Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony

Today was simply one of those days that worked. We had Belina and Marius sleeping over, so I was up a little early to make chocolate croissants and prepare breakfast. I ran out of time and dragged Eric out of bed to make lunches, so that we were able to leave the house early and arrive at school before the doors open. A space was available for me to park in front of the school, and the children were happy, and I was able to meet my friend Emily at Evergreen to catch up.

Eric and I met at my office for a mattress buying expedition, and we were able to make a decision and buy a bed, a very nice and comfortable and expensive bed. The bed buying industry is confusing. Each mattress store sells different beds, so there is no way to compare prices. The beds online are inexpensive, but one cannot find the beds that one tries out in the stores, on the internet. The salesmen are much like car salesmen, but worse because the merchandise is not comparable (a Toyota Prius is a Toyota Prius wherever you shop). I got wildly different prices for the same item in three different 'Sleepys' stores, and finally decided to stop agonizing and looking and wasting time and energy and bought a traditional Simmons firm but soft top combination. Anything is better than the ten years sleeping in Eric's old bed, which we threw out when we moved out of the house last year. My previous bed purchases were at Costco for a few hundred dollars. Our new bed is from an entirely different universe. Our delivery arrives tomorrow, and I am feeling absolutely delighted with our new purchase.

After picking Maya up from chess club, we met her friend Emily and drove to the Tree Lighting Ceremony in Mount Vernon. It was cold and the entertainment was unimpressive, but we met Eric and then Belina and Marius and Daphne at the Walter's Museum, tried food from Cazbar, the local Turkish restaurant which offers belly dancing Friday and Saturday nights, and visited the Peabody Library where we heard flute music and warmed up, and later a child's exhibit at the Walters. The lighting ceremony was spectacular, with amazing fireworks, much more impressive than the earlier stageshow. The Christmas season has begun and I am looking forward to a tree.

I have nagged Eric for months, asking him to clear out the living room. I want my house back together, and want to decorate for Christmas. I am not sure I could have moved Eric, but his friend and collaborator is coming for a week, and that necessitates the bed and I told Eric that Maurice will not stay with us if the house is not usable. That appeared to have motivated Eric and I believe we will have a living room in the next few days. Yahoo! The storage unit is still full, but each room has a bit of furniture and it feels as if (after five months!!!) we are finally moving in.