Christmas In February

~ Bitchy After 60

There was that day in December, two days before Christmas, when the weather across the country wreaked havoc on travel and 370 flights were cancelled at Toronto’s Pearson International Airport. It would become a Christmas people would never forget even if they wanted to. One for the history books. And because of this, JT did not make it home for the holidays. Not a jolly good time for him for sure.

The plan was to perhaps celebrate Christmas at Easter, if a flight was available and time was free. But then, in mid January, JT saw an opportunity to work in Halifax for a few days and jumped on it. JT is in the Naval Reserves as a musician and often gets to play trumpet as a member of the National Reservist Band. This time, though, the opportunity was with the Royal Canadian Navy’s Halifax-based Stadacona band. Nothing to sneeze at considering the level of professionalism that this band is known for.

JT arrived on February 1st, and he got to do what he always does when he is home… eat well! His parents serve up his favourites from their kitchen and spoil him rotten whenever he makes an appearance. There was sausage pasta one night; roast pork, with roasted potatoes, sweet potatoes and home-made apple sauce on another and smoked salmon pizza for his last dinner home.

There was a banana cream pie, that was a little runny because even though JT’s mother has been making cream pies for over thirty years, whipping the cream the exact same way for all that time; for some reason the whipped cream has refused to remain stable for the past two years. It is stable when applied to the top of her pies, but begins to run before very long. By the time it is served, which is a very short time, it will have started to flow. The lovely peaks will have disappeared and puddles will form when the actual pie is served. She believes there is something different in the processing of said cream because really how difficult is it to whip the damn stuff anyway. It is not! Whatever is going on, it pisses her off because her cream pies are one of the things she is renown for in her small circle of family and friends. Those who don’t think she is too bitchy for her own good.

The best meal by far was the family’s February Christmas dinner, held on Saturday the 4th. There was steak, and baked stuffed potatoes, and cauliflower with cheese sauce, and fried mushrooms, and wine.

Plus, there were hot cross buns because they are a part of the family’s Christmas tradition.

To authenticate the celebration, there was even a tree.

And presents and the opening of presents before dinner.

For Mom and for JT
For Dad

The celebration was absolutely perfect.

And yet the visit wasn’t over.

The next day, there was the wonderful concert with the Stadacona band and the Nova Scotia Youth Wind Ensemble.

And later on, more music at a local bar where JT got to show off his jazz chops, to his parents’ glee because they rarely get to see and hear him play these days. The trumpet solo was a big hit and not just with his parents.

The trumpet solo. You may not see anything until you hit the start arrow.

 

What more could they ask for. Music is always a great gift. Hearing others rave about his talent was a nice bonus. JT’s parents beamed with pride.

Thank you for reading.

Photos:  Jenn Stone

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24 thoughts on “Christmas In February”

  5. Sounds perfect! I especially liked the part about getting the opportunity to hear your son play the trumpet. We parents live for moments like these. Christmas is always more about who you’re with than on Dec. 25th.

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  7. This looks like it was fun. Who cares what day it is? If you want to call the day Christmas, go for it.

    As for your whipped cream refusing to remain stable, I, too, have had the same problem in the last few years. I eventually realized that there’s a difference in different store brands quality of whipping cream. I now buy the whipping cream at a smaller grocery chain and it’s better than the whipping cream at the larger grocery chain. A thought

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    1. It was fun. We really enjoyed it all.

      I have tried whipping cream from a different dairy here but had no luck. I will see what my other options are. Thanks. It is good to know that it isn’t a loss of a skill. You just never know these days.

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  8. How great and you got to hear him play, I’m sure you never tire to hear how good he is. I’ve had problems with whip cream too, and with butter. I read it’s from the hormone laden feed they’re giving the cows, but who knows. Merry Christmas! Maggie

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  10. Glad you all got together and had your Christmas at last! Me and my friend Richard (who I usually celebrate with) had ours in January too!

    Maybe the cream isn’t whipping because they’ve reduced the fat or something?

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