Have Yourself a Merry

Please don't let this die now.

He came, he saw…

and he left behind more food than this fridge has hosted in months.  I’ve been keeping the refrigerator sparse due to its now sensitive nature.  Trying to coax it along for another year or so before I break down and replace it, but in the meantime, to minimize losses I try not to keep much in there at a time.  Man Child came home last week, took one look, went shopping and got to cooking.  And baking.  Because he was leaving to do some traveling and meet up with Miss Music for the holidays, he wanted to be sure Art Child was covered for Christmas.  She now has approximately 8001 assorted, homemade cookies to share with Santa.

There’s good and bad to having a large span of years between the first child and the last.  The bad, I’ve kind of run out of steam for all the little extra touches during the holiday season.  The good, the oldest doesn’t want the youngest to miss out, so he picks up the slack.

Having him here was great.  A friend of his also came to stay for a couple of the days, so fun!  I’m glad I’m no longer one of them, but the passion and enthusiasm of young adults can’t be beat, and we had a great political discussion one of the evenings.  That’s the thing about allowing your teens to go to boarding school, there are fewer opportunities for these moments.  So yes, even now that Man Child is in his senior year of college, I can honestly say I treasure these times.

He left, and Nerd Child arrived.  I’m hoping he’ll play his guitar for me a few times while he’s home–another one of those experiences I wish I had more of–but it’s unlikely.  And that is my fault, I get too excited.  Really.  I always tell myself I’m going to be blasé and just nod and smile, but then I burst with the fabulousness of it all, asking him to play another and another, and why doesn’t he sing, too?  Mmm hmm.  My enthusiasm is received like a zit exploding mid-performance.

Art Child and I got a little tree this year.  Barely more than a table top.  On the stand, it just about reaches my rib cage.  It feels right.  Low key.  I haven’t done one thing to decorate the tree or the apartment. Honestly, I’m still too busy feeling the relief of the extra space.

Do I have to consider myself behind on the holiday shopping if I’m never done at this point? I say no. Besides, I’m still busy angsting (took 4 tries to type angsting, spell check is insisting I mean to write ingesting) over what I am or am not doing with writing and submitting, checking email 43 times an hour to see if I’ve gotten any responses.

I did drag myself away from the screen yesterday, spent some time in the park with Art Child to check out the bare trees and the holiday booths by Columbus Circle.

I'll stick with tea, thanks.

I’ll stick with tea, thanks.

I never knew horses could have curly hair. Fur?

I never knew horses could have curly hair. Fur?

The park, tony Columbus Circle, the artisan booths, older buildings behind, to me this shot caught NY.

The park, tony Columbus Circle, the artisan booths, older buildings behind, to me this shot caught NY.

Art Child and I both loved this tree.

Art Child and I both loved this tree.

At long last, I now have a favorite park bench.

At long last, I now have a favorite park bench.

13 comments

  3. You’re more in the spirit than I. Retail – ugh. I come home all worn out. Happily, my singleton college kid no longer has expectations. (see what I did?) I peered for a long time at your fridge. So packed! (and how sweet of your eldest!)
    Anyway – a Merry to you.

    Like

    Reply

    1. Oh, working retail in the holiday season, long hard days. ❤ These older kiddos are great, aren't they? 🙂 Thank you for the good thoughts, wishing you a very Merry holiday–hopefully with some days of sleep.

      Like

      Reply

  5. As always lots of things to like in your post. I like what you say about siblings’ relationships and parents/kids relationships as we age and they grow. I enjoy serious talks with my college kids, too, and once in a while I catch a glimpse of younger me, all energy and hope, in their enthusiastic takes on life.
    I also like NYC very much – almost as much as Paris – and enjoy to travel through the city, thanks to your photos.

    Like

    Reply

    1. Thank you Evelyn. I love hearing from other parents who enjoy their older kiddos. It’s a relationship like all others, it does and should change with time.

      I’ve never been to Paris, maybe one day I’ll get there–my camera will surely be in hand. 🙂

      Wishing you a very happy, peaceful holiday season.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  6. Merry, merry, lovey. So glad you got to have Man Child home for a while. It’s not the same when they’re away for the holidays. Lack of decorations? Fine. No presents? Ppft. Broken over? Whatever. Man Child missing? Slow, agonizing death. SO GLAD Man Child came home! Happy, happy to all, my sweet! ❤

    Like

    Reply

      1. LOL, sure sure, blame WP 😉

        Thank you for the good thoughts. It’s true, no matter how old they are, it’s the kiddos that make the holidays. And good friends, our chosen families. ❤

        Like

        Reply

Join the Discussion

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.