I took the day off today. Well, I took part of the day off. I got all your orders out first, left for the rest of the day, and now I’ll pack up the new orders – I promise! 
But LOOK what I saw today. Beautiful glass sculptures! I met some friends at the Missouri Botanical Garden (on this 60 degree day) and we walked around checking out the blown glass Chihuly exhibit.
This stuff is just amazing and it is planted and displayed just about everywhere. I have been “meaning” to get down there to see this. It has been there since last spring, I think. Of course it’s leaving on January 1st, so I made it there in the nick of time. I’m so glad that I did. Have any of you seen his exhibits elsewhere? 
It’s hard to pick a favorite. I liked the floating glass balls in the pools, and the hanging chandelier on the Japanese bridge. The boat full of glass was fun, as were the sunbursts on top of the archways. 
It was also fun to walk through the Climatron and see all different kinds of glass stuck in and out of things in there. There were lots of Chihuly books that you could buy, as well as very expensive bowls. I passed. I would’ve liked a book, but there were too many choices. 
I’m thinking that College Boy and I will go down there next week while Knitting Daughter finishes up her finals. 
By then, I might be able to make a book decision.
After my wander through the garden (and lunch, of course. You always have to schedule lunch when you’re out with friends), I finished up the Christmas Shopping. I also spent 45 minutes waiting in line at the post office. I had packages that I had to insure and there were 35 (35!!!) people ahead of me. The two men working behind the counter were not affected at all by the sight of their lobby being entirely filled up. I could detect no sense of urgency in their actions. In fact, one took a break while we were there, so for awhile there was just one station open to service customers. I overheard this conversation between two people that made me laugh:
First person: “Hey! How are you doing? Nice to see you! What are you up to today?”
Second person: “Oh, nothing. I just thought I’d spend half the day at the post office.”
Remind me to never ever go to the post office within two weeks of Christmas. Never ever.
I have sure loved reading about all of your traditions. I hope you all have taken the time to read the comments from Monday’s blog post. Some great ideas in there. Here are a few more traditions that we have at our house:
– I always make frosted sugar cookies (and usually have help. Or at least there is always a lot of help in the eating part of it.)
– We always go to church on Christmas Eve and I love that the service ends with a candlelit rendition of Silent Night.
– We always read the Christmas Story at brunch on Christmas Day.
– We still all pile into our bed to open Christmas Stocking presents, first thing in the day.
– We go over to my parents house the day after Christmas for pizza dinner, to celebrate my dad’s birthday! (I know that’s not really a Christmas tradition, but since his birthday is the day after Christmas, it’s all tied in with everything in my memories.)
Now, if only this 60 degree weather would go away and the snow would come, it might actually FEEL like Christmas. I’m waiting.
Sheri alsowaitingfortheUPSguytogetherewithayarndelivery 🙂 🙂
Wow, what an amazing garden exhibit. I love Chihuly’s work and will have to see when it’s in my area. Thanks for the pitures and my favorite has to be the sunburst gate.
Gorgeous! Almost as pretty as all the yarn you get!!
Spectaular glass! I hope a Chihuly exhibit comes my way some day. All the pieces are fabulous – and the gardens look very lush and wonderful.
Sixty degrees is a little warm for you, this time of year. I hope you get some snow soon. We need pictures of snow!!
Love the flaky snowman!
Our snow is melting away. It sure feels more like Christmas when snowflakes are falling. I made Peppermint Fudge today….made me think of the Peppermint Mocha addiction so many of us have! I LOVED your idea of stockings being opened from your bed…..thanks for sharing that with me!
There is Chihuly glass all over Seattle (i think he’s from Tacoma) and the Tacoma art museum has an amazing collection of his work. that piece hanging under the bridge is just beautiful!
I’ve only seen Chihuly’s chandeliers — two permanently on display at the SJ Museum of Art, an elegantly huge one at the Victoria & Albert Museum, and one on a cruise ship. I have to say that you are terribly lucky for being witness to an actual exhibit!
What a beautiful exhibit…….
As for the Post Office…I HEAR YA! I went last week for stamps….a line of about 30….2 people on windows…..and another clerk re-stocking (or making it look like she was) the priority mail envelopes…..they just DON’T get it……..open another window, clear the lobby and then carry on….oh, and yeah…..one of them closed the window…TIME FOR BREAK he announces…..Goverment workers!
We do the same with our stockings……….Finished up a pair of socks from the Opal I bought from you…lovely….My college boy returns home for a quick visit on Sunday nite – Luminari Nite in my neighboorhood (another tradition) and then home for a month on Wed…..Diane
My mil birthday is the 26th and she tries to every year open her presents on Christmas. She always uses the excuse of only having to clean up a mess once. dh won’t let her open them and makes her wait until her birthday. We also wrap her present in the most bright non Christmas paper we can fine. She is admant that her presents are not wrapped in Christmas paper.
I am hoping to get to the MoBot(!) to see the Chihuly exhibit before it leaves. Just haven’t managed to talk my husband into it yet. It’s only a 2 1/2 hr drive… Maybe after Christmas.
An amazing day, the weather, the garden, the glass -perfect.
December is an amazing month for celebrations in our family. My sister’s birthday is the 1st, my cousin is the 4th, my birthday is the 29th (which I also share with an uncle on my father’s side, and an aunt on my mother’s), my parent’s wedding anniversary is the 31st (yes New Years Eve).
All the relatives would come for my sister’s birthday and my cousins (they combined a party every year). They would all come back for Christmas and New Years, but not for my birthday – I had to open my presents on Christmas Day so I could say “thank you”. I will tell you something really sad – twice my parents forgot my birthday – my 17th and my 23rd – it wasn’t until after new year’s that they remembered. I have reminded my mother on a few occasions that had this happened at more impressionable age I could have been scared for life, to which she replies “so what was the incident that scared you for life”. (we are all to varing degrees absolutely nuts in my family).
Happy Happy
I know the weather is strange here too. I am wearing a sweatshirt today and I alway wear a tank top underneath it. I was wearing just the tank top on the fire call today.
I love the photos of the gardens. The glass balls in the water are so pretty!!! And the post office right before Christmas is horrid!!! I am lucky in that my local PO will try and hurry things up for those of us with PO boxes by getting our packages while they are wiating on other customers to write checks or such.
The pictures are beautiful. I visited the MO Botanical Garden years ago and it was lovely back then even without the special exhibit. As for that yarn delivery, oh how I hope it’s the Yarntini order you posted about recently. Could it be????
I love MOBOT. I worked in St. Louis for a couple of years, so that town holds a special place in my heart. And I really love Chihuly glass, so what a bonus that the beautiful glass is in such a beautiful place. Nice pictures!