Dec 8: O Christmas Tree

I don't know if anyone enjoys our tree more than our cat Boris. He spends most of his day cuddled up underneath. Once in a while he bats at some ornaments. But mostly he sleeps. 

O Christmas Tree    traditional

Dec 7: Deck the Halls

Over the years our tree decorating has evolved. Originally Ray was in charge of stringing the lights, and the rest of the family put up the ornaments. Then I wanted more lights on the tree, and ended up doing that part myself. Now that the kids are all out of the house we have an artificial pre-lit tree, and I'm in charge of decorating it.

It is no fun for me to decorate a tree all by myself, so the last few years the grandkids have helped. It's delightful to watch them put the ornaments on. It used to be the lower third of the tree got all the ornaments. Now they extend a little higher each year.

Traditionally we put up the tree the Sunday after Thanksgiving, and the kids are all here to help. Not so this year. Audrey's family did not come for Thanksgiving. Poor Matthew was so distraught about not helping that I promised to save him two boxes of ornaments to put on when he came this last weekend. We still put up the tree, thinking Madeleine, Rachel and Diane could help. Slight problem: the lights on the tree didn't work. So we bagged the idea of decorating the tree. Madeleine requested still decorating a few other things, so she helped me put up a couple of nativities, and she put all the candies in the Christmas countdown calendar.

We returned the tree and got one that worked (the beauty of shopping at Costco). Saturday was the day to decorate. Matthew and Austin could hardly contain themselves in anticipation. We had a pancake breakfast, then it was time to get the ornaments on the tree. Austin put on a few, then he was done. Matthew single-handedly put all the rest of the ornaments on the tree. Elizabeth handed him the ornaments, and he hung them. He stood on the stool to reach as high as he could. He actually distributed them pretty evenly.

So the tree is up, the decorations are up, and I can sit and enjoy it all, thinking of my grandchildren who helped me with all of it.

Madeleine and Diane unpacking a box

Madeleine

Elizabeth

Matthew

Matthew

Elizabeth. We only had one ornament casualty. Hence the vacuum in the background.

Deck the Halls    old Welsh air

Dec 6: City Sidewalks, Busy Sidewalks, Dressed in Holiday Style

Now that our children are all adults, we celebrate each couple's birthdays by taking them to dinner at the restaurant of their choice. Last weekend while Audrey and Joseph were in town, we went downtown to Ruth's Chris Steakhouse to celebrate their birthdays. The food was delicious. Afterward we walked around Temple Square, which is all decorated for Christmas. 

It was fun to see all the lights, but it was sure cold. We made a quick tour of the grounds and headed back to the car. What a wonderful evening!

Ray, Diane, Audrey, Joseph - notice the lovely desserts?

Audrey and Joseph

Ray and Diane

Temple Square, all lit up. Photo from lds.org

We met a nice family from Cedar City, UT. We took their picture, then they took ours. 

Diane and Ray. It was SO COLD!

Audrey and Joseph. They don't look as cold as Ray and I do.

Silver Bells    words and music by Jay Livingston and Ray Evans

Dec 5: O Little Town of Bethlehem

January 1996: Ray's parents left to serve an 18 month service mission at the BYU Jerusalem Center. Ray's dad was the doctor for the center, taking care of all the students who came through, as well as the adults who were serving in various capacities. They had a marvelous experience, traveling all over Israel and into Egypt with the students. 

Then the best part of all came a year later. Mom and Dad brought all their children and spouses to Israel so we could have a wonderful experience also. I have to say that that trip was a highlight of my life. Only one of Ray's siblings was not able to come. The rest of us were there, and there is nothing like a shared experience in the Holy Land to bring you closer together.

Ray and I almost didn't make it out of Seattle. A major snow storm came in, and the airport shut down. We drove down to the airport anyway, hoping we could catch some flight some how and arrive in Chicago on time for our connecting flight to Israel. Long story short, with only half an hour to spare, we got the only flight that left the Seattle airport in that 24 hour window, and arrived in Chicago in plenty of time.

We arrived on December 27. Some day I'll write more about our trip. But today I want to talk about our most treasured souvenir from that experience. 

At the Jerusalem Center January 4, 1997
David, Sally, Charles, Ann, Elna, Tom, Amy, Marilyn, Jim, Dad, Mom, Paul, Orva, Ray, Diane, John

There was a man who lived in Bethlehem who hand carved the most exquisite nativities from olive wood. His name was George Lama. The BYU Jerusalem Center had a very intricate nativity by George Lama and we fell in love with it. We ordered one for ourselves. It took a year for him to complete it. Every time I set it up I marvel at all the detail. 

It's a beautiful reminder of our wonderful trip, and a beautiful reminder of our Savior, who came to earth and gave His life for ours.

The hills of Bethlehem behind us, January 3, 1997
Mom, John, Ann, Amy & Marilyn, Charles, Diane, Jim, Ray, Dad, Elna, Tom, Orva, Sally, David, Paul

O Little Town of Bethlehem    words by Phillips Brooks  music by Lewis H. Redner

Dec 4: Here Comes Santa Claus!

I asked my kids which of all the Christmas decorations that they grew up with they like the best. Actually the way I worded it was, "If you could only have one Christmas decoration up, which would you chose?"

Their response was the same as mine: The Santa Candy Dish. My sister Cheryl made this for us about 25 or 30 years ago, and we have it out every year. We have York peppermint patties, Hershey's Kisses, and Reese's miniature cups in it. All in Christmas colors of course. 

Here Comes Santa Claus    words and music by Gene Autry and Oakley Haldeman

Dec 3: Sleigh Bells Ring, Are You List'nin'?

I love the sound of sleigh bells. Many years ago I bought a string of sleigh bells to hang on our door at Christmas time. Somehow they were never taken off. A few years later I cut the leather in half so that the string wasn't quite so long, but we love having those bells on our door.

The bells are easy on the ears, and give us pleasant notice when someone comes through the door. I don't mind at all when the grandchildren swing the bells just so they can hear them. Over the years we could hear when our children came in at night. There's just no stopping those bells from ringing when the door swings open. 

Now it's different when the bells ring and the children and grandchildren have come home. It's no longer are they in by curfew?, but "Hurrah! They're here!"

This weekend Audrey's family will be here. The whole family will be here for dinner on Sunday. You can bet I'll be list'nin'.

Winter Wonderland     words by Dick Smith  music by Felix Bernard

Dec 2: I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas

White Christmas is my all time favorite Christmas movie. I've blogged about it a couple of times already (here and here).

So imagine how fun for me when Debra discovered that BYU was putting on the musical this year. We bought tickets way back in October, and I've been looking forward to the play ever since.

I drove down to Provo, and Debra, Madeleine, Diane and I went for dinner first at Cafe Rio (another favorite). These terrible phone pictures are my attempt to document the occasion. But what really mattered is that the dinner was delicious and the company was fabulous.

Debra and Diane

Madeleine enjoying her straws

Diane enjoying it all

Afterward Randy took the girls. Then Debra and I went to the play. At first we were a tiny bit confused. It appeared to be White Christmas, but when looking at the program we noticed that some of the characters had different names. And many of the songs were different. We weren't really sure what we were going to see.

It turns out the play bears a minimal resemblance to the movie. But I actually think that was better. It could never hold up to the movie in my mind, so after about the first five minutes I sat back and relaxed and just enjoyed the production. They did a fine job, and we had a very fun evening.

photo from arts.byu.edu

It turns out that my college roommate's son's two roommates at BYU (how is that for very confusing) play the male leads in the play. They were good, but my favorite was Jennifer Stewart, who played Martha Watson (the housekeeper at the inn - one of the character name changes). She was very good. In the photo above she is the one in the red dress at the very top center.

They've extended the run. Now it's playing through December 8.

White Christmas     words and music by Irving Berlin

Dec 1: Sleep Well, Little Children

Time to break out the Christmas pillowcases. For many, many years I made new Christmas pillowcases for the entire family every year. Thanksgiving Day I would sneak into the children's rooms and put their new pillowcases on their pillows. 

I don't make them every year anymore. But anytime there's a substantial change in the family (new babies, new in-laws), it's time for a new set. No new pillowcases this year. Instead I made a different Christmas decoration for everyone (more on that later), but who knows what next year will bring? 

I poached this picture from Debra's blog last year:

Madeleine

Here is a sampling of some of our pillowcases from years past:

There are a lot more than these, but they are being used elsewhere and I didn't want to have to disassemble everything. I have sheet sets stored in some, quilts in others. These pillowcases were always good for sleepovers, or camps. A Christmas themed pillow case stands out any time of year, and the cases had our names on them too.

Sleep Well, Little Children   words by Alan Bergman, music by Leon Klatzkin