Merry Christmas!

Remember that scene in It’s a Wonderful Life when Jimmy Stewart runs down the street screaming his Merry Christmas’s??

“Merry Christmas Town Hall”, “Merry Christmas Movie House”.

I love that scene. Thank God you can’t hear me while reading this blog otherwise you would have to endure my Jimmy Stewart impression.

Okay, so I’m no Jimmy Stewart and if I ran down the street screaming Merry Christmas, I would either keel over from exhaustion (which reminds me that I need to add weight loss as a New Years’ resolution) or get pulled over by the Davenport Police Department. So, allow me to “Jimmy Stewart” myself in blog form today.

“Merry Christmas J, H, and L”. I cannot say enough how much my children play a role in my life. Wait a second, they don’t play a role…they ARE my life. I truly believe that my life started when they were born. There is not a day that goes by that I don’t thank God that I have them with me. They are truly the greatest people to walk this earth and I am so honored to be their mother. I love cuddling with L, laughing with H, and accepting fashion advice from J.

“Merry Christmas Todd”. I don’t say it enough, but I wouldn’t be anywhere without my husband. He is my rock, my best friend, and my soul mate. He has taught me to love in a way that is so profound, so deep, that it has changed everything I thought about love. Sure I wish he would pick up around the house and I probably won’t stop nagging him…but I don’t regret a minute that I chose him to be my partner and the father of my children.

“Merry Christmas Mom” I am one of those lucky few that can honestly say (and not just with a Hallmark card) that my Mom is my best friend. She has always been the one constant in my life. I know no matter where I go, she’ll be there to help me. She knows me better than anyone and can read my mind so clearly, that I often pretend to think of something else if I want to hide something from her. She is also the reason I am able to be the Mom I am today.

“Merry Christmas to my Firm” I am so honored to be a partner at my law firm. I love working at my firm. The staff is amazing, my partners are supportive, and the work is exactly the type of law I am passionate about. If I have to be away from my kids, which my school debt and credit cards dictate that I do, then I want to be here. I am so blessed to own a piece of such an amazing company.

“Merry Christmas to my Facebook Friends” You will often hear me mention Facebook in my blog posts. I LOVE Facebook. Not only has it allowed me to show off thousands of pictures of my children and digital scrapbook pages, but I have reconnected with friends that I would have never had the opportunity to otherwise.

“Merry Christmas Package”. My best friend is Jean, my fellow JD Mom. I met her in law school and since then she has become such a part of my life, we have nicknamed each other “Package”. In fact, she isn’t my best friend…she is my sister. I don’t get to tell her enough how much she means to me, but she is the kind of friend that understands you even when you don't understand yourself (if that makes any sense).

“Merry Christmas JD Moms”. I have to give a special shout out to Karen and Jean, my fellow JD Moms. When Karen first asked me to co-create this blog with her, I had no idea what this would become.  I mean come on…I’m just a Mom, the most interesting and thought-provoking topics in my life are “Where are Max and Ruby’s parents?”or “Why do Dora’s parents let her wander across the world alone?”. All joking aside, I am so grateful to write along with these two amazing women.

“Merry Christmas to You”. Since we started this blog in September, I have gotten many emails and Facebook notes from various readers of this blog. I greatly appreciate your comments and praise on the blog. I love the emails from the readers who say “I know exactly what you are going through” or “That SO happened to me”…because that is the purpose of our blog. We are all in this together. I know I speak for Karen and Jean when I say a special thank you to all of you for supporting our blog.

Okay, so I know this would have been so much more dramatic if I would have channeled Jimmy and ran down my street yelling my greetings…but you get the point. On behalf of myself, J, H, L, and of course my fellow JD Moms I wish you a Merry Christmas!! Please leave me some comments or send me messages with what you and your family did over the holidays…I love to swap crazy family stories (although trust me I'll always win)!!

Mandi