A few days ago, Tara lamented that her big gift to me this year was “a bust.” I followed that up with all the usual platitudes–don’t be silly, I’ll love anything you get me, and Mariah Carey was right, all I want for Christmas is you–but I’ll admit, my mind was racing. What could possibly cause her to say that!?
I’ve always been an excellent gift-giver. With Tara especially. I have a knack for always getting her the perfect gift, it seems. It’s simply because I pay attention. A few months ago, we stopped for lunch and a cocktail at The Fuzzy Pig, a little “hand-built town” (there’s really no other way to describe it) in a field outside of Whitewater. We toured their country store, which has a lot of antiques, and Tara fell in love with an ornate but pricey mirror. A few days later, I snuck over there on my lunch hour, bought her the mirror, and voila! Christmas 2025 was solved.
My wife, on the other hand, hasn’t been happy with what she’s gotten me for a couple of years. So, for the next 24 hours, my mind was racing, trying to decipher the meaning behind the word bust. I didn’t want her to be disappointed yet again! The only thing I could come up with was our rapidly melting snow. We had wanted a white Christmas so badly, thought it was a lock until maybe 10 days ago, but then the temperature climbed and we got some rain. Whether or not we ended up with a white Christmas depended on which side of the yard you were standing in, as documented yesterday morning:
No white Christmas meant no snow. That could be considered a bust if she got me something that required snow. Ooh, a snowmobile! I thought at first, but immediately discarded the idea. We may be generous with one another, but we ain’t that generous! Then I remembered how I’d tromped through foot-deep snow a few weeks ago and returned home an hour later exhausted from the effort. What would have made the excursion easier? Snowshoes. What have I long desired? Snowshoes. What might be considered a bust if you couldn’t use it right away? Snowshoes. It was all adding up. I didn’t know for sure that’s what she had gotten me, but I had a pretty good feeling.
Sure enough, on Christmas morning (hey, that was just yesterday!), she handed me my big gift, and when I tore through the wrapping paper, what to my wondering eyes should appear but a pair of snowshoes. Which I quickly assured her were most certainly not a bust! There may be no more than a few patches of snow on the ground today, but this is Wisconsin, and winter has barely gotten started. Already they’re forecasting much colder temperatures next week. Snow is an inevitability, and the next time it piles up, I’m a-gonna be ready!
The snowshoes were a great gift. Tara loved the mirror. It was pretty much a perfect holiday this year; lots of relaxing and down time. Christmas movies aplenty. A delicious HoneyBaked Ham instead of our usual prime rib. Wine and cocktails. Spritz cookies and a homemade cheesecake. All in the comfort of our cozy home, which always looks festive over the holiday season. Inside and out, upstairs and down.
Tomorrow it’ll all be gone, packed up for the year in plastic storage bins, as is our custom. As much as I love the holidays, I never let them linger lest they wear out their welcome. If everything isn’t packed away by the 27th or 28th, then I have failed.
Plus, just as we got a head start on our outdoor decorations to beat the weather, we need to do the same thing again, only in reverse. It’ll be in the 40s this weekend and the teens by Tuesday, so better to get everything taken down when there’s little danger of freezing to death.
Do you have mad gift-giving skills? How was your Christmas? When do you pack everything up?
Mark My Words 
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