Inertia

The nice thing about having my family coming this Saturday is it stretches out the holiday a bit, the bad thing is that I need to think of something to serve and then go buy it. I need to do it today so that I can take E on her Christmas shopping trip on Friday. It has to be Friday because that is when her friend can come. I should never have started this dumb tradition. Six years ago who knew we'd still be going to spend her Christmas $$$. It has evolved from just us to her and a friend shopping while I sit at Starbucks sipping a coffee and receiving phone calls reassuring her that another shirt is just what she needs. I'll have Ad with me this year. Here's hoping I don't have to ceaselessly walk her around. And lets just say her nursing habits are not conducive to quiet. The kids positively slurps. Anyway....back to the subject at hand. We 're planning on having a buffet of stuff to pick at all night. SIL always brings a veggie tray (because she is healthy and virtuous unlike me), step-mom will bring mac&cheese. She just always does so, I'm thinking a meat tray with rolls, cheeses with nice crackers, nacho dip (yes, this is cheese heavy but dh requested it), lots of cookies and a fruit bowl. Of course beer for dh and brother, wine for SIL and I and coffee for dad. Oh, and pop for the kids. Of course I will forget something, I always do. Oh well. I finally got the other adults on board for skipping gifts so it'll just be stuff for the kids. Three of mine and my nephew will probably get money or cards so it'll look like a depressing amount of stuff even though lots of dollars will pass hands. I always feel guilty anyway because our seven sort of out number their one. I stress about trying to keep it roughly equal, etc. Oh well, the important thing is I have a new deck of cards waiting to be separated into a euchre deck. Cards, liquor and cheese! Sounds like a holiday to me.

Easy Christmas

I found these tips somewhat useful. I do the battery and twist tie thing. As for the wrapping paper, the idea of 8 kinds of wrapping paper boggles the mind.
I am a huge believer in making Christmas easy, though I'm convinced some people like rushing, stressing and feeding obnoxious relatives. Our Christmas goes something like this:
1) Be awakened at an unmentionable hour.
2) Let kids indulge in a free for all.
3) Console child whose gift was opened by a sibling.
4) Since the coffee is done by now, begin drinking mimosas and let the kids have stocking candy for breakfast.
5) Continue above until a late lunch, consisting of foods my children will actually eat. This year our extremely non-Martha menu includes:
turkey roll-pressed, processed meat being a favorite of my children over actual turkey
crescent rolls-ditto
broccoli
sweet potatoes
cookies, cookies, cookies
sprite -in a wine glass, they love a wine glass
6) Pray the rest of the day sees no more toy breakage
7) Sit bleary eyed, sipping a bourbon, wonder where the day went and quite unoriginally say a prayer of thanks that this particular family is mine. What more could I really want?


Merry Christmas from our family to yours

Yule

Today is the winter solstice. I like to make a cake because, well, I like cake, and I can understand why ancient peoples were straining at this point for some warmth, sunlight and jocularity. Try this site for some winter solstice info. Now, because I always like the feeling this poem gives me and it mentions the shortest day of the year.

Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening
by Robert Frost

Whose woods these are I think I know
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep.
And miles to go before I sleep.

Christmas Wrapping Hell

I want to hire some elves and sip margaritas instead.

Busy, Busy, Busy

Hmm, what since I posted last? L and Ad were Mary and baby Jesus in a Christmas cantata. A mama's gotta love that. Oh, and F was a shepherd. A twitchy, fidgety, restless shepherd.
On Wednesday we celebrated C's birthday. He was 12 on 12/12. Gotta love that symmetry.

On Friday I attended one of those obligatory school productions. What would have been annoying on a stage was even more so in a gym where you can't see or hear. Made L happy though
Friday night I wrestled the tree into submission and let the kids decorate. It actually turned out pretty well.

Sunday and Monday we were pretty much snowed/iced in. Church was cancelled and then school. I sent the children out regularly but today I am more than ready not to mop of snow every 20 minutes, endlessly dry the snowsuits, settle arguments, guard the cookies or explain that I am not the cruise director and am not responsible for anyone's boredom but my own. Now if I could just motivate myself to wrap some presents.

Baby It's Cold Outside

I know it was 3 degrees the other morning, but I didn't expect their lips to actually turn blue.

Aloha

My intent is obvious ( I want a tropical holiday) even if my location isn't in line with that.