christmas is in the air
Our tree has quite the Tyrolean theme this year. We bought some red wooden beads and miniature hanging nutcrackers--there is a Viking man, a Hunter, a Fisherman, a Toymaker, a Knight...the list goes on. Add to the mix our woodland creatures and white lights, our tree looks like it would be quite at home in the Austrian countryside.
I always feel more festive for Christmas when decorating and baking. We have yet to put outdoor lights up, and I need to either sew a new tree skirt or purchase one. And the shopping--of course, let's not forget that. I am trying this year to hand-make a few gifts (can't say what because certain people are reading!), so hopefully time will be cooporative and not slip between my fingers like it did last year when I decided to take on this very project.
Still trying to sort out what we are doing for the actual holiday of Christmas. Being Chair of the Arts & Environment committee at church kind of ties me to that which means we all stay put. Not only does my role entail decorating the parish for Advent, but this year is bizarre--only three Sundays in Advent which means the fourth Sunday is actually Christmas Eve. The bind is that between morning Masses and the 1pm Spanish Mass, someone (me) must change out the decorations from Advent to Christmas within the space of 2.30pm to 5pm. Evening Masses commence at 6pm, so that gives little time to work with. Seeing how alot of committee members have retired--which is why I was asked to Chair in the first place--I have about 3.5 people remaining to help. And rounding them up is no easy task.
For me, Christmas just isn't Christmas without going to Midnight Mass at the Cathedral near my parent's home. Of course, the predicament could be solved by decorating my church, packing up the Jeep, getting Clare & the dogs in place, racing to collect Greg from work at 6pm and then driving the two hours to my parents. Easier said than done, of course--we would have to somehow pack (and creatively hide) Clare's gifts among the items. This is difficult to do with a nine year old who is very aware of every move you make.
The formula would be one overpacked Jeep (passengers and gifts) plus a panicking driver = falling asleep at Midnight Mass. Ok, I have never done that before, but this year...you never know.
We have not even had Thanksgiving yet, but that scenario will be much the same. We are meant to go to my Aunt Mary's home for dinner on Thursday. However we must travel back home that evening since Greg must work at 6am Friday. Again, a very rushed and panicky trip. I really despise rushing around, especially when one is supposed to be enjoying oneself. At least when we would travel cross country for trips home, we had time to do what we would want. With each passing year the more I really cannot deal with long trips for short periods of time. And the cost of gasoline is still pricey. Although the thought of staying put isn't exactly enticing, it is more practical and less of a huge panic. Sigh. But to appease the masses and make everyone happy, we must do what we can I suppose.
Anyway, I began the entire Christmas tangent because I was thinking how lovely the tree looked, especially at night with the little white lights illuminating the room. And I actually do have a chocolate marble cheesecake to bake, so time to get festive!
