Category Archives: Christmas

Christmas at our House

(Are there American boys that want something besides video games and cheat books for Christmas. A football maybe? He does like books though.)

Okay, I know Christmas is over, at least for some people. Me, I’m a twelve days of Christmas kind of guy. So you will have to put up with me about it. Christmas morning is pretty civilized. Logan has never been and up at 4 am kind of guy. Or not any more. He is not a tear into things kind of guy either. We open our gifts slowly so we can each see what other people got.

(Funny thing, nobody can read my handwriting either. The Contract Administrators at work make jokes and laugh about the way I write.)

Logan left Santa a couple of gingerbread cookies and a glass of wine the night before and so Santa wrote him a note. Don’t get all MADD on me!!!Santa has a designated driver. I had been telling Logan that he was “on the bubble” for a few days. Poor kid didn’t know what that meant. Apparently neither does Santa.

For my trouble I got a Lump of Coal. The good kind.

We’d been promising Logan underwear for Christmas for years and Santa finally came through. Notice Logan’s pajamas. He wore them all day long. Note the slippers on right side. That is Heather. She was wearing her Christmas pajamas and her silk scarves. You won’t find a picture on this post of her in her pajamas. I may not be very smart, but I’m not all that dumb either. Besides, I would never find anybody that puts up with my crap like she does. You will also note that you won’t find a shot of me wearing my Christmas pj’s either. Cuz I’m the photographer.

Ginger got a new hedgehog. She’s our neurotic little dog and she loves her hedgehogs. That is her therapy hedgehog.

And here is Mrs. Grinch, aka Chrissy out big grouchy Maine Coon. She doesn’t give a flip about Christmas. I wouldn’t try and move her off that throw either. If you want to keep your hand that is.

And here is Logan with LJ (“Logan Junior”) feeding him treats. LJ loves Christmas and is terrorized by Mrs. Grinch. Don’t feel bad LJ, I am also.

And here is me with my one Christmas shirt and my Dallas Cowboys stocking cap with my favorite gift from Heather for my office at work. Santa hasn’t visited the Cowboys since the 90’s. Dear Santa, I hope that you gave the Cowboys defense a clue and the Philedelphia Eagles the flu. Thanks. In case you are wondering why I am not smiling, that is my smile. No I wasn’t drunk either.

Here is Heather all cleaned up and her mother Nana. Ready to do battle with Christmas.

Heather got a new coffee machine. We have been nursing along our old one for quite a while an Nana couldn’t stand it anymore. We don’t like to replace things until they are worn out. The stuff we give to Goodwill or rummage sales is truly worn out.

Nana gave me a new Lomography camera. Sucker doesn’t even have a lens. It has a pinhole. I’ve been playing with it. You photography buffs, it has a f/175 aperture. This is going to be interesting. Some of the shots I want to take will requre exposure times of over a minute. I find out that Apple has an app that uses the camera as a light meter. You set the film speed and the fstop and it tells you the exposure time. And then you click it and it is a countdown timer. We’ll see how it works. Thing is I have to go through 36 exposures to see if gives me good results or not. Don’t hold your breath, it will take a while. I’ll have to use a tripod for almost all the shots.

I’ll have to get a cable release also to hold the shutter open. I’ve been reading about how one can open the shutter and then walk to a chair in front of the camera. Sit down and then get up to close the shutter. That kind of stuff really interests me.

And this is Rascal wanting to know where his stuff is. You may think its funny that we buy our pets gifts and treats at Christmas. Well its true, sorry. We had quite a zoo going on. Nana brought her dogs over so we had five total. Worse than little kids, in the door, out the door, and back in. Updating the Barkbook status constantly.

And here we are all ready for Christmas dinner!!

I hope that you had a great Christmas also.

Merry Christmas from the Bates Family: Alan, Heather, and Logan.

Christmas Eve

Well, the gingerbread men are baked and decorated.

And the cats are synchronizing their fireplace napping.

Christmas Eve is here.

I have two last errands to run and some wrapping to do.

Are you ready for Christmas?

Scavenger Hunt Sunday featuring Lights, Babies, and Other Merriment

Lights

Heather added some lights to our display this year. I think lights and snow really go together well.

Tree

Who can’t like a pink flamingo Christmas tree like this one a the Philbrook Festival of the Trees from, ah, oh, a couple years ago. Sorry.

Big

Devon Energy in Oklahoma has the perfect ornament for the grounds of their billion dollar headquarters. You don’t find too many ornaments with signs asking that you don’t climb on them.

Makes You Feel Merry

This is from Logan’s first Christmas, years ago. He’s been busting moves ever since. Who can’t be merry when a baby is involved?

On the Door

This place at Utica Square has something on the doors and the windows and everywhere else.

Scavenger Hunt Sunday

Song-ography – Silver Bells

Silver Bells
by Ray Evans and Jay Livingston

Silver bells silver bells
It’s Christmas time in the city
Ring a ling, hear them sing
Soon it will be Christmas day

City sidewalks busy sidewalks .
Dressed in holiday style
In the air
There’s a feeling
of Christmas
Children laughing
People passing
Meeting smile after smile
And on every street corner you’ll hear

Silver bells silver bells
It’s Christmas time in the city
Ring a ling, hear them ring
Soon it will be Christmas day

Strings of street lights
Even stop lights
Blink a bright red and green
As the shoppers rush
home with their treasures

Hear the snow crunch
See the kids bunch
This is Santa’s big scene
And above all this bustle
You’ll hear
Silver bells, silver bells
It’s Christmas time in the city
Ring-a-ling, hear them ring
Soon it will be Christmas day

Read more: Christmas Carols – Silver Bells Lyrics | MetroLyrics

The original performance of White Christmas from the movie “The Lemon Drop Kid.” Bob Hope’s costume is pretty sketchy in my opinion.

Song-ography

Pondering the Spirit of Christmas

(Wreaths are one of my favorite decorations, and they include lights and candles, so much the better.)

Christmas is a very complicated thing I think. We celebrate Christ’s birth at Christmas but everybody agrees that he was not born on Christmas. What is up with that?

(One of our several Nativity Scenes, we are keeping all of them!)

Then the whole Nativity Scene thing. We’ve seen it a zillion times. You know, the baby Jesus, Mary Joseph, the various critters, shepherds, and the three Wise Men. It makes a great scene but that is not the way it happened. Not according to my Bible at least. My Bible doesn’t specify the number of Wise Men and it doesn’t say that they appeared at a manger. They appeared at a house and worshipped a young boy, not a baby.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not trying to be snide or act superior. I’m a Christian and I love nativity scenes, we have more than one and I believe in the virgin Birth and that Christ is my savior. I’m not trying to change the way you celebrate Christmas. My point is that Christmas is more than a religious holiday.

(Christmas trees on the Riverparks. I love’em.)

What else is Christmas? Lets see, lots of decorations, Santa Claus, Frosty the Snowman, Rudolf , concerts, holidays, egg nog, hot chocolate!! Oh yes, I love all that also.

(Brian Setzer Orchestra. Wow, what a Christmas show. My first ever rockabilly Christmas.)

And don’t forget gifts. It is fun to give gifts and it is fun to receive them.

(Logan’s first Christmas. I love those little arms and legs and big smiles)

Nothing like watching a baby or a young one enjoy Christmas. Nothing like watching a loved one open up a special present you got just for him or her. Hey, and I won’t lie, I love receiving presents. I really do. I freely admit it. Do I feel bad for those who are not as blessed as me and my family? Yes, I feel horrible about it. What do I do about it? Not much I’m afraid, Angle Tree gifts and some money in various pots and kettles and such. We can all do much better I think.

I like the little things about Christmas like the ranch owner who made a wreath out of rope, spray paint, and a bow and put it on a fence out in the middle of nowhere. I just love things like this. It is a gift to me and others from somebody. We don’t know each other but they gave us something out of the blue.

(Warehouse district in Oklahoma City)

I watch secular Christmas movies like Home Alone and others where they talk the “The Spirit of Christmas.” That always confuses me, what is the Spirit of Christmas. Maybe it is grace. Being kind to each other, even total strangers, in small acts and large. I think it is at the very roots of Christianity. I think though that Christmas has enough room in it for others besides Christians. It better, for there is a lot going on at Christmas that doesn’t have anything to do with Christianity.

So, what do you think the Spirit of Christmas is about?

Trees of the Season

Heather has been working on the house both inside and out. Above is our living room. She makes works hard to make a very festive yet welcoming room. You can tell that LJ, the cat on the hearth is pretty happy with the result. He and Chrissy the Christmas cat take turns on the hearth. Or more precisely he gets the hearth until she kicks him off of it.

Heather also decorated the outside. I put the lights on the eaves and Heather added the lights on the shrubs and wrapped the trees. Plus she put the tree in up the dining room window. I did a lot, I promise. Just because you can’t see what I did doesn’t mean that I didn’t do it. Or something like that.

This is the dining room tree that you could see through the window. It is our “old” Christmas tree recycled.

And this is my Nana,the world’s greatest MIL tree, or more precisely one of her trees. She loves the Gulf Coast so she has a palm Christmas trees complete with a flamingo. Works for me.

Oh, you thought she had just one tree, no, sorry this is sitting room tree in front of a window.

Two trees you thought, sorry, this is her third tree. I like it best ofher trees. So territorial looking. Notice the stove, it is from one of her forbearers who were Oklahoma pioneers. It’s the real deal, but it is not hooked up to a flue. So no fires in it for now. In her previous house she had it hooked up and used it for heat once in a while when it got frosty.

Do you have a tree up yet? I mean if you celebrate Christmas.

First Snow

We had our first snow of the year on Friday. It started with sleet and ice on Thursday during drive time home (fun, fun, fun, rednecks on ice!) and the snow started early Friday. Rather than play bumper cars I worked from home. I just love having that option.

And I shoveled the driveway. It was a wet snow and it pretty much did me in. And again, for the thirteen years that we have lived in the house our driveway was shoveled first. Then three of my neighbors came out and shoveled theirs. I think I shamed them into it. I don’t feel bad, they shame me into mowing my yard in the summer. Our four driveways were the only ones shoveled in our part of the neighborhood.

I was glad we had put our Christmas lights up outside while it was still warm. I hate putting up lights when it is cold and it is impossible with snow. It is not supposed to get above freezing until Wednesday. Oh, I’m already hearing the moans of sympathy from those who live in Colorado, Idaho, Minnesota, and Maine for me having to bear our brutish temperatures.

So I turned on the outside lights while I shoveled. Sorry, I think lights with snow is pretty.

Inside I got our gas log going. That’s Chrissy the Christmas Cat, our big, fat, lazy, Maine Coon. She’s going to not move from that fireplace except for eating and pooping until April.

Heather worked hard decorating the house all day. She does a heck of a job and I’ll post some of her handiwork later. She has quite a collection of snowmen. These are just a few. She says she needs a snowman clock for kitchen and you know I think she does. Maybe we can get out today. The street in front is a solid sheet of ice but maybe it will be passable once the sun gets up.

The annual University of Oklahoma vs Oklahoma State University football game (called the Bedlam game) is being played today at 11 am. It is going to be below 20 degrees at game time. Lots of people I know are going. Those are known as crazy people. I just can’t imagine being interested in going to a game and freezing in a crowd. I am a casual fan of both teams. I prefer the professional version of the sport personally. Uh, I mean, the National Football League version.

So, how is Winter going for you so far?

Rhema Bible Church Christmas Light Display

Monday night, Heather, Logan, Me and a dog named Rascal loaded up and drove over to the Tulsa suburb of Broken Arrow to check out the Rhema Bible Church Christmas Light Display. It has been going on for 30 years and just keeps getting bigger and better all the time.

Being the wimps we generally just drive by with the seat warmers going this time though the temperature was mild so parked and walked around a little bit.

Its best seen on foot where you can get in amongst the lights. It really is magical with the bright bulbs and reflections. There are a lot of people there but it is not packed and everybody is in a good mood.

There are not too many rules and there are no minders barking at people. Mainly just stay on the walkway is the only thing they ask.

There are no fees for anything. They do have drinks and snacks for sale. They just ask that people have a good time. There was no problem with that. Lots of smiles and picture taking was going on.

The most popular decoration was a bridge of lights over a pond. The colors changed constantly to the beat of music.

All I can say is that Logan, Heather, Me, and a dog named Rascal all got our Christmas Spirit going. Kudos to Rhema Bible Church for putting this on. Public Service Company of Oklahoma probably has them on the Christmas card list. I do that for my best customers.

If you are somebody who celebrates Christmas what are doing to get your Christmas Spirit going?

Christmas with the Critters

Sorry, I’m still posting about Christmas. There’s twelve days of Christmas, right. I’m not sure what that means but I’m standing by it. If the Tea Partiers and Democrats can stand by their beliefs without understanding them so can I! This is America by goodness!

(Abigail, left and Rascal checking out SuperPizzaBoy’s stocking)

We are shameless about our animals. Yesterday, Nana brought over her two dogs, Fiona, and Reba, and with those to and our three plus our two cats, the critters outnumbered the people seven to four.

(More of Rascal)

Yep, we buy them presents and give them stockings and such. We give them treats but only sparingly. If you think kids get fussy and sick with too many treats, dogs are worse.

(Left to Right, Chrissy, LJ, Ginger, Abigail) Sweetie is helping them open their gifts.)

Sweetie is the pet magnet. Here she is attended by four.

Do you celebrate Christmas with your critters?

And kudos to all the people who worked so that many of us could have a warm and safe Christmas. Tulsa dodged a bullet on snow but our city trucks were out spreading sand and salt, the Highway Patrolmen (and Patrolwomen) were out and about. We don’t take you men and women for granted.

YogisDen.us

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