Last Year, My House Looked Awesome

There are a lot of differences between having your first child and having your second. For instance, when I was 36 weeks and 5 days pregnant with Norah (not that I'm counting or anything), I know for sure that I already had my "go bag" packed and by the door. I'd printed several lists of "hospital essentials" and packed my bag accordingly. It was stocked with snacks, two changes of clothes, toiletries, makeup (oh how naive I was), and baby's pre-selected homecoming outfit already laundered in specially designed (and marketed!) detergent for baby's sensitive skin.

In contrast, the other day I found myself thinking, "Weren't there like, a couple of things I needed at the hospital last time? Meh, they have gowns. I just hope I get one that overlaps in the back." I'll probably pack a bag at some point, but if I happen to go into labor before that little detail is addressed I suppose I'll just send Mark home at some point to grab me a pair of pants or something.

I find myself employing the same tactics of avoidance and procrastination with Christmas decorations this year. I love Christmas, and normally, I really try to go the distance in the whole festive decor department. This year, I'm just not up for it. I managed to get the tree up mostly because my darling husband did the work of carrying the pieces up from the basement. That's right, we have a fake tree. Deal with it. If I had to trek my oversized rear-end out into the wilderness to find on and cut it down, you bet your sweet sassafras that wouldn't have happened this year either.

I figure, it's ok to get through this holiday season with minimal decor. I'm tired. I'm baking a person. I'm chasing a two-year-old around while I'm doing all the day-to-day stuff that just has to get done. If I'm lucky, I just might manage to get the 5 boxes of unpacked stuff that I didn't use this year tossed back into the closet to give the illusion of a slightly tidier house.

In the mean time, I will console myself with photos of how awesome my house looked last year. I didn't even get pictures of all of it. There was a second mini-tree and all sorts of garland, lights and a wreath on our loft railing too. Yeah I totally rocked it last year. Amazing what you can do when you're not waddling around like a gimpy manatee.

Anyway, enjoy.