Christmas



Normally, I get the itch to take our tree down on December 26th. Mr. M likes to have it up until New Year's Day, though. So, I am trying to enjoy the Christmas-y ambiance instead of rushing to put my living room back the way it used to be. Of course, I did manage to flood an end table with red cinnamon-scented wax after leaving a lit candle unattended for a few hours. Ooops.

We had a good Christmas. We went to a candlelight service at church on Christmas Eve. My daughter sang "We Three Kings of Orient Are." She didn't practice like she was supposed to and flubbed a couple of lines, but the congregation didn't fire her or anything.

On Christmas Day, the kid actually got up early. Well, early for her. It was after 7, I think. She was so excited to check out her pile o'presents. Part of me was terribly sad when some brat told her about Santa a couple years ago, but I have to say it is also nice to get credit for all the stuff I bought with my hard-earned moolah. It was fun watching P watching her as she opened her gifts. He had no earthly idea what we had gotten her. Because the one with ovaries has to do all the shopping and wrapping (and ALL THE THINGS), dontcha know. Last week they went to the new Star Wars movie while I wrapped for hours. I guess it didn't occur to anyone that I might like to see that movie, too. :::cough cough:::

This year's big gift for the kid was a comforter set for her bed. She also got clothes, games, art stuff, and a skateboard. My middle sister got her some roller skates - they are hot pink and I'm pretty jealous. As for what I got for Christmas . . . I was super helpful and kept a running list on my Google Drive. I happily provided it to my husband when he requested it. I have to say he did quite well. He got me a new yoga mat, a choppy thing for the kitchen, a spiralizer, some cologne, a cutting board, an automated wine bottle opener, and two cookbooks. I've already tried two recipes from the Thug Kitchen cookbook.

After the gifts were opened, we went to our niece and nephew's house for brunch. A was excited to play with her cousins. I brought some roasted potatoes and some chocolate chip pumpkin muffins.  I was truly touched that my niece went out of her way to make some vegan food that I could eat. I am such a lucky goil. Anyway, it was a nice, relaxing way to spend the morning/afternoon. The mulled wine might be why I mostly remember it as relaxing. The three girls got along well - our normal rule of thumb is to leave once someone bursts into tears, but that didn't happen this year. Two of them got make-up sets so they holed up in a bedroom and and started slathering it on.

Banana bread recipe from the Thug Kitchen. Mmmm, nanners.
The actual bread was in focus, I should add.
When we got home, we spent the rest of the afternoon finding spots for new stuff. I was anxious to use my new choppy thing, so I made some tofu scramble with vegetables (I make it once every week or two, and then keep it on hand for breakfast). I may have gotten a bit overzealous with the chopper, as I ended up with zucchini pieces so small that they cannot be perceived by the naked eye. I'll get the hang of it.

It was a fairly quiet afternoon. It's weird having only two dogs in the house since Kevin got adopted. When I let the dogs out into the yard and then back in again, I keep trying to count to three. Part of me feels a real need to take in another foster dog right away, but part of me knows that I need to spend time with Gideon. He breaks my heart about fifty times a day. Random side story:  Gideon can no longer jump up on beds/couches/whatever. So last weekend I thought it would be nice if I took a little nap with him. I lifted him onto my bed and helped him to lie down. We snuggled for a little while. Then Gretchen tried to get in on the action. I explained to her that she's not my dog (she's my daughter's dog) and that she should try to talk to her owner about her needs. I should also add that Gretchen suffers from coprophagia, which is a fancy way to say that she likes to eat poop. Anyway, as Gideon and I were attempting to indulge in our little spooning session, Gretchen jumped up onto the bed, made a brief retching noise, and vomited poop. ONTO MY BED. If I were to make a list of the Top 10 Worst Things That Have Ever Happened to me, this event could easily make the list. Blech.

So, anyway, Christmas 2015 is officially in the books. I'm hoping for a quiet week at work this week. The kid has been invited to a sleepover on New Year's Eve and P has to work, so I MIGHT JUST GET THE HOUSE TO MYSELF.

The cousins on Christmas.

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