Christmas in Chicago

As Jeff noted in his post, it was the last Christmas with just the two of us.  We’ve been very fortunate with Jeff’s schedule to have made it to Atlanta for Christmas in past years.  This year didn’t allow for that so we celebrated in Chicago.  Jeff had to work until midnight on Christmas Eve, so I was on my own.  It was harder than I expected it to be as Christmas Eve isn’t typically a big day for me.  But I was feeling lonely.  So I went to church to sing some good Christmas-y songs (and be reminded of the reason for the holiday, of course).  As a non-Catholic I felt weird walking in to the Catholic church all by myself, even though it’s the same church we go to every weekend.  The walls didn’t crumble around me and no lightning bolts came from the sky, so I think it was ok.  And the song selection didn’t disappoint. 

Later in the evening I used Skype to video chat with my family and participate in the Simpson Christmas Eve ritual.  This consists of hanging stockings, toasting the season, and opening our Christmas Eve gift (pajamas).  The jokes, jabs and insults traded between my family members assured me that even though we’re all growing older and venturing out on our own, some things never change.

Christmas morning came and I once again Skyped with my family.  I got to see them open some presents and hear them talk about ones I couldn’t see from my particular viewpoint. I got passed around to different laps as people took turns moving the laptop to change what I could see.  Although not nearly the same as being there, it was nice to have a way to feel a part of things.  I had to talk loudly enough for them to hear me and my voice carried into the bedroom and woke Jeff up.  He stumbled out and promptly crawled under the blanket on the couch.  He wasn’t real interested in any on-camera appearances.  He turned on the 24-hour marathon of A Christmas Story and texted key lines back and forth with his sister.

Once we finished up with all the Skyping, we had our own Christmas.  We each had stockings full of candy and small gifts.  Apparently Santa decided to take note of this pregnancy thing and gift me with some chocolate covered potato chips.  I’ve only had one so far, but they are definitely full of greasy goodness.

Jeff got me an ipod touch, which I am now addicted to.  Thank goodness I can’t access the wireless internet at work with it and thus can convince myself to leave it at home.  I also got a pregnancy pillow, some books, and a very cool customized vinyl skin for my Kindle.  Jeff used some wedding photos of us to create the front cover and a vibrant flower picture from our Canada trip to make the back.  It’s pretty cool.  I was telling my mom about it and she said “See, now that’s romantic.”  And while it does sound a little silly, I know what she means and I agree.  I appreciate the time and effort put into thinking up the idea, picking out pictures that would be meaningful, and cropping and adjusting to make them fit.  That is, lots of time spent thinking about what I would like.  Can’t go wrong with that.

Back

Front

Jeff received a miscellaneous assortment of items including some books from his wish list, some stubby, flexible head ratchets, and a soda rack for his cans of Jeff water (flavored seltzer water).  His big gift was a gift certificate to an online lens rental company so that he can try out all these fancy lenses on his wish list.  I don’t know how he feels about his gifts, but I don’t think it was one of my better gift-giving occasions.

In the afternoon we went over to Jeff’s grandparents house for the Schulze Christmas gathering.  I contributed stuffed mushrooms to the party, which everyone raved about.  They’re a good group to cook for; whatever I bring gets such enthusiastic response.  We had a Italian/Chicago feast of lasagna, sausage, and Italian beef and enjoyed spending time with all the family.

The next day I was off to Atlanta for Christmas, round 2.