Singing and Celebrating

For the 3^rd year in a row now I have enjoyed participating in Christmas concerts as a contributing alto in the Androscoggin Chorale.  This year there was the added pleasure of singing with a children's choir that truly offered the sense that angels were amongst us. As is tradition, our Christmas concerts end with a selection of carols which the audience joins in with the chorus' and in this way we end the concert, leaving ALL, participants and audience, fully infused with the Christmas Spirit and at one point reducing yours truly to tears. Hardly a first.

Over the years we have opened up our homes in Canada, Thailand, Taiwan and now the States, hosting Christmas parties full out with Santa Claus (appropriately arriving on an elephant in Thailand), goody bags, crafts and singing. Although, as the children have grown, the flavor of the parties has changed, the joy of filling my home over the Holidays has never dissipated.

Thus it gave me great pleasure to offer our home as a venue where my fellow chorale members could congregate and celebrate the "success" of receiving and giving joy through the art of singing. (What great incentive to have the house fully decked out for the Holidays!)  I enjoyed preparing my traditional contributions of a trifle and a "hearty" eggnog (Moose Milk) with the rest of the fare prepared by my fellow singers. What a wonderful way to mark the end of our Christmas concert season.

Christmas Treats and Sweets

What Christmas would be complete without at least a smattering of Christmas baking? Russian teacakes, snicker doodles, sugar cookies, cyclops, gingerbread cookies and all manner of squares.

When the kids were little we would go about a baking frenzy making above and more. We would then proceed to assemble plates for a number of families that we were close to, make a card, wrap it up and spend a day delivering these home made delights. Unannounced we would deliver our goodies, at times leaving them for the family to discover upon their return home, and at times to be invited in and share in a visit as kids nibbled away in the Christmas sweets.

Yes, the baking is scaled down greatly these past few years but one can always anticipate some extra activity in the kitchen without which The Holiday would not seem complete. With kids now undertaking it on their own, I simply get a warm glow as I watch, and yes, help clean.

The Magic Of Children

When the kids were younger it was all about making Christmas a magical experience for them. We relished in their anticipation of waking up to Santa's bells and ho ho ho  bright and early Christmas morn. They would always plan on following Santa after his visit and we would always find a way to distract them from implementing said plan. (How was it that Daddy always slept through and subsequently missed Sanata's visit?)  Santa aka Dad has a hard time letting go of this Christmas morning tradition, even with the kids at the ripe ages of 20, 18 and 17 and the jury is out as to what to anticipate this Christmas morn.

And so it is with two home from college for the Holidays that my children are bringing the magic of Christmas to me. I am the one with bated breath relishing the time with my family all together, home for the Holiday.