It dawned on me the other day that this month will always be my most stressful. While most people have the usual pressures of the holidays, as a college instructor I have the extra weight of finals. In my case, that means grading papers nonstop. And that, my dear readers, is why I haven't posted to this blog in over a week.
On top of grading, my daughter's 2nd birthday falls right before Christmas. We're having her party here at the house, and trying to get ready for it in the precious free time we have has left little to spare. So far, we've ordered the cake and some food. Some of the food I'll be making, too, who knows when. We've got decorations, plates, napkins, cutlery, and pop. We still need to get water, juice, fruit, veggies, and chips.
I really do love to throw parties, but all the preparations are tedious! I want the party to be neat for Emmie and her little friends. I pinned a zillion "Sesame Street" party ideas to Pinterest and a few I'm going to try to implement. This might mean an all-nighter coming up in the next few days.
I really do love to throw parties, but all the preparations are tedious! I want the party to be neat for Emmie and her little friends. I pinned a zillion "Sesame Street" party ideas to Pinterest and a few I'm going to try to implement. This might mean an all-nighter coming up in the next few days.
Since I posted grades on Tuesday I've been trying to clean up: scrubbing bathrooms and countertops, washing sheets and clothes, dusting and polishing. After Emmie goes to bed at night, Bruce slaves away painting the downstairs trim. We want the house to look its best since many people will be here for the first time. We're still really proud of our modest duplex and want it to looks its best.
What is the one thing I've been wanting forever? A new couch cover! Bruce's mom got us one for Christmas and gave it to us early for the party. Yay! No more old blue couch! We got some new pillows the other day, too. The front room looks so much better. The new beige couch cover with the white trim really makes everything seem more modern.
What is the one thing I've been wanting forever? A new couch cover! Bruce's mom got us one for Christmas and gave it to us early for the party. Yay! No more old blue couch! We got some new pillows the other day, too. The front room looks so much better. The new beige couch cover with the white trim really makes everything seem more modern.
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| Old Blue, ugh. |
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| Like a new couch. And see the white trim peeking through? |
My side of the family is easy. We're really low-key about presents. A gift card, some pictures of Emmie in a frame, everybody's happy. We really focus more on getting together and eating than anything. So there's no worries there.
It's Bruce's family that always causes us contention. As I've mentioned before, his mom and sister are the most generous people. They love to shop, and that love is matched equally by their love for giving presents. I'm actually a little afraid of what it'll be like after Emmie's birthday and Christmas. Will we be able to see our floor? Will there be toys in every nook and cranny of the house? Every time Bruce's parents come over they bring a box, and the same for when we visit them. The presents have to be brought over in phases, because there's no way they'll all fit in the car in one trip. Both Bruce's mom and sister keep muttering, "I feel like I haven't got enough for Emmie..." To which Bruce and I look at each other in horror, and assure them they absolutely have.
This is wonderful of them, really. I mean, since Bruce's mom loves to give we are the beneficiaries of the couch cover we wanted. I am completely thankful. BUT the shower of gifts from Bruce's family sometimes feels like a tsunami. And we're powerless to it. I mean, our home isn't that big. I worry about clutter. On top of really useful gifts, we get random ones that are unnecessary. Where do I put all these things? And if I don't use them, I feel bad. For instance, the other day Bruce's mom brought over a double-tiered Christmas platter. "You can use it for the party," she suggested. So now I have this platter I don't really have room for in the cabinets. It went in the basement. And I certainly will have to use it, or I will surely be asked about it.
The other hardship for us is that be being the recipients of such material goodwill, we feel compelled to return the benevolence. So we spend a lot of money on Bruce's family. Way more than we spend on my family and each other. Of course, it's not a competition, but in some regards, it feels like it.
"She's so generous to us," Bruce will say, as we look at one more thing for his sister.
"I really don't think your sister wants us to go broke for her sake," I respond gently. But in the shopping cart the thing still goes. It really sucks to open a bunch of presents and watch the person who gave you so much just open one or two. We really want to be generous, too.
We're not going to go broke, but times are tight in December. Since I am on break from school, I don't get a paycheck at the end of the month. Depending on my classes, sometimes I don't get paid until the beginning of February.
Then add Emmie's birthday. And Christmas.
That's part of the reason why I work holiday retail. Problem is, this year sales are down at the mall, and I've got just one shift coming up on Saturday night, right when I should be cooking for the party. Figures.
But let's look at the bright side. Bruce really loves the band The Head and the Heart. They were coming to town for a holiday concert. There was no way we could afford tickets to it, not in December. So I entered a contest I saw on Twitter.
We frickin' won. Bruce and I got to go downtown and attend a VIP pre-party at the gorgeous Chicago Theatre. I'm a nerd for Chicago history and architecture, and I've always wanted to go there. We went in a side door, got passes on lanyards that declared "VIP" in big letters, and got our photo taken on a red carpet. Well, there wasn't any carpet, but there was a backdrop and a photographer. We ate free jumbo shrimp cocktail, steak on skewers, crab cakes, and more, and drank free beer and wine. We had floor seats for the concert. It was unreal.
We bought Bruce a concert T-shirt for a Christmas gift. The whole time, I kept thinking about my favorite Christmas story, O. Henry's The Gift of the Magi. If you don't remember it, it's the one where the poor, young married couple sacrifices what they have to give generously to the other. She cuts her hair to buy him a pocketwatch fob. He sells his pocketwatch to buy her tortoiseshell combs for her hair. On Christmas day, the gifts are meaningless except for the profound love they represent.
The narrator ends the story by commenting that they are "two foolish children", but that "of all who give gifts these two were the wisest ... They are the magi."
Winning tickets to the show isn't the same as that story. I sacrificed nothing. We were just very, very lucky. But it made me think about the wonderful gifts we receive in life.
My daughter was born this month. She is the greatest gift I've ever received.
I get to spend Christmas with her and my terrific husband in our new house. The days will be full of family and good cheer.
All the work, all the stress, all the money we end up spending, it doesn't mean anything. All that matters is spending time with family and friends and showing them how much they mean to us.
This is wonderful of them, really. I mean, since Bruce's mom loves to give we are the beneficiaries of the couch cover we wanted. I am completely thankful. BUT the shower of gifts from Bruce's family sometimes feels like a tsunami. And we're powerless to it. I mean, our home isn't that big. I worry about clutter. On top of really useful gifts, we get random ones that are unnecessary. Where do I put all these things? And if I don't use them, I feel bad. For instance, the other day Bruce's mom brought over a double-tiered Christmas platter. "You can use it for the party," she suggested. So now I have this platter I don't really have room for in the cabinets. It went in the basement. And I certainly will have to use it, or I will surely be asked about it.
The other hardship for us is that be being the recipients of such material goodwill, we feel compelled to return the benevolence. So we spend a lot of money on Bruce's family. Way more than we spend on my family and each other. Of course, it's not a competition, but in some regards, it feels like it.
"She's so generous to us," Bruce will say, as we look at one more thing for his sister.
"I really don't think your sister wants us to go broke for her sake," I respond gently. But in the shopping cart the thing still goes. It really sucks to open a bunch of presents and watch the person who gave you so much just open one or two. We really want to be generous, too.
We're not going to go broke, but times are tight in December. Since I am on break from school, I don't get a paycheck at the end of the month. Depending on my classes, sometimes I don't get paid until the beginning of February.
Then add Emmie's birthday. And Christmas.
That's part of the reason why I work holiday retail. Problem is, this year sales are down at the mall, and I've got just one shift coming up on Saturday night, right when I should be cooking for the party. Figures.
But let's look at the bright side. Bruce really loves the band The Head and the Heart. They were coming to town for a holiday concert. There was no way we could afford tickets to it, not in December. So I entered a contest I saw on Twitter.
We won!
We frickin' won. Bruce and I got to go downtown and attend a VIP pre-party at the gorgeous Chicago Theatre. I'm a nerd for Chicago history and architecture, and I've always wanted to go there. We went in a side door, got passes on lanyards that declared "VIP" in big letters, and got our photo taken on a red carpet. Well, there wasn't any carpet, but there was a backdrop and a photographer. We ate free jumbo shrimp cocktail, steak on skewers, crab cakes, and more, and drank free beer and wine. We had floor seats for the concert. It was unreal.We bought Bruce a concert T-shirt for a Christmas gift. The whole time, I kept thinking about my favorite Christmas story, O. Henry's The Gift of the Magi. If you don't remember it, it's the one where the poor, young married couple sacrifices what they have to give generously to the other. She cuts her hair to buy him a pocketwatch fob. He sells his pocketwatch to buy her tortoiseshell combs for her hair. On Christmas day, the gifts are meaningless except for the profound love they represent.
The narrator ends the story by commenting that they are "two foolish children", but that "of all who give gifts these two were the wisest ... They are the magi."
Winning tickets to the show isn't the same as that story. I sacrificed nothing. We were just very, very lucky. But it made me think about the wonderful gifts we receive in life.
My daughter was born this month. She is the greatest gift I've ever received.
I get to spend Christmas with her and my terrific husband in our new house. The days will be full of family and good cheer.
All the work, all the stress, all the money we end up spending, it doesn't mean anything. All that matters is spending time with family and friends and showing them how much they mean to us.
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