THE Scott's NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS EVE

THE Scott's NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS EVE
by Jennifer Scott

'Twas the night before Christmas Eve, and all day in our house

Two of three children were spreading crumbs for a mouse;

The stockings had been ripped off the mantel with flair,

It really is amazing that I still have a head of (golden wheat blond #137) hair;

The girls asleep in their cribs, Liam kept getting out of bed,

Needing to go potty, wash his hands, and get more books to be read;

I was in my PJ’s, Dan had his computer on his lap,

Barely awake, soooo tired and longing for a nap,

When across the street we heard a clang and clatter,

And peeked through the blinds to see if anything was the matter.

Encore as a puppy would’ve been there in a flash,

But he’s getting a little slower, there’s pause (“paws” too cheesy?) in his dash.

The moon couldn’t be seen through the rain, we had no snow

Making murky and muddy all the ground below,

When, what to my swollen, puffy, crusty, sleep-deprived eyes should appear,

But the neighbor’s house adorned with three country-ish Christmas trees, two life-sized Toyland torch candles, a spiral tree, some wreaths, a Christmas flag, a blinking candy cane, and a lone reindeer,

With a roll of my eyes, I shut the blinds quick!

I hate tacky decorations. They just make me sick.

I laughed when I saw them, in spite of THEM, not of myself;

And looked at our tastefully decorated living room shelf.

I sighed a big sigh and just shook my head,

And knew that within my own house there was no tackiness to dread;

I shook it off and started doing some pre-Christmas work,

Filled stockings, sorted presents, and hung a curtain so Liam couldn’t lurk,

But I was foiled, Liam got me, “need a tissue for my nose”,

And like a rocket off a launch from the couch Dan arose ;

He sprang to hallway, blocked Liam’s’ view, got a tissue

And marched him back to his room saying “good night, we love you, we’ll miss you”.

The casserole’s made, OJ stirred, presents sorted just right

"I’m tired, it’s 8:52, and I’m going nite-night."