What sheer delight to draw back 'the blue velvet curtain' of the day and then revel in the beauty of its masterpiece. ..
or
At least no one tried to eat it.
Back in August, when money was more abundant and Christmas seemed so very far away, I sent away for a Madonna & Child Advent Calendar. Exquisite. And a justifiable educational expense. On the evening of November 30, having realized several weeks ago that I was the only one truly psyched about the art calendar, I was once again assembling a Playmobil advent calendar. Eddie still likes Playmobils and the advent calendar always adds some nice pieces to the collection. (And my self-esteem is enhanced as I realize that with each passing year I am better at the assembly. The first year was a disaster of frustration. This year I completed the job in under 30 minutes with only two paper cuts.) Martha bought a chocolate advent calendar...having heard the cries of those who realized you can digest, but not eat a fine art calendar.

Too many choices. I’m nostalgic for the advent calendars of my youth. Printed in Germany. Glitter. Angels. Baby Jesus at the end. And we used to have those in our public school classrooms, too. Working out to approximately one window per child. Not just at home.

The dinner time attempts at discussing the work of the day are not the enriching experiences I had hoped for. The boys know more than they let on...but like to yank my chain when I least appreciate it. (“What do we call this type of painting? Anyone, anyone? You know, when the angel visits the Virgin Mary?” “A mosaic?” “A tondo?” Nyuk, nyuk, nyuk) This week we’ll shoot for short research during the day and then light discussion at dinner. My nerves are stretched pretty thin. Work is fun but a little wacky this time of year. Chritsmas mailing not ready to go yet. That’s OK - last week’s paper cuts are still healing. Altar servers to be scheduled. (After determining who isn’t leaving town...and if everyone is leaving town why is it so hard to find a place to sit when we go to Mass on Christmas? ) And the phone. Already an up-tick in phone calls. The same urge to reply, “Same as it ever was...” And then the wedding details.

Sorry. Gotta go...have to be up early tomorrow so its time for prayers and then curling up in the fetal position.