Saturday, November 29, 2003
Paper Chains
Hard to believe, but true - the day gets even better. Mom & Dad come over and I talk them into staying for cider, cookies, and supper.
Evenings are usually very difficult for Mom with her Alzheimer's dementia. Her mental capacities wax and wane with the rising and setting of the sun. She and Dad usually are home at sunset and ready for bed by 7pm. Tonight, they are ready to "party" with the family team!
The mulled cider is filling the house with a wonderful spicy aroma, the tree is on the stand and "relaxing" (the trip home on the roof of the van wrapped in that net must have stressed it out) and releasing its pine scent, and I'm popping corn with the air popper to sit out and get stale so it will be easy to string. With the Manhattan Transfer Christmas cd playing and all that, it's like the house is just BUSTIN' with this joy like being a kid again!
The children are excited about decorating the tree, but they know that can't until tomorrow. So, we decide to make paper chains until suppertime. I get the construction paper and the paper cutter and cut one inch strips. Everyone gets a gluestick and begins making their chains. Mom gets all "production-oriented" sorting her paper strips into piles by color! She gets Dad involved and she's glue-sticking and he's linking (and bossing). Son is making teardrop-shaped chain links, because he prefers to glue the two ends of the strip into a point. I encourage his creativity and originality.
Oldest daughter is determined to make the longest chain, the fastest. Miss Competitive. 3 year old is just painting pages of construction paper with gluestick and THRILLED when we need her to hang a chain onto the tree!
Oldest two take turns putting the sliced, ready-to-bake Christmas cookies - Frosty the Snowman, and Christmas Trees - into the oven. They learn to set the wind-up timer, use oven mitts, and put things in and pull things out of the oven. The cookies are warm and sweet, and the cider is warm and sweet, and the evening is rich.
Baby wakes from her nap and enjoys pulling on the paper chains! We eat supper together, and we watch the baby dance to the Christmas music, and everyone is together. Really together!
Now, it's time for bed. The baby is in her crib. The three big kids are having "campout" in the girls' room in their sleeping bags. The dishwasher is rhythmically sloshing the dishes clean. The big, beautiful, blue Christmas tree looks fabulous decorated with only yards and yards of colorful paper chains created by this incredible family.
I'm going to sleep well tonight.
Evenings are usually very difficult for Mom with her Alzheimer's dementia. Her mental capacities wax and wane with the rising and setting of the sun. She and Dad usually are home at sunset and ready for bed by 7pm. Tonight, they are ready to "party" with the family team!
The mulled cider is filling the house with a wonderful spicy aroma, the tree is on the stand and "relaxing" (the trip home on the roof of the van wrapped in that net must have stressed it out) and releasing its pine scent, and I'm popping corn with the air popper to sit out and get stale so it will be easy to string. With the Manhattan Transfer Christmas cd playing and all that, it's like the house is just BUSTIN' with this joy like being a kid again!
The children are excited about decorating the tree, but they know that can't until tomorrow. So, we decide to make paper chains until suppertime. I get the construction paper and the paper cutter and cut one inch strips. Everyone gets a gluestick and begins making their chains. Mom gets all "production-oriented" sorting her paper strips into piles by color! She gets Dad involved and she's glue-sticking and he's linking (and bossing). Son is making teardrop-shaped chain links, because he prefers to glue the two ends of the strip into a point. I encourage his creativity and originality.
Oldest daughter is determined to make the longest chain, the fastest. Miss Competitive. 3 year old is just painting pages of construction paper with gluestick and THRILLED when we need her to hang a chain onto the tree!
Oldest two take turns putting the sliced, ready-to-bake Christmas cookies - Frosty the Snowman, and Christmas Trees - into the oven. They learn to set the wind-up timer, use oven mitts, and put things in and pull things out of the oven. The cookies are warm and sweet, and the cider is warm and sweet, and the evening is rich.
Baby wakes from her nap and enjoys pulling on the paper chains! We eat supper together, and we watch the baby dance to the Christmas music, and everyone is together. Really together!
Now, it's time for bed. The baby is in her crib. The three big kids are having "campout" in the girls' room in their sleeping bags. The dishwasher is rhythmically sloshing the dishes clean. The big, beautiful, blue Christmas tree looks fabulous decorated with only yards and yards of colorful paper chains created by this incredible family.
I'm going to sleep well tonight.
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