stolen from Shannon

A holiday meme.

1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? both, but not together. I think? Hmm. Maybe I'll try that. .
2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? Until last year he just shoved everything under the tree and then the husband asked boy aged 8 if he wanted to help. Oops. BA8 hadn't known the truth. Whoowee were the other two kids pissed off at us. They'd done a careful job maintaining the myth.
3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? We have white and only on the tree. We like to see lights that are colored on everyone else's house. We love the huge blow up things in front of our neighbors' houses. Love. Them.
4. Do you hang mistletoe? No. Dog would eat the berries I bet.
5. When do you put your decorations up? Sometime nearish Christmas. When we are bored one day, usually on a weekend.
6. What is your favorite holiday dish? Mary's sweet potatoes, but that's for Thanksgiving. We don't do a big meal at Christmas. It used to be an extended family occasion when we lived in Maryland. Now it's just the five of us.
7. Favorite Holiday memory as a child: When my parents decided to say f*** Christmas and dragged us all to warm places, a tradition that continues in my sister's family. I have a very vague memory of getting Hannukah gelt from my grandparents--real dimes I think--and liking the fact that I scored for TWO holidays.
8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? Can't recall. But I will never forget last year, blowing it for my youngest son. Gag.
9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? Kids usually pick one present and are disappointed by it--an important tradition.
10. How do you decorate your Christmas Tree? Well. Um we have some American Airlines soap and 25 year old bagels (the raisin ones and the potato got moldy) and then a lot of homemade stuff, plus some pretty things like a light-up ceramic cheesecake and a glittery pickle.
11. Snow! Love it or Dread it? Both. Love eventually turns to dread.
12. Can you ice skate? Not to save my life. I have cross country skis. Do I use them? Not recently.
13. Do you remember your favorite gift? Seashells my mother gathered on a beach of one of our warm places, along with an earnest note about how important it was not to attach material stuff to occasions blah blah blah. At the time I was 15 and ready to deck her, but I kept them and now I love them because they remind me of her.
14. What’s the most important thing about the Holidays for you? Um. Er. Mostly seeing them back end of them, actually. I'm a pre-ghost Scrooge in too many ways. I do like how excited my kids get, or maybe got. They're getting old and cynical.
15. What is your favorite Holiday Dessert? Yum. Whatever my husband makes.
16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? The kids trying to wake us up. They usually resort to Christmas carols played on a trombone.
17. What tops your tree? A 28 year old plastic lobster. Cathy H. gave it to us. Lights up beautifully when we stick a bulb in its butt. Also we seem to have a tradition of picking trees with spider egg sacs on them. So the lobster and a lot of baby spiders.
18. Which do you prefer giving or Receiving? Giving. Since I'm cheap, it's fun to to figure out what will work for whom with not much money. Kids aren't as much fun with that, but heh. Maybe I'll give them seashells.
19. What is your favorite Christmas Song? My kid does madrigal dinners and we all liked the Riu Rui Chiu (however that's spelled/pronounced)ancient Spanish song they sang there. We walk around singing it and making up lyrics. Very pretty song at least until we got it. True Fact: It was once covered by the Monkees. I like the high school version better--they belted out that baby. If you watch the Monkees version, click away right after the song.
20. Candy Canes! Yuck or Yum? Since most of the ones I've eaten were rejects covered with boy spit and handed to me (and that I absently ate) I'd say yuck. We get the fruit flavored ones now. The boys and the dog likes them better.