I Changed The Song On My Alarm To Something Festive. I Love Holiday Music, But Andy Williams' Rendition Of 'The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year' Really Didn't Get The Job Done This Morning. Instead Of Breaking Me Out Of A Deep Sleep, I Worked His Tune Into A Dream In Which It Was Sung By An Elephant Doing Yoga. Weird.

How long does it take to establish a tradition?  It seems like after just two years you're close, then after three it's official.  If that is indeed the case, we have an unusual tradition here at the High house (which, when I write that still sounds like a college party hotspot).  It's the unplanned tradition of leaving one holiday piece out for the entire calendar year.  It seems every time I pack up all the holiday paraphernalia at the end of the season, something inevitably misses the loading process.  It may have something to do with the incredible speed in which I get the house emptied, but after weeks of season specific decor, I'm craving some breathing room so I may not be exactly fastidious in my packing up process.

Typically, it's an ornament that misses the bus back to the basement.  A couple years ago we had a peace dove that sat on our mantle behind a lantern for almost all of 2012.  He was calm and patient about the whole experience - behavior very in line with what you'd expect from a peace dove, really.  It was actually kind of nice to see him peeking out from his perch as we headed to the back patio to watch the fireworks in July - kinda gave the year some continuity.  Last year it was this poor guy who didn't make it back.

It's one of the sheep from our Nativity set.  It's not like there are countless pieces in a Nativity set and it's easy to overlook one of them.  I mean, our shepherds only brought three sheep with them, so to miss packing one up is a big oversight.  This creature spent the year on a shelf atop a book about Feng Shui.  He had a good view of all the goings on and I'm sure he'll regale all the other Nativity members with stories about what he's seen.  I just hope he doesn't judge us by how many dinners were eaten around the coffee table.

I'm wearing this.

It's cold.  Really cold.  I've determined I need some sweaters with color - is there a record for how many charcoal grey sweaters a single person can own?  I may have reached the limit.

gratitude:  puzzles, snow, holiday music, paperwhites

thanks and love.