Quiet Celebrations
Yesterday was a nice, low-key kind of day. After several years of chaotic holidays, and then a couple of years of family holiday dramas of hospitals, nursing homes, and the like, we're finally at the point that Christmas isn't a chore. Add to that being gainfully employed and having the ability to buy some of the requested gifts, and the day is more festive than it had been.
Still, I goofed. When we booked a vacation a few months ago, I remember Ed and I having a conversation that Christmas and Valentine's gifts were not needed, because we were spending about the same amount for this trip that we did for our week in California with the kids many years ago. Crap, that trip was SEVEN years ago, before everything seemed to go to shit. I remembered this lack of gifts, Ed did not. Oops.
Guess I need to remedy that for Valentine's day, or something like that.
I realize that the coming year brings some changes, though. We'll have some of my side of the family living a few miles away, and we'll want to spend some of the holiday with them. So then the questions become 'when' and 'where'. I'm of the mind that you don't uproot little ones from their own home on a holiday, if at all possible. Routines can be maintained, and it's easier to sleep and eat in familiar surroundings.
We shall see. Maybe we'll spend Christmas Eve with them, and then have Christmas day with just the four of us. After all, it won't be too long before Chef is off to college and we're not one little family unit...
Still, I goofed. When we booked a vacation a few months ago, I remember Ed and I having a conversation that Christmas and Valentine's gifts were not needed, because we were spending about the same amount for this trip that we did for our week in California with the kids many years ago. Crap, that trip was SEVEN years ago, before everything seemed to go to shit. I remembered this lack of gifts, Ed did not. Oops.
Guess I need to remedy that for Valentine's day, or something like that.
I realize that the coming year brings some changes, though. We'll have some of my side of the family living a few miles away, and we'll want to spend some of the holiday with them. So then the questions become 'when' and 'where'. I'm of the mind that you don't uproot little ones from their own home on a holiday, if at all possible. Routines can be maintained, and it's easier to sleep and eat in familiar surroundings.
We shall see. Maybe we'll spend Christmas Eve with them, and then have Christmas day with just the four of us. After all, it won't be too long before Chef is off to college and we're not one little family unit...
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