>The tree is up. The decorations are scattered around the (cluttered) house. The spare table is set up as a wrapping station in the main room. We’re getting there. Little by little, we’re getting there.

But…. you knew there was a ‘but,’ didn’t you?

Daughter is snowbound in Virginia. She expects to leave Sunday afternoon if the runways and roads are clear. She’s on the charter flight with the school’s football team, the coaches, and the families, all traveling for a championship football game. She is chief photographer for the school paper and athletic department, so she was lucky enough to travel on the plane and get a hotel room, too. Her return has been delayed, which makes the timing of getting her home a little dicey.

Nothing, well – very few presents are wrapped. I’m alternating my time today between laundry and schoolwork, making time to watch the game and scan the sidelines for La Petite and her camera. Wrap presents? Maybe tomorrow morning or in my sleep tonight. I have to catch up on schoolwork, big time, before I can even consider wrapping anything. If the schedule goes as planned in Virginia (which La Petite says “looks like Wisconsin right now!”), I’ll be meeting her bus on campus later tonight. Late enough, anyway, that I may want to sleep in Monday and get a sub. That means sub plans, which means more schoolwork today…. sigh.

Maybe I’ll wrap a present or two today just to help me feel the spirit. Maybe I’ll pack a few Christmas CDs to play in the car on the drive. Maybe… just maybe, I’ll feel less Grinch-like after a few more stacks of papers are recorded in my gradebook and the to-do pile becomes smaller.