Taking a Breather

Hello my blogging readers - somehow there are still some of you left out there despite the sporadic blogs of late. Thanks for your patience. As you can imagine, and as I imagine is the same for you, the holidays have us busy. "This Case" continues to burn hard and fast, the one that started over a year ago (we "celebrated" our one year anniversary the other day). We wonder how it ever got this far and are preparing hard to go to trial. Funny, but the longer the hours, the more excited we get. Now is the time in litigation that I love. The boring parts are over, it's time to gather the evidence, put together your story, finalize your strategy and prepare to kick some butt. It's kind of like exam time - I was the freak kid who loved exams. It was time to put it all on the line, show what you know, study like nuts and then - IT'S OVER. And you have a break. So that's where we are work wise. When the kids are with dad, I tend to work 18 hour days. When the kids are here, the team understands that I leave between 3-5 and will not be signing back in until the next day. Everyone is cool with it.

So, when the kids are here what are we doing? Studying a lot, homework, getting ready for Christmas (although we still have a ton of baking to do). The decorations are done, the shopping is done (no I'm not kidding - just one trip to the mall for me, one trip for Shannon, and the rest done blissfully on line!). No cards have been done - perhaps this week. Oh and we spent a day or so being sick. Not the garden variety for us HimesGang, though. Sh turned up with a slight fever, which thankfully turned into just a cold and not strep like normal. Then I found myself doubled over in the kitchen with pains in my side. Kidney Stones? nope. Appendicitis? Nope. Just an infection that was quickly cured after a trip to the emergency clinic. Oh except for the next night when I was out with Sh getting her school-friends shopping done and realized I was shaking and feeling poorly. We grabbed a couple bottles of water and went home. Turns out my fever was back at a 101 (which is really high for me). Fortunately, the next day the antibiotics had kicked in and I was OK-FINE.

So knock on wood, we're healthy, Christmas is coming, school is winding down to a 2 week break (followed by exams, yuck). the kids have their winter music concert Thursday - I CAN'T WAIT! I finally get to see Au perform with the jazz band - I missed it in October b/c I was in Puerto Rico. SH keeps saying her band has been "dumbed down" to accommodate a large freshman population, but I find that hard to believe. I heard them at open house and they were great!

Hope all is well with everyone and you are finding "the reason for the season." We're working on that, too....