 |
| Merry Christmas from Aunt Mary's House |
Every year, there is an element of chaos to the holiday season. There is the lofty holiday ideals that many aspire to in an attempt to re-enact that Normal Rockwell type Christmas experience. Often the actual experience ends up being more like the Griswald family Christmas of National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation - lots of big ideas...but then reality sets in. While the Fagellas did not attain Griswald status (thankfully), things did not quite go as planned. As always, it was a memorable holiday.
 |
| Anna, Aunt Loren & James at the Empire State Building |
Over the years, we have made some adjustments to the Christmas expectations. Theresa loves to decorate and had a period of wanting to take the family to a tree farm to cut down the family tree. That was good for one year. The next couple of years we went to the tree vendor in the supermarket parking lot. Finally, the artificial tree in the basement started looking pretty good as Theresa didn't need to water that. Theresa used to work on an annual holiday letter to go out with the cards and a handwritten note. Now we are lucky to get out a photo card with a pre-printed note (not to mention the card list has been reduced to only those we receive cards from and some select people we know just like to get mail). We use to go to stores at all sorts of crazy hours to find the perfect gift. Now all shopping is done on Amazon, ensuring no stops at a store are necessary. Theresa still bakes all sorts of cookies to hand out, but she considers this sort of therapy more than work. The most important adjustment is that Anna outgrew the Elf on the Shelf last year, removing a major stress from her parents.
Christmas was quiet this year with no planned visitors. We were planning to go to Christmas Eve mass, where Anna was singing, and visit family in New York after Christmas. Unfortunately this plan was disrupted thanks to a partial government shutdown right before Christmas that required Theresa to go to work. Despite this "gift" from the President/Congress, we tried to maintain the holiday cheer. We enjoyed a concert by the Washington Chorus and spent another evening at the light show at Meadowlark Gardens. We celebrated Christmas Eve with a seafood dinner and had a quiet Christmas Day. Anna was quite thrilled with her sewing machine from Grandma & Grandpa and proceeded to work all day on making pajamas. Joe got to try out his new portable workbench, which unfortunately was not a surprise since it was the one gift that arrived from Amazon in its own box. Theresa enjoyed her new earrings and a peaceful day reading.
 |
| Christmas Morning |
Since Theresa was stuck at work, Joe and Anna headed to New York to visit family. As always, Aunt Mary's house was a hub of holiday activity, with visits from Aunt Loren, Aunt Luci & Aunt Terri. There were roughly 500 cookies and countless other baked goods. Joe was treated to an early birthday dinner at the Milleridge Inn, complete with caroling (there is a video of Aunt Mary caroling). James & Aunt Loren took Anna into Manhattan to the Empire State building and Rockefeller center. Joe stayed with the handicapped group at home, which included him with tendonitis in his foot, Aunt Mary with a sore knee, Terri fresh off shoulder surgery and Lucy recovering from a cold (they were able to discuss their ailments and exchange tips on drugs). Anna got to enjoy a New York lunch - pizza AND a corn dog. They had a great day. Friday was a hang out day with lots of reading and board games, including a rousing edition of Clue...and of course more food. They had a good trip. A big thanks to Aunt Mary & James for hosting!
Anna and Joe returned on Saturday after a 6 AM departure (they had smooth sailing on the roads). Storm and Theresa had a quiet week and were happy to see them (it would have been more fun to go to New York).
 |
| Christmas Morning with Storm |
Merry Christmas!
Christmas was quiet this year with no planned visitors. We were planning to go to Christmas Eve mass, where Anna was singing, and visit family in New York after Christmas. Unfortunately this plan was disrupted thanks to a partial government shutdown right before Christmas that required Theresa to go to work. Despite this "gift" from the President/Congress, we tried to maintain the holiday cheer. We enjoyed a concert by the Washington Chorus and spent another evening at the light show at Meadowlark Gardens. We celebrated Christmas Eve with a seafood dinner and had a quiet Christmas Day. Anna was quite thrilled with her sewing machine from Grandma & Grandpa and proceeded to work all day on making pajamas. Joe got to try out his new portable workbench, which unfortunately was not a surprise since it was the one gift that arrived from Amazon in its own box. Theresa enjoyed her new earrings and a peaceful day reading.
Comments