After Christmas 2025

 

our cards to each other

Christmas 2025 is now behind us. Gradually the decorations will come down, we'll pack away the cards received (although more came in just today), finish up the egg nog, and try to pace our consumption of all the wonderful foodie gifts sent by both family and friends.

one of many gift boxes received

There are some serious dietary considerations among us due to surgeries in recent years. We have to keep a close watch on what we eat, the amount, and even the time of day it is consumed. But with those medical necessities in mind, we are still able to enjoy the season and appreciate the foodie gifts.

non-alcoholic egg nog is a treat

For Christmas breakfast we had our usual Cheerios but served in my Christmas dishes instead of the Corelle bowls.

Christmas dinner (lunch)

These same festive dishes were used throughout the day (although my portion of salmon is obscuring the poinsettia on my plate!). In addition to the salmon, we had green beans and Stovetop Stuffing (my favorite when it comes to dressing/stuffing). It was a simple menu but very tasty and just right.

I have a package of the most cute Christmas paper napkins that Denise gave to me years ago. They are so fun that I only use a very few of them each year. When I went to find the package on Christmas Eve, I couldn't find them! I know they're here SOMEWHERE because I happened to come across them just before Thanksgiving..... oh wait! I just now found them on the Internet. Here's what they look like:

you can order them from Etsy,
click here

Gary got us tickets for several upcoming concerts in the New Year. We gave each other gift cards for necessary services, a cross word puzzle book, and red and white blinking safety lights for our bicycles. 

fog on a lake along our bike route

We don't get snow, but at this time of year, fog descends in the morning hours for a wintery scene. We don't ride our bikes when the fog is really thick (nor at night), but the blinking safety lights are a good idea in any weather conditions. They make me feel like I'm seen.

Here is a T-shirt gift from me to you-know-who:

an Etsy purchase

I absolutely love it when Gary gets tickled. He tends to chuckle for a long time. This shirt made that happen. 

Before and after Christmas day we visited with family and friends (local, out of town and from out of state). We brought a friend with us to attend a Christmas concert at a local church, and we were part of the massive crowd standing in line to get seats at the mega church's Christmas Eve service. 

Plans for the last few days of 2025 include but are probably not limited to: 

~ packing away the Christmas decorations.

~ pruning back the gorgeous Hibiscus outside the lanai. She really showed off well this year with so many large red blooms, but in a few days we are forecasted to have nighttime lows in the low 30s. At this size, the bush is very hard to cover. Trimming her back will make protecting her easier. She has always come back in the past when severely pruned.

~ I'll be working my Sudoku puzzles ....

~ and when stumped with that, Word Search puzzles.

~ There are a few pages in Susie Larson's [excellent] advent devotional book that I did not have time to finish before Christmas, so I want to complete that.

~ and just wind down from 2025 to move into 2026. 

Internet art work

Until next time:

Now may the Lord of peace Himself

give you peace at all times

and in every way.

The Lord be with all of you.

II Thessalonians 3:16