Monday, December 25, 2006

Number Three

I can't believe our 3rd Christmas is here, and almost gone. The fact that I have time to write this tells you something about our day. I left the house once today, to walk across the street and deliver cards to two neighbors. Other than that, we spent the whole day at home.

We slept until 8:00, because Eli slept until 8:00. We ate breakfast. We opened gifts. We played with gifts, which for me, also meant making tomato soup and chicken salad in my new "Magic Bullet". We stayed in our pj's until 1:00! We ate cookies, played music, took pictures, talked with friends and family on the phone, made pumpkin pie. We didn't watch a ball game or even turn on the TV- although we would have if it wasn't broken. I made what is hopefully becoming our traditional Christmas dinner. Crab...this year with french bread, salad, and pesto. Simple, but a treat for us.

Really, I don't even know where the day went, and even now I'm fighting the urge to go DO something, accomplish something. I know how silly that sounds. It's the kind of awkwardness that makes me feel like I'm on the verge of learning something...

Joel and I talked a few days ago about this. Christmas Eve, Christmas, the holidays, family, traditions. It's the kind of thing I thought I would just instinctively figure out by now. And now there are three of us, and this is our third Christmas, and we are learning that this will take more effort, more planning, more deciding than we will accidentally fall into. It causes us to ask bigger questions and wrestle with tougher answers because we don't want to "play" Christmas. But somewhere, there are traditions that will fit us well.

So, we're learning. I think we'll look back on these quieter Christmases and wonder why we felt the urge to make them busier. Although I'm sure those will be sweet too. Some of the joys of Christmas number three...

  • Our cheesy crackling logs fireplace cd, playing on Joel's laptop.
  • Watching the Charlie Brown Christmas special on the laptop with my husband, tearing up as Linus shares the true meaning of Christmas.
  • The Christmas Eve service- the scriptures I heard for the "first" time, the music filling the room both familiar and fresh.
  • Falling asleep at 10:00, 15 minutes into "Elf".
  • Playing on the floor with Eli & Joel- ribbons, puzzles, wrapping paper, toys.
  • Hearing Eli's feet on the hardwood as Joel chased him throughout the house.
  • Not knowing what time it was, and not caring.
  • Crab and butter.
  • Eli's red and white striped pjs and bare feet.
  • Knowing that Donna has two new puppies to take care of.
  • The funniest bath time ever- Eli talked and talked, complete with "Um's", and also checked out his plumbing.
  • Some gracious postman delivering Shane's (our nephew in Georgia) gifts on Christmas Day.
  • Eli becoming a Sufjan fan. He turns on the stereo, presses play, and dances...
  • Wondering briefly, over dinner, what next Christmas will bring.

No comments: