Tuesday, Dec. 25

Merry Christmas to everyone!

Up late, around 8:30, and skipped my exercises again, and got ready for the day. In the meantime, Hubbie accompanied Mother to our house. As soon as I was ready, we set to work making a peach cobbler. When the cobbler was in the oven, we made dumplings.

I was glad when daughter arrived around 10:30, because I didn't want her on the road when winter weather rolled in.

At 11 a.m., I started cooking the dumplings. I like to do them a small amount at a time, so they don't stick together. Since we'd made a double batch of them (because Daughter just loves them), it took about 45 minutes to complete the task.

Hubbie peeled potatoes, and I set them to cooking, along with a big pan of corn-on-the-cob. Close to lunchtime, I mashed the potatoes, and put a dish of asparagus in the microwave. Mother sliced sourdough bread.

The meal, served with fruit salad (Hubbie's favorite Christmas dish), was very comforting on this cold day. Daughter has always declared that she didn't like asparagus or fruit salad, but she agreed to try both today, and she found that she loves them.

After lunch, we watched the Disney World Christmas parade. Before long, though, Mother was too sleepy to continue watching, so she retired to the couch for a nap. She slept most of the afternoon.

The rest of us continued watching the parade, and then we watched the Mormon Tabernacle Choir concert from the PBS channel. This was a very good performance that included "The Night Before Christmas" in song (by Nathan Gunn and the choir), "Good King Wenceslas," from the book by Omar Rayyan, as read by Jane Seymour, intertwined with the carol, as sung by Nathan Gunn and the choir. I've heard this popular Christmas carol forever, but never realized what an interesting story it tells.

The story is about Good "King Wenceslas braving harsh winter weather to give alms to a poor peasant on the Feast of Stephen (the second day of Christmas, December 26). During the journey, his page is about to give up the struggle against the cold weather, but is enabled to continue by following the king's footprints, step for step, through the deep snow."

Mother slept through this performance. I think she'd enjoy it, so we'll play it again tomorrow (I'd enjoy seeing it again).

Later, when Mother finished her nap, around 4 p.m., we watched a Lifetime Movie Network mystery, and then had a supper of homemade tomato soup, with a choice of pimento cheese sandwiches, or Italian Cream Cheese ball and crackers. Dessert was peach cobbler and ice cream.

It began sleeting this afternoon, and snow soon followed, but only a light dusting by dark time. But warnings for an overnight blizzard continue for our county, so we might wake up to ten or more inches of snow in the morning.

Spent the evening watching LMN murder mysteries.

Since the weather is so threatening, Mother will spend tonight with us, and maybe the next couple of days, until things clear up. Hope we don't lose power. If we do, we'll be moving to the camper, which can be heated with propane.