Big Christmas in Small Spaces

Christmas 2014 displayed itself in a big way in small spaces. Speaking strictly of my family's experience this year, it is merely an observance of the evolution of the celebration of the spirit of the season for the four of us. Three parties within the range of our home brought to life the joy that we feel when celebrating with our loved ones.

We kicked off the holiday with my sister's second annual party, big with love, music, food, drink and even a magic act to close the evening. 25-30 people inhabited her approximately 1500 sq.ft. home, with most of the activity occurring in the elongated open kitchen/dining/living space of approximately 10 x 40 feet. Meeting and greeting was boisterous, with 95% of the invitees already familiar with each other because of family relations. The excitement over the food was evident with the "ooohs" and "ahhhs," at the placement of each delectable treat on the table.

Food is a family favorite, both to discuss and to consume, so I must address it with each description of the three events. Melanie's party portrays weeks of planning and preparing, with love seeping out of each piece of handcrafted gingerbread or rosemary cookie. The cheese and olive tray, served with unique and tasty crackers, and homemade kale crunchies started off the display. She is an excellent cook, and we had delicious pork tenderloin, crab puffs and hot cheese bakes. Individual attendees brought cheese balls, salads and desserts. The grand finale of the yogurt cheesecake was quickly consumed.

The second small space of the holiday was at brother Jerry's at his family home. Chili, caroling, family and gift giving were a part of the evening, with much additional food to talk about. It was composed of the exact same crew, minus a couple and plus a few, for approximately the same number of individuals attending. This house is another small abode, with the gathering taking place in the area of the home to include the kitchen, dining and living, only in more of a separated square space instead of the long room of the first event. Children from four years of age to adults in their seventies filled the air with talking, laughing and plenty of eating.

And yes, the spread was formidable here too, with delectable dips and dippers, veggies and olives, incredible chili and cornbread, and an array of cookies and candy to hold a bakery in awe. The first course of the evening was eating and drinking, with the second a delightful tour of the neighborhood and spirit-filled caroling with a range of voices to be envied, and the third was the dessert trays, followed by more enjoyable drinks made by Jerry the bartender.

On Christmas Day was the final gathering, held in my own home of just over 1700 square feet, of which the majority of time was again spent in the lateral part of the house of 12' x 40'. The long room contains a kitchen with a bar at the south end, and a dining/living space interrupted by a double-faced fireplace.

The afternoon was the timeline of this party, with guests including my bartender brother (but not as a profession), his lovely family of six and my parents, to be joined by my beloved cousin Karen after our meal. And the meal was fantastic, if I may say so myself. Prime rib and ham were the featured meats, with designer green beans and a carrot creation (it was too good to be called a casserole) brought by my mother, same day rolls, baked potatoes and a cornucopia salad with no critical fresh ingredients missing delivered by my brother's wife, Jenn.

After enjoying a leisurely meal packed onto one dining and one card table (where we had at least two spills),we opened family gifts, played with toys (the children 4-10 and the fathers), several took walks, and the annual players dove into a game of Lord of the Rings RISK conquering Middle Earth. At some point during the afternoon and evening a beautiful cranberry mincemeat pie, cut  out sugar cookies and caramel corn were served. All home made with love.

What I observed is that in the past, the three hosts inhabited much larger estates, but at this point, we are all in smaller abodes. The love present, the joy on the faces of those receiving gifts, and the peacefulness of the many people who interacted over the 2014 Christmas season tells me that possibly, the small space is a more intimate way to celebrate.

Our Savior, Jesus, was born in a tiny barn, having come from Heaven, the largest, most incredible dwelling place in the universe. While we may consider ourselves humbled to be living in  locations with less grandeur, the reality is that we are so blessed to have a solid roof over our heads, heat to protect us from the cold, and a warm, comfortable bed to lie down in at night.

In the new year, I plan to aspire to humility, and to small spaces.

Exodus

The prompt: She rolled her eyes as another one of her cabin mates tried to stifle sobs. She couldn't believe she had to stay at this horrible camp all summer! Her stomach growled. As she stepped toward her trunk for a forbidden snack, she tripped on a loose board. Curious, she leaned over to peek between the cracks, and saw... 

Exodus
She tossed and turned as several cabin mates in nearby bunks sobbed and cried for their mothers. Yes, it was a new experience, to go to a camp with roughly constructed barracks in the summer, with poor food so far, and it was stiflingly hot in the crowded room. Furthermore, the camp leaders were strict and could be downright mean.

But Keren, who had just celebrated her 12th birthday the week before going to the camp, wanted to be optimistic. She was outgoing and well-liked, for she consistently had a smile on her face and a compliment to give. Now, she was away from her annoying teenage brother, who teased her, read her private notes, and often stole her bagel before school. Many of her schoolmates were packing up and traveling, sometimes with no notice before they left. It was lonely and troublesome at home.

Keren’s mother and father tended to argue on a daily basis, which was both irritating and scary to hear her parents discuss their plan to move, her mother’s complaints about her father not making enough money to buy the tickets, and her father’s criticism of her mother’s reluctance to depart. It confused Keren because she wasn't sure whether they wanted to leave or not. Her mother and father constantly used sharp words, with the family love seemingly gone.

She was almost pleased to be out of that home environment on this adventure. Tomorrow just might bring a better day, although she was sorely hungry, and the narrow bed she shared with another girl was more like a piece of fence with straw on it. Sleeping did not appear to be an immediate option. The camp uniform was too big and scratchy, and looked like blue striped pajamas. She already missed her best friend, Liesel, who she laughed and played with every day.

The entire family had traveled together to the camp, but was separated as soon as they arrived, after being cooped up on the crowded train car with no food or water, or even a bathroom, for what seemed like an entire day. She left wearing the clothes on her back, with her mother and father clutching small parcels of favored belongings.

In the confusion upon arrival, the camp leaders shouted and instructed where to go and what to do. Hundreds of people huddled together and became startled by their yells. The men, including Keren’s father, re-loaded on the train, while her brother was shuttled on a cart led by horses with other boys to a different part of the camp she supposed. As the open cattle car rolled away along the tracks, she slowly waved at her dad, who appeared miserable. She wanted to feel confident that she would see her family again soon enough, although they may not recognize her.

All of the women and children arriving at the camp had their head shaved upon arrival. Then, they had to strip their clothes and were forced into a room where they were roughly sprayed down with water, lined up naked, and given uniforms. The guards separated the younger girls from the women, and then Keren watched her mother, and the others, march away.

It was a mystery to her as to why they were treated so badly. Many were crying, and Keren felt sorry for them. Now, more tears surrounded her as her stomach growled again. Before bed, they’d hungrily devoured a bitter, watery soup, and it simply was not enough to satisfy her.

“I've got to find something to eat!” she thought as she sat up, and gingerly stepped onto the wooden floor. The unkind guards outside told them to stay in bed until roll call the next morning, but her brother had once complimented her for her craftiness in sneaking food from the downstairs kitchen without her parents discovering it. Feeling confident, she tiptoed towards the door.

In the gloomy quarters with only the light of the moon shining through a few small windows, she lost her balance when she tripped over a loose board. Causing a noisy ruckus with her fall, she scrambled to get back up, again knocking against the slack panel. Embarrassed, with numerous young women looking on, and wanting to overcome her failure to navigate the dark room, she feigned a purposeful floor examination, pointed to the floor and said, “It was loose, I thought …,” and bent down, pretending to peek between the cracks.

At that moment, the door burst open, and before Keren could completely straighten herself up to see who appeared, a bullet hit her in the head, dropping her.

“Heil Hiltler!” one of the guards shouted, and after lowering his raised right arm, abruptly shut the door.

This was a non-winning entry to a short story writing contest this summer. :( It was My first try at writing fiction for a contest, so I do believe that I can produce better work in the future, with at least an honorable mention the next time around! As a teacher, I also understand that judging writing can be very subjective.

Wake Up

“I can’t believe she hasn’t called,” said Jane.

She slammed the plates into the cupboard in exasperation.

“Honey, she’s busy,” said Marcos, Jane’s husband, as he flipped through the Sunday paper.

“But all that time I spent on that package, not to mention the extraordinary efforts we underwent to host them here,” she added, throwing the silverware in the drawer with a clang. “I just don’t understand, not a peep in weeks.”

“I’ve talked to Kenny, and he said something about being happy about getting the shirt back,” said Marcos, chuckling inside about the gag gift his wife had purchased for Marie’s husband. It was an all-American polo shirt, probably manufactured in the 80’s, with a flag, the constitution and patriotic heroes screened onto the fabric. She probably found it at the annual church swap meet. It was her gift to Kenny when they visited that summer for the fourth of July.

“It’s not funny,” Jane retorted.

“I’m sorry, sugar, I know she cares, and you do too. Maybe she has some sort of complication and she can’t connect right now,” Marcos said.

Not placated, Jane finished the dishes and began preparations for dinner.

“We’re eating fish for dinner,” she said to Marcos, aware that it wasn’t his favorite, but wanted to use up the last of the catch their friends had brought them from Alaska.
"Sounds good to me," Marcos answered, not wanting to further rock the boat.

After wiping down the counters, Jenny strode into the master bedroom and plopped down on the bed. She picked up a book and began to read. Within 10 minutes, her eyes began to droop, so she gave in and set the book aside, and snoozed.

The phone rang.

“Hello?” Jane replied groggily.

“Hi, Jane, it’s me, Marie!” her sister said excitedly.

“Oh, hi,” she said.

“Tell me how you have been, and then I can’t wait to share the most exciting news,” Marie said.

“I’ve been fine,” said Jane.

“Awesome,” said Marie. “And how is your job, and Marcos, and the kids?”

“Fine,” said Jane.

“And how about your neighbors, Marlene and Eddie, did they have an awesome summer?” she asked.

“They’re fine,” Jane said.

“Well,” began Marie again, “and what about your wine business, any new distributors?”

“No,” Jane said.

“Jane,” Marie said, “what is wrong? You’re acting like you don’t even want to talk to me.”

“Well actually Marie, I don’t,” Jane said, as shifted the phone to her other ear and propped herself up on the bed.

“And why not? I’m about to tell you the most exciting news and you don’t even have a word to say, except that everything is fine,” said Marie, as her face moved into pout mode, or at least that was how Jane visualized it. “I’d like to be pleasant with you, I mean, I asked how you were doing and everything. I mean, what is up? Why are you being mean to me?”

“When was the last time we talked?” retorted Jane.

“I don’t remember, and I apologize. I’ve been so busy …,” said Marie.

“Yeah, that’s what Marcos said. Whatever,” said Jane.

“Sooo … do you want to just stay mad at me and not hear my news?” asked Marie, hurt.

“All right, whatever,” said Jane, “Or let me guess. You won the lottery and have been having so much fun spending money on yourself that you haven’t had time to call.”

“Not exactly, dear sister, but I guess you don’t want to know, so, LATER,” said Marie, and she hung up the phone.

Jane woke up.

“Oh no,” she thought, “I am not being very forgiving at all. I need to call my sister!”

She punched “Marie” into her cell phone and waited for the connection.

“Hello,” Marie said, and Jane could feel her smile through the miles.

“Hello, dear sis,” said Jane, tentatively, “how are you?”

“Excellent,” said Marie, “I’ve missed you so, and please forgive my not calling back. We have had the most exciting summer since returning to Texas, and I’ve just received the most excellent news. But you first, how is your job going? And Marcos, has he had some time to play some golf and run in some races lately? And how about the kids? Have you had a chance to visit recently?” The words came gushing out of Marie in her normal fast-paced manner.

“Well,” Jane said, “We are all doing well. Job pace has slowed a bit since the start of school, Marcos beat Claude Capus in golf the other day, Alfred is doing well in his job and getting excited about his marriage to Candi, and Alicia is performing in a new play next week. We’ll be up there for the premiere then. I also found some incredible fabric for curtains at the thrift store the other day! So, what is your news, I’m dying to hear.”

“Okay,” answered Marie, “Are you ready?”

“Why of course,” said Jane.

“Well,” said Marie, “your sister is going to be a published author, of my own book!”

“How exciting!” said Jane, “which one? The children’s book about the bean’s that you’ve talked about for years, the conspiracy theory story or the one about all the weird people in your community?”

“Neither and none,” answered Marie. “An agent saw my blog and had a topic –food of all things – and thought that I would be excellent at writing about it. This happened soon after we returned from California, and since then, I have been preparing my proposal. As of Friday, I will be writing my first book!”

“That’s awesome!” said Jane, “What’s the title?”

“Wake up.”

“What? That’s the title?”

“No, I said wake up,” said Marcos, as he gently nudged Jane’s shoulder.

“What?” asked Jane.

“Honey, your sister is on the phone,” he added.

Jane laughed and asked him, “Did she tell you the title of her book?”

He gave her a puzzled look and handed her the phone.

“Hello,” she said.

“Oh, Jane, I’m so sorry for taking so long to call you! With all of my summer jobs, and my writing, back to school for me and the kids, I want to apologize for not thanking you for our awesome summer trip and the wonderful care package you sent,” Marie unloaded.

“Oh, dear sister, I was just thinking of you today. And by the way, I’m sorry that I didn’t call to check on you, and congratulations on the book deal!” said Jane.

“What?” asked Marie.

“I just have a feeling that something big is going to happen to you soon,” added Jane.

And they had a wonderful, sisterly conversation and all was well.

The End.

10 Minutes

As I was washing the dishes this morning, pondering all that I'd done this day already, yet regretful that I had not accomplished more, an interesting thought popped into my head.

What if God told me I had only ten minutes to live? What would I do in those ten minutes? This question, as all questions that fly through my brainwaves, included a stipulation. I would be notified of the ten minutes in whatever I was doing at that moment, for example, sitting at my computer at home, at school, in the car, and whether I was with my family, friends, or alone, and that would be my only warning.

First thought was that I must call my family. I was alone as I had this contemplation, so of course I would start with my husband, my children, my mother, my father, my sisters, and before I knew it, I would be out of ten minutes. It would be very difficult to tell each person what they mean to me and to express my love. How about a group text? But that would not be fair, or very nice, unless I just told them all that I love each one of them very much.

Then, typical of me, food popped into my head, the last meal, and with my eyes closed, as I rinsed off the green lettuce holder, I scanned the inside of my pantry, the freezer and the refrigerator. Since I recently ate some fresh eggs from my mother's chickens, served with sauteed onions, mushrooms, spinach, corn tortilla and garlic, sprinkled with cheese and served with a piece of buttery white toast, the Snickers bar frozen treat in my freezer appeared very satisfactory.

And because earlier in the week I discussed with my husband that Australia was on my bucket list to visit, I wistfully pondered that I would like to have gone there before I passed. Going somewhere when I only had ten minutes to live, unless I was already there, did not seem very likely, which leads to my answer of what I would do if I was told that I only had ten minutes to live.

I would first thank God for an awesome life, and for giving me several opportunities to keep on living. With two close-to-death experiences, I believe I am less afraid of death than some. Then, I think I would keep on doing what I was doing, washing the orange frying pan, folding clothes, walking the dog or making deviled eggs. I would certainly call Kevin and my children to tell them that I loved them very much, and maybe have a second Snickers bar.

Rain, Rain ... Stay!

How many times, as a child, did you sing "Rain, rain, go away?"

Rain, rain, go away,
come again another day.
Little Johnny 
wants to play. 

Because I remember and can sing the tune so well, I think I must have sung it thousands of times. We replaced the name "Johnny" with my name, my brother's or sister's, and later, with my children's names. The song would come about when we endured a day or two more of rain and were feeling cooped up and wanted to be outside.

In retrospect, as Central Texas endures a debilitating drought, I would love to have the Mother Goose song be eliminated from pre-school and elementary school song lists, for Texas at least. While some areas of the country endure rainy weather for weeks and months at a time (May Gray and June Gloom in California), in the Austin area, we LOVE the rain. Sure, it was a downer on all those weekender events planned for Memorial Day weekend on the lake and in backyard pools, but alternatives to the rain exist.

As we attended an outdoor concert on Saturday night, attacked by a deluge of rain five minutes after we arrived, people adapted. The kids played in puddles and splashed around in the rain. The performers, just a couple out of about six, moved under the cabana and sang with just a guitar and a mike.

On Sunday, out on the lake, we hung out on the boat dock as the sprinkles came and went, and eventually moved the chips, bread and sandwich makings to the porch up the lawn. While we were on the lake, it rained for maybe ten minutes, but aren't boats and their passengers allowed to be wet?

Monday morning brought thunderstorms and rain, rain, rain until early afternoon. Perfect weather for sleeping in and taking care of indoor tasks, but it didn't keep my teenage daughter from participating in the wet skies and road and taking a run. With more rain in the forecast, we are rejoicing and willing to pull out our umbrellas.

I love watching the rain on the radar, as it approaches from the west, east, north or south. I take delight in the lightening and thunder, especially when it is dark outside. Rain is an ally, a partner, and a friend, that I do not want to go away,

Fireflies are here!

From the top, it looks like a one-eyed insect, larger than a lady bug but smaller than a grasshopper. The red, upper crown with the single "black eye" and searching antennae, along with the black body sprouting spindly legs is nothing special to look at, until the sun starts to set and the winged critter begins to fly among the trees and bushes of the front or back lawn. You see, this is a unique creature that has an extraordinary ability to illuminate the evening sky with dedicated "light organs" in its abdomen.

This paper clip-sized beetle is the delight of young and old as the start of summer approaches. I felt an ease and pleasure as I saw my first fireflies of the season last night. Its a special time of year for me, because I have so many fond memories of playing with them and catching them as a child. We would carry around a mayonnaise or mason jar, and place some grass and picked wildflowers in it, as lightening bugs enjoy feasting on pollen. When we saw the intermittent flashing of the abdomen, the brother, sister or friend, without the jar, would chase after it and capture it in his or her hands and throw it in the jar. The poor thing would have to flutter about the container with holes punched in the metal top without a friend, until one of us was able to catch another. What fun it was to watch them glow together.

The emotional impression of fireflies that I have is the knowledge that summer is beginning. With children, this means I can sleep in a little every morning, and have a long afternoon involved in a project without school activity interruptions. In central Texas, it means long summer evenings with light in the sky until 10 pm in late June. It means warm nights. I feel the ease of hanging out with friends on the back porch, playing darts, gatherings with family with young children, barbecues, boats and beaches. With summer, I have rest, friendship and fun. Welcome fireflies!

I'm an ADD Writer

Sitting, standing, walking, lying down. I can write in all of those positions, and I do, on a regular basis.

When imagining me writing, one should not visualize me hunkering down on the computer for hours and days at a time. It's 15-30 minutes MAX that I can stay sitting at a computer writing. Often, I stand over the computer taking notes to a client's video, while I stretch out.  This is after taking a one and a half to three mile walk up and down strenuous hills, while either reading or listening to client presentations, and then typing information about it into an email to myself. the writing provides a perfect distraction to the strain on my legs and the beating down of the sun on my head.

Lying on my bed is not a regular position for me, as when I move to the bedroom to work, my eyes picture the lateral position, my sense of touch recognizes feel of the soft pillows, and my nose detects the leftover effects of the aromatic "bedtime" spray. It's a lot quieter in there, perfect for repose. I don't last very long before my eyelids hover over my eyeballs, my head begins to nod, and I lose track of what I'm reading and writing. Oh, and I forgot about the driving position. After researching a project all day, I may record insight via the speaker module of the phone, again, in an email to myself to be copied and pasted into the completed document.

If I'm not writing, I'm attending to the list that grows by the hour of chores, exercises and tasks to complete each day, week and month. It runs from the loading of the laundry in the washer and dryer to cooking the meals in daily chores to self-pedicures and physical fitness for personal revival. By the time I've taken my daughter to school and picked her up in the afternoon, I've consumed two hours of my day, which leaves less time for hammering out words on the computer. And speaking of consuming, food is another huge distraction. A multi-level indulgence of nuts, fruit, yogurt, veggies, salty snacks and candy can make up one "meal" over a four hour period.  That's a movement for each item - stand up, go to refrigerator, pantry or desk to retrieve it, wash it, unwrap it or pop it into my mouth.

So why am I a writer, you may ask, thinking that writer types spit out thousands of words per day on a keyboard, conjuring, explaining and describing all types of material for students and clients, from resorts in Australia to a dentist office in California. In addition to the constant movement my body requires, my brain also experiences the traveling of thoughts in and out, up and down. There are cards to write, art materials to collect and assemble, in addition to the myriad of clients for which to write. It all needs to spill out somewhere, and why not here and there?

I am an ADD writer, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Setting

Tonight I appreciated the sun at the end of the day, as it appears to fall in the sky, off the edge of the earth. Travelling west, towards the grand Texas Hill Country, I encountered the most wonderful panorama surrounding the ball of fire as it slowly made its way through the feathery, waterflow-shaped clouds. The road took me down, through the valley of Bee Creek, and then winded up to a plateau at the top of the canyon, viewing the grand sky and a much larger vista, allowing miles and miles of scenic views.

My first observation of the gorgeous sight was at the top of the first descent, where little evidence of population exists. The golden orb was slightly masked by sheets of clouds at the bottom, but they were transparent enough to see a faint outline of the bottom of the circle. While the tiny water droplets floating in the sky were tinted by the apparent color of the sun and its refraction off the earth, they took on a more rosy glow as the landscape extended around it. The sun was a lighter, brighter, whiter circle in the sky that was pasted onto the background with the tissue-paper like clouds upon it. The very blue sky of springtime contrasted and merged with the pomegranate red, orange sweet potato and yellow mango of the color wheel, with wisps of white and other white daring to cross the spectrum. The distraction was great, as I wanted to keep my eyes on the perceived movement of the sun, as opposed to the swiftly moving cars around me.

The power and heat of the sun was upon me as I squinted behind my sunglasses, and failed at adjusting the visor to cover its brightness. I gave in to the beauty of the sky, flipped up the shade, and considered pulling over to take a photo, but knew that it was futile to capture the beauty, and the feeling of peace and awe that the picture had upon me at that instant. I wanted to stay in that inspiring moment for as long as possible, but alas, I descended into the valley of the river and as the earth turned, the panorama was obstructed by yet another bump in the landscape, and the elusive sunset, and view of it, escaped me.

I do hope to capture the setting sun, and the pleasure of its beauty, again tomorrow.

How Do I Use Ideas?

You read a fabulous book, you watch an incredible movie or listen to a original tune on the radio or live. And what do you do with this incredible outpouring of creativity from individuals that you may never see or meet? Other sources of inspiration may come from God's masterfully orchestrated sunsets, sunrises or a beautiful cloud formation or rain storm. The beauty from nature is immense, from the tiny flowerettes on a miniature weed in the yard to a hesitant songbird approaching you on the back deck of your house.

I have been inspired lately, and this is due to the lack of pressure from the whirlwind of work and family duties, and my own letting down of the expectations of what others will presume that I will complete for them. It's Spring Break for school, therefore no teaching, grading or questioning my teaching skills; waiting on my accounting books approval from my interior design client, a website complete for my real estate client, and blog posts and Facebook postings for the San Diego dentist are done. That means I can sleep in, read a book, watch movies on television, exercise to foot-pounding music on a partly sunny day through the hills and dales of the neighborhood, cook and bake with leisure, and pursue writing here.

Back to my question of what we do with the creativity. Everyone is different in the way they use the imaginativeness of another, and each one's originality can be interpreted in another way than the person, such as I, who enjoys writing about such enriching experiences, although I rarely find time to do it. The two books I read recently, vastly different from one another, have inspired me to dive into my two books that are currently swirling about as bits of gray matter in my head. I have not had a week such as this in a long time, and look forward to putting fingers to keyboard to produce the outcome of hopefully, two progressive book outlines to yield best-sellers one day - just like the two books I just read!

Post Christmas Wrap-up

Wow! What an exciting Christmas season we had this year. So exciting, in fact, that I am just now able to post something about the incredible activities in which my family participated in during the holidays. It's nothing fancy, merely a recount of what we did, so in ten years when Kevin, or one of the girls says, "remember when ...," we can look it up on whatever form of cloud is in existence at the time and state what exactly we ate for breakfast on Christmas Day, 2013.

Christmas 2013

Christmas, to me, officially begins on the last day of public school. That is when I can relax and know that I don’t have to make a lunch each morning and take Kristin to school or the bus, to return to pick her up from school in the afternoon.

Friday

2013 started with a neighborhood party two houses down. To keep mom and dad in line, Kristin was invited to and attended a Thesbian club party half an hour away. We hit the grocery store afterwards to load up with baking items to prep for our company.

Saturday

Kevin traveled to San Angelo for a project Saturday morning.

Prep for Fenners – baking, cleaning, wrapping and other food prep.

Sunday

Made “Almost 50” birthday sign for after church surprise birthday party for Jenny.

Sun morning church service at PRF

Fun barbeque birthday party for Jenny at the Merlick’s with Mom and Don, Melanie, Avery and Doug, Skip, Christa and Jesse. A beautiful chocolate cake with mint icing for dessert!

We played Games, games, games before coming home!

Monday

Busy, busy in the morning, with long afternoon lunch at Mel’s. Post office and other errands, back to Merlick’s, Daniel dropped off Kevin from San Angelo, then we piled into the car to the grocery for steak dinner and headed home.

Steaks, potatoes, butternut squash soup, green bean casserole and beer bread made up the dinner in which we hosted the Wickham’s and Melanie.

Mom and Don gave Ormsby’s our Christmas gifts – a new microwave and other gifties!

After we had cookies and caramel corn for dessert, we played a few board and made-up games.

Tuesday

Late steak, potatoes and eggs breakfast prepared by Matt.

Boys to airport to pick up Alison and conduct last minute shopping.

Made Grandmother’s Mexican Wedding cake cookies.

Wrappingfest at the Ormsby’s to prep for Christmas giving.

Dress up and load up car to attend Christmas Eve candlelight service with Christa joining the Wickham/Austin Merlick/Ormsby/Fenner clan at Austin Ridge.

Meet at the Merlick’s afterwards for chili by J and J and Jan and Mike, with Melanie, Christa, John, Jacob and Avery Rose and Avery and Doug. Sweet potato soup, Chex mix, sugar cookies and caramel corn by the Ormsbys, desserts, salads and other tasties enjoyed by all with wine and beer.

Sang Christmas carols in the neighborhood, to welcoming neighbors!

A bit of dancing afterwards to warm up …

Home to continue wrapping and watch Miracle on 34^th St.

Wednesday, Christmas Day

Pigs in a blanket awakened the troops.

Opened plenty of presents and made a mess.

Whipped up grandmother’s party potatoes, dressed and went to Mom and Don’s.

Car-caroling led by Kristin and Allison on the ukulele was fun on the road!

Enjoyed turkey, ham, broccoli, potatoes, salad and gingerbread cake by Grammy and cheesecake by Melanie.

Opened more presents!

Jerry came along home with the Ormsby’s and played Risk until 3 AM! (BTW – Kristin, an HH, won the game!)

We scarfed queso and chips, hummus and veggies, Lays and onion dip, almonds and cookies and caramel corn while undergoing the drama.

Thursday

Boys are up by ten to go meet Bob Gruczynski in town and then to the Merlick’s to set up the impossible trampoline with just a few bashes and injuries.

The girls left for downtown to visit the Blanton, perused the gift shop and grabbed a snack.

Back to the Merlick’s to meet the boys and Rachel, who was mall shopping.

Fenner’s and Ormsby’s take Gru to the airport and on the way, stop off at Patsy’s to enjoy a burger, tuna melt and crispy fish tacos.

Visited the Zilker park tree and spun around for a few minutes, then stopped off at The Moon to partake of a beer and a few karaoke songs with the DJ.

Ended the evening with a showing of the third Lord of the Rings movie. (snoring commenced)

Friday

Waffles and bacon for breakfast.

Girl thrifting in Marble Falls, after a snack at Brother’s Bakery. Bargains galore at Vintage Vogue and Bargain Barn.

Ali to the airport with a one hour window.

On to Mom’s for ham and turkey sandwiches, salad and awesome salted caramel chocolate pecan pie.

Rockin’ Anniversary Party (Fenner’s 27^th) with the juke box set up to incredible 80’s music for the first hour and a half at The Moon. Karaoke and star singing by Jenny, Matt, Karl, Danna, Kevin and Alee, with additional dancers Liz, Michael and Julie.

Saturday

Grammy’s eggs with mushrooms, onion, garlic and cheese, served with tasty rolls and San Fran coffee.

After packing and snacking, the crew loaded up and played at Jerry’s for Pizza, while Avery and Doug joined the group on their 50^th wedding anniversary! Mom and Don joined us and brought salad, awesome pecan pie and fresh fruit.

Packed into the car again, the Ormsby’s and Fenner’s made the fourth trip to the airport in five days.

Ormsby’s drove home to enjoy a quiet house for the evening.

Sunday

After a peaceful church service, Ormsby’s were home in the afternoon for laundry (thankfully using the Darwin’s dryer) and another production of caramel corn for the Dallas bunch.

We began packing our things for the trip to Fort Worth in the morning.

Monday

Another day of sleeping later than usual was in store for us, but I was able to finish drying two more loads of laundry, wrap a few Dallas presents, print a few Christmas photos for Dallas gifts, and make the last batch of sugar cookies for the year.

Our original departure time of 1 pm occurred at 2 pm, in which we caught up with the mail carrier to obtain a check.

We deposited the check, picked up a few items at the grocery and hit I-35 by 3 pm.

Arriving much later than previously planned, we enjoyed a cocktail with Dad and Malinda while watching the end of the first half of the UT game (Horns lost L), and then ate dinner at a superb restored gas station, Winslow’s for a tasty meal, then retired to their home to watch the Texas Tech game (Red Raiders won).

Gifts were exchanged before we went to dinner.

Tuesday, New Year’s Eve

Slept in again, this time until ten, and then feasted on tasty eggs, bacon and onion on flour tortillas and delicious fruit salad.

After Kristin gave us a mini-concert on the ukulele Grandaddy gave to her, we headed east to Dallas to see Phil, Jr. and Kristin with their new baby, Paisley, at Presbyterian Hospital in Dallas.

Before the ½ hour stop, we dined on two #1 boxes at In and Out Burger and toured our old neighborhood.

Arrived at Gran’mom’s and exchanged gifts – with the Austin Ormsby’s loading up on nuts, wine, cheese, soap and lotions.

After a respite from the road, the Ormsby’s dressed up in fancy festivity clothes and drove to the Kravik’s to participate in their annual New Year’s Eve celebration.

Wednesday, Happy 2014!

After a quick  bite to eat, we jumped in the car and went to Karen’s for the New Year’s Day meal.

On the menu was Turkey breast, spiral cut ham, crescent rolls, scalloped potatoes, creamed corn, black eyed peas and cabbage.

For dessert were chocolate cupcakes, pineapple angelfood cake and sugar cookies.

During a long visit we were able to see Kelly and Luis with precious baby Landry, Macy and Luke. We jumped in the car and made it to Dillard’s in Waco for one remaining hour of the 40% off previously reduced merchandise. We all found bargains, but Rachel found the steal with a $400 BCBG dress for $70.

The days following the excellent but exhausting week and a half are a blur now (since  I didn’t write down any more details after the New Year’s day drive home). We probably just did boring things like … catch up on work life (!) and that’s why this is so late a posting. Now that this biggie is posted, maybe you’ll see more writing this year!