Christmas at our place!

Christmas at our place has been one wild ride this year. Dad had total knee replacement surgery on the 10th of December on his "other" knee, the one left bad after his knee surgery in June to replace the left one. I am amazed at how well he has done with both replacements. He doesn't think it is healing fast enough but those of you who know dad know that nothing gets done fast enough for him!! :) He is so thankful for everything I do for them: if it's helping get him hooked up to his knee machine, running mom to the store or just popping in to snack! LOL! Yes, grown 40 year olds still go home to eat!!! Dad is such a solid rock in my often whacky, on the go (constantly) world. He is so loving and there is never a day go by that he doesn't tell me how much he loves me. No matter how often I fail in everyday life, he always treats me like a million bucks! I am more thankful for him than I could ever tell him. He is a wonderful dad, a super granddad, a great husband and probably one of the best friends I will ever have in my lifetime!
Speaking of great guys in my life, Chance is home after completing his first semester at Vernon College and is looking forward to returning after the break. He did pretty well with his grades considering it is his first semester away from home and school has never come easy for him. I am very proud of him! He made several new friends but is a little bummed about the fact that a couple of them are transferring and won't be there in the Spring.
I have to say that I have enjoyed seeing his smiling face on a daily basis again! I thought I was ready for him to go out and explore the "real world" but in all honesty I have had a really hard time with his being gone! I am amazed at how unimportant his mom has become since he has been out on his own per say. I thought I would always be his #1 or at least share that with his Granny but somewhere along the way, I think I have fallen down the list! He doesn't understand, as I am sure I didn't at his age, the importance of a relationship with his mom for mom's sake. My mom, Granny, says I am only payin' for my raisin' and that the day will come, as it did for her and I, that he will realize the sacrifices a mom does for her children but until then I guess I will just have to take a "chill pill" and wait!
Anthony, one of Chance's friends who attends Tech but played basketball with Chance here in Childress, has been at Mom and Dad's since break began. We think of him as one of our own and it has been really nice having him home for the holidays. His brother, Dontae has also spent a great deal of time at the house and I know he is enjoying getting to spend time with Ant. Anthony tends to keep Chance well-grounded and I am very thankful for that. He is very appreciative and we have all enjoyed the holiday season with him around.
We had a full house last night for packages. I got a couple of good pictures. I will try and get Chels to help me add them to this post. The noise of all of us together filled the house and my heart. It was so wonderful for me to have everyone there. Granny stresses about all of the extras and works harder than she should to get things just right but I know she enjoys it as much as the rest of us do.
I haven't mentioned much about Chelsea but once again, let me tell you, I couldn't have done this Christmas season without her and all of her help. Dad's surgery threw Mom and I both in a tizzy but Chels came through with flying colors. She decorated, wrapped presents, cooked, baked, came up with some great gift ideas, and worked very hard to make this Christmas special. She is part of a youth group at church and they hold various fundraisers throughout the year. Well, they have an account for each student that they deposit a portion of each fundraiser that they help with in and Chelsea had enough in her account to purchase an Olan Mills packet, which was a church fundraiser, and to have her picture made for Christmas presents. Granny cried!!! The pictures are beautiful and the thought behind them was even more beautiful. She is a great daughter and very, very thoughtful. What a blessing she is!
Wow, this post has taken up way too much space. Posts are suppose to be short and to the point right? Well, maybe if I become more regular with them they will be. Merry Christmas to you all!! Later, Lisa