Sunday, December 30, 2018

Christmas 2018































We had a good Christmas this year despite the fact that we changed things up a bit.

We drew names for Secret Santa, and people only needed to buy one gift. It felt a little weird in the days leading up to Christmas, but in the end everyone agreed that it made things much less stressful. Katie and I happened to receive the same stuffed ostrich! I guess we like similar things. And, it was so funny to see the look on her face when she realized what had just happened.

We had appetizers on Christmas Eve, which pretty much has become a tradition in this house, and then I decided to add some calico beans and baked macaroni and cheese. The mac and cheese was an experimental recipe, one that you put together the night before, using uncooked noodles. It caused me some stress, wondering how people would like it, and then I tried to tell myself that I wouldn't obsess over it if the recipe didn't turn out. And then it actually turned out so well, that I think I'll double the recipe for next year!

Why do we worry about such things? People love to eat food that other people make for them. I need to remember that. The Cherry Poke Cake was also an experiment that turned out just fine, too.

Then a wonderful thing happened ... Jake did all the kitchen clean up, so I could sit in the living room in front of the fireplace with everyone else. 😇 Lovely.

We went to the candlelight service at 10:00 pm, which was lovely, too.

I made a ham dinner on Christmas Day. With cheesy potatoes, a sweet chopped kale salad, corn, lefse, and homemade cranberries.

Bruce brought out the unused piñata that we had given to him on his birthday. (I suspect that this might have been planned so that there could be a bigger audience to watch him beat the thing open 😉). And when the piñata finally broke, there was a cloud of dust suspended in the air from the bag of peanuts in the shell. (We thought unshelled peanuts were a better idea instead of candy except then that it made such a mess. Oh, well.) I think we all had the same look of confusion on our faces when we stared at the dust suspended in the air!

Our Christmas traditions are changing, but maybe that's okay. It's probably most important to just enjoy your people and try not to get stressed out, which is not always easy to do.

The house is now quiet again, and I find myself thinking quite a bit about Dad.

Wishing you all a blessed Christmas, which I can still say because it's not even the 12th Day of Christmas yet.

Tuesday, December 18, 2018

Part of Life, Too










This morning as I was rushing around, and thinking about all the things I wanted to get done before the kids arrive later this week, I got a text from an old friend, who told me that a good friend of hers had a son who died by suicide this past Sunday.

How can you find the right words to say, that show true understanding of what that family must be going through? It's just so sad.

It's easy to get caught up in the rush, rush of this season. And then when you hear something like this, it just stops you in your tracks.

So, I did end up making some peanut butter kisses. I told my kids that I loved them. And then I sat down on the couch this evening, and watched National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. I even let a cat sit in my lap.

And, I know that I'll start to rush around again, and probably worry way more than I need to about things that are not really all that important. But, I guess that's a part of life, too.

Bruce Has A Birthday










Bruce turned 63 this month, how did that happen???

It turned out to be a pretty big day, too, in that he had the opportunity to open for a show at the 318 Cafe in Excelsior that evening. Katie even decided to stay an extra day so she could be there, and quite a few other friends showed up ... the place was crowded!

At home, we had balloons, a cactus piñata that was filled with peanuts in the shell, smelly hot cheese (Katie's idea), and a spaghetti dinner.




Katie and Bruce also baked a lemon chiffon pie. They used pasteurized eggs, and it was delicious.

Older, but Wiser? An Oldie, but Goody?

Who am I to judge? 😏 My time is coming, too.

Tuesday, December 4, 2018

Thankful

































At times when I start to feel overwhelmed with life, and worries of the future start to consume all my thoughts, and my sense of peace and serenity, I need to just stop ... and focus on all that is good and right in my world.

There is so much to be grateful for.

Is it that I'm getting older, or is it this fast paced world, or maybe a little of both that make things so hard to deal with sometimes? I don't know. All I know is that if I let my thoughts get away with me, life can seem so hard to manage.

There is so much to be grateful for.

It does no good to worry about most things. Time has a way of settling things out. I need to remind myself of this more often.

I am thankful for all my people and all that God has given me.

I really am.