Merry Christmas...

Quote for the day:

Christmas gift suggestions:
To your enemy, forgiveness.
To an opponent, tolerance.
To a friend, your heart.
To a customer, service.
To all, charity.
To every child, a good example.
To yourself, respect.

 

~Oren Arnold

 

It's Christmas Eve...

 

Today I went grocery shopping for the first time in about 3 weeks!  Between starting back to work after my back injury, taking the trip to Ohio, and then coming home and getting very ill with "the Illness", we were basically out of food in this house!  So today's trip was REALLY necessary...especially since I had to get something to make for Christmas dinner tomorrow for Andy & me.  

We had batted around a couple options regarding Christmas dinner, including 1)  going out to eat;  or 2)  not doing "anything" for Christmas dinner.  After thinking about it, I decided that not having family here this year was no different than in the beginning of our relationship when it was just Andy & me....B.C.  (Before Children!)

Christmas was going to be what I did or did not choose to make of it this year.  

I chose to make a conscious decision to make a semblance of a Christmas dinner...albeit on a smaller scale.  So I went grocery shopping today for Christmas dinner items and for gifts for the neighbors (whew...that was calling it close!).  I even got the ingredients to make a "special" Sunday breakfast for the day after Christmas...MONKEY BREAD!  :)

This evening we decided to go out for a nice steak dinner...really the first "meat" that either of us has eaten for the last couple weeks because of "the I llness" in the house!  LOL

After dinner wecame home and watched some TV, and now I'm relaxing with this...

 

 

 

...the traditional "Christmas Margarita".

 

What you say?  Margaritas aren't a Christmas tradition????????  WELL...I think they should be!  LOL  The tradition needs to start somewhere...and I'm willing to give of myself sacrificially to help it get started right here...right now!  What do you say, People?  Stand up and be counted!!!  :)

My friend and co-worker, Pat, and I exchange Christmas presents and I just HAD to show you what she got me this year!  

 

Are those not the CUTEST socks!?!?!?!  Love them!  :)

Andy & I came to a mutual decision about 10 years ago...we don't exchange gifts at Christmas between the two of us.  Basically, we are at the point in our lives that if we want something, and can afford it...we go out and get it.  That leaves very little to be "gifted".  So instead of struggling through "having" to find a gift for each other...we just don't exchange gifts.  We do give gifts to the kids, the grandkids, Andy's mother, and the neighbors (usually a box of candy).  

Since the kids and grandkids cannot make it home this year for Christmas, we don't have any gift exchanging to do tomorrow.  We didn't even put up our tree....all that made it up was a wreath on the front door.  We have a pre-lit tree and we were thinking about putting it up...until "the Illness" happened.  Basically, being too sick to pick your body up out of bed for 2 weeks will put a damper on many, many plans!  :(

So tomorrow I will make us a nice ham dinner complete with Coke Salad (a family tradition dating back to the late 1960's...I could give you the recipe, but then I'd have to kill you) and a homemade banana cream pie.  I know...banana cream pie is not traditional, like pumpkin or pecan pie...but neither are margaritas on Christmas Eve!  hahaha  

MERRY CHRISTMAS to each and every one of you!  

Loretta