Mega Christmas Series: An Albuquerque Christmas

I've got loads of Christmas photos and tales to share! We had the most warm, wonderful, spectacular Christmas. I must post many large photos, because there are just so many treasured images, and each one has an important story.

Let's start with pre-Christmas. First, take a look at my swell wrapping job. This shot is Meredith posing with the presents I wrapped for the adults. Aren't they pretty--Meredith as well?

This next foil psychedelic scheme was for the kids. Meredith put the monkey in the shot. She had picked it up as a little gifty for herself when she was Christmas shopping at the dollar store with her dad:

My goal this year was to have everything wrapped before Thanksgiving, and I got about 1/3 of the way there. Not bad! But as the day approached for us to leave for our big trip to my folks' in Albuquerque, I still had a few presents to wrap. Sooooooo . . . I worked the proverbial all-nighter. . . and it was fun! I was having a marvelously great time making the packages really beautiful, which is one of the fun things about wrapping presents for me. Plus, I knew there was a good chance that Good Friend Kristy was up late, too. She's always up late! A quick email proved that I was right! Or did she email me first? I can't remember. Anyway, she was getting Christmas cards out. So we chatted and worked together until about 2:30 am. I hit the sack about 5:30 am, with all the work out of the way so that our trip could be as focused on family as possible. Kristy was up almost as late, and got her cards all done, too!

So as I said, we were in Albuquerque for Christmas. We go every other year. We were so blessed that my sis Anhara and her family were there as well, so it was really a whole-family reunion.

My folks are a bit reluctant to go all out like in the old days, but Anhara and I can't hear of that. We want our kids to experience all the good things that made Christmas so special when we were little. So we are happy to take on many of the jobs that my mom and dad used to do for us in their younger years.

One of the spectacular things about Christmas at our home in Albuquerque is our Christmas tree. My folks have 13 foot ceilings and a big picture window in the living room, so we have always had huge, tall, beautiful trees. Mom and Dad collected marvelous Italian tree lights and gorgeous ornaments through the years--along with many little girl-made construction paper-and-macaroni numbers! Doug and Jeff (my sister's husband) got the tree up, and then all of us helped to decorate it. Actually, somehow I had fallen asleep putting Aidan down for a nap--imagine that--and so I missed out, but it was okay, 'cause my kids set aside a few ornaments for me to hang on the tree so I wouldn't feel left out. Look!

Another extraordinary regional Christmas Eve tradition is that of lighting "luminarias" for the Christ child. These are made by setting a votive candle on a mound of sand in a brown paper sack. Our neighborhood goes all out. The fun starts at dusk, when everyone comes outside to place and light their luminarias.

This is Granddaddy, our family's Master of the Luminarias, pacing out the correct spacing:

Here he is on our front walk, and the next shot is Aunt Annie, coming along after to lift the wicks up straight and prepare them for lighting:

All the neighbors were out doing the same thing. They were gathering to chat. Cars passing by were slowing down to see what was going on, and partygoers were arriving for a fete at the artist's house across the street. It was cold and windy, but exciting! This is a shot up the street:

The kids' favorite way to contribute is to climb up the ladder and help the dads set up the lights on the roof. Here's Doug and Jacob:

In silhouette:

Jacob and Meredith:

Sophia:It's cold up there on the unsheltered roof!!!

Snow had fallen the previous weekend, and the littlest kids made the best of the last of it. Uncle Jeff played with them, too! Here's Aidan:

Ashtyn:

Uncle Jeff in a chase scene:

I wasn't much help at all. I milled around taking photos. But look, Uncle Jeff took a pic of Aidan and me!

Not to be left out of the action, Mr. Farnsworth posted himself as a sort of sentry at the front door. Mr. Farnsworth is my dad's cat, named after Philo T. Farnsworth, the LDS inventor of television. This is a severely pampered cat, believe you me. His only restriction is that he is not allowed to make prey of the birds that my dad devotedly feeds two or three time each day. (He feeds them on the very sidewalk that we lined with luminarias on Christmas Eve!)


As you can see, we line our sidewalks as well as the parapet on the roof. But my dad always reminds us that the most important part of the tradition is to line the walkway up to the front door, because, by tradition, the intent is to light the way so the Christ child can find his way into your home.

The luminarias are lighted as it gets dark. Here's our home after the lighting. The photo after is the same angle taken without flash, hoping you can get some feel for the warm, rustic glow that fills the neighborhood. And you can see our Christmas tree in the window!

It was a little windy this year, and we had some trouble getting the candles to stay lit despite their protected nests inside the paper sacks. In several cases the wind smashed the sack into the candle, and the paper went up in flames. One passerby (many folks get in their cars and drive around to the neighborhoods that put on good luminaria shows) rang our doorbell and warned us that a luminaria on the roof was blazing! But no worries. The house is stuccoed and very unlikely to burn. Otherwise all Albuquerque would be on fire on Christmas Eve!

After dark, Sophia and I took a walk around the neighborhood to enjoy this Christmas tradition. This picture is the big house across the street and up:

Here's a shot also from up the street and facing back toward our house. This view takes in three homes. Notice the pathways up to the three front doors. Perfect!

After all that windy, chilly work on the roof and play on the snow, the kids were coooollllddd. They came in and had warm baths, and Granddaddy and Jeff got a fire going. Here are the kids piled up in front of the fire. Aidan is snacking on a tortilla:

Granddaddy read some Christmas stories:

Then we listened to a favorite old recording of the biblical account of the birth of Christ. When we were little girls, it originally came on a 45" record stuck on a cereal box! Or was it in the mail? Anyway, some years ago my dad transferred it to cassette tape.

At last the kids were off to bed!

That left the grown ups to enjoy the evening and savor the Christmas spirit. Special activities were chosen to focus our minds on Christ and worship him, each in our own way. Here's Uncle Jeff playing internet poker while Aunt Annie looks on. The next shot is Doug reading the latest Dean Koontz book.


I'm teasing, of course. It was a pleasure to indulge in activities that none of us gets to do very often, and sacred classical Christmas music from the stereo poured over us while we did it!

Our beloved Grandmommy and Granddaddy, seated in their royally-appointed front room, enjoying another splendid Christmas Eve:

Next morning, we enjoyed the absolutely most luxurious Christmas we have ever had. There were so many presents for the adults that we gave up opening them after awhile and didn't take it up again until after Christmas dinner!

Here's our family seated for Christmas dinner. Merry Albuquerque Christmas!