Happy 2nd Day of Christmas!

The gig is up. Kaleb said to me this morning, “I really want to believe in Santa Claus but the evidence just isn’t there to support it.” I told him he needs to believe in what he wants to believe in and it might serve him well to continue to believe. He asked me “why” and I said because I believe he’s the best boy in the whole world, but sometimes the evidence just isn’t there to support it, but I still believe it anyway. He had to think about that for a minute. I didn’t fess up about being Santa, but he knows. I’m amazed it’s taken him this long, but he does lead a sheltered life.

This Christmas will not soon be forgotten. I wasn’t exactly up to speed. I plan things so far in advance that it bit me in the butt this year. Traditionally we have a big neighbor guy dressed as Santa come over to our house on Christmas Eve. We have two families here for dinner and there are five kids between us. Santa comes in, asks if there are any good boys and girls in the house (a Norwegian tradition), then proceeds to pass out gifts to everyone – including the adults. The kids get two or three gifts and the adults get one. I prepared Santa’s bag way ahead of time and for some very odd reason, this year, I forgot to put in any gifts for Kaleb! Here we were all gathered in the living room opening gifts and Kaleb is just standing there with a dumbfounded look on his face, wondering why the bag is empty and there isn’t a single gift in his hand. I grabbed one of his gifts from under the tree but he refused it, saying it was for the morning. He was crushed. I have no idea how it happened, but it did. It was the Christmas he got NOTHING from Santa.

Then Christmas morning there is usually a large gift for him in front of the tree from Santa and this year, there wasn’t. I filled his stocking, but left his new bike out on the porch so he didn’t see it until all other gifts were opened up. All he kept saying was, “Santa didn’t leave me ANYTHING?” Even after he saw the bike he was a little miffed because Kory and I also got more presents than he did. I usually buy my own presents because Kory never buys me anything and it’s been awkward on Christmas morning when the two of them are opening things and I have nothing, but this year Kory outdid himself and bought me a LOT of things and I bought him a LOT of things and Kaleb, not so much. Kaleb got a few expensive gifts but the volume wasn’t sufficient for him to feel he was on equal par with us, so he was sorely disappointed. As he was heading downstairs to install one of his new Wii games he muttered, “This is the worst Christmas EVER.” I felt horrible. Then I decided we needed to have a talk about STUFF and that the holiday is supposed to be about celebrating the birth of Christ, but as a kid, it really is just about the presents. Ugh. I guess that’s how the light turned on in his head that Santa isn’t as real as he thought he was.

Currently I’m trying to redeem myself by giving him the 12 Days of Christmas so each day from here on out he’s getting an “act of service” from me to show him that possibly the best gifts are those that express love and don’t come with a price tag. He’s looking forward to the next ten days as he insists each day he gets each thing AGAIN, just like in the song “two turtle doves AND a partridge in a pear tree….” The first day of Christmas he got a “real breakfast” (bacon, eggs, toast…). The second day of Christmas he got two hours on his Nintendo DS (instead of his usual one hour), and tomorrow he’ll get “three less chores” (meaning, I’ll do them for him) so he’s holding out for all the repeats in the days ahead. I hope it shifts his memory away from the whole Christmas Eve debacle.

Christmas Day we had our old Seattle neighborhood kids over for breakfast (we call them the “Powerline Kids” because we met them while walking our dog under the power lines by where they lived at the time.) The three of them have now multiplied into11, so it was quite the gathering. We haven’t seen them since we’ve been back home as they are scattered all over the state, so it was great to get together with them again. The youngest, Eric, is now married and has a baby boy. The kids have always called us their “God parents,” which is OK, but when Eric handed me his baby and said to him, “Go see Grandma Mickey,” I about fell over. I was totally NOT prepared to be called Grandma. I told him I could be called “Auntie Mickey,” but “Grandma Mickey” was out of the question. I’m still trying to get used to being Kaleb’s “Mama.”

Earlier this week we went to Stanwood to see the Lights of Christmas then home to watch "A Charlie Brown Christmas" and “The Nativity Story” movie - both excellent. Last Sunday we had Christmas with my step-mom and her family and today we had Christmas with Grammy J and her family. Both gatherings were wonderful, but never long enough. The days are too short! We feel blessed to have “families of choice” in our lives because we all get along great and there aren’t any weird dynamics going on that sometimes put a damper on the holidays. Of course this year I totally blew it with Kaleb, so he’s now perfecting his “forgiveness” skills so future holidays won’t be damaged.

It's Beginning to Feel a Lot Like Christmas

This was a week all about Christmas traditions, celebrations and preparations. It was a good week. I got most of the Christmas cards out, but the house is still a mess. Oh well. We got a card from someone in Iowa, complete with photo of their new baby and their Christmas newsletter and we had absolutely NO idea who these people were. Both Kory and I were scratching our heads. I finally got on Facebook and typed their name to see if maybe they were friends of any of our friends or to look for any clue as to why they were sending us a card, and as it turns out, it was the daughter to a good friend of Kory’s but we didn’t recognize her married name, nor did we know she had moved to Iowa. Apparently it was to inform Kory that his friends had now become grandparents. We got a good laugh over that one, but it scared us there for a while thinking our memories are fading rather quickly.


Our week started off with a Christmas party with our home fellowship group, which is always a good time as we love the dynamics of our group and how well we all get along. Friday we did our traditional downtown Seattle Christmas day where we see the gingerbread houses at the Sheraton Hotel (I liked the “Christmas Story” one the best – see photo), get the Santa photo at Macy’s, have lunch at Westlake Center, ride the carousel, see the trains at the Center House, watch it “snow” inside Pacific Place and let Kaleb spend a little quality time at the downtown public library. We didn’t expect 54 degree weather and patches of blue sky, so other than that, it did feel like Christmas will soon be here. Saturday we took our traditional Santa Train ride at Wickersham up in Whatcom County. Our friends joined us, as usual, and the boys each got to sit on Santa’s lap as he grilled them as to whether they’ve been brushing their teeth and putting their toys away before he asked them what was on their list this year. He’s a great Santa. Today we attended a Christmas Open House party in Seattle before going on to Renton to celebrate Christmas with my step-mom and her family. Getting together with people is by far my favorite thing about this time of year.

I had to fight a lot of internal turmoil this week as it became more and more apparent to me how Christmas is slipping away from our society. When I went into Chase bank, there was barely any evidence of the holiday season at all. Small little nutcrackers were stationed at every teller window and a bow was hung up on the rope that starts the lineup of customers. When I got to the teller I said, “Wow, you really outdid yourselves on Christmas decorations this year,” to which she replied, “We weren’t allowed to put up anything with religious significance or to make any of the decorations very noticeable – company policy.” I thought then and there about how much I’ve hated that bank since they devoured Washington Mutual and my New Year’s resolution will now include changing banks – after 20 years with the same account number. I’ll be sure to let them know when I close out our accounts how offended I am they don’t acknowledge the birth of Christ. But it’s not just them. Twenty years ago “Candy Cane Lane” in Seattle was a huge deal, driving in the area of Ravenna the glow from the houses all lit up for the holiday could be seen blocks away. I’d sit in the car for an hour just to get close to the neighborhood as it was a sight to behold with house after house all decked out for Christmas, but this year we drove by and the lights weren’t even there. Just one small little cul-de-sac had a few lights on and I nearly cried. What’s become of Christmas? It’s more than sad.

Every year Kaleb asks for a dog for Christmas, and he gets one, but then has to give it back because we’re just dog sitting it. It’s no different this year. We got a four month old Golden Retriever on Friday night and I think this dog just might be the one to remove all future desires for a puppy. It’s as cute as can be but it’s not potty trained and it chews up everything. Kaleb is already quite annoyed by it and I’m so thankful. He’d much rather just sit and read a book than walk or play with the dog, so his priorities are pretty clear. This week when he was practicing the piano he finished up his lesson 15 minutes early so I told him to go down and just play songs for 15 more minutes because he needs to practice for 35 minutes a day. He went downstairs and belted out a few rounds of “Frosty the Snowman” before I went down– and there he was, sitting at the piano playing that song WHILE READING A BOOK! I couldn’t believe he had that music so burned into his memory that he could play it perfectly while having his mind understand what he was reading. That kid just freaks me out sometimes, and that was downright freaky.

Happy Birthday Week

The night before Kaleb’s birthday every year, we fill hundreds of balloons (thanks to our air compressor) and put them in his room after he’s gone to sleep. The idea is that he wakes up to a room full of balloons on his birthday, but inevitably he sleepwalks in the middle of the night and crawls into our bed. He loves the tradition so we still do it, but it would be nice if just once he stayed in his own bed for the night. Balloons usually float around the house until after Christmas every year but they make Kaleb happy and they give him something to play with, so we won’t be stopping that tradition anytime soon. He had a wonderful birthday, as usual, as we had the lunch with the neighbors and they watched him open his gifts. We got him a Wii this year so he was thrilled. Technology has replaced toys which I appreciate because they don’t take up as much room in the house but they sure cost more. Raising kids ain’t cheap.


This week was much about Kaleb. He had a day off school on Monday for his birthday then Tuesday he completed his science course and got a 93% for his final grade. Pretty impressive, I say. He started a new class on Earth and Space Science with Johns Hopkins yesterday so we’ll see how he does on that one. He’s always “inventing” things so studying science gives him a lot of good information. I love watching his brain at work. I’m also now loving to watch his fingers work as he tickles those ivories on the piano and plays beautiful music! He had his first piano recital last night and did very well. I don’t know why I’m so surprised by his talents and abilities, but I am. It’s just so shocking to me that he came out of my body and he’s actually GOOD at stuff.


We’ve had incredibly cold weather this week which really highlighted all the hot and cold spots in our house. Our furnace does not distribute the heat evenly so we have rooms that are too hot to stay in long and others that are like a walk-in freezer. Keeping doors closed helps, but that’s a discipline that’s tough for a little boy to remember. I’m glad it’s warming back up again as I hate being cold. Kory has appreciated the crisp days and has been outside doing yard work but I’m happy to sit inside and address Christmas cards. Some days I feel there is no time to just enjoy life - that it’s all just about getting stuff done. I hate that, but this time of year comes with quite a bit of stuff that really needs to be done.


I went to two fabulous cookie exchanges this week and they both (unfortunately) contributed to my waistline in a marvelous and tasty way. I was able to have some female chit-chat time, something I lack on a day-to-day basis around here, and I realized while being able to verbalize some things, that I just need to be done grieving Norway. It’s time to get out of my pit and accept that life is what it is here on the Ridge and start looking for things I enjoy about that – like the flocks of Trumpeter Swans that fly overhead each day or the sliver of orange that peeks out between the gray clouds at sunset or the way the ice formed a beautiful protective shell over the fountain in our pond this week. Each day there are blessings and small miracles and my eyes just need to see them and not the piles of laundry or trail of books Kaleb leaves throughout the house. I am blessed, and I know it, but in Norway, I felt so spoiled. But as my Daddy used to say, “This too, shall pass.” He meant it to comfort me over bad things, but it’s also true of good things – they don’t last forever either. Today would have been his 77th birthday.

Kaleb's Last Day Being 10

We are in the middle of the holiday hustle and bustle here. Kaleb’s 11th birthday is tomorrow. Today he had his two big performances of the Christmas play at His Place Community Church. Saturday he had a practice piano recital and working back through the week we were running here and there all the while the house stayed messy as the boxes of Christmas ornaments didn’t put themselves away. Today, I hope the house gets clean, but I know I’ll have to be the one to do it, so maybe it won’t.

In many ways it feels like the days before Kaleb was born, all the rushing around trying to get this and that done, so maybe it is appropriate that this time of the year is so darn busy - all in preparation for celebrating the greatest birth of all (not Kaleb’s!). I just know the New Year comes with a huge sigh of relief that life gets back to normal, so that’s something to look forward to, but I sure don’t want to miss the advent season by being too busy now. So the house may not get cleaned. Except company is coming tomorrow… Uff da.


Kaleb did pretty well in his Christmas play today. He had a main part and was happy about that. The first service went much better than the second because they had his microphone headset turned off for most of it so his lines weren’t as audible the second time around. First service he had taken some creative liberties with the script and added a few punches that got a good laugh, so the director wasn’t mad he’d done some ad-libbing. He tried it second service but the microphone was off so no one heard it. Funny boy, nonetheless. I’m glad it’s over.


I’m also glad I’m over the hump in terms of my commitments. I spoke at the women’s Christmas brunch at our church on Friday. It went OK. They just wanted me to share all that God did for us in Norway so it was an easy talk to give, but really hard to describe in enough detail to get the real points across. I just hope someone was blessed by it.


We got a call from Norway yesterday that Aunt Ruth fell and broke her hip. We’ve been praying for her non-stop since she was in a lot of pain waiting for surgery. She didn’t want surgery but they didn’t give her that choice. We were worried she’d die on the operating table as her health is so fragile already, but we got a call during church today that she made it through OK and will be in the hospital a while recovering before they send her to a rehab place. Cousin Odd doesn’t think she will ever be able to live on her own again so he assured us when we come in May we will be able to stay in our condo. I’m sure that’s a relief for him since we always crash at his house and next year we’ll be there for seven weeks. But I’m sure Aunt Ruth won’t mind us staying at her place if she’s not there. Now we will pray she doesn’t get pneumonia. When I talked with her two weeks ago and told her we’d be back in just a few months she said, “I might not be alive then,” so maybe she knew this was coming. Who knows. We just don’t want her to be miserable. God’s in control.


Kory got all the lights hung this week and the tree up in the living room. I wish Christmas lasted longer. I’m so not ready, even now. I still have to finish the newsletter and get cards out. Bows are still missing from presents and I haven’t done any Christmas baking. The days are too short and my enthusiasm is waning. Every year I think I’ll do more before Thanksgiving to take the pressure off, and every year I don’t. Tradition! (Ha.)


Last night I had a little Chick time with some old Junior High school girlfriends. We used to have sleepovers back in the early 1970s, and they are still going on nearly forty years later. I couldn’t spend the night this time because of Kaleb’s play today, but it sure was a hoot to get together with those “girls.” It’s nice to have a SAFE bunch of people in my life. I don’t have to worry about being judged or hurting anyone’s feelings – we all just talk about everything we can’t talk about with anyone else because we’ve all been friends since before puberty. What a gift they are to have in my life. I got to brag about Kaleb a little – especially about his piano skills. He played several songs at a home school Christmas party on Friday night, but found it challenging when the kids sang along because they kept a different beat. It was a good experience for him. This week one of the songs he was playing was too easy for him so when he played it for his teacher he crossed his hands on the keyboard and played the right hand part with his left hand and vice versa. She just shook her head and said he obviously needs to be moving along at an even faster rate. Even she is impressed. I love that he tries to challenge himself so he doesn’t get bored. I wish I could do the same.