The other day, I bought a tree for Christmas. After much searching, I was able to find the type that we have had the last few years and have liked, but it isn't the "greatest" tree this year. From the gardening centre that shut down a couple months ago, we were able to pick the trees before packaging them up in netting for transportation. These ones were pre packed, which other than the height, means sight unseen.
It is like our previous tree's...
Ugly cousin.
But in keeping with Smallsteps' mouse obsession, we have decorated in gold and mice, which makes the tree somewhat passable, so it doesn't have to get locked in the basement until it gets thrown out in the new year.
Of course, having an ugly tree doesn't affect Smallsteps' opinion of Christmas, which she loves because we make a bit of a game of it. Not only does she get an advent present each day, we have a little elf door attached to a wall, and each morning the elf leaves a grammatically incorrect note for her to read. My wife writes them, and they talk about things that are going on in her life, like having the dog visit, or nibbling on the gingerbread we made the other night. It is a bit of fun.
My wife also started a little bit of time off today, so she won't go back to work until the new year. As Christmas days off fall mid-week, it is a good time to burn some banked overtime hours and extend the break. I would have done the same, but well, I am on extend break from work anyway. Though, my break adds a slight bitter aftertaste to Christmas.
Though, I am trying not to let it affect me and instead attempting to stick to my plan of taking it pretty easy through December, taking care of things at home instead. It is quite strange though, as I spend so much time alone, not talking to anyone at all. It isn't lonely, but it is a little uninspiring as far as conversation goes. I like talking to people face to face.
Must be my age.
The mouse above is close to the star atop the tree, and it was chosen by Smallsteps and bought by my wife a few weeks. They decided they would buy one together every year from now on, but I don't know how long the mouse fascination will last. Hopefully for a little while, because we have a lot of mice now.
With Christmas only a few days away, I think this weekend will be spent doing the cleaning and prep for the food. Thankfully, the grocery store nearby is open 24-hours, so I can do the shopping late at night. Everywhere is packed now, and there are a lot of frustrated people driving and pushing around like they have never been around other humans before. I don't remember it being like this a decade or two ago, but I think it is a sign of the shifting focus toward the commercialised Christmas - the Instagram Christmas.
We will head to my sister-in-law's for the family meal on the 24th, but other than that, we will be home with just the three of us. So probably, we will make a small ham for us, and just spend the time hanging out, playing games, watching movies, and eating too much.
Sounds like Christmas.
Taraz
[ Gen1: Hive ]
Oh I would never buy a pre-packaged tree, going to the store and picking out the best tree is our tradition and family fun!
For us too. The problem here is, the only ones that we could have got were the traditional ones, and they don't last and drop a lot of needles.
Traditional one:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Picea_abies
We wanted one of these:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fraser_fir
They have been great, but much harder to get now :/
I see, that makes sense.
We say money has no religion. Obviously such days as Xmas, Valentine, Mother, Father have been much more commercalized in recent years. We can remember our beloved ones on another day in the year.
I try not to spend too much on "gift days" because there is no surprise in them. Better to do it on random days.
The mouse on the Christmas tree is very cute. But I despise mice.
Your time seems to be enjoyable. Your plans are set. My plans are not set. I will probably do what I always do at home, there will be no change.
Mice are cute! as long as they are outside :)
That's what Christmas is all about, to talk about what you want to do in the family holidays and the three of you Mr. Taraz and the most important thing is to have a Christmas that adds peace, it's very liberating.
It will be nice and I might have a small surprise for them!
How beautiful are the traditions that resonate with joy in our hearts and nourish the essence of children. I assure you that when your daughter becomes an adult she will relive the warmth of these moments, with joy but also with nostalgia they will be memories of you (dad and mom). And so she will continue her legacy with her generation. Receive a big hug Mr Taraz extended to Smallsteps and wife.
It sounds like a devine Christmas. I prefer small family gatherings myself. Mind you don't start talking to the mice, cute as they are....they just might start talking back lol. I spend alot of time by myself, so If it were me, I would surely be talking to the mice and I would expect them to reciprocate lol.
According to my daughter, they all talk to her :)
It is weird I think. I don't mind being by myself, but I like having good conversations with people that move fast. That is hard in text.
lol you maybe need to find a speed typist :D
I loved so much the original mice Xmas decoration! I think they look even better then the usual Xmas ones. The family time and gaming with them are for sure one of the best things to do in this time frame. Since I'm single, this time of the year I try to pass it with my Goddaughters and my compadres. This weekend I came visit one of my Goddaughter's that lives near Porto. Spending some extra time to play with her, surely increases my days happier
They are cute and probably not too many people have mouse trees :)
Spending it with kids and loved ones is what it is all about. And a bit of good food also!
That is almost like a national hymn in Portugal! We Portuguese value so much the food and the comfort food in this season is so good... Can't wait for tomorrow's dinner!
Perfect!
The last one is pretty every day for me ;)
That's pretty cool that you were able to get a nice tree. I'm guessing it is real? We had to stop getting real trees when I was a kid because of my allergies. I'm glad you don't have to worry about that with smallsteps and her allergies.
Christmas always reminds me of skiing with my family. We would always try to ski on Christmas day since the mountains would be much less crowded. We always try to find that one Chinese Restaurant that is open on Christmas so the Jews who don't celebrate can go out to eat! It is quite common knowledge in NYC that the Chinese food spots stay open on the Christmas holiday to serve our large Jewish community that tends to throw big parties on Christmas eve and then go out to eat on Christmas day. Now that's some holiday traditions I can get behind!
Hi ,nice write up.Well done
Nice Mice... 🐭
Ours is always the Boyd Bear™ theme that my girl collects. Somewhere above 2k and counting. 😳