Boxing Day

The new year is just around the corner so I thought I would quickly finish off Christmas. Our family opened gifts on boxing day as that was the only day we could all get together. It was wonderful, as always. Hailey was adorable, as always. And we laughed all night long. As always.

Our family picks names for Christmas gifts and we have a long-standing tradition of writing poems. When we were younger we would write poems and send our "person" on a treasure hunt to find their hidden present. Now that we are older we have decided to write poems about the person we have so the family can guess who they are. Many of the poems are inappropriate and cannot be written here.

Erik and I had my mother this year and this is the poem we wrote together. Don't worry, it is entirely g-rated.

Hundred Mile (an hour) Herm 

In the morning she wakes, she’s off in a run

A brand new day with tasks to be done

Groggy we hear in the halls something lurking

But then we figure out it is just her working

“Quietly” in the halls she comes round

And in her own mind she makes not a sound

The blow drier goes off, the vacuum turns on

We lay with one query: is it even dawn?

Then comes the dreaded knock to awake

Sleep in rights in this house we’ve had to forsake

As I get ready an aroma reaches my nose

I’m summoned downstairs, where the tea overflows

Now as I eat her questions keep coming

I ponder how words escape between all the humming

As breakfast winds down the schedule is given

I have no free will; my day is Herm driven

Finish the dishes and pick up the clutter

Such a workload would make any kid stutter

Lunch is at one and don’t you be late

In family events you must participate

And when there is, by chance, a lull in the day

It’s hard for her to just sit and to play

There are meals to make, a house clean,

And children with information to glean

The questions are endless they come in threes…

Well more like 10’s, 20’s or even 50’s

Plans are never certain they change on a dime

Because as we said we’re running Herm time

Now after dinner as the day winds down

Like the energizer bunny she’s going all over town

And I know because of Hony we sometimes call her Sperm

But we prefer the name Hundred Mile (an hour) Herm

Our family used to spend every boxing day tobogganing with our friends, the Donkersloots. They moved to New Mexico when I was in grade 8, but they all happened to be in town this year so they came over in the evening. It was so much fun to see them all again.

It has been many years since we have all been together and it was so nice to see them again. They are a wonderful family and I love them all dearly. I actually don't think I have seen them all since... I guess it has probably been seven or eight years. And that was at a wedding so there wasn't much time to spend together.

And, just because I love her. Here are some more pictures of Hailey Jade, my beautiful niece. I hope you all have a wonderful and safe New Year's celebration!