Tag Archives: holidays

Holiday Parties

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christmas-at-debbies-003Is it just me, or does it seem as if we’ve passed through some sort of christmas-at-debbies-006time-jumping holiday black hole? Just the other day it was fall and Thanksgiving and everybody was in an autumn-like mellow sort of mood and today suddenly it’s winter and Christmas and everybody is in panic oh-my-gosh-there’s-so-much-to-do mode. And by “everybody” I mean me, I guess. Deep breaths, deep breaths, in, out, in …. At least I got to start the holiday season with a calm and peaceful weekend as we four former college roommates gathered at my friend Debbie’s house in christmas-at-debbies-0041Nashville, Tenn. Debbie is one of those talented women who can create something so stylish and creative from bargain items she finds at the discount store. She’s amazing. I love the red oversized coffee cup she bought for christmas-at-debbies-012practically pennies a few years ago — now you see them everywhere and not for pennies, either. Her mantle decor was simple and elegant and made me itch to clean the clutter off mine and do the same. That’s one of the best things about good long-time friends: They don’t mind if you steal their ideas. And of course we had food: cookies and casseroles and cheesecake and Chex mix (slightly burned and crunchy, just the way I like it).  Our cooking has matured — a bit — since when we four were at Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro, Tenn., and party food meant Ruffles potato chips with French onion dip. Good times, good times. But I think we four have held up pretty well since then.

Iron Bowl

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iron-bowlToday is Iron Bowl Eve in Alabama. You have to choose sides — no more-iron-bowlexcuses. And even though today also is the first official day of Christmas shopping and we women throughout the state are eager to start wearing the snowpeople sweaters and angel earrings and candy cane-embroidered pants we put away this past January, we have to wait three days more. Today and tomorrow are for wearing crimson and white or orange and blue, and then Sunday (and perhaps Monday if you want to rub it in for co-workers) is the day for the winners to wear their colors proudly and triumphantly and the losers to look ahead to 2009. Read more about it at http://www.timesdaily.com/article/20081128/ARTICLES/811280301

Like many Alabama families. we’re a house divided. I try to remain neutral, unbiased and completely objective. Sort of. Younger daughter Carolyn is rabidly anti-Alabama. It stems, she explained this morning, from when we moved here to Alabama from Tennessee. She started third grade here and on her first day, everybody in her class demanded to know whether she went for Alabama or Auburn. The Alabama kids seemed especially intensely scary, she says, so she chose Auburn as the safer option and has never wavered. Older daughter Liz with her husband Jason and eight-month-old Nolan are blissfully unaware that this is a major football weekend. Husband John Pitts is totally focused on the Ole Miss/Mississippi State rivalry that culminates in the Egg Bowl, which is a big story, too, at least to those folks who live in Mississippi and we who claim honorary Mississippi citizenship.

Thanksgiving

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dish-and-florence-leaves-004How cool is it that we have a holiday dedicated to 1) food huntsville-102908-019and 2) gratitude? The first one’s easy, but I’m glad to have a day when I’m reminded about the second since I rarely forget to eat but I almost always forget to be grateful. And this morning, my gratitude cup overfloweth. For one thing, I’m grateful to be a guest at Thanksgiving dinner. Yippee — no worries about thawing turkeys and juggling oven space this year! I get to relax and make another pot of coffee and remember the family and friends and good times that have made this past year so blessed. And you know what? I think I’m even grateful for the year’s tough times and scary times and sad times and the very, very extremely few people who have aggravated the &*%@ out of me because that’s sort of part of the deal, too. What fun would it be if everything were a piece of cake? Hmm … cake … coconut cake … carrot cake … and pumpkin pie and pecan pie and chess pie and … Happy Thanksgiving!

Family Get-togethers

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Front, daughter Carolyn holding grandson Nolan, sister-in-law Tammie, sister-in-law Susannah and brothers Michael and Mark; and back, son-in-law Jason, nephew Samuel, daughter Liz, parents Ray and Susan and husband John.

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Me in the middle, trying to keep my brothers under control. As always.

Oh, wow — how many times does the whole Wood clan gather in one place? Not many, that’s for sure. My parents and my two younger brothers and their families got together with the Alabama side at my older daughter’s apartment in Huntsville, and we had a blast. My son-in-law, Jason, was such a good sport to give up his Sunday afternoon/evening to the Wood invasion, and my husband was equally good natured about sharing his one day off. Thanks, guys! We did the Wood favorite things when we meet in the Rocket City: eat at Bonefish Grill and shop at Fresh Market. We also got in plenty of talking, Nolan admiring and even a game of football — which the girls won, by the way. And I also got a photo of my favorite people in one place at one time. Priceless!

Family Reunion

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fall-2007-057One of the best things about the holiday season is families gathering together — for me, anyway! I love all my various families that graciously have allowed me to be a member but of course the one closest to my heart is my original family: the Wood clan. With everybody scattered — me and my family in Alabama/Mississippi; middle brother and family in Chattanooga, Tennessee; younger brother and family in Portland, Maine; and our parents still in Wood Family Headquarters in middle Tennessee — we only can manage a full get-together every year or so. The most recent was this past Thanksgiving, and even then my newspaper-sports-editor husband was missing since Thanksgiving is a big day in his line of work. So we’re trying again today and it looks as if everybody will be there — even almost-eight-months-old Nolan, who hadn’t quite made his appearance in the 2007 photo. Dinner tonight kicks off an anticipated week of friends, family, food, feasts and fun. Can’t wait!

Baby Holiday Fashion

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Seven-months-old grandson Nolan Thomas Behel was a Pirate Baby for Halloween — that’s his mom, my older daughter, Liz, demonstrating a pirate hook. Nolan seems to love dressing up (read “not mind”), so I think we’ve got some fun times ahead of us. And now that Halloween’s over and we’re into November already and we’re speeding into the holiday season, we (read “Grandma”) can legitimately start thinking about Christmas wear. (Sorry, Thanksgiving, for shortchanging you this year.) And of course, as a new grandma, I’m thinking ahead. I snagged this adorable Christmas onesie at Baby Gap earlier this fall as soon as I saw it. I love the cap. Who could resist? Definitely not me.