In My Home This Week: Christmas Came Early

We had a quiet holiday dinner with Mama and a long visit after.  Mama had tuned into the Hallmark Channel where Christmas movies played non-stop.  I know many love those Hallmark movies, but I don't find them as entertaining as some.  I think it's because over the years it's become less special and more "How many movies can we put together for the season?"    But I do remember enjoying them when I was younger.  Did they have more depth then?  Or was it because they were saved for a special time?   And who besides me loved the Kraft theater?   I remember those special seasonal movies and the recipes that came in the commercials, all of which sounded delicious.  That too was another time though, when Kraft only featured a product or two that was an ingredient but the recipes were real ones, not just a combination of so many products from the same company.



I was home alone on Friday and got quite a few little jobs done, but had time enough to take a nap before the boys arrived to spend the night.  This was a request from Josh and I was beginning to think it wouldn't happen.  When I'd stopped by to visit on Wednesday, he and Isaac were both still not quite well and I sounded pretty iffy myself.  We all agreed we'd check in on Friday and see how we each felt.  It was deemed we were all well enough to be tolerably pleasant and so the boys came over in time for Shabat.  Sam stayed afterwards to have a simple supper of cheese omelets and toast with us.

I always look for that moment each year when Christmas becomes 'real' to me.  This year, that moment came on Friday evening.  I'd decorated the tree earlier in the day, anticipating the bright eyes of the little boys when they arrived.  Oh how their eyes lit up when they saw the tree!  But Christmas wasn't quite 'real' even then.  It came later that evening, after Sam had gone home and the boys had had a bath, been put in pajamas and we'd made up beds.  We went back to the living room, turned off all but the table lamp and the tree and found a movie, a stumble upon Disney film called "Santa Paws".   One and half hours later, the two boys were sitting perfectly still, enthralled by the talking puppies and Santa and the little orphan girls.   I sat back in my chair and looked at the two boys in their footed sleepers, their eyes turned to the television, with an occasional smile at me,  and that's when it became 'real' for me.

Maybe, just maybe, it can be a tradition for us to have the Friday after Thanksgiving to have the boys and any other grandchildren we can muster, to spend the night, and sit up late (8:15 mightn't seem late just now, but they generally go to bed about 6:45) to watch a special Christmas movie.  At least for a few years, until we become boring to them.

I recall Bess' second Christmas in the family, Josh's first, when a family holiday tradition was broken.  From the time she was 4 years old she and her mom and GrandBebe had attended 'The Nutcracker'.   Over time, it had become a tradition with Bess and her mom, even after GrandBebe couldn't manage attendance any longer.   I can't remember just why it wasn't possible that year, but they didn't go and Bess was genuinely depressed over it.  "I guess I'll just start a tradition of my own!" she said at one point.  I smiled and told her that was just what she should do, because many of our holiday traditions have altered several times over the years as children have grown and moved away, friends have moved,  children have married and had children,  work schedules changed, family members passed away.

Traditions are not always lifelong things.  Sometimes they are seasonal, for a period of time and then gone, but new opportunities to create memories almost always present themselves as it did on Friday evening.   And some things, like the moment when I feel it is truly Christmas, is never the same moment each year at all but it comes at some unexpected moment like a lovely gift.  I always feel  sense of deep happiness, rightness with the world, wonder and awe.  This year, it came very early, before the house is decorated or cookies baked or plans made for family gatherings, but it arrived as it always does, just in time.

This week in my home I plan...

… My work:


I can't seem to fathom having a full week of November left.  And yet I do.  I don't know what Zone area I should be in but I can tell you truly that at this point in this month I shall do whatever appears to need to be done and I'll just start fresh with next month.

I have a planned day out with Mama this week and she's already said she must go to the grocery.  Now seriously, she likely doesn't, but it's what she wants to do. I will try to pick up the most necessary items for our household while I'm out with her, difficult as it is to do any shopping when I'm with Mama.

John wants to get a haircut this week.  I'm going to run into Kroger's to Starbucks and get my favorite seasonal Gingerbread Latte.  I've still got $30 on my gift card from last year!   I'll have John go by Lowe's so I can pick up paint to finish off the chifforobe.

I can't remember the last time I mopped floors but I definitely think it should be done this week.

The fridge will surely need sorting out properly after all the leftovers I've shoved in from Thanksgiving.  I find more and more I'm struggling with my ability to make the best of the space in my fridge.  That this refrigerator is twice the size of the one it replaced appears to be moot.DONE

I'll take time to clean the oven properly since the chicken I cooked for Thanksgiving dinner popped and spattered all over the inside of the oven.  I've discovered two things that I plan to implement to help keep my oven cleaner.  One is an oven liner.  This seems to me a brilliant idea. I watched as Tawra on Living on a Dime vlog, lifted hers out of the bottom of the oven after a pecan pie cooked over and caught fire.     The other thing is a tip I've picked up watching Jacques Pepin videos.  He never puts a casserole dish or pie in the oven unless he has a baking tray under it to catch spills.  I plan to start doing that as well, in fact I did just that on Thanksgiving.  It just never occurred to me to use one to go under the chicken!

I'm going to walk through each room of the house and make notes of what jobs really need to be done so I am well prepared for my Zone work in December.

I will take up the autumn décor and put back in the shed and try to start decorating the house for Christmas.  I've no idea what my theme is to be this year.  I did a fast job on the tree this year using red and blue ball ornaments and snowflakes.   Katie says I need to add a sheer white silver wire edged ribbon to the tree to finish it off.   I was leaning towards a ribbon garland before she suggested that.   I want a new topper, having long tired of the one that's on the tree now.  I think I'll start at the Dollar General in time and then widen my search from there if I find nothing.

My Christmas cards are ready to go out.  I need to buy stamps and encourage John to sign the stack on the table that he typically sends notes in.

I have a load of sheets in the wash that I will hang on the line.  The sky has cleared since sunrise and the wind is out of the north and cold.  I think the sheets will dry while I am gone today.  It's been a few weeks since we've had dry weather to hang sheets and towels on the line.   There's a full load of dishes that needs to be run this morning as well.



...I plan meals:


The number of meals I have not made of late is astonishing.  I just never got to the point on Wednesday I could bake our turkey as I'd planned,  so I set aside stuffing, sweet potato casserole and broth for gravy and we'll make our 'at home' Thanksgiving Turkey Breast Saturday.  I'm pretty sure the leftovers will see us safely through the weekend...So we'll call that two meals right there.

on my own X2

Turkey Tetrazinni, Tossed Salad, Garlic Bread

Polska Kielbasa, Creamed Cabbage, Potatoes and Onions

Italian Pepper Steak, Rice, Green Beans, Garlic Bread

I put a plethora of things in the freezer when I cleared the fridge yesterday.  No entrees but lots of sides and a the turkey breast bone and trimmings as well as the remains of the chicken.

...I plan my leisure:


I continue to read a chapter or two of the Roosevelt Autobiography daily.  I finished the Grace Livingston Hill book.   I shall try to finish Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm this weekend.  I also finished the Jerusalem cookbook.  It's gorgeous but the number of specialty ingredients makes the book fairly impractical and since I am not familiar with the flavors I hesitate to make substitutions in most recipes.  I am now reading through a coffee table sized book my late father in law gave me called Better Homes and Gardens Heritage Cookbook which is all about the food history of the United States and the various cultures which brought dishes to this country as well as native foods.  I'm quite interested in trying several of the recipes from the first section which dealt with the Pilgrims and Native American cultures.

I've been enjoying several British programs of late: The Great British Baking Show Masterclass for one and a few real estate shows like "To The Country" which features different regions of England and gives history and industry overviews not to mention gorgeous period cottages.

I'll try to spend some time working on my genealogy notebooks and making notes of further research items to look into.  I find this a particularly nice way to spend a Saturday.