Tuesday in Technicolour

[Kathryn-in-Canada]

Good morning SHEville!

As the holiday song goes, "May your days be merry and bright!"

In Canada, it is still a holiday, Boxing Day. Just over 20 years ago, nothing was open, and Boxing Day was another day of rest. The origin of the holiday from Victorian times is as a day off for workers, domestic staff, tradesmen, when they would receive their Christmas boxes from the masters/well off clients, and have a full day of rest to have their own holiday since the previous day was likely spent producing a holiday for the rich folks.

Now, the stores are open with sales that used to be the equivalent of Black Friday sales. Now the sales aren't as good (for instance, the Instant Pot I wanted is $20 more this sale) but BF has infected our country as well. Banks, government, offices remain shut along with all but emergency medical at hospitals.

For people with large families, or families with members working the holiday, this is also a day for people to get together and a chance for children to enjoy more of the items under the tree since the presents may have been opened yesterday but there wasn't time to play with everything.

However the day is spent, the Christmas decorations remain up and the colours are as bright as they were the day before.

What colours will be in your day today?

[Kathryn-in-Canada]

It is just dawn here so I have all the Christmas lights on in the apartment and am enjoying that 'glow.'

Today, of course, is our Boxing Day party and then the after party (when favourite stragglers stay for dinner.)

I have no idea how many people will be here today. I prepare for 45 through the afternoon but it could be as few as 15-20. I always consider the smaller parties better because then I have a chance to visit.

Food prep and apartment prep is the order of the day.

Dd and family will be over later.

Ds will not be coming because he desperately needs more rest. That was my orders. He has invited friends to come over later and so I expect he'll be here around 4 and I'll be feeding his friends as well. There are two tourtier meatloaves (each will feed 5 - 6) and over half a turkey left over (I'll hide the dark meat to save it for dh) plus we have the party foods (egg rolls, chicken nuggets, meatballs, sausage rolls, homemade salami, plus a ton cheese and cut veggies) so I think we have enough to feed up to 12. I might pick up some french bread for a starch and we can raid my frozen veggie stash if I need to come up with more. There are still mashed potatoes and carrots from yesterday as well.

Harmony: we enjoyed observing dgs but it is next year that the holidays will be more magical. And we are together so often, it didn't feel extra special (or each time I'm with him feels extra special because we waited so long and all worked so hard for him to come into existence - not sure which.)

Dsil now has his license but we haven't given him permission to drive our car. In an emergency, yes, but not otherwise until he has some experience. At this point, he's had less than 40 hours behind a wheel over all his life and winter driving is tricky at best so come spring, I'll encourage him to drive me places when he's in the car to get the experience and for me to have more confidence in him. Part of the issue is that ours is not an 'extra' car, if anything happens to it, two households are now car-less, not just one, and my lifestyle requires a car since I can't get to my work at the retirement home without one, and even our city church doesn't have a bus running past it on Sundays so it is quite a long walk to it from a road with a bus. (Ironically, there are bus stops at the door but the bus doesn't run Sunday!)

I've spent enough time reconnecting with you all. Time to get up and start getting the apartment ready. I'll start by making a list.

[Harriet]

Morning!

Have been up, rearranging fridge.

We've had so much recent discussion in the way of using or creating planners, or planning on paper in general, that I decided to post a new thread for us for 2018 with the title, "Planning on Paper, Any Style, 2018". It's in Household Notebook, Planners and PocketMods forum in our Organizational Tools section, below.

It's a little early to start into organizing concepts, but Jan 1 will be here soon. As lucylee said last evening, there's a lot we all probably want to make habits in the coming year.

I have so much to do I won't explain but dive in!

If anyone's working at almost any hour today, I'm with ya!

[BookSaver]

Good morning, villagers ~
Thanks for opening the thread today, Kathryn.

I didn't bother to check the weather forecast for after Christmas. Therefore, I was totally shocked this morning to hear on the radio that our expected high today is +10F -- if we're lucky! -- with wind chills as low as -25F. The only errand I had planned to do today was to go to the post office. Now I'm thinking I should probably drive around TinyTown to warm up the car and make sure it will start tomorrow when I need it to go to work. I might see if DH wants to go out with me tonight to take a last look at Christmas decorations around town.

My day will be all about slow & steady post-Christmas cleaning, mostly in the kitchen.

Successes over the past few days:
* DH loved his gift of pistachio nuts in 1-serving packets.
* I found my rotary cutter on Friday! It was, of course, right where it should have been ... and where I had already looked twice ... and showed up by magic the 3rd time I looked there.
* I just found the paper with the 2 snack recipes I wanted to try. Apparently they are meant be New Year's Eve treats.
* Fridge and cupboards are still full of food so I don't need to run to TheBigCity for groceries at all this week.

[Nancy]

I am fighting a cold 2day. Tree is up I thought boxing day was to get empty boxes used for gifts out the door, Thanks K in C for that info. We have 5" of snow here. I will do a bit of removal but ignore the white stuff for the most part. Soup is on the menu here today. 21* to 27* is out temp range 2day.

I have been taking notes on planning from vids in a notebook aka journal I got for Cmas.

H said no work today he came home after stopping by the store.

[Kathryn-in-Canada]

Dd et al will be here in about 30 minutes. Time to get dressed!

Since my last post, I didn't plan but I did get the Year-in-Review slideshow done and loaded onto the TV. So that's a big item off my list. I've also had breakfast. Thankfully, I don't have to wash my hair today so I should be dressed in 15 minutes.

[Harmony]

Hi! Thinking of those having family gatherings today. Harriet and Kathryn. And others. Y'all have fun!

Kathryn, I know what you mean about little ones around Christmas. And we also have a couple miracle babies in our family. When the Dr. says you can't be pregnant, and less than 9 months later he is born, or one where the dad thought he couldn't... they are special!

Today I got my desk cleaned up and called a county office where I hung up after being on hold an hour. Working around the house with one arm, the other holding the phone. I don't know what's up over there.

It's pretty chilly here. But at least it's not snow. Did anybody see what happened to Erie, PA? They had something like 16+ inches recently. Yikes!

We have a trip out this afternoon to run a couple errands. DH on his way home. I still have lots to put away, but the place is neat. I'm sleepy now. It takes a few days to recover at our ages.

[Kathryn-in-Canada]

I'm taking a short break. Dd and family are here. She's walking dgs now in the stroller up and down the hall to get him to nap.

Party prep is progressing but vacuuming is next while dgs isn't here.

[Twins' Mom]

In theory my kids are moving out tomorrow! I am excited, altho I suspect they will leave a trail of destruction in their wake - stuff they don't want to move, stuff they are not taking, all kinds of things. I have told dh that the upstairs will not be "viewable" for our brunch event next Sunday for his BD. I may try to have a TV set up in the bonus room for kids to disappear, and may try to straighten it up some, but I suspect it will be overwhelming to do, in addition to getting brunch together for perhaps 60 people. They will hopefully be spread over 3.5 hours and I am ordering a lot of the food.

I will make breakfast casseroles - both with and without a breakfast meat, (for vegetarians and the friends who don't eat pork) and we'll have bagels and lox, a fruit tray or salad, some sweet pastries, mimosas, bloody marys and other drinks. I've been organizing my thinking/planning some this a.m.

I have a decent supper planned for tonight - we've been eating stuff that's not so good for us so much. We have banana pudding that dfriends sent home with us on Christmas eve - I think I'm the only one eating it and I had it for breakfast. I think I'll ask dh and dd and it will go on out tonight, eaten or not.

I need to get myself moving today - it's sunny (finally!) but cold out. I'm still in pajamas, but have taken out the trash and done a few, a very few things. Right now:
-meds/vitamins, also refill for the week
-clean up kitchen, empty dishwasher
-get into clothes, clean up a bit, brush teeth
-Walk the very patient dog around the block
-reboot laundry (I already started a load of delicates earlier)

[DeeClutter]

We waited until today to do our own gift giving/receiving. We're all pleased with the result of that. It's just a very special day just for us. DD and I are talking about going out to B ealls -we both have $50 gift certificates there. I got an iPad from DD. It's actually one she was given when she left her last school. She'd been given two and they told her to take them as they were now 'outdated'. But this one has never been used. She did buy me a new (on sale) purple case for it. She has to update and load things on it -but it's mine once she does that. (Shhhh....first she has to find it). She will -I hope. Got 5 more Christmas cards in today's mail.

Dh is sick. He coughed all day yesterday and I heard him off and on during the night. Got him more medicine when we went to W algreen's this morning. I'm so praying I don't catch it. I slept fairly well last night considering. Did get up around 1 with a low BS (if you can believe that!) -54. Ate some licorice and went back to bed until 6:30. Got up, took my thyroid med and went back to bed for about 40 minutes.

I bought dh a Bathroom R eader for his kindle. And was pleased with myself when I figured out how to get it on HIS kindle and not mine.

We're just taking today slow and easy. Sure I'll find something that I forgot to give someone as I clean in the next few days. Always do. Ddil sent us pictures on magnet backings of dgs5 with dsgd18 in their caps after his kindergarten graduation. Also ones with dgs5 and dgs18 with their caps. Hanging on dd's refrigerator.