My View

BY JOHN MCLOONE

This is going to be our big Christmas! Barring unforeseen circumstances – like more of this nasty weather – we plan to celebrate our first official McLoone Family Christmas, with all kids, one grandchild and a slew of dogs all in one place.

Last year, we had to do double Christmases, which if you have double anything, Christmas – and everything that goes along with it – is a good thing. Theoretically, you maybe get double presents, and I know I certainly ate too much on both of those special occasions.

Everything is lining up for us this year, though. We know it’s tough for the young folks in our clan to coordinate their schedules. A couple have other obligations, and for many years our daughter’s nursing job forced her to work on the holiday.

For many years, we traveled to visit family for the holidays, but our parents/grandparents have all passed away, so we’ve had to start our own traditions. I know my kids all have to do it to come see the old man this year, but I certainly don’t miss the traveling part of Christmas. If there wasn’t a white Christmas yet, there was going to be whenever we packed our minivan for what was supposed to be a four-hour drive. One year, we decided to head out early only to hit a ”surprise” storm that added three hours to the trip. Another year, we had made a fuel/snack stop in Black River Falls in the middle of a blizzard. Santa had arrived early at our home that year and our two oldest kids got their first cell phones. We were back on I-94 going about 15 miles an hour in a whiteout when my wife’s phone rang. Someone found my daughter’s phone on the counter at the convenience store, and scrolled to “mommy” in the contacts to alert us that the phone wasn’t with us. The Grinch exited as soon as he could and we trudged back to get it.

Those years, we always went to a movie on Christmas Day. The last year we did that, we were on our way home with a vanload of small children. A police officer was stopped in the oncoming lane, and an officer was crouched next to a deer on the road. I made what I thought was a funny remark about Rudolph probably spraining his ankle. The kids craned their necks around to see just as the officer’s weapon fired.

I’m not looking for anymore of these kind of memories. I do know that if it wasn’t time to start my diet already (it obviously was), it will be soon. My wife had a snow day Thursday and was excited to get her Christmas baking done. Unfortunately, our home was without power because of the snow until late afternoon, but she worked overtime on it during the weekend. I’ve taken it upon myself to do some sampling to make sure it’s up to specifications, and some of the things I’ve been forced to sample a couple times just to be sure. So far, so good. Maybe that should be so far, too good.

My favorite gift this year is that we’ll all be together, even if I only get to enjoy one Christmas dinner.

I hope you all have a great Christmas too!