It seems to be the thing for bloggers to document every detail of their day. Most of my days aren’t that interesting. Still, if people want to read exactly how a blogger chops every ingredient of their toddler’s lunch, maybe my readers will care about my holiday preparations. So, here you are – in the spirit of the season – 36 Hours of Christmas.

Wednesday, December 24 —

7:00 AM – Damn alarm. Hit snooze. Hit snooze. Hit snooze.

8:10 AM – Up. Coffee. Check messages. Breathe deep. Thank God for quiet.

8:30 AM – Fold clothes in dryer. Unload dishwasher. Make bed.

9:00 AM – Rearrange refrigerator to make room for influx of holiday food – to no avail.

9:15 AM – Compose breakfast casserole in crockpot. New recipe. Let us pray. Try to find room for it in fridge.

9:45 AM – Check messages and drink more coffee.

10:10 AM – Make phone call for work project. Need to call back.

10:15 AM – Open lasagna factory.

10:30 AM – Put pork roast in oven, turn on Christmas lights, fire up Dino CD – while meat and noodles cook.

10:50 AM – Email from a source with his edits on a story. YEAH. Get to finish that one off and turn it in whenever I have time over the next few days.

11:13 AM – Take phone call from client – Hearty Christmas greetings from up north and details on a new project.

11:42 AM – Lasagna assembly line begins.

1:22 PM – Clean up massive mess I just made. Wonder why I gave the kitchen a thorough cleaning last weekend. Try to make room for three pans of lasagna in fridge. Haha.

1:57 PM – Lasagna factory closed.

2:00 PM – Check messages, finish off the coffee, and wish all a MERRY CHRISTMAS on Facebook.

2:10 PM – Pick up phone to answer text. It’s someone offering me a trip to the Bahamas. Sure thing.

2:15 PM – Just sit for a minute. Thank God for the quiet.

2:35 PM – Take roast from oven. Unload dishwasher (again). Reload. Take out garbage to make room for more.

2:40 PM – Get in shower.

3:30 PM – Harry Connick Jr., cookie trays, cheese and cracker plates. Set up stuff on kitchen island. Soup in crockpot. Sneak some dip and pork. Call it lunch. Uncork the rum cake that’s been fermenting since Sunday. Best not light candles for a bit.

4:30 PM – Go out and get the mail. Two more cards. Worth the trip to the end of the drive. Do a quick pick up and vacuum. Unload the dishwasher.

4:47 PM – Open first bottle of Christmas spirit. Put on Bare Naked Ladies Christmas CD. Let the games begin.

5:00 PM – Slice pork. Maybe should have done that before the spirits, but oh well. Final kitchen clean up and dishwasher load. “De-cant” the pickled herring.

CHRISTMAS EVE – Food. Drink. Music. Guests. Holiday Glow. Lost track of details.

Clean up – sort of. Try to find room in refrigerator for left-overs…..

Stockings stuffed. Bed (late).

5:00 AM – Up to put crockpot on for breakfast casserole. Back to bed.

9:15 AM – CHRISTMAS MORNING – COFFEE in my special Christmas “Happy Holidays” mug. Call sister and tell her we’re up and the coast is clear to come over. Presents (in my new flannel pajama pants.) Thanks. Warm and cozy feeling. More coffee. Remind daughter to pick up pile of wrapping in the middle of the floor like she doesn’t know to do it every year.

10:30 AM – Make muffins. Debate who has to open the champagne for the mimosas, and – once again – explain why it must be done outside. Eat Christmas breakfast.

11:30 AM – Clean up.

12:30 AM – Sit.

2:00 PM – Lasagna in oven. Make antipasto tray and salad.

2:30 PM – Time for Christmas spirit.

3:00 PM – More guests. Dinner. More presents. More spirit.

6:00 PM – They’re off to the next party. Send along left-overs because there’s no room in the fridge.

6:15 PM – More clean up. Another dishwasher run. Wash tablecloth for third time in two days. Apparently we’re not tidy people. Garbage out. Vacuum. Find presents and review wonderful gifts. Thanks. Find gift card for my daughter she didn’t get because it had slipped down behind a plant.

6:55 PM – Sit (with glass of 7-up).

6:58 PM – Thank God for quiet.

7:00 PM – Thank God for Christmas.