For those of you who have subscribed to this blog – I think there’s 3 (!!!) of you, I want you to know I appreciate you so much and am apologizing now for filling your inbox with email notifications for things like this.

Today is Epiphany/Little Christmas/Three Kings Day. In our house it’s the official end of the Christmas holiday season. It’s a time for family dinner and appreciation for all the gifts of the season.

It’s also Women’s Little Christmas, an Irish tradition still celebrated in parts of Ireland and a tradition that frankly needs to be adopted here in the States. Women’s Little Christmas is the day where the men took over the chores and housework and gave the women of the house the day off. It goes back to the belief of years ago that men didn’t do any of the housekeeping or meal preparation. They did not engage in what my grandfather so lovingly called “skirt work.” Also, families were large and mothers had many more children to care for than we see today. So, on Women’s Little Christmas they were free to put their feet up and relax or get together with girlfriends at the pub or elsewhere to enjoy a day without household and childcare worries.

Clearly, we did not celebrate Women’s Little Christmas at our house.

Yes, part of that is because my husband is recovering from shoulder surgery and only has the use of one arm. And the other reason is because I had to get started on de-Christmasing my house (while trying to get the kids ready for their first day back at school tomorrow and prepare our Epiphany dinner).

No, there was no Women’s Little Christmas in our house. 😉

Now, what you see is only half the boxes. The other ones are behind me as I take the pictures. Also not pictured above are the boxes in the house and the 2 full size trees still decorated that need to be undressed.

Please note the “feckin eejit” sign next to the tree which makes me laugh every time I come downstairs to the home office. The sign originally was there to lend humor to my day when I was practicing law. Because let’s be honest, I needed a good laugh during the day, especially in my last years of practice.

Anyway, back to the point. No writing today. No Women’s Little Christmas. BUT, a lovely Epiphany Dinner and a huge mess that could easily attract casting directors from the show Hoarders.