Merry Christmas to All!

After an exhausting year of the second Trump administration and its attack on federal employees, along with Mom's broken hip and its aftermath, I had a hard time embracing the Christmas spirit. I went through the motions and hoped for the best, and I'm happy to say I had moments of Christmas cheer.

Since I'd decided to move on from the Advent boxes I used to fill for Sarah and she's adopted a ritual of having tea with breakfast, I bought her a tea Advent calendar this year. It seemed to be a hit.

Given her busy schedule and the ease of buying a tree at our local greenhouse, we did so once again. I say it every year, but I love our little house at Christmas-time.

 

I did most of the cookie baking this year, but Sarah helped when she was around, and she and her friend Monique did a wonderful job with the cut-out sugar cookies.

Don got a great picture of Abby and Nick a while back, and I used AI to put them in a Christmas scene. It's amazing how it looks as though they posed for it.

After our suboptimal experience at the Christmas Eve service last year, we opted to skip it this year. Mom and George came for lasagna and cookies. She drove on the way here, the first time since breaking her hip.

Santa wasn't the only one who arrived on Christmas Eve; Reid flew in for a week-long stay. Don and Sarah drove to pick him up from his 9:30 p.m. flight. Abby and I went to bed.

Christmas morning, we enjoyed baked French toast and sausage and opened presents. Sarah gave Don and me the sweetest card, and she gave me a gold Mama Bear necklace -- my favorite gift by far! Don gave me a monogrammed beach towel, Michelle Obama's "The Look," "Joy Ride" by Susan Orlean, and a gift certificate to my favorite knitting shop. I gave him a collapsible walking staff, Darn Tough socks, and "Dog Show" by Billy Collins. We gave Sarah a high-end sweat suit she requested.

We enjoyed a Zoom call with the Rodriguezes late morning and ate our turkey dinner around 2 p.m.

The evening was filled with football, starting with the Vikings and Detroit Lions at 4:30. The Vikes won!

On Saturday, we celebrated at Mom's house. Don made the ham and au gratin potatoes; George made green bean casserole; and I brought cookies. Mom made clam dip and bacon-wrapped scallops. She served pies from the Chesterfield church sale.

Although Forrest didn't make it because he'd been plowing snow in Northampton all night, it was wonderful to see everyone else. Mom is never happier than when surrounded by family at home, and I think this year had special significance.

On Sunday, Reid made us a prime rib dinner with garlic mashed potatoes and asparagus. I can't vouch for the meat, but the veggies were yummy! 

While he was here, we also watched "Marty Supreme" in the theater and "This Is Spinal Tap," "Pig," and "The Naked Gun (1988)" -- along with episodes of "Fargo" and "The Pitt" -- at home. Don and Reid went to the Norman Rockwell Museum, and had a long drive home after Reid put Williamstown into his map app instead of Williamsburg. 😀

The highlight of his visit was making Swedish sausage. There's nothing like stuffing ground pork, potatoes, and onions into pig intestines ... except maybe the smell of it boiling afterward. Swedish sausage is a complete sensory experience.

Reid was scheduled to fly out at 6 a.m. on New Year's Eve. He and Don were up at 2 to drive to the airport when they learned his flight was cancelled. He could have taken one later in the morning, but he would have had to spend the night in Detroit. So they did it all again the next day.

On to 2026!