Pretend your reading this yesterday, okay? I was so tired last night and with all the sickness in the area, decided to just go to bed. Thankfully, I feel fine this morning.
So I’m a day behind here and it’s going to be a quick post (probably no photos today).
Yesterday’s Prompt Was: Quiet Christmas, big gathering, or traveling? Has the celebration style changed much since COVID came along and disrupted our lives?
We’ve done all of these.
Big Gatherings
As a kid, most my Christmas memories are of large gatherings. Once married, we still gathered together with family. My husband and I would alternate which side we visited for dinner. Christmas always worked out well as his family did breakfast and opened presents after in addition to the dinner.
Once, when we were first married, I remember getting a call from his sister at something like 9a.m. on Christmas morning wanting to know where we were?! Ha, it took me a few years to come around to the whole Christmas at the crack of dawn idea. (I wasn’t always the morning person I find myself to be now)
After we lost our most our parents (3 in 3 years…from 2004-2007), we still did breakfast at my father–in-law’s home but my older brother took over the hosting of my side. Still felt like large gatherings (more so on my side) with all the siblings, nieces and nephews, and their children as well!
Traveling
One time, before we had our boys–actually when I was pregnant with G, we traveled to Oklahoma for Christmas. It was a fun gathering but driving around Christmas was a bit tough. And of course, I missed my own side of the family terribly.
Christmas Celebration Changes
After a bit of a falling out with my husband’s father and new wife, we started hosting the Christmas breakfast for his side here. I fully admit I loved that (the hosting, not the falling out). We generally did it quite early as my brother-in-law and his wife went to her side usually for a brunch/early gathering.
COVID didn’t change much as far as our breakfast gatherings but we did take a 2 year break from going to my brother’s home. Sometimes with large families and lots of opinions, things get dicey. However, things seem to be tilting somewhat back to normal and we’ll probably be going there for Christmas this year. I’m fairly excited as I did miss seeing my side during all of the craziness.
I doubt we’ll do the breakfast this year as my sister-in-law and her husband moved to Florida and don’t plan to come for Christmas this year. And I’m not sure (we’re never sure) of my brother-in-law and his wife’s plans.
Quiet Christmas
Last year we had an extremely quiet Christmas celebration with just the four of us. I probably should have planned Christmas dinner a bit better. Other than that, it was relaxing but I’m really happy to perhaps have a bit more structure to our day this year.
What type of Christmas do you anticipate having this year? Which type of gathering is your favorite? I admit I’m very partial to a loud, boisterous family gathering for the holiday.
When I was a kid I don’t remember going anywhere for Christmas or having anyone over. As we got older and out on our own, we did start gathering together, usually at my brother’s house (the house we grew up in). My dad had passed years before this started. It was just my mom and us six kids (and growing families) gathering. Then somewhere along the line there was some tension and falling out among family members and the gatherings became smaller, if they happened at all some years. The pandemic did halt any gatherings for us, for health safety as well as some verrrry strong opinions that caused even more falling out.
I’d already started skipping gatherings some years even before the pandemic. Like I said, there were tensions in the family. We started just having a nice Christmas at home, just the four of us, and it’s been great for the most part. I do feel bad for my mom though, not seeing her kids and grandkids (and now great-grandkids) gathered together. She’s 86 now. You’d think we’d be able to grin and bear it for a day for her sake but no, apparently some of us can not.