Flexibility Is Key

Some people open gifts on Christmas day, and some people open gifts on Christmas eve, while still others end up celebrating the holiday on a different day, due to scheduling issues. Our family had done all three of these types of celebration, and because one of our daughters lives in Washington with her family, we also have a long-distance celebration too. The reality is that life is what you make it, and celebrations are too. Flexibility is key. Rather than put a big guilt trip on people, work with them.

I think the most extreme celebration we had, was during Covid-19. My husband, Bob and I ended up having Covid on Thanksgiving. It was a bummer, but we figured, “better Thanksgiving, than Christmas” but that didn’t exactly work either. Our daughter Corrie Petersen and her husband, Kevin got it over Christmas, and to make matter worse, our family had a baby in our midst, so we didn’t want to cause her to get sick. So, that year ended up being the longest wait for Christmas since the days when Christmas had been banned in the mid-1600s. We were finally able to get together to celebrate Christmas on January 19th.

Some people celebrate Christmas Eve in a slightly different way, like my grandparents, George and Hattie Byer, who were married on that day in 1927. Marrying on Christmas Eve wasn’t all that uncommon in those days, especially if the families had moved out west. The families were together for the holiday, so sometimes it was decided to add a wedding to the festivities. Whatever the case may have been for my grandparents, their marriage started a family that boasts somewhere between 600 and 800 people now. We haven’t counted it in years, so I can’t be sure just how many of us there are, but we all feel blessed to com from such a wonderful couple, and it makes Christmas Eve just a little bit more special. Of course, Grandma and Grandpa Byer are in Heaven now, but they are fondly remembered on this their 98th anniversary. We love and miss them very much. Merry Christmas Eve everyone. I hope you all have a wonderful holiday, no matter how you celebrate.