How was your Thanksgiving? I hope it was memorable in some good way!
Yes, you’re right: I did not post anything to the blog last week. I was hosting Thanksgiving, and although it was a relatively quiet dinner this year and we could all fit around one table, I was still a bit overwhelmed.
It started on Monday before Thanksgiving when I drove my daughter to a friend’s house for a little get-together. Meandering through an enormous neighborhood in Madison in the dark (at 6 p.m.), I was astounded by the number of homes sporting all-out Christmas décor before Thanksgiving! My heart began pounding a rapid rhythm at the moment of awareness of just how far behind I was!
The boys were home from school for a brief holiday visit. Our tradition has been to go together to the local nursery and pick out a fresh tree the day after Thanksgiving, but no one seemed to be in the mood for that. In fact, no one even asked if we were going to do it!
So, I opted for the pre-lit 7’ tree that I purchased a few years ago for the dining room. Before COVID, I would have had a tree there, in the living room/kitchen, and in the bonus room over the garage (a.k.a. “The Lego Room”). This week, I decided we will have a single, pre-lit artificial tree with about a fourth of the usual ornaments! Ta-dah! It still took me almost a week to get it decorated!
Hubby and I did visit the tree farm Saturday—at Lowe’s. We picked out two 6’ trees to go on either side of the front door and paid double this year than we paid last year. I may look for artificial trees for the porch after Christmas….
It was a relief to get the porch trees decorated. Thank goodness, we had hung a string of lights from the porch eaves the weekend before on a nice warm day. I think that the activity maxed out hubby’s desire to decorate for Christmas. I must say, though, that he really surprised me by drilling a hanger into the mortar of the wall outside the friendship door to have a place to hang a cute sign I bought a few years ago from the Canton Flea Market!
This week, I’ve been juggling the following and more: Christmas decorations, gift wrapping, a challenging portrait for a Christmas commission, daily Bible Quizzing quote sessions for my daughter and her teammate (only one day), filling orders for book art, and editing a memoir that is a loooong way from being finished. (By the way, Liz and I are truly grateful for all the love and support many of you have shown us through your orders of the book art. She has raised quite a bit of money already! God bless each and every one of you!)
Let’s add another ball to the juggling act!
On Tuesday, November 30, I was feeling the expectations of our hurry-up-and-decorate-for-Christmas-already culture, so I stopped by hubby’s office at lunchtime to decorate it for Christmas. I had bought a tree, ribbons, and beautiful garlands a couple of years ago to improve the look of the office. Yesterday, I found that all the décor, except for the empty boxes that I had wrapped to go under the tree, had been tossed during the office remodel last year! Of course, I rolled my eyes!
I don’t work outside the home. How does anybody work outside their home and get ready for Christmas? My hat’s off to you!
Next year, I think I’ll drag out the Christmas décor the day after the Fourth of July. Then winter holidays will be a time of peace and tranquility as I count my many blessings and contemplate the real Reason for the Season. Maybe I’ll be starting a trend!
