Sunday, Dec. 22

Up early, around 6 a.m., so we could get ready for a trip about an hour away for a Christmas visit with Hubbie's family. Daughter went with us, but Sis and Mother opted to stay home.

We arrived at Hubbie's daughter's home around 10:30. Granddaughter and her family were already there, having arrived from Michigan yesterday. That family, all eight of them (three adults and five children), traveled all night from upper Michigan to our state. They were in a van, but it was still a tight fit. One of the children is a young adult, and one is a teenager. One is a baby, and two are under age five. One of the adults is Granddaughter's mother-in-law.Not my idea of a pleasant trip.

Soon, the others arrived...Hubbie's other daughter, and his son, plus several grandchildren and great-grandchildren, as well as assorted spouses, and Hubbie's ex-wife. It was a large and boisterous gathering.

There was a bounty of food, of course, including three kinds of soup, and sandwich makings, side dishes, and lots and lots of dessert choices. The soups I brought were welcome, and the wine jelly was a hit.

Once we'd eaten and cleared away the meal, there was a gift exchange. The women among us gave token gifts to families. My gift was a choice of half-pint jars of homemade jellies. One of the daughters gave crocheted dish clothes; the other gave little battery-operated candles in holders; Hubbie's ex-wife gave quart Ziplock bags of pecans and little bottles of hand lotion; a granddaughter gave quart jars of homemade cherry jam.

Hubbie and his family have agreed not to exchange Christmas gifts, but rather to do birthday gifts only. Unfortunately, Hubbie failed to pack one daughter's birthday gift into the car. The gift card for the other daughter was in his pocket, though. The two daughters have birthdays on the same day.

The two girls go together to get a gift for me, though I've repeatedly told them it is unnecessary to get anything for me. Today, they presented me with a gift basket of the brand of beauty supplies one of the daughters sells.

The hostess daughter is one of the most thoughtful people I know, so she saw that my daughter was not left out. Daughter came home with one of the battery operated candles, a dishcloth, pecans and lotion, and an extra gift of a star shaped candle and holder.

Part of the afternoon was devoted to the children making graham cracker Christmas houses. We brought all the supplies, and the kids gathered around the ping-pong table in the garage, which was covered with plastic table clothes.

We were amused when a couple of the boys at first refused to participate, but then were irresistibly drawn to the project. One of the grown granddaughters even wanted to do one. It was a happy time, and there were a lot of creative results.

Around 3:30, everyone was ready to leave. We arrived back home around 4:30, and I immediately heated soups and set out sandwich makings for our supper.

After supper, we went on a Christmas lights tour of the town. We were all impressed with the elaborate and spectacular display at the river park...thousands of lights, some of which are synchronized to music (if only we could have found the correct radio station to hear the Christmas tunes). We also enjoyed the downtown lighting display, as well as a few "Griswold" decorated homes around town.

Back home, we snacked on hot chocolate and a choice of desserts...rum cake for everyone but Mother, who opted for cookies.

Not long afterward, we were ready to call it a night. It had been a big day for some of us, and one that Daughter thoroughly enjoyed.

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Note: Daughter has a new, and technically wonderful pair of hearing aids. They include a mic that can be attached to clothing, so that whoever is wearing it can talk in a normal tone of voice, and Daughter can clearly understand. She was very much loving hearing the sound of my voice. It was as though she'd never really heard it before.