The Christmas presents are open, my tree has been recycled, the New Year celebration has come and gone and I just reached a PW (personal worst)…five weeks since my last post.
Christmas trees waiting to be recycled at the local nature center
I don’t know if it was a result of the down turning economy or just the need to connect, but it seems like our friends were really reaching out to each other during the holidays. We attended more parties and casual get togethers than I remember in the past and the enjoyment of sharing food and laughter felt more satisfying than ever! We even caught up with some old friends that we haven’t seen in a long while!
The actual mechanics of Christmas almost slipped by me. In mid-November, I went to work for Williams-Sonoma as part-time Christmas help but by early December, the part-time hours turned into nearly full-time. Aside from being very tired after each shift, I enjoyed the people, product and the daily contact “with the outside world”.
My meager holiday preparation was pushed into the few hours I had available. I almost passed on putting up Christmas decorations but when I went to a local tree lot to purchase a wreath, the owner took pity on my poor unemployed self and gave me a real deal on a tree. Hey, it was a good deal and I looked pretty pitiful 🙂
My mailbox decorated with some fake and mostly live treasures from the yard…white pine, nandina berries, laurel and holly
Not quite a Charlie Brown Christmas tree but certainly a little sparse near the top. Unfortunately, the decorations did not go beyond lights, I just never pulled the boxes and boxes of ornaments out of the attic
As we have with the past several Christmases, we spent Christmas morning with mother at Shannondale. It was just the girls, a “hen” party according to my dad. He had GI problems and wasn’t feeling well. We really didn’t want to share in his stomach issues so we were okay with him staying at home. I cooked breakfast and took it with me. Not sure what I did to the grits casserole, but what a disaster! John spent the morning cooking pancakes for his boys and opening presents at his house. We got together in the afternoon, watched football and vegged!
Me with my new shawl, a gift from Carol
Leslie and Mother
Carol opening a gift
Our final event for the holiday season was a New Year’s Eve party, hosted by Will and Kim at Kim’s home. Twenty some people attended and while we didn’t stay till to see the clock strike 12 AM, we did watch the ball drop in Times Square on TV. Must be the first New Year we been awake for in 4-5 years. The pictures below were taken by friend Will Skelton and lifted right from his Picasa site: http://picasaweb.google.com/theskeltonview
Happy New Year!
Kim and Will
Look at the food spread
