I’d also hoped that I’d have the opportunity to deliver my xmas cheers in person, but it was not so. That said, a most merry xmas to you! Love ya!

Joel

My dear brother, it’s not when but simply that you did comment. That’s quite the compliment too tho’ it always feels a bit like the pot calling the kettle eloquent when it’s family..

Speaking of family, I can’t believe I missed yet another holiday season with all of you but I do feel more connected now that mum & both bros have been here. Thank you for completing the triad’s presence & keep coming back!? I love you too!

the other sibling |_|) “When we recall Christmas past, we usually find that the simplest things — not the great occasions — give off the greatest glow of happiness.” ~ Bob Hope

All these comments were a significant part of that; each ‘visit’ adding immeasurably to my holiday. <3 xox

|_|) “It is Christmas in the heart that puts Christmas in the air.” ~ W. T. Ellis

Thinking of you with gladness this Christmas. XX

It’s been a mixed bag of emotions around here this week. Christmas dinner for 12, prepping so the kids have some of their Christmas wishes fulfilled, all the while missing Dad terribly.

I’ve finally found some time to catch up on my favourite blogs and didn’t want to miss the opportunity to stop by and wish you a (belated) very Merry Christmas and all the best to the two of you.

I’m thrilled to have been part of a much-deserved moment taken for yourself amidst making others merry. May some of your wishes be fulfilled too.

Holidays without your Dad are an oxymoronic thing but I know you found a way to honour him.. Much love to his little girl!

hono[u]red to be a favo[u]rite |_|) “Christmas… that magic blanket that wraps itself about us, that something so intangible that it is like a fragrance. It may weave a spell of nostalgia. Christmas may be a day of feasting, or of prayer, but always it will be a day of remembrance — a day in which we think of everything we have ever loved.” ~ Augusta E. Rundel

All the best to you and the family!

They’re hanging still & we even managed to fill them! Bargain shopping Christmas Eve can be fun.

Tis SO good to ‘see’ you; the very best to you & yours too!! Do visit again..

Dorian |_|) “And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow, stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so? It came without ribbons. It came without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags. And he puzzled and puzzled ’till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before. What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store? What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more?” ~ Dr. Seuss

We are sitting here in Florida, far away from friends and family in CA, and it doesn’t feel much like Christmastime. I’ve never been big on this holiday, but this year I am especially wishing that we had our loved ones with us to pay props to our relationships and ties, and party the rest of the year away. Sigh. Some other year I suppose, when this road trip bug has worn off.

All the best to you guys, and have a happy new year.

-Rene, Jim & Jerry

Aww, you’re so welcome! It’s my fervent wish that circumstance & controversy not steal focus from the holidays, much less their intent.

In SoCal, it never looks Christmassy but it’s not being able to see family that’s excruciating. We too are waiting for some other year & utterly empathize for love is the point. It’s never been about celebrating as much as seeing more loved ones than I typically can that made the holidays special. Thank God for special spouses & fur-kids. Don’t let Jerry lap up too much champagne New Year’s Eve..

partner of RhodesTer, property of Taz & Shadow |_|) “There is no ideal Christmas; only the one Christmas you decide to make as a reflection of your values, desires, affections, traditions.” ~ Bill McKibben

Hug gladly accepted.. The down & dirty of it is that how things play out isn’t always up to us mere players while the upshot is that we simply wouldn’t have a home or even the hope of one without the way it did play out. Moreover, let’s allow for & believe your adoption won’t end up compromised in the process.

Adopting you as my sister may have been a far less legal process than the one you’re now undertaking but, rest assured, you’re equally stuck with me.

Dorian |_|) “I’m treating you as a friend, asking you to share my present minuses in the hope that I can ask you to share my future pluses.” ~ Katherine Mansfield

I think of you guys often and am glad that you have a home for Christmas. We got into ours by the skin of our teeth, but it is cozy and I am very, very grateful.

I wish you and the Rhodester a loving holiday, because that’s what really counts.

You’re more than welcome! How apropos this time of year; the miracles that found our families their own bits of coziness in time for Christmas.. That yours is also a corner apartment like ours but has a view of Sacre Coeur, très magnifique!!

Love is precisely what counts, thanx, & may yours prove as loving which I suspect is inevitable.

Joyeux Noel! |_|) “Christmas, my child, is love in action. Every time we love, every time we give. It’s Christmas.” ~ Dale Evans Rogers

What’s Christmas without Jack & Sally? I hope your holidays are proving the happiest, merriest possible.. without seeing us, that is.

Dorian |_|) “There’s children throwing snowballs instead of throwing heads, they’re busy building toys and absolutely no one’s dead!” ~ Jack Skellington

You’re welcome! Much merriness & blessings to you..

merrily caffeinated friend |_|) “I wish we could put up some of the Christmas spirit in jars and open a jar of it every month.” ~ Harlan Miller

And that portrait of Jack makes me so happy, to boot.

Happy Solstice!

Thank YOU! Jack is ever so happy-making..

Happy SOULstice even!?

your sister |_|) “Just because I cannot see it, doesn’t mean I can’t believe it!” ~ Jack Skellington

I’m so happy you have a home to celebrate in…

I’m a bit Grinchy this year, so you’ll have to excuse me if my muse seems to have taken a hike…

Merry (insert appropriate holiday here), and Happy New Year!

Peace and white light, Nick

You’re quite welcome, dear man! Be as Grinchy as needed for his heart grew three sizes..

I hope your New Year proves happy & your muse returns well-rested.

Dorian |_|) “Sometimes the questions are complicated and the answers are simple.” ~ Dr. Seuss