This time of year

This is the time of year I really miss my folks

There was never a Christmas I didn't spend with my mom and dad.  

For many years that meant traveling.  Either I went to them, or they came to me.


The Christmas after my dad died, Mother and I spent Christmas Day with dear friends.  It was a tough one, but being with people we loved and who opened their arms to us, along with their home, made all the difference.


And now that my mom's gone, the spirit just isn't as bright.


We do, of course, have Donald's family and we spend a few days around Christmas with them in Birmingham.  

We love that, love them and are so, so thankful we have them.


But, man, I'm missing my mom and dad.


One of the silliest things I miss is picking up the phone to tell my mom about the really great bargain I found.


She was a bargain shopper who could put most of us to shame.  


And she taught me well.


When I popped into her place waving a receipt, unable to wait another minute to tell her about a $250 dress I had just gotten for $18 (true story - from Sundance Catalog Outlet several years back) you would have thought I had been given the Nobel Peace Prize she would be so proud.  Well, probably not that proud, but you get the idea.


I still shop for bargains.  I still find some pretty darn good ones.  But somehow it just doesn't have the same little spark it used to.




and i miss setting those two places at the table for Christmas dinner