Christmas Chaos

I love Christmas and everything about it-the shopping, the wrapping, the decorating, the hanging with family. Everything but one...when it's over. It seems as if the much anticipated holiday dawdles on its way here and then rushes through in a flash. I'm looking around my living room at the towers of boxes and piles of paper wondering where the time went.
Pete came early to see Joey's holiday program so our Christmases actually began early in December. Christmas Eve is always spent in Dayton with the Rachford side of the family. On Christmas morning, we open the presents that Santa left at our house, then have lunch with my dad's side of the family and dinner/appetizer with my parents and siblings. Lately, our tradition has included spending the night at my sister's house.
This year we added some new family members-Matt married Justine, Brian is dating Katie and Scott married Danielle. We missed Michelle and Quentin, although I'm sure they had a great time together in Colorado Springs.
I can't wait until next Christmas!!!

Getting Our Tree

Yesterday was our annual go to the Christmas tree farm and get a tree day. This is simpler than it sounds in that we (Greg, Cindy, Jimmy and I) are the only paid volunteers at Aunt Christina's Christmas tree farm. (Bottom of Backbone Hill, Rt. 50) Joey was not into the whole walking into the field and cutting down a tree thing, so being the good parents that we are, we forced him to do it with a little bribery, I mean motivation. You know, the whole Santa and the elves are watching speech. It didn't take long to find a tree, cut it down and drag it to the car. The best part, for me anyway, was arriving home after a long day at the tree farm and seeing the Christmas tree all lit up in our living room. Joey and I will hang ornaments on it as soon as I find them-they're in storage, of course!

Elves Day Tradition

Did you know that Santa's elves do a little snooping for Santa before Christmas? My dad must have made a special deal with either the elves or Santa, because those little buggers would always sneak into our house and fill our stockings with little treats before Christmas came each year. As I was growing up, the elves also visited our friends the Sandfosses, but for some reason never visited the Ottaways. Hmmm...
Joey has been anxiously awaiting the arrival of the elves this year. Every morning in December, the first thing he has done is sneak downstairs to check the condition of the stocking hung by the fireplace. Unfortunately, there was only one stocking, Joey's, because the others are in storage. Last night, Joey wanted us to put out some socks just in case the elves were refusing to visit our stockingless house. I found some very stretchy, comfy socks for him to place on the hearth.
This morning Joey couldn't wait to tell us that he spotted two of Santa's little helpers in his doorway when he awoke around 1 o'clock this morning. One of them wore a red Santa hat, the other a green one. He even heard them whispering! Further evidence that the elves had visited lay in our full stockings.