We are having a quiet day at home this white New Year's Day; some of us sleeping off a cold virus, others reflecting on the past year...pondering what the new year will bring...besides snow, which is a given!
Actually, this is only the second (legit) snowstorm of the season. It has been a pleasantly-mild December! Even as I meandered through the woods today, I was struck by how mild it felt compared to the last few holiday seasons....
....Which brings me to my tale of the Westbrook family Christmas of 2015!
Once a perfectionist, always a perfectionist; however, a perfectionist can be "in recovery". Each recovering perfectionist has a certain propensity towards relapse, and that has everything to do with attitude and perspective. Now, keep in mind as you read, I am a perfectionist in recovery...
From my perspective, it all began nearly four weeks before Christmas. I was delighted to learn that my in-laws, along with Nate, would be spending a couple of days with us to celebrate Christmas. That same day, however, we received in the mail some unexpected bills - both our home owners and auto insurance increased significantly...without warning. There goes our savings for Christmas gifts and my plan for a decadent, traditional holiday meal! I was feeling terrible about this, so I shared what had happened with Will, Grace and Rosie, apologetically. My sweet, gracious kids assured me that they didn't care at all about the gifts, they were just happy to have our whole family together.
Okay, I'm being a bit over-dramatic (as perfectionists can do) - it just meant that I had to scale back to one gift a piece...and wait until the morning of Christmas eve to do most of my shopping.
No biggie...except that every turkey in Cortlandville, NY was frozen solid - Shoot! A 14lb. turkey would NEVER thaw out in time for Christmas dinner. So, I improvised - we had a roast chicken and small ham with some different sides than our usual.
Of course, Don had to tease me about it, but I think everyone enjoyed it, anyway!
The real "drama" began on December 23rd, 24 hours before the arrival of our guests....
The kids and I noticed that something wasn't quite right when we flushed the toilets and ran the dishwasher that morning. Then, as Rosie and I sat at the table for lunch, and the washing machine began its spin cycle, we heard a sound that struck panic into my heart - water gushing all over the basement! Indeed, the pipe out to the septic tank was backing up and wreaking havoc...
Will and Rosie, bless their hearts, sucked up the sewage water with the shop-vac, while Grace and I headed to the laundromat with nearly a week's worth of laundry. In a household of five that's quite a bit!
Don came home and took a look - we were going to be on restricted water use until further notice - YIKES! With guest coming???
We hoped it would make it through the holiday, but NOPE. One of our guests took a shower, then attempted to flush the toilet on Christmas eve and that was it - the system seemed done for, much to my horror.
Oh-so-fortunately for us, our son, Nate, has been working for a septic company in south-eastern Pennsylvania since August 3, 2015, and has learned a ton! So after breakfast, coffee and gift-opening, the guys pulled on their muck boots and headed outside. With Nate's expertise, he, Don, Will and my father-in-law spent over an hour digging up our yard to reveal the septic system.
I will spare you all the gross details! Needless to say, it was messy. Indeed, the pipe to our leach field was collapsed!
Fortunately, the weather was beautiful on Christmas day! Made the whole situation a bit easier to manage. Unfortunately, though, we would have to wait until the day after Christmas to get a new pipe and the other supplies we needed for the repair...and it was rainy - a wet, muddy mess on the 26th. 
Still, the guys stuck with it and we had a functioning septic system before we headed out to see the new Star Wars movie that evening! The irony? While the guys were stomping around in the mud and muck that Saturday, I was giving Mary Kay facials to my daughters and mother-in-law at the dining room table... we all laughed!
It was definitely a memorable holiday.
In the face of the unexpected and the difficult...when things do not go as planned...THAT is when true character is revealed. This situation was no exception. What did I see?
1. We all (yes, even this perfectionist-in-recovery) continued to laugh and joke around and enjoy each other's company, despite the situation.
2. My children are excellent at "going with the flow"!
3. Nate has become a knowledgeable, confident, hard-working young man, willing to get as dirty as necessary to get a job done!
4. Will, also a very capable young man, supported his brother 100%. These last few months apart has actually improved their relationship and deepened their respect for one another.
5. My in-laws, instead of choosing to find a hotel or head home early, chose to stay and endure with us, helping out however they could. In this (messy and inconvenient) situation, that's serious love and loyalty. They are awesome!
6. My daughters have grown up so much in the past few years. They demonstrated hospitality and grace beyond their years during this whole...adventure.
7. My husband is the ultimate "fix-it" man and my personal hero! He was seemingly undaunted by this potentially-huge repair; he just kept moving forward, addressing each issue as it came.
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| A Christmas Day ride! |
Some valuable little life lessons we had the opportunity to put into practice:
1. Be flexible, and you won't get bent out of shape.
2. Don't sweat the small stuff.
3. If life gives you lemons, make lemonade.
4. Our family motto: Adapt and overcome!
5. It's not about the presents, it's about your presence.
6. God is always with His children.
7. By His grace, we are richly blessed.
8. The only thing that really matters on Christmas is CHRIST. And, no doubt, He was right here with us!
I hope all of you had a wonderful Christmas, and enjoy your New Year's Day. Stay tuned for my upcoming blog entitled, "New Happenings in 2016."
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