And Now It’s Christmas Nan Reinhardt

Carriage at Yuletide

Christmas has started out very low-key this year. Some years, it’s like that, isn’t it? We aren’t shopping much because as a family, we’ve chosen to donate our gift money to folks in the world in crisis, so gifts are small remembrances. I haven’t wrapped anything yet. I’m just now starting my baking for the neighbors, Son and Grandboy are sick, and life has been so rushed and overwhelming as I’ve been finishing a book, doing promotion, and starting the new book in the Walkers of River’s Edge series. I’ve barely realized it’s almost Christmas.

But a few nights ago, we went to Yuletide…

Yuletide with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra is how Husband and I know Christmas is truly here--that sounds kinda nutty, but the ISO is our benchmark for beginning the holiday season. That celebration with singing, dancing, and lots of holiday fun sets us up. We all have our favorite part of the traditional show. Grandboy and Poppy love the reindeer puppets, I love the dancing Santas, Son is always a little misty at the singing of “Oh, Holy Night,” and DIL relishes knowing some of the folks in the show personally from her theater days in Indy.

 

We always make sure to have a beverage and a Christmas cookie at intermission. Mine is generally a glass of wine or a Baileys and coffee while Son enjoys trying a new kind of martini. Grandboy loves the huge tree in the middle of the theater lobby and Husband and I both are crazy about the old restored Circle Theater, which we both remember from our childhoods. Jack Everly is a charming maestro, and Yuletide always has great guest hosts like Sandy Patti, Frankie Moreno, Ben Crawford, and other Broadway and TV stars.

 

This year we were a different crew—with Son and Grandboy both sick, DIL, Husband, and I planned to attend together, but what to do about the extra tickets? On a whim, we checked with our friends Ray and Bessie, and lo and behold, they were excited to join us. So they did. All in all, it was a delightful evening with the Yuletide concert, a carriage ride around the city, and hot chocolate at a little tea shop on the Circle. 

Christmas is finally here. Yuletide is what makes it happen and no matter what else is going on in our lives, once we sit in that theater and participate in the annual celebration, we are in the spirit. This weekend, we bake and next week, we wrap gifts and gather what we need for our holiday celebrations. 

Happy holidays, everyone. May you know joy and peace this holiday season. And fun—have fun! Eat the cookies and fudge, drink the eggnog, toast with champagne, even taste the fruitcake if you happen to end up with one. Play games, watch all the old Christmas movies. Most of all, enjoy your family and friends because now, it’s truly Christmas. 

Nan Reinhardt is a USA Today bestselling author of sweet, small-town romantic fiction for Tule Publishing. Her day job is working as a freelance copyeditor and proofreader, however, writing is Nan’s first and most enduring passion. She can’t remember a time in her life when she wasn’t writing—she wrote her first romance novel at the age of ten and is still writing, but now from the viewpoint of a wiser, slightly rumpled, woman in her prime. Nan lives in the Midwest with her husband of 50 years, where they split their time between a house in the city and a cottage on a lake.

Talk to Nan at: nan@nanreinhardt.com

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Nan Reinhardt