Tag Archives: Christmas Eve

forty-seven…

24 Thursday Dec 2020

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tonight, as I sit in the living room listening to Christmas music and enjoying the lights, flowers, and tree, I am remembering many Christmas Eve’s that have taken place in this house over the last forty-seven years…

once the girls arrived, our parents came here to celebrate the season…

when the kids were on their own and some had their own children, they came here for years… there were family members sleeping everywhere… had to be careful where you walked to be sure not to tread on anyone…

only in the last few years have we gone to the kids’ place which made it easier for everyone…

so many wonderful memories and fun times…

kit…

29 Friday Dec 2017

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been thinking back to some of the best memories of the last week…

one involved the gingerbread house… my son-in-law and I were shopping together in November and we spotted this gingerbread house kit that came with the house already built so that all that would need to be done was decorate… we’ve tried to do this before but have always struggled with getting the house constructed, lol…

we took the kit with us on Christmas Eve and it was a hit…

work began with Auntie helping the younger two… eventually she moved on to something else, but they both kept returning to continue with the decorating…

the final product looked great and the boys were entertained for ages… such fun…

was thinking how George would have loved working on this with they boys…

turnip…

24 Saturday Dec 2016

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yesterday and this morning got the food prepped for Christmas dinner…

peeled and cut up potatoes and turnip… my dad insisted on turnip water to make the gravy… felt it added just the right flavour… so I cook turnips for every holiday meal, lol… a few of us even eat the turnip…

thought I was done and then remembered the stuffing… broke up the bread while watching tv and then finished it while I was making my supper…

this morning I cooked and blended the cranberries…

picked up the Ottawa kids and now we are at my daughter and son-in-law’s house for a Christmas Eve sleepover…

quite a few presents under the tree…

I’m home with the kids…  the big boys are out watching the new Star Wars movie and the girls are doing last minute shopping…

Christmas Eve…

24 Tuesday Dec 2013

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had a very lovely Christmas eve… Crystal, Jeff and the boys arrived around 2 and we had fun playing together…

Sandi and I...

Sandi and I…

my sister-in-law Sandi, and her four boys and a girlfriend, arrived around 6 and we ate our way through quite a bit of food…

the spread...

the spread…

we had great conversations all around… can’t even remember the last time we were all in the same room…

space was filled up...

space was filled up…

stories were shared and higher learning discussed… the little boys watched movies and came and went for snacks while the adults had a great time… some of the stories were about the girls babysitting the boys, many years ago… lots of laughter… had to have been at least ten electronic devices in and around the room…

lots of electronics plugged in...

lots of electronics plugged in…

everyone left and Cyndi and Ron tidied up while I wrote this blog… we will be heading to bed shortly and going to Crystal’s in the morning…

a very different Christmas Eve than the usual ones we have had over the years… usually we would all get in our jammies and sit by the fire that George would have going, and there would be people sleeping everywhere as bedtime arrived…

I am missing my beloved today, thinking of all the wonderful Christmas Eves we have celebrated over the years…

but, today is a new day and those big girl pants must be worn…

 

Christmas Eve…

24 Monday Dec 2012

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well, here we are, Christmas Eve…

I spent a fair part of the day preparing for tomorrow`s dinner… turnips are in one pot, potatoes in another… stuffing is made – only needed one type this year as Ron won`t be here… homemade cranberry jelly prepared and cooling in the fridge…

now there`s an example of a change… George really only liked Ocean Spray Cranberry Jelly, so I didn`t usually make the homemade version… it came out very well, and I blended it with the purple immersion blender – thinking of my friend Ted, and an experience we had a number of years ago with an immersion blender… ham was cooked and in the fridge, and spinach dip was ready to take…

a friend stopped by just when I was feeling a bit down… she said it will be different but good as well…  I had just been thinking that I hadn`t been away from the house for Christmas eve in over 30 years…

Jeff and the boys came to get me and I almost couldn`t leave, but I put on those darn big girl pants and got into the car along with various bags of goodies and the final gifts… as we drove tears were falling from my eyes, and my dear son-in-law held my hand for a good part of the trip…

as soon as we arrived, the boys insisted that my stocking be added to theirs… they were very excited that I was sleeping over…

stockings were hung by the fire with care...

stockings were hung by the fire with care…

Crystal gave each of the boys a small ornament to hang on the tree… one said Isabella, for George`s mom; one said Ellen, for our dear friend and neighbour; and one for George…

George, added to the tree...

George, added to the tree…

we had appetizers for our dinner, and I talked with Cyndi on the phone…  the boys got into their new Christmas jammies and put out cookies and chocolate milk for Santa…

cookies and chocolate milk for Santa...

cookies and chocolate milk for Santa…

two of the three are in bed, and possibly, asleep…  we`ve been watching Santa`s progress on an app on my phone and he was last seen heading for Newfoundland…

I am thinking of some of my friends, who have recently lost loved ones, and hope that they too are finding some joy amongst the sadness…

there are many presents under the tree… we will see how the morning goes…

Emptiness…

22 Saturday Dec 2012

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been a busy day… well, the morning was… I did a few chores around the house, and then Crystal and the little boys picked me up and we went grocery shopping for Christmas Eve and Christmas dinner…

when we got to the grocery store both boys wanted to hold my hand… this is a bit endearing for me, because when Grandpa was alive, they would have been holding his hand and I would have been walking along behind…

the boys loved to help Grandpa...

the boys loved to help Grandpa…

these moments are precious and made the shopping very special… they are also very busy and three adults with the two of them would have been a slightly better ratio… we shopped at Safeway for the dinner, and stopped at M&M for the treats for Christmas Eve… when we got back, everyone came in for a few minutes to scarf down their lunch and bring in the groceries, before blasting off to the next errand on their list…

I had some lunch and then a nap… I had plans to wrap gifts but ended up laying on the bed for the remainder of the day… the house is feeling empty just now… I am missing the comings and goings of my mate… I haven’t noticed this feeling in recent weeks but as Christmas gets closer, I guess it makes sense…

sadly, I am thinking of many others I know who are facing this Christmas with one less person in their lives… I am sending thoughts and prayers their way and hoping they will be able to find some joy during these special days…

before, all of the kids would come to our house on Christmas Eve and everyone would sleep over, there would be people everywhere… we would get up early and open our presents all together… this year, I am going to the kids’ on Christmas Eve  to sleep over and we will open our presents there… Cyndi and Ron will be together in BC and we may Skype with them as presents are opened, although it will be very early for them…

we will come back here in time to put the turkey in the oven and will likely hot tub and play games on the TV ending up with dinner…

it all feels different and strange to me, but I am sure it will be wonderFULL… I’ll keep you posted, lol…