We made it back ok! We even enjoyed our surprise road trip. Things could have gone wrong, but they didn't. StephLove recently asked how Big A's health was, and I actually had to stop and think about it. While my mom was in the ICU, Big A was making trips to the E.R. as a patient with unexplained FUOs and then... we just stopped going as the fevers faded. No diagnosis or explanation, but I'm grateful things didn't go wrong-er.
We returned to a full house. Nu was back from the week they'd spent volunteering with St. Jude's in Memphis, At had spent the weekend at home taking care of the puppy sibs, and homecoming was loud and loving. The kids brought the tree up from the basement, and we're officially in holiday mode now.
Secrets: I didn't buy a single thing in New York. (Like not a single keepsake or souvenir or even any presents for the kids.)
Big A and I did our usual thing at the beginning of our weekend where we seriously contemplated moving to NYC after retirement and then scrapping it as we realized afresh that we'd have to give up too much to be able to live even half as well.
I think we're going to do tinsel wigs for the holiday card this year.
And in the laziest hack ever, our tree goes into storage completely dressed, so all we do at holiday time is unzip the tree cover and plug in the light cord.
16 comments:
Do the ornaments not fall off? I am astounded by the logistics of this!
NYC is such an interesting city but so expensive!!!
I'm glad the trip home was good and that Big A is doing well. (He looked good and happy in the photo the other day!). I take some of my trees down with ornaments -- or at least the unbreakable ones. Some, I can't get it down without things falling off, so off they come! I can see why you would rethink living in NYC for the costs and sacrifices but maybe it will just mean more visits someday! Merry Happy!
I, too, am baffled by the logistics of keeping decorations on the tree and moving it. Are the ornaments not breakable? I'm astounded (and a little bit jealous, for sure).
And I love that your impromptu road trip turned out to be a Fine Adventure. You two were meant for each other!
I am also amazed that your can transport your tree, fully decorated! We do not have storage space to pull this off but I wish we did. My MIL takes her ornaments off but then Phil carries the assembled tree downstairs to her unfinished basement where she has ample storage for it. I hate assembling our tree so wish I could do this but we do not have the space for that in our small urban home.
Living NYC does sound dreamy, but I am glad you lived there at one point. And it is fun (albeit expensive) to visit and get a little glimpse of what life is like to live in NYC!
A few things may fall off (3, 4, 5) but they're contained inside the cover, so it's no biggie. I feel so smug :)!
Thank you, Jeanie. I'm in awe of your Christmas decorating... love the tableaus especially! I don't have any heirlooms or breakable ornaments, so it's less perilous.
Thank you, Nance... I think that about you and R... I do think we refashion ourselves in a long relationship so we are made for each other.
Most of our ornaments are kid-made and kid-friendly and while they're deeply precious for sentimental reasons, none of them are breakable, or heirlooms. That makes the stakes much lower should there be a tree-tipping jostling accident. (You're a bit jealous, I'm a bit smug... sorry :)! )
Lisa, I got tired of scheduling tree decorating day once the kids didn't seem to enjoy it anymore. I didn't want something that ought to be joyous to feel like a chore!
I feel like we talked about leaving your tree up permanently and then decorating it for the season (Valentines, Easter, Memorial Day, and so on)--that'll would you some space and assembly! ;)
Nice tree hack. We are going to be brave and bring the tree inside from the garage and decorate it and see what kind of havoc the cats wreak on it this weekend. (It will be their first Christmas with a tree in the house. Last year we traveled and didn't have one at home.) First step is dividing the ornaments into breakable and not. Nothing breakable goes on the tree this year.
I love that your tree is pre-decorated! We have no space for such things, and a lot of breakable ornaments that I love, so it wouldn’t work for me. I’m glad you’re feeling smug, you should!
I liked your comment to Nance about refashioning ourselves in long relationships. I’ve not thought of it that way before, but it’s definitely true.
Love the tinsel wigs! And I love the idea of putting away the tree fully dressed!
Sending telepathic wishes to W&W to be chill around your tree!
J--Another way to think of this is that our tree is very first-gen. There's nothing that was handed down to us from anyone else... Poor us/Resourceful us.
The wigs were such a mess in the actual photo, lol. Anyway, onwards!
THAT IS AN INSANELY COOL TREE HACK. I have never, ever thought of just storing the tree with all the ornaments on! That's probably my least favorite part of decorating. You should feel incredibly smug. I'm amazed!
Wish I had said something about this sooner then, Stephany... it's yours for whenever you choose to do a tree. Get cat-safe, storage safe ornaments :)!
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