What are AN people doing for a joyous Christmas Eve and Day?

[Gennysmom]

Vicki, that's a great plan!!!!!!!!  We always have "table gifts", we do our dinner on Christmas eve and it gives us something to do just before the food goes on.  And everyone usually gets 5 scratch lotto tickets to play with at some point, to fill another time void.  We open presents on Christmas eve after every last dish is washed and put away.  I like the Nerf gun idea, I may have to go get some of those!!!!!!!! 

[Palace]

We changed our reservations from Scopozzi's Restaurant (the table by the fireplace) to a Sicilian Restaurant.  It has fabulous food but, we will have to travel down about three towns through the mountains in the rain.  This restaurant is dressy and elegant, just no fireplace but........much better food selection.  (very gourmet')

After being in ER tonight, we are exhausted.  I think we might have our tree ceremony on Christmas morning.  I just can't imagine lighting candles, dogs jumping all over the place opening presents themselves, putting on the music, making coffee, staying up late and all.  (tomorrow night)  The travel in the rain for the Christmas eve supper will be the "fatique" enough for one night.  I'm exhausted tonight........it has been non-stop since I got out of the Cyberknife three weeks ago.   

I want Christmas to be relaxing, the way it should be.  It has been nuts here, crazy!  It is time to stop and celebrate what the day really means.........the birthday!  (not the comercialized and sensationized zoo the stores are producing)  I went into a couple of places the last few days.  The lines were NUTS and who needs all that stuff, anyway? 

AN treatment and proper diagnosis is Santa's gift to us!  Here is to our present, HEALTH!



   Palace

[ppearl214]

As Christmas eve is arriving here earlier in the States (but not sooner than Laz in the land of Oz), let me be one of the first to wish you all a fabulous, joyous and safe holiday..... good health to you all!

xoxo
Phyl, Iain (CB) and yes, Beanie

[BusyBonnie]

It's after 12 am here in Ramona, California so Merry Christmas Eve everyone! My hubby, kids and I will be doing WAY too much today! First, I'm going to see my horse and let her out to run in the pasture and feed her sweet apple slices. Then, we are driving to the beach so my hubby can surf. Next we are going to his dad's for a christmas eve party.There we just have a gift exchange, decorate his last minute tree and I think we're having spaghetti ( weird ).  After that, we are going to walk around a very festive, lighted community to see all the christmas lights and drink hot apple cider. Then we will drive home and after the kids fall asleep i need to finish wrapping. AHHHH, I always have too much to do. Luckily, I was able to take ten days off of work for my treatment on Wednesday. Christmas Day will be pretty relaxing. We're just opening gifts and my Oma ( Grandma in German ) is coming over and we will have a nice meal. that's it! yay! So wishing you all the very happiest of holiday wishes!


Lana

By the way: My best christmas present this year? DEAD Fred! Fred, my tumor, will be radiated on the 27th! Die, Fred Die!

[ppearl214]

Lana,

The upcoming death of Fred will be celebrated and wishing you a wonderful holiday as well!

Phyl

[Palace]

3:30 AM Christmas Eve Morning


So Lana, Fred backwards is derf and that might mean, deaf in German.  LOL  <or the pronounciatioin, anyway>  Anyway, dead-Fred on Wednesday, right?  (or the beginning of the dying cells)  Congratulations!



Palace

[Obita]

Good riddance to Fred.

I had to laugh when I read about Fred going by the wayside on Wed.  I go to a site all the time called Dead Fred.  For all interested in genealogy, check it out:  http://deadfred.com/

Merry Christmas everyone and best of luck Wed. Lana.......sorry (not really) Fred, this will be your last Christmas.

Kathy

[ppearl214]

8:30am GMT now.... and fresh croissants and cinnamon raisin buns were baked by 7:15am, Mimosas (champagne and orange juice) were poured by 7:20am, stockings opened at 7:21am (ask Iain, the kid that he is!) and now letting things settle. 

Today, Iain off to sleep for a bit (he worked until 6am today), presents at 14:00 GMT, Dinner (goose!) at 15:00 and visits with friends at 17:00  ... then back to pack to prep for flight home tomorrow. 

Here's wishing you all a FAB-U-LOUS holiday... and hope you all are feeling great today!

MERRY CHRISTMAS ALL!

[Palace]

Restaurant:


I was going for the salmon, with capers, etc.  (not serviing off our regular menu tonight)  So, my second choice of veal with spinach was out.........had to have the lobster!  (mashed potatoes, garlic veggies, and the "Scicily" styled breads with dipping in the garlic bowls, chopped olives, and all)  The Cab-wine was unique.  (very nice)  We got the table right next to the Christmast tree.  It was one of those long suppers, taking a long time to serve.  All went well but, they changed waiters mid-stream.  (?)   Both waiters were wonderful)

Since it isn't raining we will take the dogs to the beach for a stretch-run this morning.  They were digging up the yard yesterday and shredded the tissue and wrappings.  The front room looks like it snowed in there from last night.  All went well.  (but, they need to run their legs off)  The drive to the beach up north is nearly an hour one way, the place we go.

The house has clothes taken off from last night.  My ring caught in my red lace dress and ripped a hole in that.  (only disaster, not too bad)  I will try to do a repair........hard to do on real lace.  Anyway, another day of the Acoustic Neuroma cells dying!  (thanks Santa for another cell death day outta here)  I'm 24 days down, now!

Oh, the "scratch-offs and lotto tickets" in hubby's stocking didn't produce a big winner to pay the med bills.  DARN!  I will have to think of something else, now.  We will get through the "Mega Toasting" next and 07' is serious money planning.

Well, that is our Christmas, quiet and nice!  The dogs are adorable with the huge bell collars on.  Molucca with her dark red fur green collar with huge jingle bells and Molokai with his cream fur. (wearing a bright red collar with banging big matching sleigh bells)  When they run and jingle together they are adorble.  (my Christmas dogs/angels made it another year)  They are 10.5 now and no change from puppies, yet.  (littermates)

OK, off to eat some of that egg-nog banana bread and morning tea.  MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL MY AN FRIENDS.  BLESS ALL OF YOU..............I LOVE YOU.



Palace

[Obita]

Merry Christmas everyone!!

Palace:  Do you have a pic of the poochies you can post?  There is a thread back a page "our staunchest supporters...." lots of doggies on there.

My golden is 13 and still going strong.

Kathy

[Palace]

 

Kathy,


We are leaving now for that beach trip.     I hope my babies don't roll on something bad at the beach.  *(like a dead seal)  Oh, there was a big skunk just outside the laundry-room door.  That is where I let the dogs out in the backyard on a morning smell hunt.  It is a good thing I noticed the skunk so, they didn't go out and get smelled.  We need to leave for the beach now.  We will work on your request so, you can see my "wild pair."  I think your dog must be posted there so I can see the thirteen year old Golden Retriever.  We will work on that when we return.  I will check the supporters more seriously later on.

Wish me a good smelling trip.  Riding back with dead seal smell in a car in the cold weather with windows up, IS A KILLER.  We could expose that smell and the skunk smell to AN and kill those tumors, OUT-RIGHT.   



Happy Holiday Kathy and everyone,



Palace

[ppearl214]

Cautions as noted from the post English Christmas dinner:

1.  Use earplugs when others are scraping their knives across dinner plates when eating Christmas goose.  Worse than fingernails down a chalkboard and my residual hearing is now gone.

2.  When opening party favor holiday "crackers", pull cracker cord with one hand while covering AN ear with other.  Can be close to fireworks "boom".

3.  Careful of misletoe as it may lead to unexpected pregnancies (NO! NOT what you think!)

4.  To get out of dinner dish cleanup, just say "oy, did you say something from the kitchen?  I never heard you!"

Happy Christmas all!

Phyl

[kat]

Hi everyone !

Happy Christmas to you all ! I have just been through most of the above except we had turkey instead of goose . I was the cook
and now I feel absolutely stuffed ! It is just as well that Christmas only comes once a year . Luckily my husband did the washing up
since we have a golden rule that the cook never washes up !

Cool yule to all  from Kat 

[Palace]

 

HERE IS A FUNNY ONE...

We don't care for turkey but, wanted a turkey club sandwich with champagne.  My AN symptoms acted up from driving up the high mountains and down to the ocean.  (to run the dogs this morning)  That is why I wanted to add champagne to the turkey club.  We don't eat turkey so, no left-over turkey.  We do like a T-club.  OK, we drove all the way back from the beach and up to the country club....not open, down to town by our home, no open market.......down to the next town, no open market........keep going back towards the beach.......got to Felton.......even Safeway was closed!  We walked next door to a new Long's Drug Store that just opened.  Guess what?  We got the last bacon there, bread, frozen boxed chicken..........lol lol lol.........and made the sandwiches at home.  I haven't had a turkey club in about tweny years.  I got a chicken club.  We were going to get turkey bacon at Safeway and not have more high cholestrol but, Long's had REAL BACON.  I bought Piper Sonoma Champagne.......which is now in the trash can, did the club-thing and we toasted to TAYLOR.........the youngest on the list.  I'm on a roll.  I haven't been drinking for months.  I'm practicing for the big MEGA TOAST next week.  I'm gettin' right in there GUYS, and quickly.   

LOL We got boxed frozen chicken from Long's Drug Store for Christmas Day!  That is what memories are made of. 

Oh, one last thing about X-mas.  I met a gal on the beach playing with her year old black lab.  My Molucca played chase with that dog.  The hubby at the end of the beach with Molokai dog.  I talked with the lady about my age.  She has the AN symptoms and hasn't been to a doctor.  I told her of the symptoms and she was very concerned.  Her husband was out surfing and the doctors told him that he shouldn't surf.  They  got the call from Stanford that he need a kidney transplant.  He wanted the surf-therapy because, they were stessed to the MAX.  Imagine getting that call on Christmas Eve.  He needed to surf and didn't care...........stressed-out.  They live in Santa Cruz.  I should have gotten her phone number.  She was sad and hugged me. 



Live for today.......*Christmas Day,



Palace

[thecakes]

  Christmas Eve my family and I went to church and then out to eat, then we go to the city park where they have all the christmas lights to look at,.  Its no biggy, but its nice and I believe in triditions and this is one of them.  Then we come home and the kids get their gifts.  We have the tree lite and the fire place on and its very pretty just to sit there with my family(in my jammies).  My daughter got a digital camera and the son got his class ring, and they got other things too.  Christmas dayI got up and made a big breakfast and we had my husbands parents over and later thet day we went to my sisters for supper and then exchanged more gifts.  Now today I'm going to take it easy, clean up the wrapping paper peices off the floor, etc.  Happy Holidays!