The week between Christmas and New Years Day has been a quiet one this year. No special trip was planning It been a time of winding down from the peak of excitement which is of course is Christmas morning. When I asked Liam what his favorite time of Christmas is, he quickly answered “Opening presents on Christmas morning.” He is the youngest but nevertheless this year, the grandchildren slept later than ever before. They’re growing up. Paula made her traditional cinnamon rolls for breakfast and Arne and Liam made waffles. We didn’t even sit down to breakfast until 9 am. And then slowly moved over to open the presents. Liam was very excited to give his present to Bob. It was a really big one, fully three feet tall and all wrapped in shiny metallic blue and silver paper. Bob played the part and opened it very slowly and methodically, testing the patience not only of Liam but of the rest of us, watching him. It was a really big wooden build it yourself motor boat. It’s a glue together model with instructions totally in German. The idea is that Liam and Bob build it together. After that, then gift exchange started. There must have been more than a hundred presents. In the middle of the gift opening, Nancy and Larry came over. It’s a tradition of Christmas morning. Paula most kindly served them cinnamon rolls and coffee. What a lovely hostess she is! I was thrilled by the homemade gifts that Sonja and Elsa gave to me. And by the handmade moulded glass terrarium that fit onto a wooden tangle of roots perfectly. Erik even brought me live moss from Tacoma Park. So special. Paul, Paula and the girls were very generous. Paula gave me (and Nancy got one too) felted German shopping basket she bought while in Leipzig. Sneaky Bob got me the clippers I wanted, but then surprised me with a beautiful jacket. The gifts were carefully and thoughtfully given. Nancy remarked later to me that it was a pleasure watching the evident love we had for one another. After the requisite group photos, Karna packed up their sleeping bags and mats, all their presents, the kids and Arne and off they went to her mother’s house for another round of gift giving and Christmas dinner with her side of the family. We all quieted down, I went for a walk with Erik and Paul, Paula went for a run. Later we made a delicious Christmas dinner. Paula wowed us by making a Buche Noel!
The week’s highlights: Monday we all went down to Palo Alto to hang out with Arne and Karna. We walked to his favorite book store (Bell’s Books) where Erik, Paul and Paula used their gift certificates. Liam loves old books, the older the better. In the window display were some old books. He picked out the oldest one, a book of poems for children that was 174 years old. I thought, “Oh, boy, that’s going to be expensive.” But as it turned out, the woman who owns this bookstore gave it to Liam. When, Karna, said “oh, no, let us pay.” The woman answered, “It’s my bookstore and I have 250,000 volumes here and I can do what I want with them.” No wonder, Arne loves this bookstore. Then we split to go out to lunch: Arne and Erik took Liam to get pizza while the rest of us went with Karna to a Burmese restaurant for a very delicious meal. Afterwards, we all walked to the Stanford Shopping Center where I went into the lovely boutique, Amour Vert, to use the gift card Arne gave me for Christmas. I said to the salesperson, “Csn you find me something that suits me?” And she did. I got a lovely new outfit thanks to Arne. Tuesday: Bob’s brother, Paul and his wife Shelley came to brunch at our house. All thirteen of us crowded around the table. Paul and Paula kicked me out of the kitchen and cooked all the food, Arne did the dishes, I got off pretty easy. It was a pleasure to see them. It was a treasure to get a photo of three generations of Stokstad men. Karna and Shelley really bonded, having an intense and long conversation. Wednesday: Paul and family went into San Francisco for a lunch with his favorite judge and then toured Golden Gate Park and walked on the Golden Gate Bridge. Meanwhile Erik and I took BART into the City and walked to Nancy’s house for lunch. On the way back to BART, she drove us around the Mission District showing us some of the many painted murals the Mission is famous for. I liked Balmy Lane the best. ByThursday, most of us had come down with Elsa’s cold. It was a rainy stay at home day and Paul made a perfect pot roast for dinner. Paul, Erika and I went to Berkeley Rep to see the new premier play “Wuthering Heights” which did not disappoint us. And today, Friday, it’s another rainy day, a stay at home, quiet kind of day. It’s nice to have these mellow days to be able to reflect on all that has been happening and how wonderful it is to have all the family here making memories.
