Here it is: an account of one raucous night in the company of greedy pirates and unprincipled chess players.
‘Twas two weeks before Christmas, and all through the place.
All the children were scrambling, with wire and with lace . . .
The table was set by this beautiful child
to serve crazy people, a party gone wild -
Okay. Not going any further with that. The first image up there is a grouping of things my father has given me. He made the wooden mosaic pictures, and the lovely hurricane lantern. And the Mandolin was made in Chicago for his aunt, maybe one hundred years ago. It makes a warm tableau, oui? As for the rest, Murphy and Laura truly are scrambling to finish their ornaments at my chaotic studio table. Chaz always sets the table beautifully. And the house is lit up. Easy to see the diff between led and incandescent.
Just a flick of the wrist, and it all becomes ever so much more interesting.
And just a touch more flick, you get flame.
The photographer. I have a disclaimer before we start: A) we were working with a new camera, my new Nikon 7000; we’d never used it before. And we kept messing with the settings. B) It seems that our new room is the worst place for photography on the planet. Add to that the fact that the tree is glowing with extra yellow and orange lights and the windows with very cool blues and purples. And we had the main lights, which are a mix of all temps. So we have some good shots – some that I’ve been radical with, and some that are just so warm, I want to throw water on them to cool them down. But at least you can see the treasure.
Some of these friends, we only see once a year. Like Phil and Rosemary – who used to live down the street – he was Bishop of the ward, too. We saw them all the time. The first experience the kids had with horses was watching Phil trim his beautiful horse’s hooves in his carport one day.
The feast is always huge and festive – wonderful things of all kinds, sweet and savory.
This is actually what all the shots should look like. It was this kind of lighting – enough to see by, but set so that the Christmas lights were still bright.
Laura brought this cheeseball – shaped like an ornament with a hook. Clever!
The lovely Chaz and Melissa, the costumer.
Dick. He looks so dignified and quiet, doesn’t he? Biggest pirate of all.
Okay – here – well, I asked them how many people had brought something for the game, and then I tried to count them. Tried. They got testy after five minutes – but the pictures of them waving their hands are the best we got of them that evening.
Here’s how it works: I count how many are playing (which is mostly everybody), and I’ve made up these little numbered squares -
Then I walk around with a little reed basket and you reach in and snag your number.
Then you may grit your teeth or rejoice, depending on our strategy.
Or you can stick it in your eye.
Then down come the presents. The designated butlers (Chelsea and Brady this year), have taken the wrapped ornaments from the guests as they came through the door – taken them and hidden them upstairs where Dick cannot find them and sabotage the game. Later, trusted friends and butlers help me bring them down. We pile them on the big ottoman.
Then I explain the rules. Every year. This is important because it gives everyone a chance to make fun of me. Which they enjoy very much. There are no pictures this year meant to make me look like a pedantic tyrant, which – of course – I am not.
Just this one of Marvin kibitzing.
Then it’s just a question of number one, choosing the first gift – in front of all of us. A grueling moment that is, not the least for the maker of the first ornament to be opened.
The Ornaments
This one is not for playing. This is the gift my beautiful Jenni sent me from Australia. Maybe she wanted me to play it. Too bad. I didn’t.
This one has a story. It’s a perfect replica of the ornament that started this thirty three year old tradition. My parents had started a little party like this when he was in the bishopric, and one of the people had brought the real version of this ornament to that party. When I went home for Christmas that year, I saw it on the tree and fell utterly in love. So this year, Chaz and I replicated it and I threw it into the mix.
Chaz’ tree.
Guy’s tree. Deer hair.
My fat silky bird, with beads.
My fancy donkey – ready to rest near the manger.
Debbie’s owl mobile. I should have adjusted the temp, darn it. Looks yellow. But look at the detail. Chelsea had a heart attack.
Tracy’s dragon. Ever so fitting, considering he writes books about these things in dungeons.
Jeannie and Dave’s red morovian glass star.
And their beautiful yellow star.
Ginger’s beaded fir twig. The beads came from Venice – in her suitcase.
Tricia’s little gnome. There were two of these. Ummm. Yeah. Mark must have made one.
Gordon and Lynn’s sparkling joy! Two of these also. Ummm. Gordon must have made one. (Am I not good at giving the benefit of a doubt?)
Johanne’s bright star.
And this was Dick’s offering this year. It’s actually pretty cool, this vintage looking giant world of an ornament. ‘Course, you’d need a fifty foot tree for it. But this is benign next to some of the years’ Dick-surprises.
Marvin liked it.
Steve’s rosewood angel fish. Except I think it’s a dove.
Cam brought a toy robot and -
a robot ornament. This is Essential Cammon and I loved it. But I don’t have one.
Marilyn’s VERY FIRST ornament ever (for the party) and she made it up as she went along. A penguin with a penguin egg – that turns into -
a penguin with a BABY penguin. Nothing tame ever comes out of THIS house.
Rosemary’s teeny embroidered star.
Dick, opening something. The rapscallion.
Now wait a flipping minute here. This is supposed to be Phil’s. This is NOT made by Phil. There’s no leather involved. No braiding and no bell. He got Rosemary to do his ornament for him. What ever happened to “cowboy up?”
Chelsea’s hand painted cardinal.
Melanie’s felt bird feast. Yeah, I wanted this one. Teeny-weeny birds.
Marvin did a duct tape Celtic star. But he didn’t leave it at that -
He threw in the traditional Marvin’s little blue whale. Somewhere in the world there are about thirty three of these guys – and thirty three families of children who think that whales are a natural part of the festivities.
Laura’s pretty little antebellum Christmas lady – or Mrs. Santa?
Rachel. She will tell you that this is another frantic Santa, and she’ll laugh with this little edge of hysteria. I love these things.
Bob’s peppermint lighthouse whistle. And yes, it makes a great sound when you blow it. We know because everybody had to have a go.
Steve P’s snowman. He says his own children were scared of it. The eyes were too scary.
Melissa’s hand beaded star.
Lind, who is a whimsical carver, has done so many great Santas. I don’t remember who got this one. Or how many people they had to beat up.
Brian made this guy. But I never did get to see what was inside. It’s hollow, and I know there’s a little room in there with a person and a decorated tree. If I weren’t sitting there shooting each of these things, I’d get to hold them myself.
Oh. So I keep forgetting to go down and make Meridee teach me to do this. This owl is SO COOL. I saw it in Mollie Makes. But I haven’t tried it yet. I’m scared. Chelsea had another heart attack over this one.
So Sam’s first time, too. He and Marilyn. Yeah. Should have made them come decades ago. But then, they’d have been babies instead of having them. Sam got a woodburner just before Christmas. And picked it up pretty fast, I’d say.
It doesn’t hurt that he’s a brilliant artist, either.
Okay. Now the Brands did these two folded stars. I don’t know if they each did one, or if one did two. But I’m looking at all these angles and layers, and these things frighten me – I mean, how could a person ever make something like this? Origami on steroids.
Murphy and Laura went with a “light” theme this year. M made this snake. If you look close, you’ll see he made it out of small Christmas lights – and the head has eyes and a tongue.
And Laura made this bouquet of bulbs, ribbon and wire – which would actually be super cool for a December wedding.
I’m guessing this was you, Gaye – right? Because you didn’t write it down, did you? Uh-huh. I love these little birds. You could make some more, couldn’t you? I mean, just a couple?
\
And finally – this is Terri’s traditional impossibly tiny petite-point. I can’t even see it without my reading glasses. In thirty three years, I’ve only won one of these. But not this one.
Now – is this all? Am I missing anything? Somebody tell me if I’ve missed anything.
One fine passel of long-time beloved friends. This is our true Christmas card – only missing Ginna, the Beuhners and a few others. Our idea of a wild party. And don’t we love it!
The beautiful Chaz
So so so wonderful! What light :)
Ach. The light. But you looked pretty dang good in it.
It was a great, great party. Thanks for inviting us!
All the better for having you guys there!
Lind and Meridee look so good! I like that photo of them.
Such a fun party. I die trying to come up with an ornament every year but love coming and seeing what everyone comes up with.
Brian wanted the globe. I should have listened…….. :) I’m still waiting for our cardinals Chels!!! :D and my tree Chazi!!! :D
I thought Guy’s ‘fir’ tree was clever.
I’ve got your cardinal ball – but it’s packed away for now. You’ll have it next year, my girl!! And I’m waiting for a Chaz tree, too. Sometimes, Guy puts beads on the tree as ornaments. Maybe I’ll have him do another one and make a sculpy star for the top. I kinda die every year, too – but I start it early – no natives, ya know. The hardest part about starting early and making gifts? You end up not being able to stand not giving them away – early.
I think you should just have them come and decorate your tree! They get good food and fellowship in return….pretty good deal, right? I can’t begin to choose a favorite….love Rachel’s fuzzy faced Santa, though…and so many more…
And the pictures of your rooms all aglow….THAT’S Christmas.
Thanks for sharing….
Are you kidding? I wouldn’t trust even ONE of them not to rush off with my memories stuck in every pocket – that bunch. Cutthroat!!
Teehee….maybe you should check the tree’s current ornaments as you pack them away. Are they all still there from years ago? Crazy hoodlums!
I do. Are you kidding. I count the stainless, too. They’ve thrown away twenty-five dollar forks. Or I have. Or someone has. We find at least one fork or spoon in the trash every year. Sometimes they say to me – or to each other, very loudly – “And the winner gets to choose whatever he or she wants from that tree over there – .” I don’t even deign to laugh. I just quell them with my teacher look.
Donna, I had my hand on Rachel’s funky Santa and was quite content. Then Rachel and Kristen pulled some fast ones (using lots of visual cues, mostly missed by Yours Truly) and I landed Kristen’s incredible knitted pony with a gzillion embellishments which are completely Kristen to the core.
I was kinda aiming at Ginger this year. Or Lynn Lonsdale, who made out like a bandit, as I recall.
It looks like so much fun! The love of family and friendship is the best part. Love from MO
That’s the best part of it. We started this thing the second Christmas we were married and in this house. It was a group of about six then. But as time went on, we asked in friends we’d met all kinds of ways, some we’d known since we were kids, or in college, or from G’s mission – the kindred spirits who weren’t too terrified of making things. But we had to stop growing the list years ago – the house just wasn’t big enough for any more. It’s a funny group, fused out of people from so many walks of life – salesmen and scientists, artists and professional people, mothers, children, musicians, teachers, librarians (3 come to think of it), film people, writers, accountants, administrators, horsemen, quilters, many now grandparents (some people are three or four of these things at once) and more than one year, we realized that not one of us in the group actually held an actual job, working for somebody else. We’ve had babies stored under the tree for the duration of the party. But the love and the good will and the silliness are always the same. And the funnest thing is, many of the folks wouldn’t have known each other well if it hadn’t been for this party. And being LDS. Most are that. But not by design. You know how we send Christmas cards, and they are the one communication we have with some still dear people in the whole year? That’s this party, except people come to ME with FOOD!!
<3 :-)
What a great post! I loved the photos. The colors were interesting.
To say the least. I liked the one psychedelic one. Woo-hooo!!!
LOVE!
I can’t wait until you make a documentary of the party. Until then, this stands as a marvelous representation of a jewel of an evening. Thanks, Kristen. Again and again – thanks!
The same to you. Without you, especially till 2 am, it wouldn’t be the same.
I’ve always wondered what this party looked like! Great ornaments (I’m partial to the whistle and mobile of course) I didn’t know you liked birds K! Love, S
Lovely to hear from you, little daughter. Of course, you would find the whistle and mobile the most charming. Do they ever make some of these things for you? Love back!
This is all kinds of magnificent. One of my favourite parts of decorating the tree is getting to see all of the ornaments that have been crafted by the kids and our friends, which is almost ALL of the ornaments. LOVE that. And I love your photos here. Great shots of the ornaments and the numbers. No, really – I totally dig the numbers shots. And Murphy, he has a tendency to stick things in his eyes, yes? Made me laugh.
Guy’s tree, at first I thought it was a bottle brush tree. Then you mentioned the deer fur and I liked it even more.
What a great tradition!
It has been great fun. And I have all those things my mom made for me, when she knew who I was. Those are treasures. You never know when you’re gonna need treasures.
I am in awe! How does one rustle up so many artistic friends? I truly enjoyed every one of the ornaments shared. I also must comment that your tree is absolutely magical! I thought we had a lot of ornaments! Beauty, beauty everywhere and that is one of the things I love about visiting you.
Blessings, Debbie
One trips over them in the oddest places and slips them into her pocket! The truth is, it comes because of owning a recording studio and majoring in arts, and the LDS community around here, which tends to be artistic and craftsy and useful, and being a writer, and not letting go of friends you roomed with in college, or went to church with in the old neighborhood (yeah – how many old neighborhoods have we, separately, had all over the country?). Just sort of a hazard of a workplace. And, you know – slightly weird people attract other slightly weird people. And thanks Debbie – I find it magical, too, and it hurts to take it down. And I LOVE having you visit me, and I feel magic when I visit YOU – which I need to do more often.
I’m gettin’ me some bigger pockets!
Pray you are entering this new year with the same energy and joy you seem to have had over Christmas. :)
Hugs, Debbie
Actually, I came to a screaming halt the day after New Year’s. And I liked it. But now, taxes and putting away, and weird stuff interfacing with business and the world have muddied things up again. All I really want to do is have a large bowl of something hot and good for me and tasty and a good book and spend the entire day with both. SO glad you came to see the party – it’s so great. And here’s the thing that amazes me, when I bother to realize it – I’ve got almost fifty people in that room, and we have an uproarious and deeply convivial time, and nobody drinks, and everybody’s kind and nobody ever gets angry (except me – once, at Dick, for sneaking in six extra gifts that really threw off everything – like twenty years ago), and everybody talks to everybody. Just good people. Wanna come? You can!
When the good Lord decides to gift us with extra money and time.. I am so there!! I haven’t started taxes yet. I’m definitely procrastinating. I show a real lack of discipline here. I too longed to just stop and relax myself with warmies and goodies.. so I just kind of did. :)
Mmmm, I wish I had those tiny owls! And the bird-tree. And another of your peppermint cookies!! You guys are the best hosts. (Can I say “you guys”? I mean, you, and your dear husband, Guy. Hee hee.)
I know. Next year, we’ll make a pact. We’ll both wear black with colored dots all over us so we blend in with the yard lights, then wait in the dark till people leave, then fall on them violently and STEAL these things before they can get them off the property. Next year, we’ll have a triple recipe of those cookies. I can make them a week in advance. But I’ll have to freeze them, or I’ll eat them all. And here’s a funny thing: the wonderful Mennonite family down the road calls all their couple and family friends by the husband’s first name. So to them, we ARE the “Guys.”
The Guys! How cute. We would be the Sams. Which I like because SAM means, to us, S.am A.nd M.arilyn. :)
Oh – you got sucked into the spam. HOW COULD THEY SUCK YOU INTO THE SPAM???? You would be the Sams. And the Acronym is ADORABLE.
You have such creative, thoughtful friends and family! I loved seeing all the ornaments. I think the owl was my favorite, though that might be just because I love owls. They were all wonderful.
It’s so very fun to see what everybody comes up with. Some are very brave, not being makers of this kind, to gird themselves up every year to bring something – and everyone is very supportive and kind. At least to each other. They save the terrible teasing for me. And Dick. We deserve it.
oh such cute and adorable things! Wish I could’ve been there this year, but thanks for letting me see it all. Love you.
I always wish you were here.
I don’t even know if I got lost along the way from Gretel’s very sad blog post about the loss of her beloved Andy – I might not have arrived in the right place.
But, if I have, and it was you who left a comment for her, I wanted to say just how beautifully you wrote, how much of a comfort I imagine it would have been to Gretel and that I’ll be copying and keeping your words. I never want to go through the pain that Gretel is going through right now – but if it ever happens I want your words tucked somewhere safe.
Di
xx
Di – you are the waking sun for me this morning. I read your comment, sitting in front of the fire, getting warm enough to face going out to feed the horses. And you did arrive in the right place. It just made me so sad – life is so complicated. But, you know, the whole thing is worth the cost – the discovery of love and joy and the inevitable sadness. Good thing they don’t just come in two solid blocks. I wasn’t sure if writing that much and that honestly would be the right thing. But now I feel better about it. Such a tough thing for her to have to face. But when you look at her work – you know that she’s got enough innate joy to do it. Ironic, isn’t it? They seem, at this distance, to have been such opposites. But you know a great soul when its strengths wade in to buoy up another’s need.