Bertrand and Uncle Barty Come Home

"They say" there are two sides to every story. And that is true regarding the "tale" (or two "tails") I'm sharing here.

The tale is about why Uncle Barty and Bertrand the Mouse went quiet for awhile.

On December 14, Rebekah brought Bertrand the Mouse and Uncle Barty to WriteOn Joliet's Christmas party at a local restaurant, with the goal of taking their photos once the party was in full swing.

But since we were running the party, we forgot to let the crocheted mice run free. With the holidays right after that (and with me working December 23, December 24, and December 25), and with me still not feeling one hundred percent, we managed to shop and wrap gifts for the people in our family.

And that was it.

For the first time in lots of years, we forgot/ran out of time and energy to prepare a Christmas for Uncle Barty and Bertrand.

Right on the heels of Rebekah's birthday and our family Christmas (both on January 7), I was back in the hospital. I am not yet fully recovered (and feel as if I'm teetering on another relapse), so bringing out the mice almost fell off our radar.

I say "almost" because we didn't forget about them completely. We've just been a bit overwhelmed.

A week or so ago, Rebekah remembered the mice were still in her purse and returned them to me. 

OK, that's story number one. But here's what really happened.

First of all, you should know Uncle Barty is a very responsible mouse. Remember, Uncle Barty traveled all on his own from Indiana back in 2021 when Bertrand was missing.

So Uncle Barty thought, with our lives being so topsy turvy, that this was a good time for him and Bertrand to spend the holidays with their friends and return after the holidays.

But when Uncle Barty reached out in mid-January, I had just gone into the hospital. So I suggested they extend their visit, since I was unable to give them the attention they deserved.

At the end of January, Uncle Barty reached out again. I told him I was still under the weather and riding high on anxiety because of it. I assured him it was OK not to hurry home, that it was OK to stay with their friends for awhile.

But you know what? Uncle Barty is not only responsible, he is unselfish. And little Bertrand may be immature. But he is not selfish either.

Quite frankly, they missed hanging out with me, whether or not I had the energy to pay attention to them and catch their antics with my camera to post on social media.

So last night, while I was finishing some neglected BryonySeries projects, I heard a knock at the front door. I opened it and no one was there. 

Or so I thought. Until I looked down.

There stood Bertrand the Mouse and Uncle Barty with their suitcases.

They were homesick.

They missed us.

They didn't care we forgot about buying Christmas presents for them. They didn't care about presents. They cared about us.

And so, they came back anyway. 

I'm glad they did. I didn't realize how much I missed them until they returned.

So that's story number two.

Which one do you believe?

At any rate, they were wrong about the presents. Rebekah and I did, in fact, did buy three new mice books for them when we were out Christmas shopping. Our intention was certainly to buy the mice more gifts. They were very happy to receive the books (as their excited squeaks revealed).

And so, last night...

...they happily climbed into bed, their own bed (which they share with Faith and me), snuggled under the blankets, and read their new books until they fell fast asleep.

Reflections on the Morning After

As I'm transitioning from a busy weekend to a busy workweek, I'd like to share five photos and a few quick thoughts with you on the morning after our family's Old Calendar Christmas/Rebekah's thirtieth birthday party celebration from yesterday.

Eighteen people (seven of them children ages twelve and younger and several the ex-spouses and ex-girlfriends with their children) crowded into our townhome for a loud celebratory day where outbursts of temper were extremely minimal and gifts were truly given and wrapped from the heart.

For instance, three of the children gave gifts of homemade slime they wrapped themselves.

Some gifts were wrapped in paper with the recipient's interests/favorite colors/personalities in mind. Others were wrapped in a single theme.

Sarah sent framed pieces of the coordinates where her siblings and I were born.

Nine of the gifts were original framed poems from a WriteOn Joliet member.

Jasmine put together a day filled with games and prizes for the children she set up in the garage. I had games ready for the adults (such as name thirty birthday gifts you'd give Rebekah if money were no object. The winner received thirty dollars).

The food was very traditional to use, and food everyone looks forward to enjoying together year after year after year.

I was on my feet all day and never sat to unwrap any of my gifts until after the cake was cut.

But mostly, if you think of the reason why we celebrate Christmas at all, watching three cousins from my perch in the the kitchen where I was preparing food. All three were around age twelve, and they sat on the couch together playing video games (along with their aunt) before the other guests arrived, summed up the specialness of the day.

Not one of the three boys (nor the aunt) are related by blood.

They are related by love.

Happy Monday!

Meaning Over Money

Last week, I took several days off work between Christmas and the New Year to prepare for our family Christmas and Rebekah's 30th birthday on January 7.

Up until that point, my life was centered on keeping Advent in my heart, deadlines at work, and holiday events for WriteOn Joliet.

During that time, Rebekah decorated the house and put up our family tree - and she also put up the little tree for my room (that Joshua and Timothy brought me for St. Nicholas in 2020) because I simply didn't have time to decorate it myself.

On my first day off, I tied up some loose "life" ends on Tuesday while Rebekah went to some appointments after work. But then she and I dedicated part of Wednesday and Thursday to Christmas preparations. 

Now I also spent some time with some plans for Rebekah's birthday. And we held our annual game and pizza night on New Year's Eve. The rest of the time was spent ed-ting the second novel by Ed Calkins, Steward of Tara, because we need books in hand before Calkins Day.

But when Rebekah clocked out of work on Wednesday, we focused only on Christmas, and we shopped for approximately twenty people. Then when she clocked out of work on Thursday, we wrapped (and wrapped and wrapped).

We are still hoping to embellish the gifts with ribbons and bow - if we have time. It's a busy work week, and I'm leading a WriteOn Joliet meeting tonight.

What we did not do is spend lots of money on gifts per person. This is partly because we don't ask people for their "wish lists." And it's partly because we are also very thrifty shoppers.

But we do know how to give good gifts.

We buy gifts we are reasonably certain people will like based on what we know about that person, their needs, their wants, their likes, their hopes and dreams.

That's how Timothy wound up with pink pajamas with cats printed all over them - and he was delighted. He still has them, even though that gift was from a Christmas at least fifteen years in the past. 

Our emphasis is on meaning over money. 

Now sometimes, the receiver is perplexed at a gift, such as this gift of  paint and plain white T-shirts in various sizes that Daniel gifted me last year. In the hands of Jasmine and Rebekah, the results were stunning and a terrific gift for quite a few people.

Here are five photos to show what Rebekah and I accomplished in those two half, very fun days of working together to find the right gifts. We can't wait to see people's expressions when they open their gifts on January 7.

Now, even if Christmas is already a distant memory for you, may the love, joy, and peace the season brings remain in your hearts and in your homes for all of 2024.

Happy Thursday!

Merry and Bright Indeed

On December 14, I received a lovely surprise gift from Angie Aegerter, owner of the Fit Foundation in Crest Hill.

In 2023, Angie purchased 30 copies of  the WriteOn Joliet 2022 anthology and gifted them to The Timbers of Shorewood book club.

I invited Angie to WriteOn's annual holiday gathering at Cemeno's so she could meet some of the writers. She was unable to attend - but popped in to give me a gift bag with this lovely card you see below.

Yes, let that sink in. She bought books from us and then brought me a bag full of gifts. The card itself is so pretty, I've left it propped against my computer monitor these last two weeks, just so I can keep looking at it.

And here's what was in that bag.

But first, the fun bag, just so you can get an idea of her generosity.

The first item was this towel with a pickup truck. I regifted it to Timothy, who has Christmas decor in his house with red pickup truck themes. That's not because I didn't like or wouldn't enjoy it, but because I knew he appreciated it more.

Also, Timothy lives next door. So it's not like I wouldn't see or use the towel.

Next, I received this bag of chocolate. How did she know I love these?

Angie also gave me this Christmas candle with three amazing scents. I am a very sensual person in that I love items that please the different senses. 

Writers sometimes refer to "smell" as the forgotten scent. But good smells can do much to lift spirit and evoke and happy memories. I love the right scented candles and the right incense.

At any rate, I am enjoying this candle.

Here is the same candle from behind, so you can see how pretty it is.

But the very best part of this gift is...

...is the new friend I've made through our love for serving the community through using our respective talents. 

Happy Thursday!

A Faith-Filled Christmas

 In early October, the health of our fifteen-year-old calico Faith started declining.

After a short, intense, and very expensive health crisis, Faith was diagnosed with small cell lymphoma in early April 2022.

We opted for palliative care instead of treatment after she stabilized and after we had consulted with experts and our finances.

But Faith has continued to do well - until October. It was strange since her bloodwork was perfect. But we adjusted to the mindset she would not be with us for Thanksgiving and Christmas this year.

Her treatment was modified. But that didn't help. So we made a decision for humane euthanasia in the home.

An hour before the veterinarian arrived, Faith responded to her new care plan, and the euthanasia was canceled.

She has continued to do well and her weight had continued to climb, 10.9 when Rebekah weighed Faith a week ago. In fact, Faith is chomping away at her food bowl as I write these words.

Faith was with us for Thanksgiving. And she was with us for Christmas, too.

For that reason, I asked Rebekah to take a photo of us by the Christmas tree last night. 

Faith hates being held, although she will tolerate it for brief moments.

You'll see a much more relaxed photo of her beneath this one.

May your own holiday season be filled with faith, whatever "holiday" and "faith" mean to you.

She's such a ham for the camera!

A Pop-Up Christmas

 Greeting cards are so commonplace anymore that many people don't give them a second thought.

But I've always been one to carefully the consider the right card for the right person - and Rebekah is that type of person, too.

Ever since she discovered my delight for intricate and detailed pop-up cards, she gifts me with one (just because) so I can enjoy looking at it.

Perhaps it's because my godmother worked with miniatures that I delight in pop-up cards so much. Or because it's because my sister and I grew up playing with Kiddles and dollhouses.

Whatever the reason, I'm quietly thrilled with the Christmas pop-card Rebekah recently brought home. If I were to place its Victorian design in the BryonySeries world, I'd have to place it in Jenson.

So if you haven't read the series and have no idea what/where Jenson is, you now have an idea.

Either way, do scroll through and enjoy a bit of Christmas magic today.

Happy Tuesday!