55 Days till Christmas

The way I see it we have 2 choices. Pretend Christmas is 4 weeks away, get everything done and have time to enjoy the month of December with the family, making memories or enjoy the next 4 weeks and end up like the lady in this poem.

See Mother, Funny, Funny Mother

See Mother. See Mother laugh. Mother is happy.
Mother is happy about Christmas.
Mother has many plans. Mother has many plans for Christmas.
Mother is organized. Mother smiles all the time.
Funny, funny Mother.
See Mother. See Mother smile. Mother is happy.
The shopping is all done. See the children watch TV.
Watch, children watch.
See the children change their minds.
See them ask for different toys.
Look, look, Mother is not smiling.
Funny, funny Mother.

See Mother. See Mother sew.
Mother will make dresses.
Mother will make robes.
Mother will make shirts.

See Mother put the zipper in wrong.
See Mother sew the dress on the wrong side.
See Mother cut the skirt too short.
See Mother put the material away until January.
Look. Look. See Mother take a tranquilizer.
Funny, funny Mother.

See Mother. See Mother buy raisins and nuts.
See Mother buy candied pineapple and powdered sugar.
See Mother buy flour, and dates, and pecans, and brown sugar, and bananas, and spices, and vanilla.
Look. Look. Mother is mixing everything together.
See the children press out cookies.
See the flour on their elbows.
See the cookies burn. See the cake fall.
See the children pull taffy. See mother pull her hair.
See mother clean the kitchen with the garden hose.
Funny, funny Mother.

See Mother. See Mother wrap presents. See Mother look for the end on the scotch tape roll. See Mother bite her finger nails. See Mother go.
See Mother go to the store 12 times in one hour.
Go Mother go. See Mother go faster. Run Mother run.
See Mother trim the tree.
See Mother have a party.
See Mother make popcorn.
See Mother wash the walls.
See Mother scrub the rug.
See Mother tear up the organized plan.
See Mother forget gift for Uncle Harold.
See Mother get hives.
Go Mother go. See the far away look in Mother's eyes.
Mother has become disorganized. Mother has become disoriented.
Funny, funny Mother.

It is finally Christmas morning. See the happy family.
See Father smile. Father is happy.
Smile Father smile.
Father loves fruit cake.
Father loves Christmas pudding.
Father loves all the new neckties.
Look, look. See the happy children. See the children's toys.
Santa was very good to the children.
The children will remember this Christmas.

See Mother. Mother is slumped in a chair.
Mother is crying uncontrollably.
Mother does not look well.
Mother has ugly dark circles under her blood shot eyes.
Everyone helps mother to her bed.
See Mother sleep quietly under heavy sedation.
See Mother smile.
Funny, funny Mother.

Don't you feel sorry for her? Have you had Christmases like this? I have. I have also had Christmas's where I got on the ball early and enjoyed the Christmas season.

Tomorrow I am making a list and start checking it off so I can have everything done before Dec. 1 and celebrate the true meaning of Christmas with my family. Will you join me?

Outside dinner- Birthday Party

Jade, my party planning daughter, came up with a really fun idea. She got 6 couples together and made a dinner group. It is run kind of like bunko. Two times a year you host a dinner party at your house. You bring the hostess $20.00 to help out with the food and decorations. Instead of going out to dinner you get to know these other couples, be in their home and get to go to a party a month. Sounds like a great thing for these newlyweds to do. My two daughters are in the same dinner group. Jade put it together and she was the first one to start. She went all out of course with decorations, yummy homemade food, favors and games.
The next night it was my 14 year olds birthday so Jade decided she could duplicate the party she did with her friends the night before. It was quite a treat for all of us to go in her backyard where her husband had made a table for 12 out of plywood. It was covered with a beautiful tablecloth and fancy china. She put on a 4 course meal.

Spinach, candied walnuts, dried cranberries, feta cheese, pears and homemade poppyseed dressing. So good!

Butternut Squash soup that we all love. The recipe is a few posts back. She also had good bread with homemade herbed butter in the left corner.

Lemon herbed chicken, sweet potato casserole (recipe from Thanksgiving post), scalloped potatoes, and mashed potatoes. Our family loves potatoes.

Texas Sheet cake by request from the birthday girl.

Jade is a dish collector. She has several sets of china, fancy dishes and antiques. She bought herself these 12 days of Christmas dessert dishes a month ago.

I thought this idea was pure genius. They put revolving heaters under the table. We wore jackets to dinner and we stayed toasty warm.
Here is what else I wanted to pass along. This originated from my famous quilter sister Amy. She does back to back Christmas parties. She makes double the food, decorates once, and the house is basically cleaned from the night before party. She will do one friend party, a neighbor party or church party. It is a really brilliant idea.
Just like Jade's party, it was a lot of work for her friend party and just a little more work for us to come over and be treated like royalty. Thanks Jade!!! We would love this to become a family tradition:)

Christmas Tip #6

Here is my theory on wrapping paper. Costco or Sam's club usually has wrapping paper that isn't all the way Christmas. It is usually silver, cream or gold. I buy the huge bolt of it, not the cheap rolls that wrap one gift each tube. I leave it in my gift wrapping area and use it year round for weddings or showers. I like the simplicity of one paper and not having to store Christmas paper year round in my storage room. This year I bought gold. It might not be as fun looking as all the different papers, but it does look uniform and classy. (I think.)
When I was young, I knew a lady who rewrapped all the gifts that came into her home with the wrapping paper she used for her gifts, so every gift under the tree matched. Believe me I don't care that much about uniformity . It is the simplicity that I am looking for.

I also use Christmas gift bags year after year. What I do is leave that gift in the bag that it came in and knot it closed. I then put it in a plastic grocery bag and tie it closed. It is almost impossible to untie those bags. This helps keep the gifts a secret. It is like a little padlock. I put tissue paper over, to cover the tackiness of a grocery bag so it looks nice. At my house if I put an item in a bag and just put a piece of tissue paper over it, my kids would peek.

Here is the damage I have done so far. I will put bows on them when I am ready to put them under the tree. I am already feeling in control of the Christmas season instead of it controlling me.
Good Luck with your preplanning.

Gift Exchanges- Christmas Tip #4

This year what if you tried to simplify a few things. If you normally have to buy everyone you know a gift, what if you picked names this year? What if you were able to buy less more meaningful gifts?
I was in an extended family gift exchange for years.
At one time I was doing a gift exchange with my mother in law's family (7 gifts) and my father in law's family (7 gifts). I not only had to buy 14 extra gifts, but I had to wrap them and mail them all over the country. I did this ritual every year. Why was I buying a gift for an uncle in Florida and a cousin in Iowa?
I finally got brave and told the people in charge that I wasn't going to be in the gift exchange anymore. WOW! What a relief!!! Did I really get away with it? Yes,...... Nobody cared! ..... I would stress myself out every year and all I had to do was say NO. It's amazing how that little word can work.
If you love that type of thing do it. If it is a headache and makes your holidays no fun, opt out.
So far I have not changed my mind, but if I ever do, I'm sure they will let me back in. Maybe it is time for you to step out of a few of your have to's.

Neighbor Gifts-Christmas Tip #3

In my area we exchange gifts with other families. Some are my husbands friends, my friends, neighbors, people at church, piano teachers etc. These gifts are usually either homemade plates of goodies or a gift for $5.00 or less. This year I really hit the jackpot! My daughter was in Chicago shopping at a Bath and Body Outlet Store. She called me and told me about these ceramic gingerbread houses that have 2 different oils to make your house smell good. They were regularly $24.50 and were selling them for $3.99. I called the store and asked if they could mail them to me and so they did. They sent me 24 of them. Here are the boxes. I can't show you what they look like because my friends read my blog and I want them to be a surprise.

How easy was that?? No thinking, no driving, no cooking. They are super cute, nice and with shipping comes to $5.00 each. One huge headache off my shoulders.
Today's tip is to decide on the "neighbor" gifts. Buy them, wrap them and put them away. If you make goodies for neighbors, you can buy the plates, ribbon and even write the cards.

Pictures and Cards-Christmas tip #2

This would be a great week to pick out Christmas cards and schedule your pictures to be taken (If that is a tradition of yours).
The first 12 years of my marriage I had our family pictures taken like clock work and sent out the cards on time. It was a real struggle getting my husband and some of the kids to go along every year. I would have to cancel the appointments and reschedule them at least once. It wasn't enjoyable for me, so I let that go. I gave up the perfect family routine. You know there is no rule that says you have to do pictures and cards. If you enjoy it and like it, do it. If you are doing it out of obligation or perfectionism, give it up for a year or two. No one will care. It is your joy and happiness that matters.

My friend Launette bucked the system a few years ago. She sends out her family newsletter every Valentines Day. It looks like the ones you see at Christmas but it is on heart or love paper instead of Christmas paper. I wish I had thought of it. She sends her love and I catch up on her life. When I receive several family letters and card in the mail on the same day in December, I have a hard time sitting down to read and enjoy them. It is such a hustle and bustle time of year. I don't savor and appreciate the cards as much as I do when I get Launette's Valentine letter.

What time of year is best for you to send out pictures, cards or newsletters (if at all). It is important to stay in touch but who says it has to be in December.