christmas update (part 2)

Spent christmas eve with my family. It is my niece's birthday (4), so we went to my brother's place for an event. Afterward I went back to my place to finish wrapping my gifts.

Gift exchange was a little fucked up this year.

Usually we gather and exchange on Christmas day with my side of the family. Christmas eve was always stbx-Mrs_C's family.

Because they were having his wife's side of the family over on Christmas day as well, my brother said that we should all open gifts on Christmas Eve. This was not communicated to me... I had planned on doing a very special/careful job of wrapping my gifts that evening. It was usually the case that I was organizing the kids and the food and last minute stuff before Christmas (we would take food even when the event was not at our place). I rarely got an opportunity to wrap my gifts well.

Instead of the job I would have liked to have done, I rushed home, rushed my wrapping, and rushed over to my parent's place to do gift exchange with them and my sister (who was in visiting). Oh well - maybe next year.

It was pleasant and quiet. My sister got me a number of things while she was in Europe several times in 2006 on professional conferences and such. My Mom and Dad gave me a swack of cash to buy clothes with (I had suggested clothes). My Mom declined to make fashion choices for me - she wants my new wardrobe to be an expression of my taste and new direction. My Dad was browbeaten into agreement by Mom...

I got them some books and couple of useful items. I went with interesting and useful but small and low cost. They all have way more cash than me and could buy anything they want, so I went for intent. The way they were intently reading the books through Christmas gave some indication that the thought was good. Dad used the lighted magnifying glasses I gave him to show us all various details in some old family pictures he recently had reproduced and enlarged. Mom said he wouldn't have bought one for himself because it would have been admitting he was old... Dad said he didn't know they made such things. The usual kind of back and forth with my parents.

Christmas morning I went to Smitten's and spent it with her and her kids. It was an enjoyable time. They seemed to enjoy having me. Part of their pleasure is that I had bought a non-wheat pancake mix (spelt) from a local health food store (Smitten cannot eat wheat products without difficulty [no - not celiac]). They got to have pancakes for the second time in years and were quite celebratory about it - and associated me with their pancakes. I'm good with that association ;-)

Their Dad came by to pick them up at around 1:30. The pick-up was uneventful and friendly.

Smitten and I cleaned up her place a little and went to my apartment to grab the gifts and stuff I was taking to my brother's and so I could cook the food we were bringing over to their place.

I guess I didn't previously make you aware that I had inquired with my family if they had any objection to Smitten accompanying me to the dinner. They were pleased to invite her.

We went to go over to my old house because I was going to take a warming tray to my brother's place. When I arrived I found that the lock on the house had been changed. I found that a little surprising. I assumed I would have been told of such a change. i don't live there so I have no issue, I was taken aback that it would have been done with no notice. Especially after stbx-Mrs_C had given me a Christmas card (on the morning they left - in person - when i went to drop off the music and computer disks on the way to work) with the dove of peace on it with a hand wrtten note saying "To forgive is the highest, most beautiful form of love. In return, you will receive untold peace and happiness".

I found that my son's dog had been left behind and that the heat lamp in his kennel was burnt out. He was cold and miserable and the water in the kennel was frozen solid - so it had been out for awhile. I had no idea of the arrangments for the dog. As of friday morning son was still under the impression that the dog was going with them. I assumed that the in-laws must be looking after the dog so i called to inquire. My nephew was and said they would take care of it. I was a little perfunctory on the phone with my niece, so I called back to take a softer tone. They was no answer even though it was only a few minutes later. Until I realised that I had called from my cell phone and my subsequent calls were from my land line - call display... I called again on my cell and they answered in the middle of the second ring. I thought it was little cheap considering that we did have legitimate business related to the dog. But whatever.

Dinner at my brother and sister-in-law's went well. Even though there were two separate families that had really only met a few times, conversation was good and smooth. Everyone was considerate and worked well together to help and pitch in on preparations and execution of dinner and clean-up.

There was another gift opening. I had been wrongly informed again about how everything was working. I had originally assumed there was another gift opening, but had been told there was not... so I gave Smitten the gift I had intended for that evening's opening in the morning with the other stuff. I was under the impression that only the kids were opening the newly arrived gifts. As a gift for Smitten my Mom sewed some really nice placemats and put them in with some nifty paté knives. It was a nice and unexpected gift. I was touched, and so was Smitten.

It was a very nice Christmas except for the one incident at the house.