Winter Solstice

I love this holiday. The tilting of the earth away from the sun. And this year we have a lunar eclipse and a meteor shower to help celebrate. I didn't even mention the birthday of my dear Opa on December 18, my Swedish grandfather who came here from Sweden and settled with his little family in Brooklyn. I like this picture of Opa - I think I knitted that scarf. There's that "strong nose" I see on AJ and Mia. So we had Opa's birthday, our anniversary, and the Winter Solstice in three days. Today we made Christmas dinner with my students in school where I served a ham from my boys, and the Swedish meatballs we made together in school last week. Yams, corn, cranberry sauce and mashed potatoes rounded out the meal along with red Kool Aid. What a feast - and lots of good left overs in my freezer now. Tomorrow we bake a cake for two student birthdays, Santana and Brandon. So much to celebrate. The wind is blowing hard out there and perhaps it will make a break in the cloud cover so we can see the eclipse. Not sure I could stay awake anyway, but it's a nice idea. I spent some time walking up and down the barn to check on the pregnant ewes and does. Pretty cold out there but they are dry and sheltered from the wind. Sweaters are ready to go. I have some orders to get out and gift packages to put together for colleagues. I think I'll lie down for ten minutes - a rare treat - before dinner and chores.