter, banter, chaos and coziness of a full house. Lucy has finished her fall term and is watching as the grades are posted, Lilly has been working hard to get all her ducks in a row to go back to college in January, and Stuart has been instrumental in holding things together around the home place--helping with meals and holiday baking, running errands etc.

Yesterday, Stuart and I went out in the chilly "arctic" air to finally see the movie "Milk" and we had a great time--both being quite satisfied with the film. It was an opportunity to not only share time, but talk about Harvey Milk, that period in the gay rights movement and some of my own activist passions about current events. I felt incredibly fortunate to be able to share that with Stu. We had lunch together at the Beer Stein first which was also pleasant. It is sometimes hard for me to believe that little boy who used to hate restaurants so hard has grown into someone who is grand company and open to the adventures of trying new places.

Then, Lucy and I baked Christmas cookies yesterday afternoon--she happened to walk in the door just as I was starting to mix up the batter and we soon had a plate full of colorful sprinkled shapes and had started getting caught up on all her life activities. Last night found all four of us just sitting in the living room for hours talking, singing, telling stories and revisiting some of our "lore" until it was nearly midnight and like the old woman, I was falling asleep on the loveseat.

I savor these times and admit that I cannot imagine my life without my family at the core. To be honest, there isn't anything I would rather do and while my life is full, busy and pretty decently-balanced with a variety of things, there is a special joy that comes with just settling in to a full house. The gift of the simple joy is that we have been through some incredibly bumpy and painful times to get here--that is what makes it all the more marvelous. We are completely imperfect and messy. There are disagreements and differences, jockeying for recognition and acceptance, and we are constantly making room for changes and additions (tonight Lucy's boyfriend Jacob will be joining us), but I really wouldn't have it any other way.