HAPPY HOLIDAYS #25

My Forever Family is going to leave us right before the holidays this year! Very unusual and highly pup-spicious! Musicmama found a grrr-eat deal for a trip to Kauii for Dorsaldads birthday 12/15 for the two of them. But then the “other” hoomans  heard about it and they want to go, so now it is a family vacation. But still no woofers get to go. Don’t worry, we won’t chew up your stuff while you are gone, paw haha! 

I heard MusicMama has hosted Christmas Day festivities at whatever home she lived in from age 16, when she first lived on her own. Poor mama! 16 is Bree-ly old in woofer years but seems kind of young for hoomans. So that must be quite a tale! She pawl-ways invited all family, friends and especially those with nowhere else to go, and any homeless people she would encounter. Paw-haha? Nice or naive?

Anyway, it paw-lways worked out.

Except for the family part sometimes.

I wonder why it is so common for families to argue at holiday gatherings? It is said if they don’t get along at other times during the year, don’t expect them to behave at Thanksgiving or Others. I think, why can’t you be good for a few hours so your hard working host doesn’t have to moderate disagreements in addition to her/his other duties?

How can we ever hope to achieve peace on earth if we can’t have peace at the dinner table? And don’t forget to drop some turkey for a grr-eat floor score! And MM, don’t even try that “tofu turkey” I heard you attempted to serve during your vegetarian years! Double yuck!

So, MM is feeling some guilt that they will be gone for the holidays. They deserve a vacation be-paws my FF works hard all year. But be-paws she has done this so many years it is a tradition. My one Uncle has not attended the festivities the last 2 years anyway. I think this picture is funny! Since he wasn’t here, they made a ” bag head” uncle! 

Because part of their festivities is music, MM, and both uncles are professional musicians, and Bear is extremely gifted on piano and guitar, they paw-lways have a grr-eat family “jam” session between the meal and Q of U’s paw-some homemade desserts. I and The Other One love to lie (or is it lay?) on the floor, our bellies full of the treats that everyone “sneaks” to us, plus our floor scores, and listen to all the paw-some tunes. The “covers”, the originals, the harmony, and how it all just seems like magic when it is a family making music together. The Larky Band.

My Aunty, Mrs Mallord,  plays percussion and depending on the guest list that year, there may be other musicians and there are always appreciative listeners.

Something sad, but which is part of life is what The Other One told me. He remembers more people being here for Christmas Day. BTW, Forever Family celebrates Hanukkah as well, but that is at in laws house. FF has had as many as 40 people here to celebrate!

Paw-haha! I would have ruffed to have seen MM hosting that one!

Both sets of grandparents used to come for the Christmas Day festivities. Back then, both Bear and Queen of the Universe were taking piano lessons, so in addition to the Larky Band, they would play a mini piano recital. The proud grandparents would sit and listen with complete joy and MM said she saw grandpa Norm with tears in his eyes! He was one of those strong men who was not afraid to show his emotions. The other grandpa in later years was also a “softie” and you could also catch him with a tear or 2 in his one eye. He only had one! True, but you couldn’t tell be-paws the other one was glass.

And the grandmas both adored those kids and were a gift to the family.

They are deeply missed every day.

This is Grandma Sylvia and Grandpa Norman for the 50th Wedding Anniversary portrait with the grandchildren they adored! I wish I could have met them! They were here every year.

 

We are lucky that we have a wonderful housekeeper who has helped MM once a week for 30 years! Keep the home going. She is going to stay with us while FF are gone whale watching and whatever else they do in Paradise without us. Oh boy, party time! 🏿 You will never know what goes on here while you are gone Paw haha! Emi lets us do whatever we want. She gives us treats and we are going to have fun without you so go ahead and go on your Holiday vacation with your guilt that you are canceling Christmas, mama. Me and TOO will be just fine!

We will have a tree made of chewy dog bones and we will chew it all up.

We will run around the house barking all we want and you can’t stop us.

We will get on the furniture, and your special orthopedic pillow and your “no dogs allowed on” quilt, and we will wreak havoc on the house! But Emi will keep our secrets. She will be complicit in our acts of naughty puppy rebellion and you will never know. When you come home from

your holiday vacation, your first holiday vacation ever, you will be greeted at the door with our happy wagging tails, our angel 🏻 faces, and our very best happy to have you back Woofy joyous greetings!

Of course, I wish for my readers to enjoy these holidays with their families and friends in all the ways they celebrate. I wish you joy, love and peace! And all the traditional and non traditional greetings one can offer. Most of all, I wish you Aloha.

I am not sure if MM is doing her holiday cards this year. I don’t know if she can refrain from doing it.

MM, lighten up!  Last years cards were so amazing! 6 pages of photography and lovely messages.

Can’t that Bree enough?

I pup-pose, from what I hear with my spy ears, there is never enough when it comes to holidays. Or, as I heard it referred to by one unnamed hooman, the horror-days!  That doesn’t sound like fun. Aren’t holidays pup-posed to be fun for everyone? Even the hosts and hostesses?

Hoomans keep adding more lights, more decorations, one guest asks for a plus one or 2 which messes with the seating arrangements, ” does anyone remember if so and so moved to Minnesota? ” for the card mailing list, “Where is the elf on the shelf?”,

“Where is the special Menorah from Israel?”, and so on. Paw haha! MM’s paw-thor friend writes about her mother’s Christmas explosion of decorations. She even has special decorated toilet paper with reindeer and snowflakes on it! These holidays can be so stressful for hoomans! Or just plain crazy.

And what is with the advertising before Halloween for Christmas? Shouldn’t they wait until after Thanksgiving to bombard people with guilt purchases they can’t afford? That is what it looks like. Trying to sell people things they don’t need to make money and commercialize these beautiful holidays whose true meaning is lost. When do car sales have anything to do with Christmas?

Why can’t hoomans go back to the simplicity of a thoughtful gift and the reason for the season. And don’t be offended if someone wishes you Happy Hanukkah, Joyous Kwanzaa, Blessed Winter Solstice, happy Festival of Lights,  and/or St. Nicholas Day, Fiesta of Our Lady of Guadalupe, St Lucia, or any other greeting! I pup-pose if someone takes the time to wish you a happy anything, you should accept it gracefully and be happy. It is probably why it is just easier to say,

Happy Holidays and Celebrate Life!

And eachother, and love. ️

So even though we don’t get to go to Hawaii, I think it is good FF is taking this vacation at holiday time. They can decorate a palm tree!

Musicmama and her boys, Bear and Dorsaldad.

Queen of the universe took the photo, but she is sailing away to Paradise too! 🌈

What are you doing for the holidays?

I would love to hear! Would you leave a comment and let us know paw-lease?

My special Guest Blogger for the Holidays is MusicMama with a few words on Thanks-Giving:

Thank you to Bree for letting me be your first guest paw-thor.  I don’t write as well as you do, but I try! You are a great dog sweetheart!  You should invite some of the other great writers you “nose” to guest on your blog!