We'll Weather the Weather

There's a big storm brewing up here. Driving rain and frigid winds are headed our way tonight and tomorrow. It's not the kind of weather you hope for this time of year, or expect, either, especially in Buffalo, NY. I guess we can chalk it up to another shitty thing about 2020. Except... on the other side of the front are arctic temperatures and lake effect snow. The prediction is that the rain will turn white just in time for Christmas morning, and 8-12 inches of snow will blanket the frozen mud. 

Is that a metaphor for 2021?

Christmas Finery

There was a pretty gift bag on our front porch yesterday before we left. Inside, beneath the brightly colored tissue paper, was a bandana for Lucy. Buffalo plaid on one side and little candy canes on the other made it the perfect holiday accessory, and tucked in the bag next to it were two little drawstring pouches. When we opened them we found a couple of masks sewn to match Lucy's bandana. The collection was handmade by our neighbor, and her thoughtfulness made us smile. Even so, I couldn't help sighing as I tried my mask on. "It's so nice," I said to Heidi, "but this might be the saddest Christmas gift I ever got." 

We're Here Tonight

How hard it was this morning to pack up and leave not only our decorated Christmas tree, but our two cats, and hit the road for the 7 hour trip to Buffalo! Cautionary advice from health experts and interstate travel restrictions made leaving home even harder, and Heidi's cranky parents and their reflexive negativity did not feel all that beckoning.

Still, they are the only parents we have between the two of us, and as we all grow older? Time, especially at the holidays, seems more precious for sure. It was their request that we gather despite the public health warnings, and in the end, despite our reservations, we agreed. And so, after a road trip that has grown as comfortable as a warm pair of mittens over the years-- around the beltway, up through rolling farmland, into the snowy mountains, past thousands of twinkling lights, and down to the great lake-- here we are together, just as we have been for the last 21 Christmases. 

And that's enough.

Two and Half Hallmarks

 That's how long it took to decorate the tree this morning. Well, okay it was really only one and three quarters, but once you start watching? You have to know whose charm bracelet it is and how long it will take Holly and Greg to discover they are meant for each other.

Right?

And I must say that there is something quite soothing about knowing that no matter how bleak it seems, everything will turn out great in the end. 

And everyone will have a Merry Christmas.

Bitter Sweets

Since this will be a Christmas like no other has been, I find myself more willing to try new things in the sweets and cookie department this season. Last week I made some peppermint cookie cups and bite-sized Atlantic Beach pies and this morning I made cherry-almond kringles-- a version of the Danish treat using my own sourdough pastry, none of which have been a tradition in our family. I'm also considering skipping the rugelach, or maybe switching up the filling to something different this year, and a recipe I came across for cranberry crackle pie looks kind of tempting, too. 

This post to the contrary, I'm not a big dessert eater, so the peppermint cups were a half recipe, and we gave most of the kringles away to our neighbors. All told, there are a lot fewer sweets this year, which makes sense, since there will be fewer folks to share them with. And who knows? Maybe next year? Cranberry crackle pie will become a new tradition.

Big Sibling is Watching You

Another day, another sibling-related interaction. Since we have block schedule, I shared the happy news that having a bossy big sister can be ever so beneficial with the rest of my classes today. The older sisters in the group embraced the news, but not surprisingly, there were skeptics, too. 

One student unmuted and said that his experience did not match the research.

"But you said you have a big brother," I answered. "That doesn't count."

"You don't know the whole story," he said. "My brother? Is transgender! So I know what I'm talking about."

"Uhh, you're right," I replied. "I did not know that." I was quiet for a moment. "I don't think the research study corrected for that factor, though. But maybe they should."

Birth Order

Sometimes there seems to be a confluence of events-- some call it coincidence, but I always wonder just a little if perhaps the Universe is sending us a message. 

Yesterday I wrote about the study that FINALLY proved the benefits of having a bossy big sister, and as fate would have it, my students currently are reading a story where one of the central themes is tied to the connection between an older and younger brother. So today, for the Chat Snap, I asked the kids where they fell in the family: oldest, middle, youngest, or only child. 

I knew that some answers would be complicated, and they were. One girl posted that she was both, the youngest in her mother's family and the oldest in her dad's. 

"Which do you like better?" I asked with genuine curiosity. 

"Being the oldest," she answered without hesitation. 

But then there was the guy who posted that he was the youngest. "That's right," I said. "I taught your brother, Jeffrey, who's in high school now, and I know you have a brother in 8th grade who wasn't in my class. Isn't his name Ethan?"

"No!" the student immediately corrected me. "His name is Buffoon."

His unmistakable vexation made me laugh. "Well at school? I think we call him Ethan."