Welcome to our travels and adventures


Welcome to our travels and adventures

A Family Christmas

When we returned from Larry & Judy’s wedding, we collapsed in bed with visions of sugar plumbs buzzing around in our heads as Santa arrives tomorrow for our little family! We agreed to help Terri get set up so we were up and at’m fairly early to be there by 11:00 AM. Thank goodness the QEW was not busy as we were moving a little slowly and did not get held up and arrived on time. Terri & Mark already had the tree up and decorated (I suspect it went back in the box decorated from last year ;)) and they were preparing some of the dinner. With a couple absent, we still sat 15 for dinner. The plan is the host couple provide the bird and the rest bring potluck veggies and dessert.

Shhhh, they'll see us snooping I don’t know which is more fun, watching the little ones – we only have 3 now that are still in awe with Santa – carefully so not to get caught snooping – paw through the gifts looking for theirs, checking on the size and making sure they got the same amount as everyone else. Or is it when we all are sitting and having a meal together – we don’t do this often enough either. Or is it listening to the conversations of our adult kids, catching up on each others lives. Or is it watching and listening to everyone as they open their gifts. It is all a great time and brings back wonderful memories of our Christmases when our adult kids were toddlers doing exactly what their kids are doing now! Oh, what good fun!

A tradition that Barb & I started long ago which she saw on her soap opera, thanks Days.  We would each have a special  tree ornament that we would hang on the tree after we said a little something about the year, event or anything that we each felt was worthy. Sometimes the ‘tree speeches’ were emotional, sometimes they were funny and sometimes they were boring but we all did them. This year Barb & I thought the interest was waning and that since we do not host Christmas now, that maybe it is our kids turns to start aBlah, blah, blah tradition of their own and maybe we should stop the special ornaments. We put it to a vote and were happily surprised that everyone – even the grandkids wanted to carry on. That was a nice surprise!

Cheers! So, everyone starts to arrive and soon the house is humming with chatter and the gift snoops are snooping! You notice that I didn’t say only the little ones were snooping! Anyway, beverages are served and sometimes I think everyone is talking at the same time but I think that is an age thing. Soon,  dinner is ready and I get the honor of carving the bird.

 

And I light this candle for....

The advent (another tradition we have had for years started at our church when the girls were little) wreath is usually lit by the grandkids but this year we  shook it up a little and asked our kids to do the honors and then dinner is served. Normally you would think that the ‘noise’ level would decrease while feeding but alas no, everyone is having fun!

 

The bigger grandkids at their own table for dinner. Christmas Dinner 

Tiana's Tree SpeechNow comes the tree speeches and the gift opening! The real excitement begins! Paper is flying everywhere, the volume is turned up and there are smiles all around! They are good memories as I write this almost a month later.

Barb has spent the past 16 months making 6 cuddle quilts for our adult kids and was real excited to give them out.  Each couple’s quilts came about from all her great lessons and friends at The Plantation In Alabama.  Their response filled her heart with joy and she hopes they keep them warm this winter and feel her love wrapped around them.

The next part was a gift to each family from me to our adult kids.  They were too big to wrap so they were ushered upstairs so Barb & I could set up their gifts – kinda like when they were toddlers, we had to wait until they were asleep before we could assemble the doll houses or get the doll buggies set up! Barb made each house a crocheted mat to go with my caned chairs, a couple of rocking chairs and 3 dining chairs. So we called them down and the looks on the faces and their actions after they saw their gifts was so neat. Dawn picked up her quilt, wrapped herself and sat in her rocker, saying she was ready for the winter.

   Lilly Opens GiftTerri With Her Cuddle QuiltDawn all snuggled in her quilt and rocking chair

Here are pictures of the quilts:

Working On Corrie and Dean's cuddle quilts.  Front of Corrie &  Dean's Cuddle Quilts Back of Corrie &  Dean's Cuddle Quilts  Dawns Crazy Quilt Pattern Front of Terri's cuddle quilt Back of Terri's cuddle quilt Front of Mark's cuddle quilt Back of Mark's cuddle quilt

All too soon, the end emerges and everyone starts to leave. After all the farewells and hugs, we helped a little on cleanup then we headed back to the rig. It was a wonderful Christmas, Charlie Brown.  We hope you too have wonderful memories this year.

1 comment:

  1. aw nice post ,,boy those kids keep getting bigger and older ,,must be because we are also ,, ok will email you later..ttyl and huggs ,one more chapter lunch thurs and then have to wait for chineses until spring ,,bugger,

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