My Christmas Hangover!

Well, Christmas has come and gone…the preparations and the execution of our holiday events are now memories on Facebook or on our camera phones.   I’m not hungover from alcohol (well, maybe there’s a little of that!), I’m hungover from the laughing, the fun, the tears, and the love!   It’s the sweetest hangover…I don’t want to get over…

First and foremost, when I’m with my family, I remember that I am not alone!   Second, although not physically together with many, we connected through the miracle of face time and Facebook.  Finally, although the traditions are a little different, there is still so much love all around.

I’d like to share a Christmas Eve tradition with you all…Some of you may not know about it and for those of you who do know, forgive the repetition.     When I was very young…I’m thinking 11 or 12 our Mom was the Music Director at church.   This meant elaborate preparations for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day Masses.   The first year, Mom said, “I cannot cook on Christmas Eve…there is too much to do.”  So, my Dad suggested that we get McDonalds…which was a huge treat!   Remember the old days when you didn’t drive through McDonalds every morning for coffee and/or a breakfast sandwich?  

So, on Christmas Eve, Dad would go to McDonalds to get a combination of things:   Cheeseburgers, Big Macs, Fish Sandwich, and a bunch of fries.   Whatever his $10 could buy!   There was no need for soft drinks because Mom bought the little bottled Cokes as part of this treat.   We would cut the sandwiches in quarters so you could have a taste of more than one and the fries went into a big bowl and we all shared.   After dinner, we’d get to open one gift…usually the one from “Mom & Dad” which almost always was a pair of pajamas!    I turned 60 in June and this tradition is still happening!  Ummmm…not the the pajamas part, but the McDonalds for dinner part!    The process is more elaborate now.   Chuck (Dad) has old fashioned ledger paper that he uses to take orders.   Our names are listed on the left side of the page and across the top are the various menu items that are available.   Hash marks are neatly placed in the appropriate columns for each person.   When it’s time, my brother and sister take Dad’s American Express card and go place the order at the neighborhood McDonalds.   It’s quite the scene as you can imagine.  Insert possible crisis!  This year, the McDonalds lobby was closed so this order had to be placed at the drive thru window!   Crisis averted thankfully!  They arrived home with bags of sandwiches and fries and our dinner commenced!

For many years, while I was married, we would rotate between Greg’s family and my family on Christmas Eve, so there were times when we missed McDonalds   Then, when Katie was born, and she realized McDonalds with her cousins was a tradition, we started spending Christmas morning with Greg’s family…making sure we were at the table on Mayford Way for Christmas Eve.   Some years, there were 10 guests, some years there were 19 guests, but those who were not with us, were eating McDonalds wherever they were.

When I think about this, we are talking about nearly 50 years of this tradition…and I do not remember one year when it didn’t happen.   The menu has grown, cocktails have been added, we facetime family during dinner, while they eat McDonalds in another state, and the $10 that used to be spent is now much more than that.  This year's total..$55!   It’s evolved over the years as the kids have grown up, gotten married, moved away and all that comes with growing families, but the foundation is still there…Betty & Chuck (our parents) and whoever is available that year.    

The dinner this year was followed by "pass the trash" card game and then 3 of the 4 adult children in my family were under one roof...for old times sake!   We all woke up on Christmas morning, laughing and remembering the old days.   Soon, breakfast was ready...there may have been a goof on my part...as we thought the oven was on, but alas...I had pushed a wrong button...Somehow, we survived and although breakfast may have been a little later, it was delish! 

Later in the day, we went to Lori & Abby's new place for a new holiday event!   We enjoyed cocktails made by Abby and our gift exchange, followed by a turkey dinner with everyone's specialty being served!   After dinner, Betty Boop and Abby left the table to take naps, while the rest of us joined in the rowdy game playing!   The highlight was Cards Against Humanity (no judging!), being played with my daughter and son-in-law, AND my father!   OMG!   For those of you who know, this game, just imagine how it played out...For those of you who do not know the game, don't play it until you learn a little bit more about it.   Suffice to say that there were moments in the game when we were laughing so hard, no words could be spoken...IT WAS AWESOME!!!   

Soon, Betty Boop and Abby woke up from their naps and we gathered our belongings to wrap up another Christmas.   It always goes so fast.

Spouses and significant others have come and gone, and there are times, when it’s hard not to think about funny things that happened over the years when they were around.   However, we are all about making new memories and cherishing those who are with us.    Christmas 2018, in the books with new memories for sure!

As you can see, with all of this happening on Christmas, it’s easy to get a Christmas Hangover!   I’ll take it… It’s the sweetest hangover…I don’t want to get over…