Well – we survived thrived through another Christmas season! I was most relieved to stop shopping. When Christmas day arrived I was done, for better or worse! Tom prepared a five course meal for Christmas Eve. Here’s the menu: Black Bean Soup Spinach Salad with Raspberries and Cranberries and toasted Pecans Roast Beef with Yorkshire Pudding and steamed Carrots A selection of cheeses (Manchego – Mizithra – Da Vinci) with Pear and Apple Chocolate Eclairs We invited Alex & Cynthia, Andrew & Sarah, and Travis & Jen and all their kids to join us. Sarah did an excellent job blogging all about it here. It was fun to have everyone together and I think my favorite part is seeing all the kids in their p.j.’s. Wish Kate could have been here too!! I think the kids liked Christmas day well enough and...
Just wanted to share our tips for torturing the kids on Christmas Day. #1 – when children arrive in Mom & Dad’s room begging to go down and open presents Christmas morning, begin an extended conversation on the advisability of sleeping a bit more, on maybe waiting until afternoon, on having breakfast first, etc. #2 – after agreeing to go downstairs, make everyone sit down and wait while taking pictures, talking about how everyone slept, and generally just postponing the moment. #3 – restrict the opening of presents to Santa gifts and stockings and take turns opening gifts, making everyone watch and offer appropriate oohs and aahs. #4 – stop the festivities and make everyone retire to the kitchen for breakfast. #5 – instruct everyone to get dressed. Take the family to the movies. #6 – finally...
One of my favorite things about Christmas is getting Christmas letters! I love hearing about everyone’s news and how their year has been. Sure, some letters might be a little boastful, but mostly they are newsy and funny and creative and make me feel connected to friends that I don’t otherwise have much contact with. Keep them coming, people!! Another thing I love about Christmas is the chance to do thoughtful things for people. If you show up on the doorstep of a relative stranger with a loaf of freshly baked bread, they will smile and thank you and even wish you a Merry Christmas. For that brief moment I feel connected to my neighborhood in a way that I don’t get most of the rest of the year (we’re not a very sociable neighborhood!!). And if you are visiting teaching someone who doesn’t normally...
I don’t really have much to say – but I’m trying not to leave the blog idle! I have been trying to do some christmas preparations – i finally decided what I was doing for my siblings, but I’m still thinking about tom’s siblings – although I think I might have made a decision. I’ve been trying to make lists of things that my kids might like – we’re trying to be more economical this year so I’m on the lookout for inexpensive things they would still enjoy. We just read the christmas chapter in “Little House on the Prairie” and it was interesting to see the reaction of my kids to Laura & Mary’s gifts – a shiny penny, a tin cup, a stick of candy, and a little cake. I’m not sure they really thought about it in terms of their own christmas!! On...