Christmas Eve

December 24th, 2008 - Christmas Eve. This will be a Christmas Eve we won't forget. This December holds the prestigous record for the most snow ever recorded in December. I think the last measuring we did showed snow 15 or more inches deep (depending on where it was measured) in our yard - and there was more that came after that. December 23rd it was predicted that we would have another five inches and then freezing rain would begin. Greg and Charisse made the decision not to attempt coming to Portland today as planned - well actually the decision was made for them when they couldn't get out of their neighborhood due to the snowy, icy roads, and the steep hill down to the main highway. We were sad, but much more important to us was their safety - that came first.

By about 10:00 am this morning, the forecast was drastically changed. A warming front was coming thru very soon, temperatures would rise, and it would begin raining - and that's exactly what happened. It rained all day, huge chunks of snow fell from trees, the streets became slushy and deeply rutted - more dangerous than before almost. The ruts would throw cars all over the road - including into the path of oncoming cars.

During the day as the rain fell, I baked and glazed rum cakes, put together Apple French Toast for breakfast tomorrow morning, cut up veggies and made dips for Christmas Eve dinner. I organized as much as I could of the rest of the food for Christmas Eve, and all I could for Christmas Day - for both breakfast and dinner. I finished wrapping gifts, washed tableclothes and dishes for tomorrow, and cleaned up as much of the house as I could - or at least as much as I knew could be done ahead without the cats disturbing things.

By late afternoon it seemed that major highways were becoming clear and drivable, but sidestreets were still a mess. There is the hope Greg and Charisse may be able to make it down tomorrow afterall - yea!

At 4:30 we left for dinner at Margie and Bill's - a fairly treacherous drive as we spun out once, and the deep ruts made driving difficlut and the feeling that we were on some kind of Disneyland ride. We made it to Margie's and noticed as we were driving in that there was no electricity on her side of the street. Sure enough, they had lost power not long before we arrived. We entered to see the house beautifully lit by candle light and a fire in the fireplace. Chris, Jan, and Beth were there - Peter went to Sunriver with his girlfriend - Sean, Kelley, Melissa, and Annie. Lucky for us this years dinner was not something that needed to be cooked in an oven! Chris and Jan brought wonderful sandwiches that Jan had ordered, we had smoked salmon, cheeses and crackers, veggies and dips, salads, breads, green beans gingerbread cookies, and wine and beer to drink. It was perfect. Annie got a call from Santa Clause (Dave) while we were there, asking her if she'd been a good girl this year and what she wanted for Christmas. She was very excited about that!

We opened gifts - Margie got the cow this year - with my added addition of a pig attached to the cow. It will be fun to see what addition she adds to it next year.

Sean and Kelley and the kids had just left, the rest of us were on our way out, when finally, the lights came on! It was pretty funny. We had all done everything by candlelight for the whole night, and now we could see! We came back in, looked at the beautiful ornaments on the tree, the decorations in the house, and could actually see what each other was wearing - including the sweater of mine that Katie was wearing. Jan had the same exact sweater, and had worn it earlier in the day and just changed it to come for Christmas Eve. Too funny.

We came home, organized a few things for morning, and then relaxed and watched old movies on Tv. Morning will come soon - and still lots to get ready. Better stop here and get some sleep!