Yikes! That number is a bit scary. Forty Christmases here on earth, each one unique, and each one special. This year I really noticed how the Christmas celebration began the moment that Briana arrived. Ashleigh went to pick her up on Wednesday, December 22. We met at Chik-fil-A for dinner and then went shopping for our last-minute gifts at Target. Although Ash and Briana did their usual locking themselves in Ashleigh’s room, they did venture out for a bit so that we could all watch some Christmas videos of our Christmas celebrations from 2004 and 2005.
Briana remembers 2004 as being her favorite Christmas, and made the startling realization how that she really misses being a little kid. It was at that minute that I decided that I’d scrap plans to just give her some cash to save up for what she really wanted, and just get that thing that she really wanted.
On Thursday evening, I both began and finished the wrapping of the gifts. I could have put some of it off until Christmas Eve, since for the first time since 2006, I was off work. If all goes well and I remain in my current position at work, I shouldn’t have to work the next two either. But I preferred not to be encumbered with too many chores on Christmas Eve. I spent the morning watching some mindless fare in I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry. And I finally made my necessary excursion to the store to pick up the buns and cheese that I was being asked to bring that evening.
Our tree at home, sprinkled with the gifts on Christmas Eve morn
Briana and Ashleigh spent most of the morning asleep and once they got up, they invited my friend Kristine’s son Jeffrey over to visit. You may recall that Kristine and Jeffrey at one time lived with Ashleigh and Briana and their Mom in Fairborn, and are now residing in Sarasota (where Ashleigh and I stayed during our trip). Briana went over to pick him up at his Dad’s house and brought him to mine so that they could visit.
Jeffrey and Briana, seeing one another for the first time in about ten years
The new baby’s first Christmas tree picture
The bulge is finally reaching some significant proportions
The girls didn’t want to leave quite as early for Denise’s house as I did, so I hitched a ride with Bill & Dottie, who were also transporting Dad. They picked me up at around 3:30 and we headed to Westerville. Upon arrival a little before 5pm, Christmas – as we have come to know and love it – had arrived. Mom & Bob and Grandpa Murphy were already there. Ashleigh and Briana would get there at 5:30, on the dot as they had promised. Adam and Grandpa, predictably, were playing Wii.
Adam chooses his player in Wii
In the front lines, the first victim of attack was the shrimp and cocktail sauce platter, followed by the cheese and crackers, chips and dips, cream cheese and dried beef roll-ups, olive and cheese toothpicks, and a fabulous array of cookies (including Denise’s prize-winning pumpkin cookies). I stayed away from the celery and broccoli salad (with grapes). This was all before we actually dug into the meal that included ham, turkey, cheesy potatoes, and green bean casserole, and a variety of cheesecakes. Denise also had made some homemade eggnog, with the brandy. Good, good stuff – all of it.
Denise makes the last preparation, the unveiling of the cheese
Dottie and Grandpa go to town on the eats
I know Denise’s potatoes were delicious, but geez mom!
Megan dines on her ham bits and milk – with a rubber band thrown in for good measure
Bob kicks back on the chair and ottoman
Denise, me, Bill, Dad, Aaron, and Grandpa enjoying a great dinner. Aaron does what he has to in order to be in the picture
We spent about 30 minutes swallowing these amazing culinary delights, and almost immediately dove into the gift opening. I don’t think we had ever done such a poor job of restraint before, with the kids passing out the gifts by 6:30. Gift-wise, I think we all had a pretty swell Christmas.
Adam gets swallowed up by the gifts
Adam and Megan embrace, both delighted at the fun that they’re in for
Grandpa has the traditional head-bow at the ready
Adam and Megan each rip into new DVDs
Briana is flabbergasted by her new iPod Touch – as is Ashleigh
Briana opens the pink cowboy hat from me and declares, “It’s a box!”
Megan tries on her new hat, while Adam opens his baseball tee
The fellas keep a safe distance from the melee
Ashleigh takes a self-portrait with her new camera…
…and then one of Briana and me
Megan tries on her new jewelry, before stashing it in her new jewelry box (behind her)
Here is what I gave: To Mom & Bob: Denise and I went on a used Wii gaming system that came with Wii Sports and Sports Resort games. To Dad: DVD-R set of The Detectives, DVD-R of the movie Murder By Natural Causes, DVD of Lucy Calls the President. To Denise: Toy Story 1, 2, and 3 DVDs. To Aaron: Clone Wars Season 2 DVDs. To Ashleigh: Canon PowerShot digital camera, winter coat. To Briana: 8GB iPod. To Adam: Lego: The Adventures of Clutch Powers DVD, Despicable Me DVD, Curious George Sails With Pirates DVD, Rev Tredz Monster Truck (Backward Bob), plastic bowling set. To Megan: Foofa doll, toy purse, toy cell phone, Curious George: A Very Monkey Christmas DVD, pink cowboy hat, My Little Pony. And I brought along my newsletters for Mom, Dad, Denise, and Grandpa. I slipped a DVD-R of 101 Men and a Girl into Grandpa’s.
Here is what I got: From Mom: rubber floor mats for my car, a pair of jeans, pajama pants, DVDs of The Muppet Movie, Alice in Wonderland (with W.C. Fields), and Parenthood. From Dad: Looney Tunes t-shirt, DVDs of My Darling Clementine, The McCartney Years, Mr. Ed season 3, Sgt. Bilko season 1. From the Ocks: DVDs of Daffy Duck: Frustrated Fowl, Bugs Bunny: Hare Extraordinaire, Midnight Madness, Snoopy Come Home, Follow That Bird. From Ashleigh: nice shirt, Beatles t-shirt.
Megan did a bang-up job of opening her gifts this year. Her favorite was a jewelry box. She spent ample time putting all of her new play jewelry into it and closing the drawers. She had wanted to take it to bed, but settled for kissing it goodnight. Adam’s favorite seemed to be the bowling pin set, which he set up in the kitchen and made lots of noise with. The adults resumed with snack food and went back to the Wii game. Ashleigh and Briana headed out a little before 8pm to go to their Mom’s house.
Megan plays with one of her new puzzles
Adam sets up the bowling set in the kitchen
Megan joins in the bowling fun as well
Despite what Mom always says, Bob plays ball in the house
Not even the holiday will stop Mom from peddling some jewelry to Dottie
Ash and me in our formal Christmas pose
And it may be a bit early for the ‘gosh, look how big you are pose’ – but it was fun to do anyway
Briana and Ashleigh, wearing her new coat, get ready to head out
Megan his busted with her hand in the cookie plate
Bored with the cookies, she tries on her new hat…
…and then shows off her picture on Santa’s lap
The traditional family picture. This was the second attempt after Adam rushed me and head-butted me in the groin for no apparent reason during the first try.
Bill & Dottie and Dad left around 8:30 after we got our traditional family portrait. Everyone else stayed the night there. The kids headed up to bed around 9:00, after they had left milk and cookies out for Santa Claus of course. Once they were tucked away, the adults (except for me) went back to the Wii games. Grandpa is getting pretty darn good at bowling and had some serious competition with Adam.
Dad, Bill, and Dottie depart on this wintry white Christmas Eve
Back to the Wii!
Adam sits this round of Wii out – on Uncle Brad’s lap
Megan is as cute as can be in her snowman pajamas – as she ‘pushes buttons’ on the stove
Adam and Megan set out Santa’s Christmas cookies before toddling off to bed
I fell asleep on the couch by 11pm and only woke up at 2am to find Aaron still on the Wii, enjoying one of his new games. He soon headed up to bed and I drifted back to sleep, with the thoughts of sugar plums, ham, and DVDs dancing in my head.
Up next: Christmas day…
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