2022 Christmas Eve/Day

Christmas Eve

Jay, Laura and Anton invited Claude, Peter and me to a fondue supper.  After the usual pre-meal noshes of shrimp with sauce, chips with dip and salsa we sat down around the fondue pot and dipped cubed ham, assorted vegetables and bread chunks into a traditional cheese fondue.  It was light, nutritious and enjoyable, topped off with an assortment of Laura's Christmas cookies.

Christmas Day

St. Rita's Church was quite full at 10:00 a.m. for the 10:30 am Christmas mass.  We enjoyed the beautiful singing of a tiny soprano that must weigh 80 pounds, if that much.  She sings like a bird with no effort.  A little girl brought in the Baby Jesus and laid him in a manger.  

Father Tim Kitzke gave an inspiring homily and ended by referring to his Polish heritage, finishing by singing Lulajze Jezuniu.  I sat in the second row and sang along.

Peter and I were invited to the Dorns' for 3:00 p.m. followed by Jay, Laura, Anton and Annika, then Claude. 

Prominently displayed was the stable that was made many years ago by a relative of my fraternal grandmother.

Again the cocktail table was laden with delicious appetizers provided by Laura.

I made my usual table favors filled with trail mix and gummy bears

After saying Grace we broke Oplatek with each other with wishes for a Merry Christmas, as Anton and Annika are doing.

Janice served perfect pierogi along with a barbeque flavored muffin, a quinoa dish and a fruit salad.

And what could finish off this wonderful dinner better than with the various assortment of Laura's cookies and Janice's gingerbread men?

Peter and I drove back to SRS on an unusually cold for Christmas (11 degrees) evening talking about nothing but the wonderful day we shared with family.

St. Joseph the Worker Cathedral

Sunday, December 11, 2022 

Claude and I attended the 10:30 a.m. High Mass at this cathedral during our family weekend.  

The robed choir from the choir loft (we did not see the robes until the end of the mass) sang a prelude in Gregorian chant.

The processional included seven servers, including two holding globed candles on poles and one censer bearer. One of the servers could have been a deacon.

The altar was incensed at the beginning of the mass and before the gospel and also escorted the gift bearers at the Offertory.  Before the Preface the candle bearers and the censer bearer came for the incensing of the altar and the congregation, remaining in front of the altar through the Consecration and leaving after the Prayer of the Faithful, with heavy incensing at the Consecration and diminishing until the Prayer of the Faithful.  There was so much incense I was afraid I wasn't going to see the altar.  I'm sure people with respiratory problems would be affected by all the clouds of smoke.

The choir was lovely, and sang most of the mass.  

The recessional included all of the above with incense.

Attending this mass was memorable to experience more of the pomp of the ceremony.

2022 December Outing

 Friday, December 9, 2022

Claude and I left on a slushy early afternoon to our La Crosse destination.  The roads were good once we got to the Dells. All of us arrived at approximately the same time at the Hampton Inn: Brad, Janice and Colin, then Claude and I, followed by Jay and Laura.  After checking in we had dinner at the Freight House, which was like a railroad depot, very spacious.  Our flashlights came in handy reading the menu because the place was so dimly lit, but the service and food were good.

Our next venture was a drive through holiday lights, thousands of lights on trees and on the ground.

When we got back to the hotel, we gathered in the breakfast area to celebrate Jay's Birthday and play a game.  The hotel staff was very accommodating in providing wine glasses for us.  Janice served a delicious  tiramisu for the Birthday cake.  We played a game called Do You Know Your Family where we had to guess answers about each of our likes, dislikes and other questions. There was also fun with many of the answers.

Saturday, December 10

After a nice breakfast in the hotel we set out for the historic Hilton House. https://www.lchshistory.org/hixon-house

Audrey was our guide and gave us a wonderful tour of this house that had almost all of the furnishings of the original owner, Gideon Hixon, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gideon_Hixon and his wife Ellen https://lchshistory.pastperfectonline.com/byperson?keyword=Hixon%2C%20Ellen.  

Entering the house I was reminded of Old World Wisconsin, but Audrey was quick to correct me that this house was older and had all of the original furnishings, unlike OWW that had artifacts that were collected from various sources.

The house was decorated with holiday ornamentation that would have been popular during the period.

The Turkish Nook reflects Ellen's fascination with her trip to that country.

By this time we were ready for lunch at La Crosse Distillery.  We sat at a high table and sampled beverages with a light meal.

We walked through some shops in the slushy downtown area.  I had my walker to make navigating a little easier.  I bought a pair of gloves at Duluth Trading and we were amused with the merchandise at another shop that featured items with clever captions.

Jay followed Brad's car driving through the University of La Crosse campus as Brad told us what we were seeing over the phone.  It would not have been possible to walk this vast expanse with many buildings.  We drove up Granddad Bluff to get a scenic view, but it was overcast with no view to speak of, so we were satisfied with a pleasant ride.  We concluded our drive through the cemetery where we found the gravesite of the Hixon family.  It was a good way to round out our morning experience of their home.

We quenched our thirst at the Turtle Stack Brewery that seemed to be a hot spot for beer drinkers.

We relaxed in our rooms until it was time for a short drive to the Waterfront Restaurant and Tavern for our 6:00 p.m. reservation.  We were happy that we drove through the holiday lights last night when the traffic was light instead of this evening where the traffic was backed up for blocks.  Joseph was our waiter who served us cordially with wine and delicious meals.  My braised short ribs were flavorful with enough to take home for another meal.

We completed the day with another game answering questions that we wrote on wipe-off cards.

Sunday, December 11

The breakfast area was crowded this morning; Laura nailed down a spot to be sure Claude and I would have a place to sit.  After warm good-byes until we see each other again at Christmas, Claude and I checked out by 10:00 a.m. in order to go the mass at St. Joseph the Worker Cathedral at 10:30.

Roads were very good on the drive to Claude's house.  

When I got to SRS I was in time to partake of the dinner hosted by Herman and Nancy Schmidt and Gary Mullarky prepared by Herman's family.  Jackie made room for me at her table as I was served a dish with turkey, ham, mashed potatoes, dressing, squash, macaroni and cranberries with apple pie for dessert.  I had some for another meal.