Saturday, Dec 25, 1886 Christmas. It cleared in the night and has been bright and colder today. The children came over with Girard and Mary and got their Christmas gifts with Tom and the servants and all seemed pleased and happy. I walked down for the mail but was a few minutes too late, the office had closed. When I came back I went to work at the lamps and put them all in order. When I finished that I attacked the kitchen sink and drain which had got out of order and worked at it until 2 o'clock, a most dirty and disagreeable job and I was thoroughly tired at the end of it. I dressed myself and walked over to the Toboggan slide which is nearly done. There were nearly a hundred visitors there and people were coming and going constantly. Sara and I had our dinner alone in marked contrast to the Christmases of the past. We talked of our dear Mother and her activity in preparing for this festal time, of dear Gertrude and Maurice and Gussie and the sad troubles with her husband and children. Girards wife had a letter from Laura a day or two ago in which she spoke with regret of the dear old home and showing evidently that she misses the freedom of it she has so wantonly sacrificed. She spoke of her grandfather but made no allusion to any of the others. Mr & Mrs Cantine sent my father some lovely roses as did Mrs. Van Deusen and Mrs. Coykendall sent him a beautiful basket of fruit. Mary Ann Shultis came to see him. He was dressed and looked and is better than he was a year ago. Nannie came home from N. Y. last night, not much improved. Sara went down to see her. She also sent Emily Wood a Christmas present with her characteristic benevolence of heart remembering the sorrowful and the unfortunate. I walked down to the mail again in the evening and got there 20 minutes before the office opened. I got a book for Sara she sent to Bowyer for and a couple of letters but not letter from Lucy.
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