Thanksgiving and Christmas are the most festive part of our year: childlike anticipation, holiday traditions, parties, feasting, shopping and presents! Plus, there are unexpected moments of humor.
We hosted Thanksgiving this year. I've found it takes several people to pull off a successful Thanksgiving dinner. I am so grateful to Rob and his mother, Connie. Rob bravely risks burning his hands in the oven while checking the turkey, and he’s the official carver of the bird. Connie is a terrific cook and potato-mashing expert. If not for her, potatoes would be splattered on our kitchen cupboards again. (I just can’t master the electric mixer.)
My daughter has more of a ‘food taster and humorous commentary’ role on Thanksgiving. She naps before the turkey is served. She was astute as Rob searched for a turkey baster. He muttered quietly, “It might be in the garage, think I used it to siphon brake fluid out of the car.” When a baster was finally produced, my daughter yelled, “Is that the same one?!”
We cut our own Christmas tree this year, which was a first for me. We proudly pulled a little red cart behind us, through the mud, on a blustery cold day, happy as ever, as we disagreed on which tree to cut. Good times--
Keeping a clean house during the holidays is not easy, especially when a college student returns. My daughter’s rambunctious kitten came with her, and he enlivened our household. Keeping a kitten off a Christmas tree is a task in itself! We frequently hear hissing, spitting and yowling and may see a blur of orange and black as our two cats show their appreciation for one another. Our dog, Shnoop, is a chagrined referee.
Rob owns approximately seventy-five coats, jackets and hats, which he leaves all over the house. I’m constantly hanging them up. He had the once-terrific idea of installing a coat rack in our garage. But there’s an unfortunate side effect to hanging outerwear in a cold garage: “Thanks dear, just put my coat on. It’s stiff and now I’m freezing.”
Holiday television shows and movies are fabulous fun. Who can resist “A Charlie Brown Christmas” or the animated “Grinch?” My family quietly tolerates “A Christmas Carol” (all versions) and “A Christmas Story” over and over, and they hear Christmas music in the house beginning November twentieth. (Okay, maybe they have no choice.) Regardless, it’s all about setting the holiday mood: decorations, mistletoe, wrapping paper, bows and gift boxes all over the house. At what other time can you burn pine-scented candles?
In December at our house you’ll hear things like:
“I should wear my glasses when shopping. I almost bought a tub of your favorite gummy bears, only to find it was fruit cake mix.”
“Are you sure you want the Hair-extension Glam Barbie? She’s sold out in five stores. How about a nice nurse Barbie?”
“Hold the dog still while I snap a photo of him with the Santa hat on.”
“Can we regift that present?”
“You gave Uncle Butch the spiked eggnog? Don’t let him ride the sled down the stairs!”
Of course, the best part of the season is being surrounded by loved ones. It makes you take a deep breath and appreciate that which is most important in our lives ~ presents! Just kidding…
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
