Hanukkah and Other Things

Happy Hanukkah to all my friends.  Tonight is the first night of the festival of lights.  Other than Thanksgiving, I think this is my favorite holiday.  Maybe it's because not everyone celebrates it.  Maybe it's because it still seems just a little bit more "pure" than Christmas and all the mass marketing and consumption of it.  Maybe it's because I love candles and watching them.  Maybe because it's something special I share with my Dad.  Maybe because the message at it's heart about faith in miracles and perseverance through dark times, and a rededication.  I think it has a bit to do with all of those things.
We won't be heading over to Mom and Dad's until Sunday to light the menorah (and for Gak to get latkes).  That's the only downside.  Or maybe that's the plus side of this holiday being 8 nights long.  Anyhow, between now and then I've got to go get my son a book, which is a traditional Hanukkah gift in my family.  (Probably because Dad did the Hanukkah shopping and he's as much a bookworm as I am and loves searching for just the right book for us.)  I really do hope to share this tradition with my son for a long, long time.  I may not be overly religious in any faith, or overly fond of rituals, but this is one that is special to me and has a power all of it's own.

In other, not quite related news, my one neighbor is very much a Christmas person and has decorated the foyer and the second floor common area quite extensively.  The two artificial trees downstairs have also been decorated, one of them lit, and almost all the doors sport a wreath or bow of some sort and there are all kinds of decorations out.  So, yes, the Christmas season is here.  All I can say is that at least just about everything is pretty tasteful, nothing too obnoxious.  (Gak may argue with me here, simply because of the quantity present...)  So, instead of waiting another week or so to put up my snowflake hanging that I originally made for Gram, I went ahead and put it up today.  (I refused to before today, because I can think of December as Winter, but November, even late November, is still fall in my mind...)

Today also happens to be Boo's half-birthday.  Yep, somehow my baby boy is now 30 months old, officially 2.5 years.  How did that happen?  He's been pretty good at being whiny lately, although if you tell him to knock it off, it's amazing how fast his regular voice returns, letting me know he wasn't really upset just trying to push.
He's very much a two-year-old, going on five.  He's growing in leaps and bounds and his curiosity is just about endless.  His language skills just explode every few days.  You can just about have a real conversation with him.  It's very amazing to watch him grow.
Tomorrow he has a doctor's checkup appointment.  I'm interested to see what his "official" height and weight is.  He's just about 30 lb and just about 3 feet tall by my guesses.  Hopefully it won't be quite such a teary experience as it has been the last several times we've gone.  Hopefully he'll start not minding the doctor's office again.  Well, he really likes the fish tank, but as soon as we head to the door out of the waiting room... the tears start.  We shall see.  I'm sure I'll have more to report tomorrow.

Anyhow, I think I'm going to go read a few pages myself before I go crash.  Either that or I'll play with some yarn.  I'm in the middle of two projects that I'm enjoying working on.

Peace to all and may the light of the season fill your lives and your hearts.