Trying to stay awake........
I have been in the habit of going to bed relatively early and tonight I must stay alert and be ready to assist St. Nicholas with the filling of the stockings. Just as on Oscar Night, the mere fact that I must not sleep makes me all the drowsier. If I were on top of things, Emily’s stocking would be in the mail and well on its way to her. When I was in college, my parents sent my stocking to me every December and I enjoyed helping my parents prepare my sister’s stocking while she was in Vermont at law school. I’ve carried on this tradition every year since.........now also adding little surprises for my neice and nephew. Tonight I had to call Karen and tell her I really dropped the ball this year. Besides the usual gold coins and candy canes, all I have is a CD and an ornament. She graciously said a small box would be fine, since they are living in a tiny townhouse while building their new home and don’t have room for much stuff. The CD should come in handy - she discovered all her Christmas CD’s, videos and a lot of decorations are trapped in a containerized storage unit. Even the stockings. I could hear the kids in the background, decorating tube socks with fabric paint.

Em’s stocking will be whisked away in the morning to prevent pilferage. She is still smarting over last year’s misfortune. Some devious siblings (and not the youngest) gradually helped themselves to all of her candy, leaving her with a stocking of 4 oranges and a laminated guide to growing roses. Very sad. Maybe the saddest St. Nick tale I know of.......with the exception of the year I stole Karen’s marshmallow Santa and lost it to our dachsund while playing keep away. Cleo, the dog, was no worse for the minimal amount of chocolate consumed, but the memory lingers on........It will certainly be recounted in both of our households tomorrow, as we eat chocolate fortified breakfasts.