December and the beginning of January are busy, busy,
busy times at our house. Michael and I got married on December 21, not
realizing—sweet
young things that we were—that
children would bring school events that crowded our anniversary almost to
oblivion. School pageants, and later band recitals, for two or three kids often
left us eating our anniversary dinner in January.
Christmas is frenetic with all the shopping for and
wrapping and hiding gifts. Fun, but time consuming. On Christmas Eve, we are in
the habit of going to our church for the evening candlelight service, replete
with carols and good cheer. Then we go home for a special meal: cheese and
crackers, sausage, fresh fruit, and Christmas cookies, along with obligatory
Irish coffee.
The Irish coffee is served in beautiful goblets that are
embossed in gold and green with lines indicating how much sugar, how much
whiskey, and how much coffee. You’re on your own for the whipped cream serving,
but I think that frothing over the goblet is just right. We received the Irish
coffee goblets as a wedding gift in 1976 and we have toasted Christmas Eve with
them every year for the last 49 years. Kids partake too, with the whiskey adjusted
appropriately.
We used to open presents on Christmas Eve after dinner—hence the easy to make
and to clean up meal—
and Santa left gifts for Christmas morning, but, as a family, we decided to go
full Christmas morning for gifts after I became ill with lupus. We needed to streamline
our traditions to make it easier to manage. The ‘new’ way worked well enough
that we’ve kept on doing it for about 30 years.
Now that we’ve gotten through our anniversary, Christmas
Eve, and Christmas Day, you’d think a little peace and relaxation would descend
on the house. Wrong—I’m
still busy. December 28 is Michael’s birthday. Since it’s right after the
holidays, I always try to make him feel extra special. And because I am a
dedicated sale shopper, I almost always buy those gifts in the after-Christmas
sales, so I have to duke it out with the crowds.
The cake is baked, the gifts wrapped, and his special dinner
is cooked. Now can we get some peace and quiet? Heck no. It’s New Year’s Eve
and fireworks are blasting the night skies all over our neighborhood. Fireworks
are legal in Harris County. It’s mayhem.
Okay, New Year’s Day has arrived, a quiet day for most
people. But most people don’t have a son whose birthday is January 2nd.
We do. He has had some doozies when it came to birthday dinner requests. One
notable year, he asked for pepperoni pizza and for everybody to get two cans of
soda! Now that he’s middle-aged himself and lives far away, we’re off the hook
for the extra sodas.
As a special added attraction, our Brooklyn grandkids (8
and 12) are coming solo for a visit from the 26th to the 31st.
Fun is planned, tickets are purchased, and it’s coming together. But there is a
lot to do to get ready.
In the past, January also contained my grandmother’s
birthday on January 3. And three of my brothers have birthdays on the 7th,
8th, and 9th. Those birthdays require virtually nothing
of me nowadays, although we did travel to Arizona for my oldest brother’s 80th
birthday two years ago. A fun time, totally worth the travel bother!
But new birthdays have happened: our two granddaughters’ birthdays
are on December 3rd and 5th! So, let’s count it up. From
December 1st through January 9th, my family (including
family of origin) celebrates 8 birthdays, a wedding anniversary, two major,
multi-day holidays that require gift giving and out-of-town company for five
days. Is it any wonder that I’m exhausted thinking about it?
Who am I kidding? The joy of celebrating with family and
friends far outweighs the hassles of the season. Even when I’m falling behind,
and I get slower at this stuff every year, I love the outcomes.
However many events you may be celebrating this season, I
hope your life is as overflowing with love and fun as mine.
From our busy, busy house to yours,
Ciao
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