Holiday Plans

Mr. Fob and I spent our first Thanksgiving in our hotel room at the Park City Best Western. We got married on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving and spent a few days in Park City for our honeymoon. We'd planned to go out to eat for our meal, but the first snow of the season arrived on Wednesday night. We dug the car out and started driving, but only managed to make it as far as Alberstons. At least we found microwavable turkey dinners and some sort of "pumpkin cream" from the deli (it was nasty). Our second Thanksgiving was hosted at our house, with my sister and my brother and his wife. They were two hours late because she had just had a baby a few days before the holiday. I was newly pregnant with S-Boogie so they were the first ones we told. The third year we went down to Saint George to spend time with Mr. Fob's extended family. It was a fun trip, but our first time travelling with a baby. We didn't bring enough clothes to deal with the copious spitup, and we forgot the pack-n-play. None of us slept very well that whole trip. But we did play a lot of Settlers of Catan and ate lots of food. The next year we visited my extended family in Salt Lake; more food and fun, plus we got to sleep in our own beds that night. The next year I was extremely nauseated from morning sickness. I still feel bad because Mr. Fob's brother prepared a gourmet feast, and just the smell of garlic potatoes and sausage stuffing made me spend the entire day trying not to vomit. I was crabby that whole week and S-Boogie was sick. I feel bad about that holiday--not my finest moment. Last year we celebrated with our own little family here. It was fun. A lot of work, but fun. I love cooking and I love planning meals. I'm already getting excited about next week. My sister is coming for a few days, so it should be a great holiday. This year I want to try some new recipes too. Instead of pie I'm going to make a pumpkin cheesecake. And I want to try these sweet potatoes, and probably some real homemade cranberry sauce instead of the stuff from a can. Then it can count as a serving of fruit, right? I'm sure by next Thursday night I'll be regretting my enthusiasm, but for right now I'm getting excited about all that cooking.

Then after Thanksgiving we get to start thinking about Christmas. Mr. Fob and I both have nearly a month of winter break, so we're pretty sure we are going to go on another big road trip again. Plans aren't firm yet. Besides trying to decide if we can afford a road trip or if we're crazy enough to drive in winter, my other big dilemma is Christmas presents. You see, I can't think of anything to get for the kids. Nothing. We generally try to keep gift-giving for birthdays and Christmas to a minimum, but I am honestly stumped. They have a bunch of good toys and they play with almost all of them. We've got dolls and doll furniture, a kitchen with play food, two boxes of Duplo, a few Little People sets, stacking blocks, stuffed animals, books, a few puzzles, Mr. Potato Head, art supplies, a small train set, and a few other things. I've tried to build a collection of quality toys that kids can play with for a long time and use their imaginations, and it's working. We have a small apartment so there's not much more room for stuff. We already bought them new church clothes that are festive. I've considered just not getting them anything, but then I worry about what we would do on Christmas morning. I guess we could start a new tradition instead of opening gifts. Maybe have a nice breakfast and go for a nature walk. When I asked S-Boogie what she wants for Christmas, she told me "Play in the snow. There's supposed to be snow for Christmas". I guess we'd better go on our road trip so she can get her Christmas present.