Heavenly Peace!

This has been a marathon few days for me.  Drove to Muncie last Thursday to deliver a day bed for Robin, and gathered up 8 baskets/tubs/garbage bags full of laundry.  (Meg's washing machine is on the fritz.)  Came back the same day.  Delivered half of the laundry to Nate's parents on Friday morning.  Did laundry like crazy.  Collected the laundered things from Nate's folks and drove back to Muncie on Saturday evening. 

IN THE MEANTIME, before leaving on Saturday, I noticed that I didn't have any hot water.  The pilot light on the gas water heater was out.  Got it re-lit and the burner going, but noticed a couple of hours later that the water wasn't hot.  Pilot was out again.  What to do?  I could go to Muncie and worry about it when I got back, but the holidays and timing were going to work against me.  Ryan Holly, KB9RAF, suggested that it was probably the thermocouple...so the two of us drove to Lowe's, got the part, and Ryan installed it.  Voila!  Hot water!  THEN I left for Muncie.

Sunday (Christmas Eve), Meg and Nathan took the children to see Santa arrive on a fire truck at a local fire station, while I did last minute shopping.  At 7:00 PM, we went to their church's Candlelight Service, which was very nice...then home to put the children to bed and wrap some presents.  (Believe it or not, the children were in bed and asleep by 9:30, more because of fatigue than lack of excitement!)

Guess what?  Santa came to their house!  Christmas morning, we opened our presents and ate Meg's yummy breakfast casserole, then made preparations to head to Plainfield for Christmas dinner with Nate's family, including his brother and sister-in-law.  The drive was lousy due to the rain and road spray which made visibility difficult, but we got there only 15 minutes past the ETA.  More presents!  More excitement!   Good food and fellowship, but then came the time to head back to Muncie.  (7:00 PM)  Meg wanted to drive around Monument Circle to show the children the World's Tallest Christmas "Tree", "since we have to go that way, anyway".  So we did.  We even stopped so they could get out and take a look.  Ryan got up on the steps of the monument and got scared, thinking the tree would fall over on him.  (It has to be pretty scary for a little guy to see something that tall!)  Back on the road, we encountered rain mixed with snow most of the way home. I was silently praying that the rain STAYED rain until we could make it back.  We encountered salt trucks around the Anderson area, which frightened me--but the snow held off until an hour or two after we arrived.  It snowed about 1 1/2 inches of really wet stuff.  A white Christmas, if you stayed up long enough!

Tuesday, we didn't do anything too exciting.  I kept the children's clothing separate from the rest so I could pack for them to come with me back with me to Plainfield to begin their respective adventures: Meg and Nate to leave for Florida, Robin on a flight to Atlanta with her other grandmother, and Ryan to stay with me to trek to Illinois.  I had a suitcase with Robin's things, and put Ryan's in a tub.  In an effort to find more children's clothing, I went to the garage (where the laundry room is) and sorted through some more unlaundered clothes.  I had a load of towels and a load of children's clothes to take home with me, along with presents, etc. 

I thought I had everything under control.  Got the children going and loaded the remainder of the stuff that hadn't been put in the van last night.  The grandchildren and I were on the road just a little after 10:00 and arrived in Plainfield about noon, after two short stops.  Started doing laundry instantly...and discovered, to my dismay...that I had left the tub with Ryan's clothing in it behind!!!  A quick sort through the children's laundry showed me that there were enough clothes for him for the week, even without what I had left behind.  Whew!  Got the laundry done.  Got the children fed and somewhat entertained.  Got Robin packed, and delivered her to her Heffelman grandparents for the trip to Indianapolis International.  Ryan and I went to McDonald's (with a Play Place) and ate fast food, and let him blow off some energy. 

On our way back to the house, I told him I thought I would just plunk him in the bathtub.  He was agreeable to that.  After his bath, I got him all dried and powdered and jammied, then let him curl up on the couch under Grandma's sleeping bag.  He asked for a "moozie," so I put in a Dora video, and he munched on black olives.  A few minutes later, I went back to check on him, and he was fast asleep.  God bless the little boy!  It was only 7:30!   If he stays asleep for the night, it will give me a much-needed chance to just sit back and breathe.  There is still laundry to do, and some things I have to accomplish tomorrow before I can leave for Illinois, but right now, all is calm; all is bright!

Hope everyone had a blessed Christmas.  The time just flies.  It will be 2007 in just a few days.  Hard to believe!