Like I asked a couple weeks ago in this space, is it already time to play Christmas music?
Now, more than ever, that answer is a resounding “yes.”
Cue Andy Williams’ “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year.”
Thanksgiving is now in the rearview mirror, and if your family is like mine, the holidays are a time for family.
And nothing beats family time.
Nothing.
My wife is a wonder in the kitchen. She can make anything out of nothing. We joke that she is adept at creating concoctions when we need to go shopping.
And whatever she makes is so darn good!
That was the case again last Thursday with the turkey, cheesy potatoes, mashed potatoes (can’t go wrong with too many potatoes), BBQ meatballs, green bean casserole, stuffing, shrimp and the family cocktail sauce, and dessert that consisted of pumpkin pie, cheesecake, and my mom’s homemade apple pie.
Needless to say, naps were in order around 5 p.m. You know 5 p.m. The time it gets dark from November through March.
It was also a rare sight at our house to have all our kids and two girlfriends under one roof.
Our oldest son, now 18 (sheesh!) works and is going to HVAC trade school when he’s not sleeping, and our middle child, 16, also a son, works and likes to confine himself to his room playing his XBox. Our daughter is 13 and has been cleaning her room for the past five years.
That being said, having our kids, my parents and sister and her daughter over last Thursday was fantastic.
We laughed, we told stories, we laughed some more.
That’s what family is all about.
Sure, we have our differences from time to time, but what family doesn’t?
Being together when it matters the most makes it all worth it.
With family time tough to come by at times, we always say that it’s quality over quantity.
And that’s the truth!
There are moments when we are all together that I just sit back and take it all in. That’s what Gramps used to say when he was with us. He’d just sit and smile and poke fun at the kids.
Man, do I miss him! He would have been 98 on Sunday. We lost him in March 2017 and it hasn’t been the same since.
Thanksgiving was family time – and still is – and we also celebrated his birthday. He was a sucker for blueberry pie.
As we head into Christmas full-steam ahead, enjoy those precious family moments and take nothing or no one for granted.
Merry Christmas and see you out and about, Clarkston!