The Day After Christmas - December 26, 2023

This morning there's frost on the vinyl panels that enclose the back porch, and a notification at the bottom of my screen says "Temps to drop Thursday."  The heater under the table makes it tolerable out here, but my coffee's getting cold before I can drink it.

It was warm enough yesterday morning (Christmas Day) that folks came to Nanny's breakfast without a coat.  Yesterday afternoon, the wind whipped up, and we bundled up to visit Son #2's family.

Half of the gifts I ordered for The Husband have not arrived, and the ones I bought him in the store either didn't work or didn't fit.  Half of the gifts he ordered for me didn't arrive, either.  Still, we had a good Christmas.  My "big present" to the Husband was tickets to see ZZ Topp and Lynard Skynard in concert in March.

Heh.  Turn it up.  ;)

Christmas morning was special because The Grandson was here for the first time since he was a baby.  We opened presents here, had a good breakfast and more presents at Nanny's, then we took him home.  After that, we visited Son #2's house and enjoyed seeing all the loot that Santa brought for The Granddaughters.  When we finally got home, we had a quiet evening and were thankful for the left-over soup for supper.  We were pooped.

It was late Saturday afternoon when we finally put up two - count 'em, TWO - Christmas trees, a little one on a living room table, and the big "stick tree" on the back porch.  It took us nearly two hours to clean and rearrange the back porch to accommodate the tree and our Christmas Eve guests, but the result was worth the work.  It was warm enough that the relatives could be comfortable in their shirtsleeves on the porch, and the stick tree looked really cool and festive all lit up.  And the porch is now so tidy.

I think the stick tree might live out here permanently.  

* * * * * * * * 

Last week was brutal on a genetically lazy old lady like me, and tomorrow I'll have to get moving early for "office day," but today I am enjoying a slow morning in my housecoat (which I may still be wearing when The Husband gets home from work).  The Granddaughters gave me a bunch of watercolor paper that I am anxious to try out, and The Husband gave me a new paintbrush holder, so I might paint today.

Speaking of paintings, a few days before Christmas I mailed the best of the Christmas cards I painted before the holiday.  The others I cut into gift tags.  I'm patting myself on the back, not for painting the cards but for actually mailing them (albeit a tad too late for pre-Christmas delivery).  

* * * * * * * * 

Over the weekend, we hooked up a code scanner on the car that The Husband bought at the estate sale.  He had bought the car despite the fact that the dashboard was lit up like a Christmas tree (which I had not known about because I was inside, rummaging through the dead lady's stuff).  He/we figured that part of the lights resulted from the car having sat, undriven, for over a year, for the "car facts" report indicated that the car had been very well maintained.  When the scanner returned the readings, the list was pretty long - this sensor, that sensor - but the estimated cost of repairs was not all that scary.  Sunday afternoon, Son #1 came by and peeked under the hood.  He took the cover off something and discovered that a mouse had gnawed a bunch of wires.  The Husband did some web surfing and discovered that the wiring harness for that model (2007) is no longer manufactured.  However, The Brother-in-Law, who works as an autobody repairman, believes he can find something that will work (he has "connections"), and the menfolk believe they can do the re-wiring.  We'll see.  

I wish they would get right on it, for I've been greedily eying that "remote start" button on the key fob (nothing else in the driveway has one).  I expect I won't get to use it this winter, even if they find the right part right away, since the weather is supposed to turn cold in a few days.  

* * * * * * * * 

I hope to get together with my siblings on New Year's Eve or Day.  In the past, I have invited them for a traditional Southern dinner centered around peas, greens, and cured pork, but when my grandchildren reached school age and began bringing various bacteria and viruses to family Christmas gatherings, I began getting sick by New Year's Day.  We are all a little anti-social and germophobic to begin with, and now that we are old, it takes something special to blast us out of our dens.  But we have fun when we get together, and we ought to do it more often.  I should call them and invite them to dinner, huh?

Christmas - December 25, 2023

About a dozen people showed up to eat last night.  We had soup, pigs in blankets, and sausage roll-ups.  It was all just okay.  

For Christmas Eve, I usually make something we call "hanky-pankies" - sausage, ground beef, and Velveeta cheese on cocktail rye bread.  For the past few years, we've had trouble finding the cocktail rye bread, but we improvised by cutting full-sized rye bread in quarters.  This year, we could not find ANY rye bread.  The Husband tried using Hawaiian bread for his office party.  It just wasn't the same.  The rye adds a certain je ne sais quoi to the thing.  Too late, it occurred to me that a local bakery might make rye bread.  

I always make LOADS of hanky pankies with the intention of having left-overs to tide us over on Christmas morning until it's time for breakfast at Nanny's.  We had no sausage roll-ups left last night, and as I sit here waiting or folks to crawl out of bed, my stomach is growling.  And it's three more hours until breakfast.  Next year, I will ask the local bakery to hook me up with rye bread so this doesn't happen again.  

The Grandson spent the night with us last night.  He was in diapers the last time he spent the night here on Christmas Eve.  I am so happy to have him here.  :)

In about an hour, I will rouse the sleepers when I start rattling pots and pans.  My assignment for breakfast at Nanny's is country ham and biscuits.  I cheated and bought a bunch of frozen biscuits.  I will cook them and the ham here at our house and try to keep them warm until time to eat.  It might be hard not to sneak a ham and biscuit before we go to Nanny's house.

Around 3 or 4, we will go to Son #2's house to exchange gifts with them.  I can't wait to see Granddaughter #3's expression when she opens the "extra credit" buttcrack purse.  ;)

Christmas Eve - December 24, 2023

We had a nice last-minute surprise visit from The Grandson last night.  He spent the night at our house and got up early this morning to go to church with his dad, who plays guitar in a church band.  This pleased me more than any physical give could have done.  The Grandson and his dad have been a bit cross with one another for a couple of years.  It is heartening to see them working on their relationship.

The Christmas Eve cooking is underway.  Stew beef is simmering on the stove with onions and mild sweet peppers.  The shrimp has been marinating since yesterday.  

Yesterday I came up with what I hope will be a yummy appetizer.  I fried 1 pound of pork sausage (the ground-up kind) and crumbled it finely with a couple of bursts in the food processor.  To the cooked sausage I added 1 jar of mushrooms and 1 onion, both of which I chopped in the blender and sauteed until the onions were clear.  I seasoned it with one clove of garlic, 4 dashes of soy sauce, some dried parsley, and about 1/4 teaspoon of ground oregano. Once it cooled, I mixed in 1 cup of shredded mozarella cheese.  I spread this mixture on puff pastry dough (slightly thinned with a rolling pin) and rolled it up like a cinnamon roll.  It's wrapped in plastic, awaiting its time in the oven.

I still have to peel the remaining vegetables - potatoes, carrots, cabbage, and maybe butter beans - and add them to the pot.  And make the cornbread when it's time.  Folks should be streaming in around 6:00 tonight.

I hope you have a good Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.  

Christmas Eve Eve - December 23, 2023

In an hour or so, it'll be time to fire up the stove and start cooking for tomorrow night.  I've invited the kids and the folks on the hill to drop by for soup and cornbread and marinated shrimp and a few "nibbles."  

Yesterday was "office day" - Friday instead of the usual Wednesday because we were having the office Christmas dinner (lunch, actually).  The Boss turned us loose after lunch.  People had dropped off cookies, cakes, and candies at the office.  I brought home cinnamon rolls (The Husband loves them) and caramels covered in chocolate and sprinkled with sea salt.  When I got home, Nanny brought us a German chocolate cake (The Husband's favorite).  Wednesday, I made a huge batch of Chex mix to share with the family, and we've been eating it like crazy.  And The Husband brought home a big pecan pie.

Come January 2, we must diet.

Stuck - December 21, 2023

Thursday, 2 p.m.:  Hitting the "pause" button for a minute.  A daughter-in-law needs to take over the craft room for a few minutes.

Got today's major project done (gift bags for all of Nanny's little ones), which required a trip to the dollar store.  I made zippered cosmetic bags for all the little girls - ages 3 to 18 - and equipped them with travel size lotion, chapstick, and an emery board.  Got 'em some socks and some candy.  I forgot one of the girls, one we seldom see, and had to raid my personal stash:  body lotion appropriated from a hotel bathroom (hey, some of it is good stuff!) and a two-for-one sale tube of mascara still in the package.  

I should make two or three more cosmetic bags.  This morning The Husband asked me if I had any extras, but I did not.  I think I'll wait until he gets home to see if he still needs them.  

When he gets home, we're going to pick up the car we bought at the auction.

A hectic Tuesday - December 20, 2023

Whew.  Yesterday was hectic.

The Tuesday painting class party started at 10.  Everyone was bringing food and a gift.  I had a few errands to run before the party but showed up on time with my puff pastry sausage bites and 8 cosmetic bags.  We didn't paint a lick, but the party was fun.

After the party, I went to the grocery store.  I'll probably have to make another run before Christmas Eve since I still haven't decided what to make for dinner.  We usually make some "nibbles" and a big pot of something warm and comforting, like soup or chili or chicken & dumplings.  

As soon as I put the groceries away, I started wrapping presents.  The Granddaughters had asked for little stuff, like cosmetics and art supplies.  I cheated and dumped all of the little things together in one box.  After three hours of wrapping, there are still presents to wrap.

Late in the afternoon, the Boss's secretary called to say the office Christmas dinner had been moved from Thursday to Friday.  (There'd been no mention (to me) of a Thursday dinner; the last I'd heard, the dinner would be today (Wednesday), since this is my normal "office day.")  She said I could just make Friday my office day.  I said that was fine with me.  Now that I think about it, though, I'd rather have gone to the office today and just showed up for lunch on Friday, as I had other plans for Friday, so close to Christmas.

Granddaughter #2's homecoming event was at 5:30. She didn't win.  :(  But she looked absolutely beautiful.  

Granddaughter #2 had texted me Monday afternoon to ask if I would buy a certain present for Granddaughter #3.  "She really wants it," #2 said.  #3's desired object was a stuffed animal buttcrack purse that would have to be ordered online.  I said that I would order it, but that it might not get here by Christmas.  She replied, "That's ok.  It was just for extra credit, anyway."

Because #2 is a straight-A student who doesn't need extra credit, I assumed she meant extra credit with Granddaughter #3.

According to an email I received yesterday, the buttcrack purse will be here Friday.  After the homecoming event, I told Granddaughter #2 that the gift would make it on time for Christmas, at which time she said, "Oh, it didn't matter if it got here on time.  I got the extra credit when you said you would do it."  It turned out that one of her teachers had offered extra credit points to everyone who could convince someone to buy a last-minute present for the students to give to someone else.  They snookered me!

I hope #3 likes the purse.  ;)

Bad daughter-in-law - December 19, 2023

I drove Nanny to her doctor appointment yesterday.  The appointment was at 1:15, so I picked Nanny up at noon.  She got in the car apologizing for the trouble.  I assured her that I was happy to do it.

We arrived well before 1:15. I dropped Nanny off at the door and went to park the car while she signed in.  Nanny was still in the sign-in line when I came in.   The waiting room was packed.  A plaque on the wall said that if your name is not called within 15 minutes of your appointment time, check with the front desk.  By 1:30, several people who had come in behind Nanny had already been called.  ("I know that man came in after me, because he held the door for me.")  Nanny was irked, and she went up to the desk to see if she had been overlooked.  It turned out that her appointment was actually 1:30. She still had 15 minutes to stew until she could legitimately complain.  She came back to where I was sitting and apologized again for keeping me so long.  She speculated that they were making her wait (out of spite, presumably) because she had cancelled her last appointment.  I said, again, that I was fine, was happy to help, and that maybe those people who had come in after her were seeing a different doctor.

At 1:45, she went back to the desk.  They said there was one more person before her.  After several more people were called back.  Nanny just knew they were making her wait because she had cancelled her last appointment.  She apologized again and again.  I said it was ok.

Finally - I don't even know what time it was - they called Nanny's name.  I went with her to the room.  The nurse put the blood pressure cuff on her and walked out of the room without turning it on.  When she came back to check it, she discovered that she hadn't hit the start button, so she punched it and left the room again.  Nanny said that they were dilly-dallying on purpose to make us wait longer because she had cancelled her last appointment, and that her blood pressure was probably over the moon from having been made to wait so long.  (Her blood pressure was fine.)  The doctor did not come in right away.  When he did come in, he said everything was hunky-dory, come see him again in 6 months.  

Nanny apologized again as we were walking to the car.  I said, "Nanny, please stop apologizing.  Please. I really am glad to help you."  

Traffic was congested on the street outside the office because a construction crew was digging up a sidewalk and had blocked the right-hand lane.  We waited through three red lights.  Nanny apologized again that everything had taken so long that we were having to drive home in rush-hour traffic.  

I looked over at her and said, "Nanny, I swear, if you apologize for that again, I am going to put you out of the car."

She grunted and said she would just get out and fall in the big hole the construction crew was digging, and the digger could cover her up.

I said I'd try to remember where they put her.  ;)

* * * * * * * * 

Today is painting class day.  I don't know how much painting we'll do, since we're having a Christmas party.  Everyone is bringing food and gifts.  Before we left for Asheville, I made zippered cosmetic bags for the 8 ladies in the class.  Last night I made sausage-stuffed puff pastry bites for my food contribution.  I'll bake them before I leave for class and take a jar of pepper jelly to go with them.  

Tonight at 5:30, we're going to Granddaughter #2's school to see if she has been selected as the "Homecoming Princess" for her 8th grade class.  We most likely will not stay for the basketball game that will follow.

And sometime between the painting class and the homecoming festivities, I should either buy groceries or finish the odds-and-ends Christmas shopping still left to do.  

Tomorrow is office day, and I believe that we'll be having the office Christmas dinner around noon.  Not knowing if there will be a gift exchange, I have made zippered cosmetic bags for my co-workers.  But I ran out of time before we left for Asheville, and still have several bags to make.  The sewing room light may be burning late tonight.