Sam started to feel better yesterday, and I managed to get her to sleep for a bit in the afternoon. So, we lit all eight candles and the shamash and the living room glowed from all that light. The candles in the large menorah were still burning when I came down this morning.

Sam opened the last of her presents. Somehow, I don't know how, but somehow, Aunt Patty found a stuffed brindle boxer and she made a special soft fleece pack for the pup to sleep in. She *says* the Gund dog was in the Pink Smock, but I think she has a special 'in' with one holiday elf with a soft spot for adorable little Jewish girls. Grammy gave Samantha a tin Barn complete with horses, sheep, turkey, three farmers, rows of corn and cabbages, pigs, cows, geese, one turkey, ducks, ducklings, goslings, several swans. I found a drawer that Sam can use to keep all the little bits in for now. She loved looking at it, but it took mom and dad a few minutes to finish putting the peices together. She opened her Cartwheeling Tigger and all was lost. She took him to sleep with her and she was thrilled. Trajan and Lucia gave her a shirt with Tinkerbell on the front and a great backpack with Tinkerbell on that. Sam liked those too.

We are all having some sense of withdrawal now that Hanukkah is over. It was a very special year, with our friends and relatives here or here in spirit. Thank you all for your incredible thoughtfulness and caring. Sam appreciates it, and we do too. It wasn't just the presents, it was the thought behind them that was so incredible. Samantha is a very lucky little girl, as are we.