Saturday, January 4, 2020

Our Late Christmas

We celebrated Christmas with Hubby’s extended family the day after Thanksgiving this year and with our immediate family three days after Christmas. 

Benefit No.1 of that schedule: December was much more relaxed. 

Our gang

December 28 we met for a Christmas breakfast at the Harbor House. Whatever the season, the reason, or just because, breakfast at the Harbor House has been a family tradition from the time our sons were children. Now the grandkids are fans, too.

Benefit No. 2: Shopping after Christmas for 2019 Christmas gifts offered bargains galore. Bargains appeal to this frugal-minded family, whether givers or receivers.

What were Santa's elves drinking!

With the Walmart bargain of Christmas hilarity above, our son and family may have made Hubby a viable candidate for winning my neuro rehab’s December 2020 Christmas apparel competition. 

Benefit No. 3: By December 28, everyone had had their fill of wonderful traditional Christmas fare and tasty leftovers. Our late Christmas menu did not include turkey and dressing, ham, and green bean casserole. We were all ready for Baboo* to make some of his homemade pizza. Yum!

*When Luke, our oldest grandchild, started talking, he referred to his paternal grandfather as "Baboo." Neither parents nor grandparents have ever figured out how Luke the toddler came up with Baboo. Now, of course, their grandfather is Baboo to all six grands, ages nine through16.

Benefit No. 4: The last few months have been packed with activity, especially for daughter-in-law Sarah with her hectic teaching and mom schedules. The slower pace between Christmas and the new year offered a chance to catch up with loved ones. 

Thank you, Sarah.

She knows I love cut flowers. They are guilt-free. I don’t have to be concerned about killing an innocent, unsuspecting potted plant.


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10 comments:

  1. Wonderful photos of a happy family together. You are looking so good! I had wondered about the Baboo title...

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  2. That is not a bad idea to celebrate the holidays that way. Baboo---I love that. However he came up with it, it is wonderful. Your flowers are beautiful.

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  3. It doesn't matter the day or the season, all that matters is that family spends time together.Those are lovely roses.

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  4. I love cut flowers best also. your Christmas was perfect, broken into bite sized pieces. what a great way to celebrate. yum on the pizza. we had veggie lasagna on Christmas day. love the name Baboo. my Uncles grand baby named him Bobbie, trying to say pop, everyone in the family called him Bobbie, his name was Delbert. I named my maternal grandmother Gonnie, for Grannie in 1945, her tombstone says simply Gonnie, and the dates. Even her fellow workers and friends called her Gonnie. her name was Alva.

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  5. Now that is how to make Christmas last and not be stressful.
    Can tell by the smiles that all had a wonderful time.

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  6. I love how you have adapted time for ax holiday joy. It is to be special and A timetable with flex built in is smart. Lovely post

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  7. I LOVE this!
    It's not about the actual dates of celebration..
    It's the family being together and having special traditions.
    Kids remember these things and hopefully the traditions linger long after WE are gone.
    Actually my older son said, I remember Grandma (my Mom) making special Swedish wafer cookies for each of the boys every Christmas.
    One of the last years of her life she didn't make the cookies and the kids were so disappointed.
    So this Christmas, Steve said I want to make the cookies. Don't know if they really are that good or it's just the tradition.
    They found a recipe on the internet and brought over all the ingredients.
    They were ok and everyone had fun making them.
    I dove into my bag of recipes and found the copy my Mom had given me. So now my son has the original and will try them again.
    It was special for me to pass on the recipe in her handwriting, because HE wanted it.
    Sue

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  8. Sounds like a perfect way to celebrate. Looks like you had quite a crowd in that first picture at the top.
    Wonder how Luke came up with Baboo. Love it.

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  9. Dear LC, the flowers are lovely as is Sarah. It's wonderful that you've developed a holiday schedule that permits you to enjoy the moments and not rush through them franticly to get the next thing done! I admire that. Peace.

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  10. What a great time to celebrate and what beautiful family pictures. I've pretty much decided to send New Year's cards next year. I like sending cards, but I things get so hectic before Christmas that I'm always feeling bad that I didn't get them out "in time." Putting my focus on the quieter days after Christmas will make it so much easier.

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