Post Christmas Post

Christmas was a rousing success. My boys have again proven that electronics+y chromosomes=entertainment. The older two got PS2 games and movies. Youngest ds got a leapster. We have hardly seen them since. Mel recieved an aquadoodle which I've caught all of them drawing on, L got a fur real kitten and E got money. I took her and a friend shopping yesterday. She got a cord jacket, a hoodie, 3 t-shirts and a cami and 3 pair of earrings for $80 which I thought was very good. Today I took the kids swimming at the Y just to get them some exercise. They all now look glazed over and want to know when dinner will be ready. I can't believe their break is almost over. They go back Jan 2 and didn't get out until Dec 22. I like them being home and 9 days break just doesn't seem like enough.

From Our Home to Yours

Merry Christmas

Solstice

The Shortest Day

And so the Shortest Day came and the year died
And everywhere down the centuries of the snow-white world
Came people singing, dancing,
To drive the dark away.
They lighted candles in the winter trees;
They hung their homes with evergreen;
They burned beseeching fires all night long
To keep the year alive.
And when the new year's sunshine blazed awake
They shouted, revelling.
Through all the frosty ages you can hear them
Echoing behind us - listen!
All the long echoes, sing the same delight,
This Shortest Day,
As promise wakens in the sleeping land:
They carol, feast, give thanks,
And dearly love their friends,
And hope for peace.
And now so do we, here, now,
This year and every year.
Welcome Yule!

Susan Cooper

Argh! People are coming tomorrow. I'm not ready!

Traditions

There was a discussion earlier in the month about family traditions. I, following my tradition, was ignoring Christmas at that point but now I'm beginning to feel festive so here goes:

I would like to say we have a lovely Advent Calendar tradition but truthfully, we skip 3 or 4 days until someone remembers it and then they stick all the stuff up at once to catch up.

I've tried to read Christmas stories in the evening before, no takers here.

I know some families make an occasion out of the tree. I have to beg mine to decorate it.


BUT, we do these things

1) Eat far too much sugar. This is especially extended to Christmas morning where breakfast is traditionally all your sock candy. Lunch and dinner are often cake, cookies and more candy for the kids.

2) On Christmas Eve evening we go to church, come home and I force them to watch A Charlie Brown Christmas. This gets harder every year but I must do this for me.

3) Every gift must be wrapped, not necessarily in actual Christmas paper, but it must be secreted. We open in turns, youngest to oldest, one at a time. This keeps Christmas morning lasting for more than 30 seconds.

4) Bleary mama and tired daddy will indulge in mimosas all morning in an attempt to stay jolly.

Dh's family lives hours and hours from us. We usually do see my brother, dad and families somewhere around Christmas but on that day my brother goes to SIL's parents and my dad and his wife go to her dd's, so it's just us. That is why we can drink!

Oh, and I always save some presents back for 12th night when we have a king cake and chalk the door. I like making the season last and 12th night is something hardly anyone does so that makes them feel special.

Fight, for your Right, to Paaaarty

We went to dh's Christmas party Saturday night. It was a good time, good music and surprisingly a good band. We hadn't done a strictly adult evening together since, oh, probably last Christmas. Do we live exciting lives or what? I've been making gifts in a jar to give to all the people you owe a gift to but don't really want to buy something for. I try not to do this until after they have given me something of course. This years gifts are cinnamon pancake mix and hot cocoa mix with Christmas marshmallows. This is how those of us whose own family eats the cookies and candies as fast as you can make them give food. Our neighbors sent a nice plate of food on Sunday and it is long gone. I got one stinking piece of toffee. I'm living with locusts. I also hope tonight to go full court press on wrapping. We remove those *&#% twisty ties and put batteries in everything. My kids are all about instant gratification and will not be waiting Christmas morning for me to do that. No siree. The Colts are playing the Bengals tonight so I will send the kiddies to bed, put on the game, crack open a beer and hopefully not throw tape and scissors at the TV.

More Chrismassy

I wrestled the tree into place and today the kids will decorate it. The house smells like some mountain village of my imagination with evergreens and cinnamon (from breakfast) in the air. Last night was very laid back. I've been busy in the evening for two solid weeks. All I had to do last night was pick E up at 11:30 from decorating for the Christmas dance. That made it seem like the evening was free.

Relaxed Dining


The Cutest Elf

Eleven Long Years

Yesterday C turned eleven. It is a testament to my superior mothering that he has made it to this age alive and also a testament to the human desire to pass on their genetic material that I haven't personally killed him. He didn't have a party since he suffers from December birthday syndrome in which his parents are busy and so are those of all his friends. After Christmas I will take him and a friend laser tagging instead. What to say about C. If you ever wondered what that really brilliant but odd mathematics professor was like as a child I now know. He really is very, very bright but dealing with people, lets just say if he goes into medicine it better be anesthiology so all his patients will be asleep and won't notice his bedside manner. He asked for an alarm clock for his birthday. I was happy to deliver. Cheapest gift I'll buy all year, LOL.

The Birthday Cake


The Birthday Boy

Christmas Prep

I hope you weren't waiting for a list of what I've got done. It is a very short list. I have however, got in lots of what I consider the real fun of Christmas. I've been caroling with Cub Scouts and Brownies, attended a Brownie Christmas party, purchased a tree and bought hot chocolate (said tree is laying in the garage. I'm considering just celebrating out there and avoiding actually finding time to set up the tree and decorate it) and we've been to story time with Santa. The kids have eaten dozens of gingerbread men and a buttload of fudge. I also have hope that Santa (the one who drives a brown truck and comes to the door) will soon have presents on site.

Smoke Gets In Your Eyes

Monday I made a fire. Big mistake! I'm not sure if the flue is blocked or the wind was wrong or what but man oh man did I fill the house with smoke. Of course we went into stupid sitcom family mode. The smoke detectors were going nuts, I'm opening the windows to the freezing air, dh is cursing, and the kids sit oblivious, spellbound by Bart and Homer. Dh ignored my suggestion to take the fire out in the coal bucket and hit it with a fire extinguisher. I never knew how much that stinks. I ended up taking stuff out anyway but got the added bonus of stench to go with the smoke. I've spent Tuesday and Wednesday washing curtains, shampooing carpets, cleaning upholstery, mopping floors, washing walls, blah, blah, blah. It is better but still smells like we might be preserving pork products in our living room. At least I had no Christmas decorations up to move and my house will be sparkly clean for the holidays. Maybe if I burn enough candles or serve enough rum no one will notice the odor.

The kid's who were home did this Friday night.

E had a debate all day Saturday. She is arguing Varsity now. She was gone from 6am to 6pm. A long day. I made cookies, which though hidden, have disappeared. How can they eat five batches of cookies? We went to church Sunday morning and then dh went to pick up S from his friends. I spent far too long trying to find pants for L that were both long enough and didn't fall down. We finally found two pair that came with belts. Sunday night we watched a truly horrible movie called The Librarian but had a blast because we cracked on it ala Mystery Science Theater 3K