A snowy day in Chicago

It’s not the holidays without snow. As much as I complain about shoveling, I need to have snow to feel the season. Yesterday’s snow should carry me through these last few days of December, barring an unforeseen warmup. Now I can hear “It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas” and really get into it.

In the holiday spirit

I have to admit that the encroachment of the holiday shopping season on the Thanksgiving holiday was making me mad. I understand that retailers need big sales for their yearly results, but have some respect, will ya? But the day after Thanksgiving, I ventured into downtown Chicago, not to buy anything, but to see if

Time sure flies

Tonight is the first night of Hanukka, the second day of our annual Nutcracker weekend (five shows in three days, but only one left after tonight), and another reminder of how quickly time can pass by, particularly when children are involved. The bashful girl who posed for this picture seven years ago has since become

Where do they go from here?

Christmas and the holiday season are beginning to seem distant now. The vacations from school and work are over, the new year has come and gone, and the credit card bills are starting to come in. Christmas trees have been discarded, and are now lying in wait for somebody to come along and take them

A holiday offer

It’s the holiday season–the first one this blog has ever seen–and I want to offer what I can to anyone who has found their way to this space. It’s a season for giving, after all. So here’s what I’ll do: In the comments section below, or in an email to bluebattinghelmet(at)gmail(dot)com, tell me who you

Apparently I’m from the olden days

The other night, my younger daughter and I were having dinner together. I told her that Halloween was a week away, and at this time of year, when I was her age, one of the big happenings was the annual airing of “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown.” It was a big deal when it