December 23, 2021

 The night of the Winter Solstice our immediate family gathered together to do some serious cookie decorating. We've enjoyed doing this (not on this date necessarily) for a few years now and it seems we are achieving new heights in our skills. 

Some of them are sarcastic and naughty, others are seriously pretty. Still others are flawed due to a misjudgment of how much frosting was coming out. 

Husband was quite tickled with his accomplishments on Patrick Star (from Spongebob Squarepants).

Meanwhile, the decorations are done in the house, the gifts are wrapped (well, the ones I'm responsible for, anyway - can't speak for husband and son), and I've done what is, I hope, the last of the food and drink buying. Even though it's only a little gathering of us instead of the big one, I still want to make it special. 

When the kids were young, husband always read "The Night Before Christmas" to them on Christmas Eve. Now it is displayed behind a piece that depicts Santa taking it easy in the aftermath. My mother gave each one of us (myself and siblings) one of these Santa figures (all the same), so this has seen many Christmases. Poor old guy has his gramophone horn broken off, but he is much loved and makes me think of my father who almost always had a cat perched on him when he sat down. 

Here is our tree, picture taken this morning, so not quite in its glory at night with lights twinkling and such. 

Please note the present placement. Yes, there is a large gap below the tree. Why, may you ask?

That is why. When we first placed a few presents under the tree, he actually got in there, nosed and shoved around and made himself an empty spot where he could lie. Rather than fight it, we've just made sure he has a spot now. 

Here is the better behaved other cat.

Calm, cool, collected, comatose.

Meanwhile, I don't think there has been a single fire in the woodstove that hasn't been directly supervised. (These next pictures are taken on separate occasions, same shirt, ha ha).

Today I shall pre-make a couple of things: green bean casserole, baked sweet potatoes. I hope you are all content in your Christmas preparations, or lack thereof, however you choose to wrap up this year. We have snow on the ground, with more to come.