New Batch of Hope

As I suspected might happen, preparing for Christmas is bringing us closer. It was a very happy time for us both last year, even with the leg conflict being fresh and new. Shopping, decorating, wrapping, getting a tree: quality time spent in loving family activities.

Today, Mrs. L worked hard at getting things put away and organized (and thrown away) in the family room, readying for a tree. I worked on the kitchen all afternoon. She has been laughing much more the last two days, even at things that I say. Early in the marriage, this was the norm. The last ten years, not so much. She has grown tired of my schtick. It seems that the holidays are lightening her heart.

I'm feeling much calmer too. I probably take way too many cues from her moods. My moods are frequently a reaction to hers. Right now, that's a good thing. Seeing her happy does my heart good. I don't feel like the gender thing is nearly as important today as I did last week. Maybe if we can put aside the long-term enmity, we can reset ourselves to a long forgotten way of interacting. I'm off work through the end of the year, so we get a chance to work on it.

Changing the subject: If the Payless shoes I bought a couple months back were my belated birthday gift, then I suppose I just gave myself a Father's Day gift. I made a purchase from ulta.com last week. I bought myself a set of makeup brushes, and a collection of 102 eyeshadows. I have managed to buy appropriate makeup in retail situations up to now, but I find eyeshadow very daunting. So many colors, so many wrong colors for my face so much money thrown away. What's a girl to do? Well, I get a hundred colors to experiment with, at about a dime per color. When I figure out what works for me, I can buy some big girl stuff. Pick one up for your Dad next year! He'll love it. The perfect gift!