As the holiday winds down.....
Dec. 25th, 2007 11:49 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
osodecanelaMy husband is in bed and already fast asleep, the dog is lying across the foot of the bed and one of the cats is curled up in the space that should be right between the two of us, except I'm still winding down.
We spent the holiday with our 4 godchildren and an assortment of their family's extended family, which I guess includes the two of us, if true family is not that of blood, but of love. I was among the last to leave and whilst in the bathroom overheard the 5 and 6 year olds making a ruckus, as their parents tried to herd them off to bed without the chance to say goodnight to Uncle Weaver. You would have thought their father was threatening to put down the cat! I stepped out of the bathroom only to be tackled by the two kids, who after hugging me tightly, obediently scampered off to bed.
It was a day spent eating much more than one should have (certainly this one in particular!) and then it was on to opening gifts. There were many thoughtful things given today, and each of the kids seemed absolutely enthralled with at least something they got. Joyce and April got a children's china tea set from LJ and I, and while it did not appear to capture April's imagination, it sure caught Joyce's, who couldn't wait to take it out, not to play with it, but to actually use it. Her birthday is next month and I suspect a number of teas will be in order, de-caf of course. For a previous experience with my godchildren and tea http://osodecanela.livejournal.com/37584.html
This was the first X-mas without Grandma Rose, who entered eternity this past summer. While she was alive, no holiday or family gathering went without some sort of handicraft being done as we sat around and talked. She almost always had her needlepoint with her, and since my first gathering with the family, I rarely show up without my knitting. Dan joined our ranks with roving and drop spindle this past Thanksgiving, adding yet another spinner to our number. This afternoon, after my fill of hor d'oeuvres (just how many rumaki can one eat?) out came my knitting followed by a rapt 3 and 5 year old sitting first at my feet, then in my lap, watching what I was doing intently. April, has decided it's her job to hold my yarn and unwind it, calling out each stitch as it comes off my needles. The child actually knows a knit from a purl, which is no mean feat for a 5 year old, particularly at the speed she forces me to work at. You see, in her deciding to help me by unwinding my yarn to 'feed' to me as I knit, I'm forced to work at a much faster pace, or else face a mound of unraveled yarn sitting at my feet. Any time she decides to help, my fingers start to fly. Amen, today's project was a toque, a simple 2-1 rib at the headband, followed 5 inches thereafter by a straight stockingnet stitch.
George is doing reasonably well in his widowhood, though the rough spots remain pretty apparent. It's hard to realize the youngest two are likely to have vague, if any memories of her, and even for Joyce, who stood to eulogize Rose at her funeral, the memories will grow dim with time. Yes, the child was only 6, but when the pastor asked if there were those who had thoughts they wanted to share, she stood, took her mother's hand and led her to the front of the church. Joyce offered her own sense of loss, and how she was going to miss her grandmother, then turned to her mother and simply said, "Momma, it's your turn."
There were some tears today, a few from memories, a few from joy. Melissa, George's daughter and the kids' aunt, burst into tears when a photograph she'd wanted of the girls had been emblazoned a lap blanket for her. However, she really lost it when she opened the gift from her father. At Thanksgiving, Mel was pumping me for information on laptops, as I'm now on my third and quite happy with it. I promised I'd show her my HP the following week, after quizzing her to see what she wanted to be able to do with a laptop. Not that I'm a computer maven of any note mind you, but I do seem to have more experience than the majority within the extended family. After Thanksgiving dinner, George pulled me aside to ask for my help, to point him towards a machine that would suit her needs he could give her for X-mas, rather than let Mel and Dan get one for themselves after the new year. After getting together with her over my HP, and finding it was not only light enough for her to carry without difficulty (bad carpal tunnel), but also had enough of the features she wanted, it seemed a good choice for her. I called George, asked his price range, and thereafter managed to find a good buy on an HP, a machine nearly identical to mine, save the finger print scanner. It did however come with a tv tuner card, complete with remote, something my machine lacks. Knowing what laptop Mel was actually going to get, made figuring out what LJ and I could get her easy. A light weight computer case to go with it!
All and all it was a sweet holiday gathering. I hope the holiday was as warm and fuzzy for each of you reading this. To all of you, my prayers, and best wishes to you and those you love and care for this holiday season, whatever festival(s) you choose to observe. May this season bring each of you good health, joy and above all, peace.
We spent the holiday with our 4 godchildren and an assortment of their family's extended family, which I guess includes the two of us, if true family is not that of blood, but of love. I was among the last to leave and whilst in the bathroom overheard the 5 and 6 year olds making a ruckus, as their parents tried to herd them off to bed without the chance to say goodnight to Uncle Weaver. You would have thought their father was threatening to put down the cat! I stepped out of the bathroom only to be tackled by the two kids, who after hugging me tightly, obediently scampered off to bed.
It was a day spent eating much more than one should have (certainly this one in particular!) and then it was on to opening gifts. There were many thoughtful things given today, and each of the kids seemed absolutely enthralled with at least something they got. Joyce and April got a children's china tea set from LJ and I, and while it did not appear to capture April's imagination, it sure caught Joyce's, who couldn't wait to take it out, not to play with it, but to actually use it. Her birthday is next month and I suspect a number of teas will be in order, de-caf of course. For a previous experience with my godchildren and tea http://osodecanela.livejournal.com/37584.html
This was the first X-mas without Grandma Rose, who entered eternity this past summer. While she was alive, no holiday or family gathering went without some sort of handicraft being done as we sat around and talked. She almost always had her needlepoint with her, and since my first gathering with the family, I rarely show up without my knitting. Dan joined our ranks with roving and drop spindle this past Thanksgiving, adding yet another spinner to our number. This afternoon, after my fill of hor d'oeuvres (just how many rumaki can one eat?) out came my knitting followed by a rapt 3 and 5 year old sitting first at my feet, then in my lap, watching what I was doing intently. April, has decided it's her job to hold my yarn and unwind it, calling out each stitch as it comes off my needles. The child actually knows a knit from a purl, which is no mean feat for a 5 year old, particularly at the speed she forces me to work at. You see, in her deciding to help me by unwinding my yarn to 'feed' to me as I knit, I'm forced to work at a much faster pace, or else face a mound of unraveled yarn sitting at my feet. Any time she decides to help, my fingers start to fly. Amen, today's project was a toque, a simple 2-1 rib at the headband, followed 5 inches thereafter by a straight stockingnet stitch.
George is doing reasonably well in his widowhood, though the rough spots remain pretty apparent. It's hard to realize the youngest two are likely to have vague, if any memories of her, and even for Joyce, who stood to eulogize Rose at her funeral, the memories will grow dim with time. Yes, the child was only 6, but when the pastor asked if there were those who had thoughts they wanted to share, she stood, took her mother's hand and led her to the front of the church. Joyce offered her own sense of loss, and how she was going to miss her grandmother, then turned to her mother and simply said, "Momma, it's your turn."
There were some tears today, a few from memories, a few from joy. Melissa, George's daughter and the kids' aunt, burst into tears when a photograph she'd wanted of the girls had been emblazoned a lap blanket for her. However, she really lost it when she opened the gift from her father. At Thanksgiving, Mel was pumping me for information on laptops, as I'm now on my third and quite happy with it. I promised I'd show her my HP the following week, after quizzing her to see what she wanted to be able to do with a laptop. Not that I'm a computer maven of any note mind you, but I do seem to have more experience than the majority within the extended family. After Thanksgiving dinner, George pulled me aside to ask for my help, to point him towards a machine that would suit her needs he could give her for X-mas, rather than let Mel and Dan get one for themselves after the new year. After getting together with her over my HP, and finding it was not only light enough for her to carry without difficulty (bad carpal tunnel), but also had enough of the features she wanted, it seemed a good choice for her. I called George, asked his price range, and thereafter managed to find a good buy on an HP, a machine nearly identical to mine, save the finger print scanner. It did however come with a tv tuner card, complete with remote, something my machine lacks. Knowing what laptop Mel was actually going to get, made figuring out what LJ and I could get her easy. A light weight computer case to go with it!
All and all it was a sweet holiday gathering. I hope the holiday was as warm and fuzzy for each of you reading this. To all of you, my prayers, and best wishes to you and those you love and care for this holiday season, whatever festival(s) you choose to observe. May this season bring each of you good health, joy and above all, peace.
