Word To The Ys

So, it was Christmas last week. I’m sure this comes as a surprise to you. Let it never be said that I was too obtuse. Anyway, so Christmas.

Yay?

Well, at least the kids thought so. I was contemplating who Christmas is really for as I took a semi-quiet shower yesterday, and I decided that kids and the grandparents/great aunts or uncles and older generations must enjoy Christmastime the best. While those of us in the middle generation try our darndest to keep our kids from exploding with sweets-fueled mania or having the sleep-deprived meltdown to end all meltdowns.  Not to mention nudging them constantly to remind them to thank givers for the gifts they’re receiving.  And how the heck do you keep kids from wrestling over the new toys when everyone’s screaming, “IT’S MINE!  IT’S MINE!” so loudly that your own raised tone comes out like a whisper?  People of the older generations are (or seem) amused by the antics, and the kids are obviously having the time of their lives even as they scream and thrash around.  Parents?  Yeah.  Not so much.  It’s downright exhausting…and as (in our world) it’s always drawn out over many days, by the end of it all we simply collapse into bed and wake to face the mountainous mess the next day.

But I am still grateful for time spent with many dear family and friends, both old and new.  On Christmas Eve Joe was able to attend our church pageant for the first time ever, thanks to the generosity of his co-worker Sean (who, I understand, reads this blog.  As improbable as that seems.  Though I think he might be looking for material with which to tease Joe rather than an inside look at stay-at-home motherhood.)  So if you’re reading: THANKS, SEAN! 

Here are a couple shots from the pageant:

Seth hung out in the nursery so Joe and I could run interference on Ollie, who has…shall we call it Houdini-like qualities?  Last year he disappeared from sight during the children’s sermon at my parent’s church and reappeared again as though rising from the mist AT THE PULPIT, where he grabbed the mic, pulled it with a quick downward motion to his mouth, and started intoning “BLAH BLAH BLAH!”  Thank God the microphone was not on at the time, though just the vision sent the whole congregation into fits of laughter.  We later found that he had not only quietly and unnoticed moved from the gathering on the other side of the altar to the pulpit, but had pushed a chair over there to enable him to climb up to the top and get the microphone.  Houdini, I tell you.  So you, dear reader, will understand completely how it came to be that Ollie the sheep diverted from the line of like creatures and landed himself in the midst of the angels during their big number.  Joy to the World!  The sheep has run!  To hang with Heavenly Hosts!  And at the end of the song, many of the slightly-older boys (shepherds, and likely spurred on by Max) could be heard chanting, “Oliver alert!  Oliver alert!” over and over until all the kiddies returned to their seats.  To see/hear for yourself, here’s a priceless video:

Well, golly.  It was all pretty entertaining, if a bit wearing on the nerves of the kid’s parents.  Then we returned home with my folks and Angie, and met the Workin’ Man Mark for dinner and presents.  I make it sound like it was all so easy, when in fact our car got so tremendously stuck in our street parking spot at church that it took four well-dressed congregants to help push us out.  Did I mention there was a snowstorm for Christmas?  Yeah.  Anyway…thanks to the brute strength of the Men of St. Mary’s, we slid out into the unplowed street and slowly worked our way home.  Mark and Joe had to push my parents when it was time to leave our house, too.  See?  Isn’t Christmas SO FUN?  Here’s a video of present distribution with the awesome parental units and the odd couple:

And the best picture we could manage with Boompa and his grandsons.  Excuse once again my husband’s, mmm, SPECIAL photography skills:

The next morning dawned at about 8:00 am (impressive, no?) with our kids bouncing off the walls in their bedroom, eager to come down and open their loot!  After singing the obligatory Christmas song at the top stair (they chose “Jingle Bells”) they scurried downstairs and the rest is a blur.  About 30 minutes later gifts from us, Santa, Grandpa Steve & Granny Pat, and Karen & Eric’s crew had all been opened and admired.  Max’s catch phrase of the year was, as opening the paper, “Are you KIDDING ME?!?”  Oliver’s was, “It’s perfedt!”  Seth’s was “Ba. Ba. Ba. Ba.  BAAA!”  So thanks, everyone.

We postponed the big party we’d been planning to host for Joe’s mom, aunts, and crew (see: big freakin’ snowstorm) and spent the day doing the unthinkable: laying about the house, playing with our kids and their new toys.  This has never happened in the history of all time.  It was pleasant but, again, waaaaay more fun for kids than grownups.  Joe and I may or may not have been trying to think of ways to nap, to no avail.

Saturday we had the pleasure of going to my punk kid brother’s house (his beautiful bride lives there, too) and spending a festive early evening with her extended family.  It was a fun reminder that we’ve got this new branch on the family tree, too.  Her family is a hoot, and the food was killer.  The kids enjoyed being doted upon (they were the only little kids there) and eating junk and watching a movie until the big bad parents (that’d be us) said it was time to leave.

And Sunday we finally had that celebration for Joe’s mom’s side of the family at our house.  It was really cozy and fun; the kids played and ate with their cousins so nicely while the adults visited and ate in our kitchen. Somehow we managed to squeeeeeze around our table (thus the “cozy” descriptor) and managed to fit our annual White Elephant game in, too, before the kids started getting antsy.  We tried singing carols as is the tradition, but Ollie got mad because we wouldn’t just sing “ABC’s and Twinkle Twinkle Little Star really fast and slow” on a loop like he wanted.  The kids all bemoaned the end of the gala, saying it went too fast, so I guess that’s a good sign.

And now…because one impatient and curious reader asked if I got my robot maid for Christmas, I will share with you some of the most hilarious and/or awesomest gifts I received.  First: a plate of brownies (which rival my own, and I didn’t have to make them!) and a certificate good for two free babysitting sessions from neighbor-friends Eamon and Rachel.  This is almost like getting a robot maid, as I had delicious goodies and promises of childcare, even though they know our kids and have seen them in action.  How great is that?  From now on, I might just call you Rosie.  Collectively.

Second: remember how I predicted that my lovely sister-in-law had pulled my name for the gift exchange?  Turns out I was right, and I thank my lucky stars she’s an avid reader of my blog.  BECAUSE. PEOPLE.  Did I EVER get the coolest gift:

Best part is, she couldn’t find an apron she liked well enough in any store, so she got a co-worker to MAKE ME ONE.  She picked the fabric and everything.  Angie totally outdid herself, and somehow found the inner strength to still gift it to me even after she saw how adorable it was, so I let her borrow it when she hosted the gathering at her house.  A hostess HAS to have a cute ‘lil apron.

And third…from Joe’s dad and (likely mastermind) step-mom, these fantastic specimens of footwear:

Lots of other great gifts (handmade hat from Karen, I think?) and treats and the ultimate: currency with which we bought something our whole family really has been needing: a new camera.  Comes in a couple days!  No more blurry blog pictures!

Thanks as always for being part of our holidays, friends and family and readers ’round the world.   Much love to you all; and with that:

It’s over.  Yay!

Posted in Joe, Max, Mostly Me, Ollie, Seth | 5 Comments »

So in the last edition of “Things I Like”, I rambled on about a series of material possessions I enjoy, suitable for gift giving. To me. If you were my brother or sister-in-law and needed to figure out what you could get me for Christmas…just as a for-instance.

But I am taken with the idea of sharing, from time to time, some things that make me happy. Sometimes it will be actual physical stuff and sometimes things less tangible.   Many of you who know me for real know that I have a sort of complicated relationship with Christmas.  I often get really turned-off by all the commercialism that runs rampant this time of year.  Did you know that Americans (yeah, just us) spend more that $450 BILLION EACH YEAR on Christmas?  If that doesn’t turn your stomach, then I don’t think I want to know you.  I am all for a little candlelight, some twinkling from a Christmas tree, and fresh-baked goodies, but the presents just sort of get to me.  Don’t get me wrong…it can be fun finding just the right thing for someone, but aren’t birthdays good for that?  Like many Americans, we are paring way down this year and frankly, I’d like to continue the trend.  Because in my house we are very fortunate, and we really want for nothing.  (p.s. If you click here, you can be directed to a super-awesome website called “Advent Conspiracy”, which is full of wonderful information and ideas about turning this commercially-driven time of year into something of more personal substance.  It’s Christian-based, but for all my non-Christian peeps there’s plenty of transferable stuff.)

So when it comes to Christmas, here are the things that really make the season special for me:

1. A lovely book, How Far to Bethlehem? by Norah Lofts. 

This novel (yes, it’s fiction) tells the Christmas story from many perspectives: Melchior, the old astronomer from the Far East who sees the star and begins the journey of a lifetime; Mary, young and engaged and afraid but holy and centered beyond her years; Elizabeth, who in her advanced age births the forebearer to Jesus; Gaspar, the warrior Wise man who starts out looking for more to aquire but finds instead peace and friendship; Balthazar, the slave who was freed and re-enslaved, whose incredible bravery and intelligence will see him to freedom once more.  All these little tertiary characters from the Bible stories are fleshed-out as well.  It’s extremely compelling and I read it almost every year as I wait for Christmas to come.  Even though I have my doubts about many of the details in the Christmas Story itself, this book reminds me of what I do hold true: Jesus was born a little human baby, just like you and me.  I don’t know why that gets me right in the ‘ol ticker every time I think about it, but it does, especially now that I’m a mother myself.  Anyway…read the book, if you can find it.  It might be out-of-print; it’s old.

2. Lessons and Carols at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church.  This is, quite simply, the lovely Anglican tradition of interlacing the scripture lessons telling the complete Christmas story with music that supports and expands upon those readings.  I never knew anything about it until we stumbled through the door of an Episcopal church and found our spiritual home there.  My first Lessons & Carols service was purely spectator.  It struck me as warm and beautiful in every way.  Since then I have been an eager participant each year, singing with our smallish-but-mighty choir the unfolding Incarnate Mystery.  I just love it, and if you’d like to listen to this year’s edition (from last night!) click here for a link to the MP3.  (Shameless plug: I had a solo on a gorgeous Polish piece, and you can find it at the 48:35 mark.  Joe also did a reading at the 26:30 mark, and he’s always such a stellar reader.  Yay, Joe!)  After the service there’s always a wonderful festival feast, which we do not currently get to attend because we’ve got three picky eaters who don’t ever stop moving to contend with, but that’s a story for another day.  The whole evening is always such a lovely start to the Christmas week, with friends and music and prayer and food.  Doesn’t get much better than that!

3.  Family & Friends.  I love the cards, the visits, the baking, the laughter, the general merriment with all my favorite people.  Even those of you who are so far away somehow feel closer this time of year as I send warm thoughts and energy in each envelope I seal.  Hope you feel that love come bursting out as you open your holiday card from us!  Which you’ll probably get in 2010!

4. White Christmas. 

How is it that I haven’t watched this movie yet this year?  Oh, yeah, I just had windows installed and I work for a church (can you say 5 services in one week?!  Wowza!)  This old gem stars two of my all-time musical idols: Bing Crosby and the incomparable Rosemary Clooney.  Not to mention it has Danny Kaye in it.  And oodles of sentimentality.  The last time I watched this was with my grandpa and my dad in Grandpierre’s little apartment in Kenosha, and I just loved that we shared that together.  It adds a new dimension of specialness to my favorite movie of all time.  Oh, and I also like an actual White Christmas.  Especially when the white stuff covers up all the sawdust and mud that our construction project just churned out!

 Enough for now.  I love lots of things.  I hope you are surrounded by things and people you love this week, too.  Happy Holidays from me and all my Ys!

(Just for good measure. I’m sorry, it’s a problem!)

Posted in Mostly Me | 1 Comment »