My (post) sabbatical adventures: Holiday report

I've been remiss in sharing our holiday update--partly because it was a mixed bag this year. Various personal issues plus the crazy weather meant that we didn't get to see family, and other personal issues made the holiday kind of difficult. Without going into all the details: it was not all sweetness and light this year in our household.

But we survived, and there were some sweet moments as well as funny ones, so that's what I'll share. Sit back and enjoy the photos, 'cause here they come!

First off, I didn't post anything about Thanksgiving... I have such conflicted emotions about that day. I have always wanted to go to Massachusetts to participate in the National Day of Mourning, a protest staged every year by the United American Indians of New England (a controversial group, to be sure). But we stay home, our time off and traveling funds being limited, and I teach my students about our Thanksgiving myth being a myth, and at home we talk about the realities of early American life and intercultural relations. I definitely engage in some myth-busting.

And yet I am also glad to have a holiday where we get to realize that we are truly thankful for the good things we enjoy. This year, one of those things: Dexter helped prepare the meal. Woohoo! Here are the cranberries he made:

(They were delicious!)

Dexter also brought us Christmas joy with his violin-playing. For the second year, he joined our friend Jonalyn's cello choir and they played the nursing-home circuit here in our town, where everyone taps their toes and sings along.

(You can't really see the musicians in this shot, but I rather liked experiencing the evening this way...)

(Here are some of the musicians; bad shot, but you get a sense of how large the group is!)

(Here's a smaller subset at another nursing home. There were some GOOD singers at this place! Plus, they fed us cookies afterward--score!)

(And here's a smaller subset still, after their short performance at the Presbyterian church. They are awesome and goofy and made my day.)

As per usual, we got a real tree this year. The place where we get it had Holiday Goings On that day; I didn't get a photo of the Grinch & Max, but here's something neat:

(Ice sculptor! Noisy but impressive!)

As we were looking at this one tree, Dexter noted how crazy the top looked with one spike sticking way up, and BINGO, that was our tree.

(Here it is, perhaps in a nostalgic mood? We couldn't fit the topper on the top, so it's kind of hanging off the side there.)

We went to the Big Malls, which we typically try to avoid. These two, a father-and-son duo playing Celtic tunes, were definitely the best thing about Easton on the night we shopped there:

(Easton has faux streets, but at least real street musicians...)

With finals and grading, violin rehearsals and performances, and whatnot, everything seemed to be on the last-minute schedule this year. I finished my shopping on the 23rd, and finally baked cookies (my favorites) on the 24th--we had to have cookies for Santa! (I tried to get Timbits when it looked like the cookies might not happen, but Timmy Ho's was closed!)

(The first couple dozen; we ended up with at least 8 dozen, I think.)

And Dexter decided that, in addition to cookies, Santa probably needed something healthy. Plus a beer.

(I think this is actually a nicely balanced snack for Santa...)

We all enjoyed our presents, including the cats...

(Pirate unwrapped his all by himself!)

(Peaches can play with two at once!)

... and it was cold out, so Baby Jesus enjoyed the extra straw, I think...

(I've had this manger set for years! We always give Baby J. extra straw at the end of Wigilia, our traditional Polish dinner on Christmas Eve.)

... and what could be better than new Wii games AND a psychedelic snuggie?

The guys spent much of the break flying planes (Blazing Angels) and I even got into throwing things at the teevee (Boom Blox).

(It's hard to fly a plane with a cat in your lap...)

And, apropos of nothing, I'm pretty sure these are the best $10 New Year's Eve shoes EVAR:

(I enjoyed wearing them!)

I have a bunch of Christmas Weirdness photos from around our little town that I'll post separately soon. For now, I'll end this post with one of my favorite Dexter presents from this year: