I have this one very distinct memory of my Grandpa on my mom’s side. (We called him Grandpa Miller). He had a stroke when I was in elementary school and was never the same after, and then passed away when I was in college, so my memories of him are from when I was quite young. He had these wonderful old-timey looking glasses, and I recall sitting up front in the middle in a car with a big seat all the way across (this was back in the day when car safety rules were a little different) and he leaned over and said, it’s Christmas Eve Eve! I realized I blogged this story a few years ago…it’s a strong memory I have…is it even true or am I combining things? Who knows! It’s real to me, and I remember my Grandpa was a fun guy, smart, and always had a twinkle in his eye. My Grandma on that side was always laughing too, trying to get us to eat cookies and take sandwiches with us, saying “ai-yiy-yiy” and running around trying to keep everything under control. She also tended to serve cookies people had given her that I didn’t think were very good, like ones with redhots on them, and was also a big fan of jello salad molds and ham loaf. We all thought our Grandma on the other side of the family was a better cook, but we loved both of them and nothing was more fun that when they would join us in a game (board, not reindeer.)

Christmas time always brings up these memories. I’m hosting my family this Christmas, and my sister Leslie and her family are arriving in a few hours, my parents tomorrow, and my sister Carrie the following day. I wanted to make this a wonderful Christmas for my niece Athena, since she might remember it as an adult. I hope she looks back and says, that was a fun time we had in St Louis!

It’s been a busy week. I’ve been getting the house ready, Louie’s been finishing the new shower, and we’ve both been working as well. I have ONE MORE DAY and then I’m on winter break, and it will be glorious. I am completely worn out and running on adrenaline, sugar, and coffee, but honestly, it’s been a fun December. Playing gigs is fun because you see colleagues and I’ve gotten to work with a lot of my favorites this month. I also really enjoy holiday music, because I’m a sap like that. I am looking forward to January though, and relaxing and reconnecting with some friends I haven’t seen much of since before Thanksgiving.

Look at that shiny new shower!

From 2019 Opera Edwardsville (Photo Credit: Scott Evers)

I hope you are having a wonderful second night of Hanukkah, or a wonderful Christmas Eve Eve, or simply a great night enjoying some downtime and/or time with friends. In other words, Happy Holidays! I wish you the best!