It's a very reggae Christmas.

Chinese
Originally uploaded by embersoul

Picture: The Nutcracker! After the show, me and my minions as Chinese.

2:20 AM Christmas morning.

I'm at work, keeping myself awake by organizing my online photos. My patient is very stable and I only need to touch her every four hours, so I've had a lot of time tonight to organize. She has a beautiful ornament with her handprint and footprint on it, and a stocking from Santa with a soft blanket and rattle toy inside.
It's Christmas at Children's Hospital.
I'm working tonight and tomorrow night as well, as I have for the last five or six years. I think next year I deserve Christmas off. I've never minded, in fact I have voluntarily worked both Christmas Eve and Day for all those years. I've always figured that I work with a lot of people that have kids and immediate family close by, and it is probably way more important to them to have the actual Christmas Day off. I don't mind celebrating on another day, with my loved ones and local family, including Ethan, Cypress (John), Char, and my dear friends who I treasure at all times, but especially during the holiday. It has historically been more important to me to have New Year's Eve off, primarily because you really can't celebrate it on any other day. Kinda misses the point. Plus December 31st is the birthday of my sweet friend Satori, and even though I may not spend every year with her, I like to celebrate her on that day, along with the turning of the wheel.
I've been celebrating Christmas in my own way for the past couple of days before heading to work tonight. I've been cooking, doing laundry, shopping, wrapping presents, and listening to lots of reggae on Pandora. The sun's been out, too. What a wonderful feeling of gratitude I have for life and love when I'm cooking a mess o' greens (with ham hocks of course), sweet potato pie, brussels sprouts, and jamaican jerk chicken while jamming to some awesome reggae beats. The sun is shining through the kitchen door and the cool air brings relief from the heat of the stove.
Yes, I'm a dork. I love cooking. And cleaning. And laundry.
Today before I came to work, I made lavender mint cookies... with a touch of lemon. I love surprising people when I cook something with lavender. Nobody at work tonight had ever eaten lavender before. Next time I'll make some lavender chicken and really surprise 'em.

And here is an expression of happyness and gratitude for 2007... and 2008...
YAY!!!
for the new year!
for the holidays!
for love!
for Ethan!
for family!
for friends!
for life, living, and learning!

Blessings to the world. And especially to all these babies, here in intensive care, the children in the pediatric intensive care unit, and every child in this hospital who has to be here on Christmas. Wishing you all health and happyness in the new year.
Merry Christmas!
Happy New Year!
and Happy Birthday Satori!

xoxoxoxo

ps. I know I've misspelled 'happyness'. I like it that way. :)