The Real Christmas Dinner

A while ago there was some discussion on a message board I visit about people being "real" on their blogs. I will be the first to tell you that I am not the world's best housekeeper, and I will crop junk out of a picture when I can. But in the interest of being real, here is what our Christmas dinner table looked like yesterday. Let me take you on a little tour...

Starting at the top of the table, you'll see the rolls. They are perched (kind of crookedly) on top of a pile of drawing paper. Doesn't the colorful bucket of markers next to the rolls add a certain je ne sais quois to the set up? And don't forget the matching crayon bucket, too. It looks like R2-D2 and Luke Skywalker are hiding out there next to the Cherry Eggnog Tea Bread--the end of which is cut off, because when I baked it the day before, I couldn't resist trying some.

Moving down the table (don't overlook the assorted plastic placemats!), we had scalloped potatoes and ham. There was also some broccoli, but it wouldn't fit on the table with all of the other fun decorations. At the bottom of the table on the left hand side, you'll see the box of Christmas cards. Yes, I still have a few to mail.

Just above the cards, you will find the butter dish, atop some magazines and Jay's recall roster. Rounding out the ensemble is the laptop, where Jay was hard at work all weekend, finishing up his CME for the year. And of course, don't forget the lovely expressions on the boys' faces. You can tell how impressed they are about all of the preparations.

So there you have it: my holiday preparation deficiencies exposed. In my defense, I did dig out some snowman placemats, but then I realized that I would need to get out the white dishes, and those are in the garage, and it was about 15 degrees. I almost went out and got them, but in the end I came to my senses and threw lunch on the table and called it good. I am just thankful that Jack ate his ham without too much fuss and that we aren't spending this Christmas season getting ready to send Jay off to another country. And there's always next year for the table to look better!