Christmas Wrap-up

I like to write a "wrap-up" post at the end of each holiday season (Halloween and Christmas) highlighting events and what-not.  This year was ... I don't even know.  It started off great but took a nose dive real quick.  The good stuff was that the Christmas decor was really uplifting for me along with that Mr. Husband and I decided to do something a bit different this year for our gifts.  Because we already have a house full of "treasures" we don't have room for more knick knacks unless they are ones we put on our Santa's Wish Gotta Have It List.  I thought it would be a good idea for us each to pick something big/expensive.  We never do this and it would really help out my mental stability, not to have something expensive but to have just a 'one and done' when it comes to gifts.  You guys...it's gifts that make me hate Christmas  (well, and some family).  I am just going to be bluntly honest.  I hate shopping.  I don't know what to get anyone.  And most importantly everyone we know has waaay too much shit.  I don't want to contribute to that and frankly I don't want them to do that to us either.  No lie, 90% of physical gifts (cash always accepted!) we get go right to the thrift store.   Usually every year I make baked goods for everyone because they only add to the waistline not the flat surfaces in their home.  So everything was going along well.   Gifts for everyone were handled for the most part.  The 3 days before Christmas are always a back breaking crunch time no matter how much I plan.  But then on Dec. 23 it went south.  It started with Mr. Husband bringing in a shit ton of gifts for PB and me.  That wasn't the agreement.  I had only gotten him one gift (which wound up not fitting properly) because remember?! we had agreed to the big gift idea. It made me feel shitty.  Then the same night as I was working on the baked goods for the family (burned an entire batch of one of the treats) the stove went out.  I just sat in a chair and cried.  Obviously no repairman was available.  Mr. Husband tried to help by texting everyone and saying their gifts weren't going to be done until after Christmas.  But I can't be giving people Santa's Chimney of Sweets after Christmas.  Santa clocks out after Dec 25 and it seemed weird to be giving a Christmas themed gift after it's all over.  I happened to have bought a little  bit of some extra ingredients for a few filler treats to go along with the baked goods (rice krispy treats with white chocolate and crushed peppermint and peanut butter fudge)  and that's all I had for the "sweets".  It was the best I could do.  On Christmas Day Mr. Husband and I decided that for once we wanted to spend the day at home and told family we would be by on the 26.  Now, the other main reason we didn't want to go over on Christmas Day was because of covid.  We are very careful and are pretty much the only ones we know that are still taking it seriously. We knew that if we went over on the 25 family would try to put us in situations we didn't want to be in.  They don't wear masks and ask us inside...no way.  We also don't want to ask them to spend their holiday sitting in a lawn chair in the yard as we want to do for all of our safety.  If we go on the 26 it makes it more relaxed and we don't feel we are asking too much for a yard visit.  We let everyone know...We'll see you on the 26.  My grandmother and stepdad were totally fine with that and visiting in the yard.  But my mother in law apparently wasn't listening because on Christmas Day she went flipping nuts.  She kept calling and forcing the issue along with her saying, and feel free to laugh about this... She said she may not be there on the 26 (meaning she may be dead)...and then she added in her annual announcement that it could be her last Christmas.  Every year...it's her last Christmas.  And then she hung up on Mr. Husband.  She hung up on her son on Christmas day because we wouldn't rush over to do what she wanted.  This is a reoccurring thing with her no matter what day of the year it is.  When we went over on the 26, surprise, she was still alive.  She made us wait for awhile to answer the door though and during the visit kept snapping at us over anything...but never brought up the previous day.

 She is a nasty character and just keeps pushing and pushing which usually means she wins.  It seems to be the easy answer in the moment to back down and let her have her way but never confronting the problem means it continues to happen.  An intervention is long over due.

So I'm glad to say that Christmas is in the rear view mirror.  

Oh, in case you were curious about our "big" gifts.

PB got a record player for Christmas, which we all were excited about since ours went out the past year.  Mr. Husband is getting a new fancy phone. And mine is still being pulled together and I hope will be a future post!