Travel Fever

This past week I've felt as though I've been transported back to my childhood and the restlessness leading up to Christmas; how many days until Santa will arrive, Nana and Mom filling the house with the delicious smells of treats to come, and Dad and Pappy watching football. (Dad's one chance a year!) Now that I'm grown, the restlessness is the same, but the reasons are a little different; the excitement thinking of family and friends opening their gifts, traveling to get to see the people I love most in the world, and creating new magic and new memories with Adam for our own family. Thursday morning we take off for Hawaii, the first time we've been back together since we got engaged there in 2007, and the first Christmas with my family since. The first year we were married, it was just impossible to make it so soon after our honeymoon, the second Christmas we had big plans to come and ended up needing to buy a car instead---this year we were prepared, and bought our tickets all the way back in July!! The sad part about this year is that while Adam and I are finally able to celebrate my favorite holiday with my family, it's the one year in what seems like forever that my Dad will have to stay behind and work. While it's sad, and frustrating, it makes me grateful that there are things like Skype, and that while he'll miss time with us, he'll be celebrating with Granio (his mother) back in DC this year. So....until Thursday I am here in limbo. Not sleeping terribly well, feeling like there simply isn't enough to do, and packing and re-packing my things as if something is missing and this 5th time when I pack, it'll be just right.

I am driving myself crazy. Anyone else antsy with holiday anticipation?