I may be Christmas Crazy

But I don't care!  I will actually be festivizing my bathroom this year. Holiday shower curtain, bathmat, the works.  Why? Because holiday decorations make me smile.  But I am not so crazy as to make my home magazine-perfect.  I'm sorry to disappoint my guests for the rapidly approaching Reed Holiday Soiree, I will not be shaving bars of soap so my guests know exactly how much soap to use when they wash their hands as one magazine suggested.  No, I'm serious -it was in a magazine as a "Holiday Tip".  (If I can find it I'll let you know exactly which magazine!)

I love my friends. I adore my friends. But I will never, not ever, shave a bar of soap for their handwashing pleasure. I monitor soap usuage and handwashing at school all day long. When I am at home, I shall assume my guests are au fait when it comes to handwashing and therefore be able to use liquid hand soap I keep next to the sink.

I will however be hanging these signs as gentle reminders:

The whole shaved soap for guests reminds me what a slippery slope (get it? soap - slippery? hahaha) getting ready for the holidays can be.  It is easy to become led astray by these "good ideas" we read about in magazines. We strive to have perfect holidays, with our homes beautifully decorated, handmade goodies and just the right outfit. Well, maybe that's just me. I want the holidays to be special and not a big disappointment because it didn't live up to my expectations. Last year we all had the stomach flu -ho ho throw. Very special indeed, especially as I nearly ended up in surgery to remove a 1 cm shard of wicker lodged under my fingernail 2 days earlier.  So my holiday mantra this year is "Special doesn't mean perfect". And if you happen to come to my home and see shaved soap in my bathroom, I give you permission to laugh heartily in my face. After you have washed your hands.

PS It wasn't fun to be sick on Christmas, but because I had prepared adequately I had enough toilet paper, pepto bismal and pedialyte to make it thru the crisis without anyone having to leave the house  :)