Christmas Comes Twice a Year

Don and I have made our Christmas plans. It's still three and a half months away but I'm excited already! With our families coming from different states and us living separate from them all together, it is always a challenge to figure out how to spend the holiday season since we can't be in two places at once. Usually, when our work schedule allows us to get away (unlike our first married Christmas in Bellingham that we spent just the two of us - still one of my most special Christmas memories - Don spoiled me) we try to split the difference by doing Thanksgiving with one family and Christmas with the other.

Of course it sucks living so far away from our families. I do get jealous sometimes when I think of Terri and Matt raising Amber in Eugene where they live 5 miles from both sets of Grandparents. And I do wish that could be me. It would be nice to be able to see both of our families all of the time, sharing not only the holidays together but getting together on the weekends and even living close enough to meet for lunch! I think this will become even harder when Don and I have kids eventually and have to raise them all by ourselves without all of the first hand family support that lucky little Amber gets to have.

But getting back to the holidays, you learn to make the most of what you have and in some ways it is kind of nice to be able to indulge fully in the holiday season whether in Oregon or Idaho and really enjoy that time with the family that you are with rather than having to drive back and forth from one house to another. I do hear stories from friends - married couples with children especially - how living close to family doesn't make the holiday scheduling any easier. Instead of just choosing here or there - like Don and I do - it is more like, here, there, around the corner and back again- 48 hours, 32 relatives, 6 houses, and 4 Christmas dinners later can turn a Merry Christmas into a very chaotic Christmas that is hard to enjoy in the happy relaxing vacation mode that Don and I usually get to enjoy ours.

Well, for the first time ever, Don and I will get to enjoy Christmas with not one but both of our families. Don and I are having not one Christmas this year, but two. We were able to work our schedules such that we are flying to Boise Friday the 21st and will be there through the weekend and Christmas morning. Then Christmas afternoon we fly back to California and arrive at 4:30 to spend Christmas evening and the rest of the week with Kristy and a few of her friends (including my 30th birthday on the 27th of December) who will be out here enjoying a nice holiday vacation in our sunny state. I think it will be quite an interesting and exciting holiday getting to have Christmas with Don's family and then come back home and do it all over again with mine. I also think it will be a crazy experience to go from snowy Christmas in Boise back to sunny Christmas in LA. Talk about two different worlds! But I can't wait!

The jury is still out on what we will do for Thanksgiving. Don and I will both have the 4 days off but after looking at tickets this late in the season they are already a little too pricey especially after purchasing the Christmas tickets. So it looks like we will be staying here in California but if anyone wants to come out here for Thanksgiving we would be happy to host! Any takers?