Merry Christmas!

For me, Christmas really does start today - Michael is here and, due to his needing to fly down to Florida tomorrow afternoon to visit with his mom and brother, I'm doing our holiday dinner today.  But first, I need to make a trip to the store for a few last minute little things (ugh!).  Deanna's got a friend coming over later tonight, who doesn't 'do' Christmas at home.

I barely slept at all last night and I'm so tired right now I can't see straight... unfortunately, the holiday is feeling like a slog to be got through right now.  Let me make a confession... I enjoy making Christmas for everyone, I really do - but there's a certain point every year where I badly want someone else to make a little Christmas for me.  To volunteer without being asked to wash a load of dishes or help cook, or tell me to sit down while they clean up, or to make me something homemade or get a gift that shows they heard me regarding interests of mine they don't share.

Here's another confession - I know I'll be getting chocolate covered cherries from my youngest - hopefully only from her!  Because several years ago, possibly before she was even born, one of my girls bought me a box and I gushed a little too much.  Mind you, I LIKE chocolate covered cherries - quite a bit, if they are the liqueur filled ones.  Not at all if they are the confectioner's sugar white creamy filled ones... which are always the ones I get from my children.  I occasionally try to repeat this distinction at some point politely distant from the actual exchange of chocolately cherries, but ... well, the creamy ones are everywhere, aren't they?  And I will have to eat them to be polite and they won't even share in eating them because they don't like cherries. hah!  Goofy stuff like this is where real tradition lies, doesn't it?

(But really? I just spent a half a month dipping chocolate ... NON FOOD gifts welcome!)

I'm getting heavy wrangling from her to move the entire holiday up to today - namely, opening the presents.  But no - ONE present tonight, and the rest in the morning, or it will all feel entirely off kilter.  Tomorrow afternoon, after Michael heads off to have his second (late) Christmas, we'll likely be tagging along with Jackie and her family to go visit with her in-laws.  The food will be good, there will be a lot of people there and then (speaking from the tiredness I feel right now) I may just sleep until Tuesday.