I love Christmas. I do. I love the holiday foods...peppermint bark, asparagus roll ups, bread pudding, baby corns, pickled okra. Certainly, I have not described a very well-balanced menu, but these are things I generally only have during the holidays.
I love the music. The "Christmas" playlist on my I-pod has an assortment of genres....pretty much the same songs in various arrangements. I listen while I decorate and cook and clean...no, while I decorate and cook. I do not clean much.
I love to decorate. Last year I did not decorate much because I was recovering from surgery, and was actually out of town until about the 15th, so this year, I pulled everything out. MP said it looked like Christmas had exploded in the den.
Much to Mr. Lincoln's dismay, I love the Hallmark Christmas Movies and Fa La La La Lifetime season too. Like my music, each movie is pretty much the same story, just set in different locations with the characters having different professions, but mainly they end very satisfactorily. There was that one where the little girl died of leukemia, and I was mad at Hallmark for a couple days over that one. But, then I decided to change the ending in my head, so now she is alive and well living happily with her formerly downtrodden mother and her new, gorgeous and wealthy father. That is how Christmas movies are supposed to end.
I love giving gifts. Generally, I do not shop at the mall for gifts. Often, I make my gifts...perhaps a photograph of something important to the recipient, a gift of food, maybe a poorly, but lovingly hand knit scarf. The children get the same thing every year. Thanks to Mr. Lincoln, they get a week in Sanibel Island in January, and their stockings have gift cards to restaurants on the island. Sometimes, there are some extras like a piece of jewelry for Sheri and exotic (or not so exotic) spices for Josh. MP always receives a calendar. (note to self...go get that calendar) Their gift to Sanibel serves also as a gift Mr. Lincoln and I give to ourselves. We dearly love the energy and fun they bring with them to the island. It is the high point of the year for most of us.
Yesterday, Mr. Lincoln and I decided to go buy our Christmas tree. In previous years, we have gotten our trees from a friend. Marshall began working at Bob's tree lot when he was 13 years old. In fact, he took most, if not all, the money he made that first year and bought Mr. Lincoln and me a microwave. We are still using it. I think it is losing power which would seem reasonable for a twenty year old microwave. I told Mr. Lincoln yesterday that when it dies, I will make a frame out of the door. I am most sentimental about that microwave. But, as usual, I digress.
When we arrive at Home Depot to get our tree, we immediately become befuddled by the big tent in the parking lot. Why does everything have to change? I liked it better when the trees were in the garden center. I feel more comfortable there. Mr. Lincoln and I are both tired. I was up late partying at my mother's on Friday night, and Mr. Lincoln ran 30 miles Saturday morning ~ before 9:15. Don't ask. So, we are not in the mood to spend a lot of time. We go in the tent, and standing alone in the $39.97 bin is a tree. Mr. Lincoln stands it up, shakes it out, and I say, "fine. That one is perfect." Now, we are not uneducated people, but we can not figure out where to pay for the tree. It is mass chaos. There are 2 long lines, but those people are waiting to get the highly recommended "fresh cut" from the bottom of their trees. We take ours and walk it over to the garden center. stand in line, finally pay, decide we do not want to spend the time to have the "fresh cut" done, so we leave. Then, we spend the next hour and a half trying to find someone who has a saw so we can make our own fresh cut. I seriously thought about using my new Cutco Chef's knife (they will cut through a penny and never get dull), until we found the Srygleys at home. Mr. Lincoln hack sawed the end of our tree, and we promptly came home to deal with the CHRISTMAS TREE STAND, that most dreaded of holiday implements.
Amazingly, with only a little tugging and direction-giving, the tree is in the stand in a moderately straight position. But, oh, my stars. This is the skinniest tree in the world. I wish I was so svelte. It turns out, however, that the slimness of our tree will serve us well, as one of our back doors will not open without a lot of praying/cursing, so I use the other back door, which is where the tree is. Now, the door will open just enough to make room for me to get into the house. You may ask why we do not use the front door instead. We cannot get it open without using a crowbar, which takes 2 people. At times, we are a little "red" around here.
I love putting the ornaments on the tree The paper towel rose Marshall made when he was about 10, the paper reindeer made of Jenny's feet and hands, the Mickey and Minnie Mouse ornament that Marshall and Sheri brought us from their Disney honeymoon, a handmade paper reindeer, wooden ornaments I made in my woodworking class before MP was born, the circus animals from the mobile over Marshall's crib and the fuzzy lambs that hung over the same crib when MP used it, reindeer made of clothes pins, the felt ornnaments I made our first Christmas as husband and wife, pictures of the kids, gifts from the Burkhart girls when there were only 2 of them, etc... Each one is a story unto itself. Each one brings back precious memories. And so, my skinny tree looks exceptionally beautiful to me.
And so for today, I wish you great joy in the frivolity of Christmas, and I wish you
blessings
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