Highlights: This was the first Christmas I've spent with the kids, all day, in 8 years. The reason sucks, and does the quarantine that's preventing them from seeing their mom or her seeing them until next week. This is the closest I've come yet to understanding how people who lost loved ones during lockdown, prevented from seeing them, might have felt. And I said 'closest' which is still a good distance from that awful situation. But with us the kids were, and it was a pleasant relaxing day. It was rewarding in many ways to have them at home and feeling at home with us. We had lots of gifts to exchange and I helped Jen polish the antique silver and set the table with wonderful antique plates we have inherited and are 100% in agreement about using. Fuck that bullshit about having something nice stored away and used once a year if even ever. We want to use and enjoy what we have while we have it and while we can enjoy it. I made a mulled wine with clove and cinnamon and enjoyed it, along with the 2017 Nebbiolo served with short ribs, brussel sprouts with bacon and garlic, and mashed potatoes. I'd made a flourless chocolate hazelnut tort for desert on a last minute whim and it turned out better than any prior attempt. I brought my mom over for the afternoon and returned her in the evening. The kids both seemed to have sincerely enjoyed her presence and company, too. Today I grimaced momentarily as I got on the scale, well aware of how much just one day of indulging might set my weight loss efforts back. And it did. But it's ok, I'm back on with a vengeance to reach and maintain a healthy balance going forward, and this is all a part of that balancing act. I got up early today as a part of maintaining the routine. Lauren's dog-sitting and we will be going over daily for the next 10 days to walk dogs at Panorama which more than makes up for not walking to school. Jen came with us this am and walked with us as Lucy and Abby pretty much stopped to poop at least 6 times. It was hard to comprehend where the hell it all came from. It was a good walk but cold. I'll have to wear gloves tomorrow. I started getting a few things put away in the garage at Matson yet I also found and quickly picked up 3 really impressive artificial trees a neighbor was giving away on CL. We figured we'd use one for inside and the others for lawn decoration at Panorama. We're going to try and get the street aligned with lawn trees like Willow Glen does. The price was right and as much as we love the smell of a real tree, it's a trade off for economics, convenience and avoiding the routine death of the tree and all the needles and such. I put 'em in the rafters at Pano already. I also brought home some bins to use for packing the rest of the holiday stuff. Jen and I went to see "Licorice Pizza" and I was frankly disappointed. I felt like I missed something, as I just didn't really care about the characters or what happened. Maybe my expectations were too high of PTA. It was definitely pure PTA in so many ways but again, something did not connect. I ended my night getting irritated by IOS Shortcuts and finding discrepancies in the data it pulled that was part of my routine stats script. Programming can be frustrating. I'm setting it aside for the time being since it's really a low ROI task.
Health: Weight: 164 (1d: +2.6, 7d avg: +0.06) | Avg Heart Rate: 72
