Unexpected Gifts
For the first time since my now 14 year old son was an infant, we spent Christmas away from home. This was also the first year we didn’t leave milk and cookies for Santa, because my 10 year old daughter informed me a few months ago that gig was up. Spending time with both sides of the family during the holidays can be difficult to do. Throw a divorced set of grandparents into the mix and it can be a logistical nightmare. Fortunately, my divorced parents are both within a few hours drive of us, so we usually visit my dad and his wife one weekend in December and reserve Christmas day for spending it with my mom and sisters, who live here.
This year, we exchanged gifts with both of my parents, my sisters, my brother and his family (via airmail from Hawaii) and with each other prior to December 25.
My in-laws have gotten the short end of the stick when it comes to spending time with the grand kids at Christmas because my husband and I decided when the kids were still small that we would spend Christmas at home. But this year was different. Because not only were we celebrating Christmas, we were also celebrating my father-in-law’s 90th birthday on December 22. That’s a pretty big deal in my book. So we packed up the kids and Buddy Love the Dog and headed to New Mexico. The party was wonderful. My father-in-law shared a little about each decade of his life. It’s really quite amazing all the modern conveniences we take for granted.
By the time Christmas Eve rolled around, all of our gifts had already been opened. I thought it would be a let down not to have any gifts on Christmas morning, but it was far from that. Because I was the recipient of gifts void of wrapping or bows, but they were still wonderful and will be cherished:
-An unexpected White Christmas
-A nine hour car ride home on Christmas Day with nary an argument between my kids. Thank you, Jesus for books and electronic devices beginning with the small letter “i”.
-Time away from my computer. Time spent reading 11/22/63–Stephen King’s latest novel. It’s a monster of a book, and I seriously doubt I would be almost finished with it had I not been away from all of my usual distractions. I’ll let you know my final verdict when I’m done, but based upon what I’ve read so far, I’d say it’s one of his best. If you’ve read “It”, you gotta read this one. Some old friends from Derry resurface in 11/22/63. There are few things in life I enjoy more than getting lost in an epic story.
-Games of train dominoes, homemade Chex mix, cookies, candy and way too much food. Conversations and nightly play along Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune viewings. Little things, but memorable ones.
These gifts were unexpected but cherished, but not all gifts received are cherished. Sometimes when you receive a gift and you say, “Oh, you really shouldn’t have”, what you mean to say is, “No, you REALLY shouldn’t have!”.
But more on that later…
Hope y’all are having a blessed holiday season, if not downright joyful.
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Merry Christmas Kat.
Snow and chex mix. We will always be friends. Merry Christmas!
You managed to go to one of the few places in the country with snow. Ninety. Whew! The stories he can tell…
The snow is my favorite part.
Love this for many reasons, your acknowledgement of the special difficulty faced by families trying to connect with many sets of grandparents, your decision to have Christmas at home when the kids were little, your awareness of your in-laws getting the short end of the stick (not due to malice, but geography) and your awareness of the blessings that befell you by being willing to GO and be elsewhere, to break with tradition. Wonderful read!
We had a white christmas as well! In Denver, CO! I must say, I’ll stick to my desert. I don’t mind white lights wrapped around a cactus! LOL.
The cold gets to me even more now since I’ve moved to AZ. It was nice to be with family, though, since this was the first Christmas without my sweet mother in law. Have a super day!!!
We had a white Christmas too — but only because it didn’t have time to completely melt away. Since falling mid-December it has been heated up with the weather and melting like crazy.
Your christmas sounds wonderful — and yes, the best gifts are the one’s of family and fellowship and good times and joyous sharings.
Blessed days to you!
“11/22/63″ was the first of Stephen King’s books I’ve read (other than “On Writing”), and it was at your urging. I loved, loved, loved it.
No snow here, for a change.
Merry Christmas. Wishing you a wonderful new year.
Great post, Kat. Those things are what make life so wonderful. Gotta be thankful for the ‘little’ things. Merry Christmas and have an amazing new year!
I ask Jesus to keep the snow away 365 days a year. We had sunshine on Christmas this year, proof that Jesus is alive and that He indeed, does love me. I’m glad you got to do something different and yes, thank goodness for electronics that start with the letter “i”.