We’ve been getting closer to our holiday preparations here. Some shopping has started, lists have been made, plans are getting finalized. I think my Christmas spirit – that normally kicks in around mid-November – is finally starting to creep in around the edges.
Ron and I and Emma went to the homeschooling group’s Christmas dinner, where some of the family members did little performances. A poetry reading, a small piece on the piano, and two families each sang together beautifully. Ron turned to me later and said, ‘We could have sang something,” I suppose yes we could have. But alas, it has been a while and we are out of practice.
So yesterday while working in the office, Ron started playing the Christmas tunes. That did it. I can’t work well with music and when he starts playing songs we can sing together (Unforgettable – Nat King and Natalie Cole) well, I’m about lost.
And then we practiced “Baby It’s Cold Outside” because we are insufferably adorable. And I’m gonna prove it in a post next week. 
It’s not just that kind of together time, we took the girls all the way down the road to the local convenience store to pick out a Christmas tree. yes, it’s about a kilometer. It’s been so long since we went tree-picking as a family – I think it was 2000, the older girls sort of sat there in there car going, “What do we do now?”
“Well, get out and help Dad and I pick a tree.” I told them.
“How about this one?” Ron is in the middle of the stand, covered by branches.
“Do we want tall? Or bushy? Or tall and bushy?” I asked him, reminding him we hadn’t discussed the exact kind of tree we were looking for. Ron and I propped up almost every tree and discussed their merits, bantering back and forth.
“How about a green one?” said Meaghan.
I looked at Sarah. “I’m here for the long argument about semantics,” she said from under her hat.
“GAH! We’re having family togetherness time! Enjoy yourselves darn it!” That’s me.
We then settled on a tree, went inside to pay our $20, and watched Ron play a game of pinball for 25 cents on the ancient machine. That part was fun.
Back outside, we stuffed the tree in the trunk of our little Ford Focus. “Can you see it out your mirror?” Ron asked. “Let me know if it moves.”
“I hope we don’t have to walk home,” Meaghan said in the back, “It’s awfully far.”
We got all the way to the post office – you know, the one NEXT DOOR – before we had to stop and rearrange the tree in the trunk trying to fall out. Today we have to argue about where to put it.
But even better! Already we have presents! Ron had started asking me about a month ago if I wanted a new bathroom sink for Christmas. Our main bathroom upstairs (the one with the clawfoot tub) has a teeny tiny old sink, that quite frankly is disgusting. All the enamel is worn off in one spot right under the cold tap for starters. The drain was clogged when we moved in.
The more I thought of it, the more I thought of how tired I was and how much better I’d feel if I could get a workout in somehow. It’s too cold / icy / sidewalk-free for me to walk outside. Finally, Ron found out that a former co-worker’s girlfriend had an elliptical machine in their basement, and she hated it. She only got it to keep her moving while she waited for her treadmill to get here from Newfoundland.
I went out to their place, looked at it, tried it out for a few minutes and had a hard time getting off the thing becasue it started to feel good, then played with their baby. I came home and told Ron he was getting it for me. Yesterday it was delivered, and I overdid it a bit with two short workouts. The second was because I foudn my mp3 player and it was charged this time.
Boy did it feel good. I’m tired today, but it’s a different tired. It’s a good tired, like things are looking up.
And maybe I’ll get Ron a bathroom sink for Christmas.
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