Boxing Day

This place is trashed. I’m sort of surprised that it’s trashed because with the baby arriving at any moment I’ve been really good about keeping the house in order. I know once the bairn is here I’ll have much less time to do dumb things like clean up, so I got it really sorted in the weeks leading up to Christmas, and then somehow it all came undone over the span of two days.

Our little bubble all stayed here over Christmas and Ken drove from Ottawa (coming a day early and dodging that blizzard, thank goodness) and that many people in an itty bitty house was enough to unsettle every room.

I like very much to have the house in good order for the New Year and this year I really feel the need to have it (by it I mean everything) tidy and well organized.

That means that unless a baby comes along to interrupt me, this week is going to be all about the clean and purge, restoring order and then some. As a human I’m not someone who really enjoys cleaning.

I mean, I don’t hate it -but I like it less than about 187 different activities I can think of so this morning I lay in bed making a plan for which rooms I’m going to work on when, and how I’ll approach it, and then came downstairs, made coffee and promptly fell off the cleaning wagon.

I keep going into the kitchen and washing three things and half heartedly wiping things with the minimum of enthusiasm, and then wandering away to ponder my knitting, which is sort of what always happens with cleaning and is more than a bit ironic because one of the things I should be cleaning up is my knitting. I have four unfinished Christmas presents scattered around and a better woman would knit all of those and try to start the coming year with a clean slate, but I am still not her.

So I’m going to chuck it all and knit a baby sweater. Maybe I can bribe her out.

93 thoughts on “Boxing Day

  1. Yes! A baby sweater in a vivid, happy color is your best option, today and almost always. It beats a tidy kitchen every time. I remember you once said you believed the adage “begin as you intend to go on.” So may this little sweater bring you joy, peace, and a year full of little sweaters and happy colors.
    You are a stranger in my life, dear Stephanie, but much loved and appreciated.

  2. Steph, don’t stress. It looks like you had a lovely Christmas. Once the dishes are washed, the house will be less unsettled. You might even have time to go stash diving if Joe puts the Christmas decorations away.

    However, I don’t think you’re going to have time to finish that baby sweater. When I saw that picture of Meg, the immortal words of Holly Gennero McClain came to mind: “That baby’s ready to tend bar!”

  3. Good luck coaxing out that little (or not so little!) one! Love to you and your family, delightful that Ken could join you. Cleaning can wait, pending babies are precious.

  4. When I saw that picture of Meg, I put my hand over it and said a prayer for babe, mom and all the family. Such a happy family family celebration of Christmas. And what a joyful family she will be welcomed into in the very near future. God bless you all. Now go knit that sweater. Do what makes your spirit happy– the house tidying will still be there tomorrow when you will be better refreshed to do it (or maybe the house fairies will arrive and do it for you???)

  5. A sweater that color would get my full attention! Surely the baby will want to see it in all its beauty as soon as possible!

  6. Merry Christmas and Happy 2023….. Your table is lovely…..I finished a lot of little Christmas presents in time….and starting with a new knitting project this week as soon as I get my loom warped

  7. You always set the most beautiful holiday tables, something obviously necessary to match the quality of the people sitting in the chairs.

    Meg, καλή δύναμη! (Greek, literally ‘good strength!’ kah-LEE THEE-nah-mee) Sending much love and support for the work ahead.

  8. It looks like you had a beautiful holiday! I am certainly no expert, but it sure does look like you’ll be greeting that wee girl before the new year!

  9. I’m with ya Steph, I planned to vacuum, clean the stove top, replace the table cloth and do some laundry. So far I have 2 coffees, a cupcake, a video conference with my 11 year old great nephew, (Minecraft is big with him, I’m clueless) and well, now I’m settling in to read your blog, drink tea and think about blocking a scarf I made for a friend…HA.
    Cheers, to you and yours and Happy New year!!!

  10. Thank you for saying the things that have been rattling around in my head these last couple of years. Finding one’s through life is hard enough without tossing in a pandemic and grief and…I wish healing and grace to you and your beautiful family, and that the new baby arrives in their own time.

  11. Thank you for sharing; what a beautiful celebration of love and light and family. Sending prayers to Meg and the wee bairn for the warm welcome that awaits the new one’s arrival. And echoing what Presbytera said (as always).

    Blessings to you and yours in the new year.

  12. Your family looks so happy! I’m glad you all had a good day. Knitting a baby sweater will surely coax, I mean bribe her out.

  13. Please don’t “should” on yourself, Steph. Priorities should be yourself, family (including one member yet to be born), friends, health and comfort. The house will still be there next month and the ones after that, but you never know about those other priorities.

    Love and light to you

  14. Meg looks beautiful! All good wishes to her and baby and the rest of your family. Your home will always be a place of love and laughter, and what mess can compete with that?

    Happy holidays to you.

  15. I just can’t get over your bread. It is so lovely. I hope your holidays were just as lovely as that gorgeous bread. (My husband, who follows you for the biking, says you would win the Great British Baking Show).

  16. Twenty-four years ago I was waiting for my son to get tired of the womb and show the heck up. My great-aunt Fernie called, because kiddo was a week post due date, to ask, “Have you had that baby yet??” I reminded her that a watched pot never boils, to which she replied, “Oh my gosh, you’re right!” And immediately hung up

    So lovely Meghan, hibernate, ponder, put your feet up and rock in a chair with a lovely cup of (herbal) tea….. and soothe that little darling on out to the world!

  17. Love the joy that comes across in those photos. My Mom always used to quote the last stanza of this poem:

    Oh, cleaning and scrubbing will wait till tomorrow,
    But children grow up, as I’ve learned to my sorrow.
    So quiet down, cobwebs. Dust, go to sleep.
    I’m rocking my baby. Babies don’t keep.

    Love to you all and knit like the wind as I think that little one is well on its way.

  18. What a lovely start to a New Year. Wishing you all a very happy and healthy New Year. Sod the cleaning babies really don’t notice the mess.

  19. If I have to do some tidying up I set the timer for 20 minutes and challenge myself to see just how much I can get done. Or another way is 10 minutes per room and you have to move onto the next room when it goes off.
    Good luck!

  20. What a lovely group of beautiful smiles. Even Meg is smiling. I can’t wait to see what you make with that sweet cheerful yarn. Good luck to all of you on all of it!

  21. My dear friend (although you don’t know me at all), cleaning is highly over rated. Knitting is not highly over rated, it is a necessity of life.

  22. It’s times like this when I wish I clone myself, so I could have a version of myself that takes care of the cleaning and the laundry while the “real” version of me can do the fun stuff.

  23. That baby, that bread, your beautiful family, so happy! Bless you all. Happy new year. So happy to hear fro you again. Be gentle with yourselves and enjoy these days Steph. Cleaning can wait!

  24. Made me laugh!!

    Although, if you do mean to start 2023 as you mean to go on (as is your tradition), somehow those UFOs need to get done and the house set in order. Best wishes!!

  25. What wonderful people you have created, raised, and influenced! And your bread is amazing!
    May you all have a great new year!

  26. Well, good luck with the cleaning! And the knitting, hope the coaxing works! What a gorgeous colour for a baby sweater. My thoughts are with you all xxx

  27. With 2 pullovers and a vest on my needles, each 1/2 done, I had good intentions to not cast on anything else! But like your cleaning, that went out the window and I’ve gone down the Noro stripe scarf (again). Oh well, it’s for my partner and he deserves it in this cold winter. Best wishes for the new wee babe. Much love from Idaho.

  28. I’m just happy to see your face and your words in my Blogger Reading List — and to see true joy there for the first time in a very long time. Being a Praying Person, I hold you all in my prayers for a safe post-Xmas delivery for a child who will be forever a bit grumpy because his/her birthday is just **too** close to Xmas (my daughter will be 42 on Jan. 13; ask me how I know!)

    And if you want some really weird yarn to work with, let me know, because said daughter found a s**t load of odd stuff at an estate sale and gave it to me for Christmas — one parcel at a time, popping up hither and thither until I was nearly hysterical.

    Whatever comes, 2023 will be a fresh, hopefully happy New Year. Keep on keeping on…one stitch at a time. We love ya!

  29. I recently made the decision that cleaning and organizing should be in short spurts with many rests. Since then I have actually been cleaning more, taking breaks when I feel like it, and not feeling guilt, apparently an emotion that was sapping me of the energy to clean.

  30. Kid, right now you’re my favorite suspense drama. Tuning in daily. And of course I’m knitting along. Thanks for helping me through the tedium of the third mitten of this set, Meg, but I’m nearly done — don’t wait for me. Cheering you on

  31. The baby won’t care. Your arms around your family are so much more important.

    Sending hope all goes well for the new year and the new life.

  32. I mean, “When in doubt, cast on” is something I learned from this blog.

    Cheers to you and yours! What a lovely holiday.

    And now, afire with envy, I’m off to search up how to fold napkins into Christmas trees.

  33. Love this. Very relieved that Ken dodged the blizzard. It was brutal.
    Also I hear you about knitting. I WAY overestimated how many knitted presents I could make this year. But one Christmas was over, I abandoned any still in progress presents and cast on new projects.
    I also always find something a bit sad about cleaning up after Christmas…

  34. Wow you lay out a fancy spread! Looks absolutely inviting! I don’t think your baby is going to wait for New Year’s Day. Best of everything to you and your family and loved ones. Try to find time to relax and rest before the baby arrives!

  35. “As a human I’m not someone who really enjoys cleaning.” you have described my soul. I’m changing my 2023 quote to this one LOLOL

  36. You have the most gracious and loving family. I want to be you when I grow up (or at least have your entertaining skills). It’s besides the fact that I’m older than you – LOL.

    Merry Christmas and a peaceful, happy and gracious New Year to your and yours!

  37. Dust If You Must
    by Rose Milligan

    Dust if you must, but wouldn’t it be better

    To paint a picture, or write a letter,

    Bake a cake, or plant a seed;

    Ponder the difference between want and need?

    Dust if you must, but there’s not much time,

    With rivers to swim, and mountains to climb;

    Music to hear, and books to read;

    Friends to cherish, and life to lead.

    Dust if you must, but the world’s out there

    With the sun in your eyes, and the wind in your hair;

    A flutter of snow, a shower of rain,

    This day will not come around again.

    Dust if you must, but bear in mind,

    Old age will come and it’s not kind.

    And when you go (and go you must)

    You, yourself, will make more dust.

  38. I well remember passing my due date with my first child and standing in front of the mirror looking at my profile thinking it just wasn’t possible to have a belly that big. My sympathy to Meg and best wishes for a successful delivery.

  39. The sweater will be gorgeous. & baby will look properly Seasonal, like a cranberry.
    We got all sorted, cleared, cleaned, tidied, organised, BOX free (moved 21mo ago) . . . and then they had Covid and couldn’t come. Poo!

    Upside? The place is still mostly sorted, cleared, clean, tidy and still BOX free! Every cloud . . .

  40. Ooh, babies often come in the middle of a storm and isn’t a blizzard just a frozen storm? So glad Meg’s baby is the cautious type! For cleaning, how about ten minutes for the bathroom, all the dishes done in the kitchen, and pick everything up off the floor and throw it all in the closet/spare corner/giant black trash bag. Sounds like a good tidy up to me! Happy New Year, Stephanie!

  41. Lovely color for a baby sweater! I hope the new baby has arrived. Housework will always be there – it can wait.

    ps – would you consider making a patreon video re how to fold a napkin like a Christmas tree?

    • How wonderful! And thanks for posting this info here! For the past year, Instagram won’t let me in to read anything unless I “verify myself in the app,” except that I do not have/use the app because I have always done Instagram on my computer. Sigh…But thanks so much for sharing the news!

  42. Congratulations to the entire family on the arrival of Abigail!! I hope Meg and the new babe are as relaxed and comfortable as possible. What a wonderful way to enter the New Year. Holding you all in my heart ❤️❤️

  43. Congratulations and welcome to Abigail! It makes me so happy to see such a cozy, beautiful home and family ready (with or without dustbunnies & dishes in the sink) to welcome her into the world

  44. Your holiday table is festive and beautiful-you can tell thought and care went into every detail-food included. So glad you could all be together and that Ken got to be there too.
    Love your idea of babybribery-the color of that skein is sure to work!

  45. So happy to see all these happy photos, especially knowing that Abigail is in the loving arms of her family as I type this. Virtual hugs to all of you.

  46. Your blogs posts have been few and far between for reasons I understand, having read your last post and followed you over the last few years and also living in this crazy world… but i keep checking every so often to see if you’ve had some time to visit your online living room. Now that you post here less frequently than in pre-pandemic days it’s a lovely surprise when I do see a new post is up. They are lovely little gifts that I’m happy to receive when your life allows for them. Thanks for being here when you can.

  47. I just wanted to congratulate your family on your new addition and to welcome the little treasure trout Abigail into the world!

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  50. I was not aware that Ken moved to Ottawa. I feel sort of sad about this, even though I don’t know him. The grandchildren are in Toronto, after all. I hope he is happy and well wherever he is.

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