 Another new year is here and today is my youngest son Kip's birthday. And here is the annual Christmas album. We know to ply Bill with liquor when all the relatives are here so we suggested that Lee get some sherry for Bill's gift. We think he liked it. Lee, his fiance Shelley and one of her sons came to visit us the Thursday before Christmas. They stayed till Saturday late morning. We opened up presents from them and for them on Saturday morning. It was like having two Christmases. I made the traditional Christmas waffles for everyone after the round of gift giving. They were very generous to us all. Lee gave me two nightgowns which was such a surprise. No one buys me clothes because I am so hard to buy for. You just can't go in a store and buy something off the shelf for me. The nightgowns do fit a bit tight but I will be able to wear them for summer. Thanks, hon. He also got me an Italian cookbook and a picture of himself and his fiance.
The Christmas spirit still didn't hit me this year. Well, it did sorta for one day. That was Sunday when we had our psuedo-Christmas celebration. Kip was with us, and Amy, Todd, Addy and Bill. Amy and her little family were going up north the next day--Christmas Day--so we opened our presents on Christmas Eve Day morning. That sounds kinda weird to call it that but what else am I gonna call it? We got Kip in an upright position this year to open the presents. Addy took all her presents over to sit with Kip to open hers. Then it was another round of psuedo-Christmas waffles. And then later in the evening we had our psuedo-Christmas Day dinner but it was really our Christmas Eve dinner. And, Eva, gotta tell ya, we didn't have a Thanksgiving hair this year but Todd was the recipient of two hairs for Christmas.
Thankfully, none of us got strep throat. And we fairly sidestepped the cold that Kip brought down with him. Amy had a day or two where she felt like she might have caught his cold but it didn't seem to stay with her. After Kip left, I felt like I had a bit of a cold for a couple of days but it passed quickly. Kip ended up staying for twelve days. Even through New Year's Eve with Bill and me. Amy and the rest did go up north on New Year's Eve Day (I know, that sounds weird, too). Kip thought he was going to leave but he was engrossed in the new Zelda game he had bought for Amy and by the time evening and his departure time came around he said he was feeling worse again so he decided to stay here. I had only put one package of chicken wings in the oven so quickly I put the other pack in. I just knew I should have counted on him staying for dinner. After dinner, he went back upstairs and continued his quest with Zelda. At 11:45 I got him to come downstairs. Bill opened the bottle of champange he had bought, we toasted and drank it down. Then we went out on the front porch at two minutes till midnight, Kip with bottle rockets in hand, Bill and I with the last dregs of our drink, and as the stroke of twelve off went the rockets. There was a good clamoring of noise, bells, firecrackers and possibly a gun heard around the neighborhood for fifteen minutes. And back in we came. Kip to his Zelda game again and the rest of us to our computers. We could have gone to a gathering at our friend Mary's house, or we could have gone into Cincinnati for an all night drumming session at a coffeehouse and spilled over to moonlight bowling next door, but I gave into being old and stayed home. And such was our crazy, wild New Year's Eve.  |
Then we got a call from Lee and he informed us that the boy that had come to visit with them had come down with strep throat so we all were exposed to strep throat. Amy called the in-laws up north and told them so they could have the option of declining company from them or coming up anyway. They decided to postpone their Christmas get-together till New Year's Eve and Day. So, the Muckheads stayed home for Christmas after all. I have to tell you, I think that's the way to go for Christmas. Have it a day early. Then on the actual Christmas Day things are all relaxed, the hype and anticipation are all gone, and you just have one mellow day plus you've got the leftovers from having the big dinner the day before so there's no cooking involved. And if you're tired of cooking, there is always Chinese food to go get.