Merry Christmas, Everyone!

I have both my girls coming home this holiday season: Samantha and her husband (and Maddie, Zydeco, Loki, and Odin, too) are here already, and Danielle and Ryan arrive the day after Christmas. The fact that they're all going to be here at the same time set me on a mad scramble to paint Dani's old room and get it fixed up with a double bed in time for the holidays. But everything is now finished--room painted, bed delivered, tree up, house decorated, presents wrapped. I've shelved my writing until after the new year (with just 35 pages left in the 13th Sebastian book!), and now I'm simply settling down to enjoy my family and the holidays.

It's a full house, with eight cats, one dog, four people, and two more soon to come (thankfully Danielle's two cats aren't coming, too!), but Maddie is the Queen and she knows it. She is SO BIG, and still as sweet (and bad) as ever. She especially likes the village under the tree. Ahem.

Huckleberry always loved the tree and village so much that I must admit it was hard putting it up without his help. BUT, my little Peanut is still on the mend, and while I can't completely relax, I think she is going to make it. And my son-in-law, while still so terribly ill, was able to make it here for Christmas, so we are thankful for that. And Steve is now walking well enough that he was able to put up the crown molding in Danielle's room (that was the one room in the house that didn't have it).

I know things could have been so much worse, but this has been a pretty awful year, so here's hoping for a better 2017. Happy Holidays, everyone!