Yesterday was bittersweet. 

In the morning, we attended the funeral for Jodi's grandmother.  She was 95.  At the service, Uncle Ray spoke of her legacy, of her family.  The room was full of the expressions of her love, in all ages, shapes and sizes.

Back in Pennsylvania, JT didn't understand when we told him that we'd be gone for much of the day, that our St. Nicholas Day party had to be cancelled.  We were all disappointed and sad on several levels.

But we hadn't counted on grace.  When we called home between the funeral and luncheon, JT was beside himself with excitement, shouting into the phone that he'd received a balloon bouquet in the mail, a huge cluster of helium balloons with a candy basket for ballast.  (Thank you to the Fritz family - you can't imagine how your kindness saved the day.  Really.)  

More grace:  December 6 just so happened to be the date for the Christmas parade in Old Towne Grove City and we just so happened to get back in time to catch it, barely.  There were fire trucks, floats, flying candy, the marching band, and St. Nick himself in the back of a truck.  It was cold and snowing and within minutes of the parade's end, the downtown area went from bustling to empty.  We walked up Broad Street admiring the lights, the sidewalks to ourselves now.  And then, in the front hall of one of the local businesses, we saw something that looked like it was out of a movie.

There was a long glass hall of lights, and a the end of the hall, on a chair, sat Santa Claus, alone.  We opened the door and walked towards him in the darkness, lit only by the glow of Christmas lights.  He didn't know that the parade was over, that everyone had gone home, and so he was waiting there by himself.  And because there was no crowd, the boys were able to sit on his lap, laugh, listen to his hearty "Ho, Ho, Ho!"  It was a moment in time.  As we walked back down the long hall to the door outside, we both turned around again to take a look - St. Nicholas, waiting just for us.  It seemed like a miracle.

So - thanksgiving all around.  We give thanks for the life of Jodi's grandmother and for the family that is her legacy.  We give thanks for St. Nicholas, for his story and his example for us.  We give thanks especially for JT's donor - a woman whose gift of bone marrow gave JT 365 more days of life.  And thank you to our family and friends who continue to help us and send us gifts.  We are blessed and lucky.  Happy St. Nicholas Day!