Tuesday, December 17, 2019

Merry Christmas and Happy Amazoning

I considered getting an ugly Christmas sweater, but I didn’t, and that’s OK.

I am not a traditionalist as I have always preferred my own ideas.  I do stick with the fundamentals, but just because someone from years ago thought it right to eat this or that over the holidays or put tinsel on a tree, does not mean that I should.   I have changed things around over the years and my family has gone along with it - mostly. The tree decorated with pink raffia, though, tested them.  However,  I am slowing down and that vast pool of ideas that I used to have has dissipated and easy (boring) is now my only choice.  I got the tree up, but not to my satisfaction. I thought of redoing it, but I decided to get over that. My list of presents to get everyone was so ho hum, and nothing special.  It bothered me, but I got over it. Some decorations are showing their age and should be replaced, but I look the other way, and got over it.  What we all are going to eat has not really been planned but I do have a number of take out brochures and Costco is close by, so I have a default.  It will all work out and if not, they will all get over it.  The good thing for everybody (and me) is that one of my daughters is in charge of Christmas dinner.

All the above are the trivial things that I stress about.  I cannot say that they are unimportant, but they are not my main focus.  My California family will be arriving on Saturday; my college age grandchildren will be coming home for a few weeks, and my sisters will be visiting. I am so looking forward to lots of hugging.  Love is what matters and laughter and memories shared is a priceless gift.  I am blessed, and I don't take it for granted.

However you spend the holidays, traditional or not, I hope that you have and receive joy.  I know how holidays can be very difficult for many, and I send you my love.  I am not a person of prayer, but I am of hope and heart, and you all have a special place in mine.  If you have the opportunity, reach out to others because, as we all know, the giving of your time is greatest gift of all.

Be kind to yourself and and remember you don’t have to drink that eggnog, eat the green mushy casserole or the fish with it's head still attached unless you like that tradition.

Merry Christmas and a Happier New Year.

58 comments:

  1. Hi, Arleen!

    I admire your heartwarming kitty by the fireplace header scene, dear friend, and your musings made me smile and laugh. Now age 70, my time is more precious than ever before, and I find myself sharing your "get over it" philosophy. If something doesn't go exactly as planned, I "make it okay" knowing that the sun will come up tomorrow... unless it's overcast, in which case I "make it okay." :)

    What a blessing to have your college age grands, sisters and other family members joining you to celebrate the holidays. Mrs. Shady and I are busily packing and preparing to move across the state next month and I will be breaking away from the blog circuit for three weeks when the time comes.

    I am very thankful to have gained a friend in you this year, dear Arleen, and I look forward to growing our friendship in 2020. Merry Christmas and happy new year to you and your family!

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    1. It has also been lovely to meet you also, Shady, and to listen to the music of yesteryear. Good luck with your move and I hope everything goes easy.

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  2. You will have so much joy in your house. Your precious family and gathering together is really identifies The love of Christmas.

    Keep well and enjoy!

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    1. I am looking forward to it all. I know it will tire me out, but it is such a short time when we are all together. Soon the grandchildren will be gone on their own so these days are precious. Things change so quickly and I need to enjoy all these moments.

      Merry Christmas, Susan. I wish you much joy for the coming year.

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  3. A merry, good, loving Christmas to you, with all your family and your perfect house of love.

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    1. It is hardly perfect, Joanne and sometimes it is explosive. My kids have made a pact not to tell me about anything negative that is going on . Ignorance is bliss and It is working for me.

      Have a good Christmas and I know your business will take off in the new year. We are all rooting for you.

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  4. As you know, it is wonderful to have new blogging friends. I wish you and your loved ones happy holidays and good days ahead.

    I am in the “get over it” phase of my life.

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  5. I am a recovering perfectionist, and share your "get over it" outlook (I call it "lowering my standards" but I like your phrase better).

    I hope you get so many hugs you have some left over to enjoy during the cold winter months. I didn't grow up in a huggy family but I've learned to enjoy them and try to get my non-huggy relatives on board too.

    Love your header! What a beautiful kitty!

    All the best for the season and into the new year, Arleen.

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    1. I guess I am a closet perfectionist, and I am seldom satisfied with all my projects. I like things my way and everything I do has to have balance according to how I see it. I drive myself crazy doing that. This year my gift wrapping will not be color coded according to he family nor will the ribbon be color coded by the individual. See, I can do this, I can get over it. I do not have OCD.

      Merry Christmas, Jenny. It is such a pleasure to know you and read your wonderful blog. We have a lot in common, one of which is cats.

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  6. I don't have to drink the egg nog, but I will! ;) I'm just like you Arleen. I only follow the traditions that I love. Actually for Christmas I'm making pasta. Alex and I spend all of our holidays (and all of our time) together just the two of us, with the furries and we love that. I hope you have a fabulous time with all of your family at home and you get as many hugs as your heart desires!! :)

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    1. I used to be a fussy eater, but became more adventurous with age. However, now my stomach disagrees with my choices and I have to be a fussy eater again. No eggnog for me. I could eat pasta everyday.

      Thank you Rain for your good wishes and I hope you and Alex have a wonderful holiday.

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  7. Thank you.
    Your seasonal wishes are perfect and I return them to you (wrapped in any coloured tinsel of your choice). Enjoy your time with your family.

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    1. Thank you, Sue. I hope you are feeling better. I, and, many others know your pain and wish the best for you. It is a struggle, but there is light in the distance.

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  8. I am so with you on everything you said. Basically get over the little unimportant things and enjoy with all your heart - the important things - family! Merry Christmas.sandie

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    1. I hope your Christmas time is lovely and all the important things give you joy, Sandi.

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  9. With Christmas Day being on a Wednesday this year, it means the shops will all be open right up to the big day, and re-open either on Boxing day or Friday; so no food panic is necessary. However, the same old 'siege mentality' still exists, and people are buying supplies of over-rich food for a month or more. I do enjoy Christmas, but some of the things that go along with it drive me crazy!

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    1. We all celebrate in our own way, some overdo and others are more simple. We only have to please ourselves. I am so happy for you, Cro, that this year you are surrounded with the love and jhappiness of your two grandsons. It will, indeed be a very merry Christmas for you this year.

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  10. Merry Christmas to you too! I'm not a Traditional person by Nature, but I do enjoy our own peculiar Traditions and Rituals, it keeps me grounded I think and connected to our Past.

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    1. As long as I do the fundamentals, my family is happy. I like being creative, but this year I am just doing the basics. It will all be fine. I hope with all that is going on with your big move that you have wonderful but easy holidays.

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  11. It sounds like you will be enjoying a wonderful Christmas surrounded by family. I like my traditions but could quite easily do away with the roast dinner. If I could get away with it we'd be having lasagne, but with family visiting I will make the effort :)
    A very Merry Christmas to you and yours. 🎄🎄🎄

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    1. My daughter always has a big roast dinner on Christmas that is fabulous. I am glad that I do not have to prepare it. I will be making Ina Garten’s Mac and Cheese the night before and that is as creative as I wish to get.

      I know you and Lily will have a lovely a Christmas. I always enjoy your sweet, peaceful pictures you take of your adventures together.

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  12. Sounds like a wonderful family Christmas. Enjoy.

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  13. Best wishes to you. I admire your attitude about the holiday. I'd love to see a picture of that pink raffia tree.

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    1. One year, in the 90’, i used pink raffia for the garland. It was “unique” and, I thought, pretty. I did the same thing to the tree where I worked. People seemed to like it, or at least that is what they said. The next year, I did hydrangeas. As I said, it was the 90’s.

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  14. Happy Christmas Arleen. Hope your Christmas is just the way you want it xx

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  15. I love your style, Arleen. I am a creature of habit but.... I admire those who aren't. As my youngest daughter (22yo) always says... "Just do YOU!". Have fun doing you this holiday season and always. Love, Andrea xoxo

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    1. Thank you Andrea. As I said, I do the fundamentals then embellish it in my own way. This year, though, not so much embellishment. I’m just glad that I was able to carry up the 7 1/2 foot tree from the basement without too many bruises. I took a day of rest after that.

      Enjoy the holidays, Andrea; I hope your days are merry and bright.

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  16. Every year I used to plead for a non-traditional Christmas with simple healthy food but I never got my wish! I've given up all hope of that these days. My younger daughter Laura, has made the dinner for the last few years and I have to admit that it is superb! But I always end up eating too much. Anyway we do have a lovely large family gathering. Luckily we all live within a few miles of each other.
    I hope you enjoy a wonderful time with your lovely family X.
    CLICK HERE for Bazza’s foolishly festive Blog ‘To Discover Ice’

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    1. Dear Bazza, I hope you and your lovely, large family have a wonderful Christmas together. You are so lucky to have all your family close. You are blessed.

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  17. Sometimes it takes a long time to figure out what is important to us. I think you have it just right.
    I hope you have a wonderful gathering with your family.

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  18. G'day, Arleen. A very Marry Christmas to you...I hope it is all you want it to be. I'll be spending the Festive Season very quietly...by choice....just my two furry mates and me. Take good care. :)

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    1. Merry Christmas, Lee. You have your sweet fur balls to keep you company and give you joy. What would we do without them? They give us such comfort.

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  19. i loved visiting your lovely place my friend
    want to thank you for dropping by :)

    cute pet in your header image
    i found your sharing wonderful and interesting ,hope you can up your Christmas tree according to your satisfaction :)

    here in Asia Pakistan winter holidays are starting from tomorrow ,looking forward to time with family :)
    wishing you more happiness in days ahead !

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  20. Thank you, Baili. I hope you have wonderful holidays also.

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  21. Wise words. I predict you will have a wonderful time this year now you have ditched the extraneous stuff. Warmest wishes, Sue

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    1. I will have my whole family with me so I will be very happy. One of my daughters and her family live on the other side of the country and I only get to see them two weeks a year. It means so much to me that they are with me during the holidays.

      I hope your holidays are good, Sue, and that there will be much joy for you in the new year.

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  22. Your "get-over-it" paragraph was priceless and resonated with me. Those anticipated hugs and time together are special gifts. Wishing you and yours much joy.

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    1. When things get to be too much, one has to accept what is and get over it. It makes the days easier.

      Have a wonderful holiday, LC and may 2020 be kind to you and yours.

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  23. Christmas seems to come round more quickly each year … but I am quite well organised this year! LOL!

    I wish you a happy Christmas-time and enjoy time with your family.

    All the best Jan

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    1. Yes, Christmas does seem to come around quicker every year. It might have to do do with the commercials and promotions starting in early October. It also might have to do with time seeming to go by faster the older we get.

      Have a lovely holiday and may you have a very good new year.

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  24. I thought about an "ugly" sweater, too, and realized that I had one that was cute and festive and that's what I'm wearing. Mostly sticking to tried and true traditions, but eager for a little change, too. I'm switching my regular calendar around starting in January with new gym classes and happy to be mixing things up.
    Wishes to you and your family for a bright and blessed Christmas.

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  25. Wishing you a very Happy New Year.

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  26. hello dear friend :)
    here to drop you my heartfelt best wishes for new year ,hope you have one filled with health ,peace and happiness !

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    1. May you also have peace, happiness and above all, good health, Baili.

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  27. Dear Arleen, I so enjoyed and agreed with what you wrote in this pre-Christmas posting. (And I'm just loving that cat in the blog phot. So beautiful.) Like you, I've let go through the years of all sorts of things that no longer speak to me or represent where I am in life.

    And with regard to prayer, I really don't pray in the traditional sense anymore but I do tell people I will pray because that comforts them. Then I do what has become second nature for me and do my own kind of "praying" just as you do with your heart and your hope and your trust that all shall be well. As John Henry Cardinal Newman said back in the mid-19th century: "to grow is to Me. To have changed often is to have become perfect." By the last word he meant that we had grown into the person our deepest inner center called us to be. Peace.

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    1. This was such a beautiful comment and it touched my heart, dear Dee. Thank you so much.

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    2. Dear Arleen, just now read what I commented on January 6. In the 2nd paragraph, the quote by John Henry Cardinal Newman should read. "To grow is to change. To have changed often is to have become perfect." Then the rest stands as I wrote it! I need to learn to proofread! I'm glad the comment touched your heart. That happens to me, also, often when I read the wisdom of all of you whose blogs I follow. Peace.

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  28. What a lovely upbeat post! I hope you enjoyed an absolutely fantabulous holiday with your family.

    One of the good things about getting older is we learn to get rid of the unimportant "traditional" chaff in our lives, so we can simplify and enjoy the good stuff. Family, friends, love. Once upon a time, our house was absolutely immaculate, because I thought it was really important. By golly, people really COULD eat from our kitchen floor if they had a mind to. Now? Well... the health department has never condemned our place... that's something, right? :)

    Happy New Year, sweet lady!

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    1. It takes a lifetime to realize what is important and what isn’t. Oh, we all really know it, but we let stuff get in our way. It is lovely to have things, but they can cloud our thinking and we miss the sunshine.

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  29. Thank you for your sweet compliment!--and I hope your holidays were so so so nice! I love this picture of the kitty by the fire! Hope your new year has started off great!

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  30. I'm so glad you were able to celebrate Christmas on your own terms. You are so right that being with your family is the most important of all. It's great that your daughter took some of the pressure away from you. Glad you have Costco and good restaurants nearby. You are always entertaining Arleen and I'm sure you were the life of the party! Wishing you and your family a very happy & healthy New Year!

    Julie

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