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| The bomber is Elliot, Tom's youngest nephew! |
This year we don't have any of those things! No grading. No end of the semester crunch. No PCS rehearsals and concerts. No church obligations. Tom has bell choir concerts, but I don't even have those as I have been a utility substitute for them this fall but haven't had assigned bells.
Its weird in many ways to have so few obligations. I have to say I miss many of our activities -- especially those at church. But on the other hand its delightful to just enjoy all the hoopla around us and to be able to spend time together enjoying our family.
Last week I helped make edible ornaments for birds and squirrels with Tom's mom and sister and folks from their church. Each year they make these ornaments and then hang them on a tree near the grave of Rev. Schawn, the first Lutheran pastor in the US to bring a Christmas tree inside the church sanctuary. The link is to pics of last year's efforts. The grave site is in Lake View Cemetery, a historic cemetery (president Garfield and John D. Rockefeller are buried there) at which Tom's sister Marilyn is the chief operating officer. We hung the ornaments on Saturday while the birds and squirrels swooped around us waiting for us to get out of the way so they could enjoy their treats!
This past Sunday we attended the annual Danish Christmas Party sponsored by the Danish Brotherhood in Cleveland. Tom's family has attended this event for decades! When we were first married and lived in Cleveland, we attended every year. Back then, the music was provided by Fred Ziwich and his International Sound Machine. At the time he was a guy in his 30's with a button box a couple of other instruments and a synthesizer that played accompaniments and rhythm. Tom's family really got a kick out of Fred and we all looked forward to the traditional Danish music and polkas. Flash forward 27 years....who knew ... the entertainment at the 2012 Danish Christmas Party was ... Fred Ziwich and his International Sound Machine! Little about the party had changed except that some of the old-timers are now gone, lots of new kids are attending and Fred has a Grammy nomination for his polka recordings. We enjoyed dancing, singing carols in Danish and English around the Christmas tree and socializing.
After the Danish party we went to the Western Reserve Chorale concert. Tom's brother Chris sings in this group. We enjoyed a performance of Britton's "Ceremony of Carols" and a selection of other holiday music. The harp with the Britton was wonderful!
Friday night we will decorate Tom's mom's Christmas tree. This will entail more ornaments and decorations than any one person rightfully should have. Tom's mom's Christmas tree is like no tree you have ever seen! For many years, his mom and dad would cut down a 15 foot tree at his grandfather's home, cut off the top and wedge the remaining tree between the 10 ft. ceiling and floor in the living room. The effect was of the tree growing through the living room ceiling. They did this, in part, because the trees at his grandpa's, which were planted for the purpose of providing holiday trees, had grown so much that there were no small trees left. In addition, however, Tom's mom needed a tree with big branches and lots of open space so there would be plenty of room to hang the many ornaments. Ornaments were hung on the Brandt tree on every single branch starting from the inside of the tree and working out! The whole thing was such a production that the tree often stayed up until Easter or later. With religious watering, it frequently sprouted new growth at the ends of branches.
In more recent years, Tom's mom has had to scale back a bit. The supply of trees at grandpa's house was finally exhausted, the kids all moved on to their own homes and Tom's dad's Parkinson disease prevented him from erecting a mammoth tree. So, the tree is more typical, a nine-footer from a local tree lot. But all the ornaments are still here and I know we will be looking for places to hang as many of them as possible. This tree will have more ornaments on it than any one, except a Brandt, would believe possible! And I know that the decorating will be accompanied by everybody singing along with the kitchiest recorded Christmas music you can imagine. Think Alvin and the Chipmunks singing "Christmas Don't be Late," and really hokey recordings of not very good pop carols like "Feliz Navidad" and "Mamacita, Donde es Santa Claus"
Liz
After the Danish party we went to the Western Reserve Chorale concert. Tom's brother Chris sings in this group. We enjoyed a performance of Britton's "Ceremony of Carols" and a selection of other holiday music. The harp with the Britton was wonderful!
Friday night we will decorate Tom's mom's Christmas tree. This will entail more ornaments and decorations than any one person rightfully should have. Tom's mom's Christmas tree is like no tree you have ever seen! For many years, his mom and dad would cut down a 15 foot tree at his grandfather's home, cut off the top and wedge the remaining tree between the 10 ft. ceiling and floor in the living room. The effect was of the tree growing through the living room ceiling. They did this, in part, because the trees at his grandpa's, which were planted for the purpose of providing holiday trees, had grown so much that there were no small trees left. In addition, however, Tom's mom needed a tree with big branches and lots of open space so there would be plenty of room to hang the many ornaments. Ornaments were hung on the Brandt tree on every single branch starting from the inside of the tree and working out! The whole thing was such a production that the tree often stayed up until Easter or later. With religious watering, it frequently sprouted new growth at the ends of branches.
In more recent years, Tom's mom has had to scale back a bit. The supply of trees at grandpa's house was finally exhausted, the kids all moved on to their own homes and Tom's dad's Parkinson disease prevented him from erecting a mammoth tree. So, the tree is more typical, a nine-footer from a local tree lot. But all the ornaments are still here and I know we will be looking for places to hang as many of them as possible. This tree will have more ornaments on it than any one, except a Brandt, would believe possible! And I know that the decorating will be accompanied by everybody singing along with the kitchiest recorded Christmas music you can imagine. Think Alvin and the Chipmunks singing "Christmas Don't be Late," and really hokey recordings of not very good pop carols like "Feliz Navidad" and "Mamacita, Donde es Santa Claus"
Liz
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