Ep. 121: Holiday Traditions (Jenn Gets a Pony)

Summary

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You, Me & Mike — Ep. 121: Holiday Traditions (Jenn Gets a Pony)

Podcast by Thirteen Media | Released: Nov 3, 2022

Overview

In this warm and candid episode, hosts Jenn and Mike Todryk dive into their personal and family holiday traditions, the great Christmas decorating debate, and how their upbringings affect the way they celebrate. Listeners get stories about childhood memories, traditions both cherished and quirky, and a lively discussion about how to make the holidays less stressful and more joyful. The episode is full of relatable laughs, sentimental moments, and the playful dynamic that defines “You, Me & Mike.”

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Main Topics & Key Discussion Points

The Great Christmas Decorating Debate

• When Do You Decorate?
  The episode kicks off with a familiar controversy: Is it too soon to say “Happy Holidays?” and when is the right time to put up Christmas decorations?

  • Jenn admits to usually decorating the first week of November, not November 1st, “because I’m tired from Halloween.” She wants to “enjoy it longer than two weeks” ([01:47]).
  • Mike describes Jenn’s process as spread out, not done all at once: “You do the trees, and next week we do a little bit more...eventually get the village up, or we don’t” ([02:22]).
  • The pair discusses how some people “live around the boxes” during the decorating process ([03:11]).

• Listener Poll Results
  Jenn shares the results of her Instagram poll on when people decorate:

  “It was a house divided… 48% November 1st, and then...52% not until after Thanksgiving. I was actually shocked.” — Jenn ([07:27])

• Influence of Childhood Traditions
  Both discuss how their families’ timelines for decorating impacted their own preferences. Mike’s family always waited until after Thanksgiving, seeing Black Friday as the official kickoff to Christmas ([07:59]-[08:34]).

Holiday Childhood Memories & Family Traditions

• Nostalgic Media & Music

  • Mike recalls the significance of TV specials and records like “The Carpenters” and “Mannheim Steamroller” for setting the holiday mood ([09:06]-[09:30]).
  • Both reminisce about the anticipation and event-like scheduling of childhood cartoons and holiday TV ([10:04]-[10:55]).

• Magazines & Early Decorations
  Jenn recounts the year her house was decorated for a magazine shoot before Halloween:

  “My home [was] decorated for Christmas before freaking Halloween… My neighbors are probably looking in being like, this lady's psycho.” — Jenn ([11:16])

Evolving Family Traditions

• Changing Schedules

  • Jenn notes that her own family’s timeline for decorating shifted when their Thanksgiving gatherings got bigger, leading her mom to decorate for Christmas before Thanksgiving:

    “Her Christmas stuff went up before Thanksgiving because she wanted to have it beautiful for the Thanksgiving meal.” ([13:30])

  • Mike’s mom now decorates early, too, so his kids get “two months of Christmas” when they visit family in Wisconsin ([14:34]-[14:50]).

• Blended & Extended Family Gatherings

  • Both share stories of how divorced parents and extended family meant having multiple celebrations and unique logistics ([15:08]-[15:58]).
  • The couple agrees on the joy of “marathon” Christmas mornings, where gifts are opened one at a time, with breaks for breakfast ([16:07]-[16:58]).

Stocking Stuffer Culture Shock

• Cultural Differences

  • Mike grew up with St. Nick's Day (Dec 6), a German tradition:

    "We would put [the stocking] on our door handle… St. Nick, who is like, Santa's cousin—he just gave us a bunch of candy and one little toy.” — Mike ([17:19]-[18:02])

  • Jenn’s family treats stockings almost like an extra major gift, with practical presents inside:

    “This is basically like a gift…the stocking with everything in it is basically another really great gift.” — Jenn ([20:48])

• Learning Each Other’s Ways

  • Mike confesses to once grabbing last-minute candy from CVS for Jenn’s stocking, to her dismay:

    “No, my stocking was just filled with crap, like candy and stuff… In my mind, that's a waste of money.” — Jenn ([20:35])

  • Eventually, they compromise: “Now the kids get little dollar toys and stuff because they like that, but the point is your family started this tradition that stockings…are legit pre-gifts.” — Mike ([22:08]-[22:38])

Christmas Morning Rituals

• Sacred Family Process

  • Jenn details the magic routine: her parents would block the hallway with a sliding pocket door; only once special Christmas music played (the elusive “Norman Rockwell Christmas Homecoming” CD), could she and her siblings see the tree and gifts ([22:54]-[26:03]).

    “My dad would always play… Rockefeller Christmas… He would blast that...and we'd open that pocket door and we'd see all the gifts for the first time.” — Jenn ([23:49])

  • Mike reflects on his first Christmas with Jenn’s family and how their traditions make the holiday feel magical for their own kids—"Our Christmases feel just like my childhood…because we have kids." — Jenn ([28:22]-[28:28])

“Santa” the Wisconsin Way

• A Quirky Family Favorite

  • Mike’s family tradition: a family member (originally his dad) would dress up as “Santa,” sometimes acting hilariously disheveled on Christmas Eve.

    "Santa’s usually Eastern European and has an alcohol problem." — Mike ([30:20])

    “He sounds like a wasted Wisconsin Prospector.… All the kids are kind of looking at him like, what is wrong with this person? And I'm just looking at Vaughn, like, with my shrug, like, say…” — Jenn ([32:11])

  • Mike was recently “passed the baton” to become Santa himself:

    “Last year, I was passed the baton at the age of 45 years old…” — Mike ([33:00])

• Playful Tension About Traditions

  • Jenn jokes that the Todryk kids probably think their version of Santa is “weird,” but the family relishes the fun and laughter it brings ([33:29]-[33:44]).

Looking Ahead — Managing Holiday Stress (Preview for Part 2)

• Jenn teases the next episode: practical advice and boundaries to reduce holiday stress, ensuring the holidays are “fun, not stressful” ([34:55]-[35:03]).

  "If it's not fun and if it's stressful, you ain't doing something right. And you can fix it." — Jenn ([34:56])

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Christmas Decor Debate:
  “People have gotten divorced over this!” — Mike ([01:47])

• On Holiday Decorating Tactics:
  “Some people literally drag all their stuff out to the middle of their house…so they have to do it because everything's drug out in the middle…” — Jenn ([03:02])

• On Childhood TV Memories:
  “You didn't watch movies at any given time…so all these seasons were compartmentalized…the [holiday] traditions didn't blend over.” — Mike ([09:54])

• On Family Gift-Opening Rules:
  “It was a rule: one gift at a time…and you had to wait.” — Mike ([16:09])
  “That's crazy…Christmas would be over in 20 minutes, don't you think?” — Jenn ([16:34])

• On the Todryk Family Santa:
  “Santa talks a little bit like this…he kind of sounds like the Wisconsin Prospector…he's dancing, can't find the bathroom.” — Mike ([32:11]-[32:54])
  “Our kids are looking at Santa like, what the heck's wrong with him? Why is he talking funny?” — Jenn ([33:24])

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Fun Segment: Jar of Weird Questions ([35:05])

• Listeners submit oddball questions. This week: “If you could live in any decade, which would it be and why, and how old would you be?”
  • Jenn: “1950s, 18 years old…because I want to see the movement of the housewife and the expectations of women take a rapid turn into the 60s…” ([35:39]-[36:11])
  • Mike: “My grandparents’ era, the 1940s…even if it meant living through World War II—there was such a pivotal change in society…” ([38:04])

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Timestamps of Key Segments

| Timestamp | Topic | |-----------|-------| | [01:30] | The Christmas Decor Debate—Too Soon? | | [07:06] | Beginning Childhood Traditions | | [07:27] | Results of Jenn’s Instagram Poll | | [09:06] | Holiday Music & TV Nostalgia | | [13:30] | Shifting Family Decoration Timelines | | [15:08] | Split & Extended Family Holidays | | [16:09] | “One Gift At a Time” Gift-Opening Rules | | [17:19] | St. Nick’s Day vs. Christmas Stockings | | [20:48] | Stocking Stuffers: Practical or Candy? | | [22:54] | Jenn’s Christmas Morning Family Ritual | | [30:05] | The Drunken Wisconsin Santa Tradition | | [34:55] | Preview of Managing Holiday Stress (Part 2)| | [35:05] | Jar of Weird Questions: “Any Decade?” |

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Closing Thoughts & Tone

The episode is characterized by warmth, self-deprecating humor, and real-life insights about blending traditions, setting expectations, and keeping holiday chaos joyful. The Todryks keep things relatable for anyone navigating the holiday season—whether you’re a “decorates-in-November” type, or strictly a post-Thanksgiving traditionalist.

Jenn and Mike promise to return in “Part 2” with advice and boundary-setting tips to actually reduce holiday stress, ensuring “the holidays are fun, not overwhelming.”

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For more: Follow Jenn (@theramblingredhead) and Mike on Instagram, and check out new episodes each Wednesday.

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Memorable closing quote:

“If it's not fun and if it's stressful, you ain't doing something right. And you can fix it.” — Jenn ([34:56])

Transcript

[A]

Welcome to you, me and Mike. I'm Jen Todrick, otherwise known as the rambling redhead on Instagram and the host and Designer of no DiMareno on HGTV.

[B]

And I'm Mike and I'm also known.

[A]

As Mike and he's Mike.

[B]

Applause anyone?

[A]

Applause.

[B]

And while that sounds really important, it's not as important as the third person in this equation, which is you.

[A]

We love sharing our life with all of you on Instagram and hgtv, but here we get to dive deeper into topics that you suggest, answer questions you submitted, and share stor stories that impact us all. Welcome back to the podcast.

[B]

It's podcast day.

[A]

It's podcast day.

[B]

Or evening.

[A]

It is the day. Actually, it's the day after Halloween.

[B]

It is all Saints Day. Did you know that was this was called.

[A]

No. Yeah, but Mike is right. It's the evening time. So we usually record on Tuesdays during the day while everyone's at school. Because Viv goes two days a week and Tuesdays one of our days. Right. So we have daytime.

[B]

That's right.

[A]

But today was a big day. We just had stuff behind the scenes that we were doing for the brewery. Just business stuff that took up our time. So here we are.

[B]

And our guest, we legitimately started and then got interrupted. So this is like take two of a. Of a really broken, earlier attempt. So, yeah, let's roll. Let's do this. I kind of Happy holidays.

[A]

I kind of like nighttime. Nighttime because I don't know, it's just us. The kids are in bed. I'm not too tired. I don't know. Sometimes when we wake up and hit the ground running podcasting, it's like I haven't woken up yet. I don't know. I like. This is good.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Chilling in the gym.

[B]

Did you hear what I just said?

[A]

What'd you say?

[B]

I said, happy holidays. Is that too soon?

[A]

Not for some people. Mike. It's November 1st, you know. Okay, you always say stuff's a hot topic. That's not actually a hot topic. This is a hot.

[B]

I know where you're going with this. So super hot.

[A]

This is a super hot topic.

[B]

This. People have gotten divorced over this.

[A]

I don't know. I think I might be dramatic, but whether or not Christmas decorations go up November 1st or if you wait till after Thanksgiving, I mean, people get offended if you put your decorations up before Thanksgiving. As you guys know, if you've been following me on Instagram, I do decorate. I usually am not a November firster because I'm tired from Halloween. Like, I didn't do it today, but it's definitely happening this week. I'm a first week of November, and that's simply because it takes a lot of time to put things up, and I want to enjoy it longer than two weeks. And then turn around and put it back up. It's way too much work.

[B]

But you're not like an all at once. It's sort of. You do the trees, and the next week we do a little bit more, and then we eventually get the village up or we don't. Right. Like, it's. It's not a. You don't crush it all in one day.

[A]

And I probably should. That's kind of poor of me, because just, like, do a little bit every day. Like, I just need to bust it out. It's just. I don't like doing it all at once, to be totally honest. I'd rather, like, you know, do some stories and still, like, work and do fun stuff and then throw a tree up. But there are some people that literally bust. You would die. Mike. Mike gets all flustered if everything comes out onto the garage floor. Mike, you should see.

[B]

I did a great job. I organized like crazy this year. This is so much easier this year.

[A]

You did amazing. But there are people who literally drag all their stuff out to the middle of their house, and then that's how they do it. So they have to do it because everything's drug out in the middle.

[B]

We just live around the boxes. We'd make Christmas dinner on the boxes.

[A]

They're tubs, Mike.

[B]

Sorry. On the tubs. That's right. Or the bags. Speaking of trees, did you order the new tree?

[A]

I did order the new tree. We have a new tree coming for the living room. Because I've said for the past four years. I complain about it every year, about how it takes us forever to string the dang lights on the tree and then always one of them are out. So we have to go to the store. Then we have to go to the store on foot. You remember, Buy more new lights.

[B]

Do you remember two years ago? I think it was two years ago. You put the different color light in the middle of it and you didn't know it. It was like two different color. Like, one was the bright white and was the soft one. It was like one straight.

[A]

And for some that year I didn't turn the lights on until after I decorated.

[B]

That's right. That's exactly so.

[A]

Which is not smart. And I. So I was. No way. I was undecorating my tree. So we have a tree in our entry that I love. It's like this flocked, beautiful tree. And it's pre lit. That one's pretty. And you. It literally takes like seven minutes.

[B]

It's the easiest tree in the world.

[A]

And then you plug it in and it's done. And I don't have to decorate it for a while if I don't want to because it's beautiful. Just the lights.

[B]

I remember as a kid trees taking like an hour to set up because they would. You had to hook them in and they would like assault you. You would have physical wounds from your.

[A]

Why you wear the rubber.

[B]

And they were literally made of plastic. So like back in the day, the trees now, I don't know, I mean, more power to you if you get a real tree. That's like, that's work, that's effort. And I commend you for, for.

[A]

They're beautiful. We don't do that.

[B]

They smell great. But we just spray ours with Lysol and it smells whatever.

[A]

I actually buy the little hangy doodads. It does smell good. And remember they were pretty, pretty good. They were pretty strong.

[B]

It a lot of good traditions. This is what the holiday. You want to talk about the holidays?

[A]

Yes. So the point of this whole episode that I have not shared with anyone yet, the whole point of this episode is I got a lot of requests in the question box to talk about stress around the holidays and basically talk about our stress and how we manage it. I thought that was a really great one. I thought that was a really great one because the holidays can be super stressful if you don't know what I do. I host Christmas starting December 23rd. My family comes over, my parents start. They're the first ones here. And I host anywhere from 18 to 25 people for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. So it's a lot of people. And I really got stressed in the earliest years and I finally said, no, I'm putting some things in place. I'm going to enjoy this day with my kids and my family. And this is what I do to manage stress. A lot of different things. So we'll get into that later on in the episode. But that's where we're gonna end because.

[B]

It'S not just Christmas, it's a whole season.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Like even literally as of yesterday. Sometimes people do huge Halloweens and then there's, you know, Thanksgiving celebrations and then there's, you know, the, the Festivus celebrations. What I don't know isn't that, isn't that the fate made up one from Seinfeld with the pole I think it's called.

[A]

I've never seen Seinfeld.

[B]

There's some made up holiday. Like they made it. It was, I think, I think it was called Festivus. I think so it's still. People actually like goof around with it. It's like they had this metal pole. I, I, and I was. When I was in college, I didn't watch much tv. Weirdly Catwoman. I couldn't at West Point, but I the time I couldn't. It's different now, I guess. But that's when Seinfeld was huge. I just didn't really watch it. I think that's what it was.

[A]

Interesting.

[B]

So yeah, Mark. Yeah, I can get a fact checker out there. Can you fact check me on this?

[A]

Put it in the comments along with a five star review.

[B]

But then Christmas and then New Year's, I mean it's like so condensed. It's like so much, well, crazy.

[A]

And the difference is it's like Halloween is like one day. You know what I mean? Christmas is freaking Halloween.

[B]

It's just kind of fun.

[A]

It's just fun. It's like a one day of fun. Yesterday we had a lot of fun. But Christmas is like a two month endeavor sometimes, like I start, like you said, the first week of November and it doesn't end until after Christmas.

[B]

All right.

[A]

And so I think it'd be fun. Let's start on a height, like a light fluffy note and let's talk about. I think it'd be fun if we went through kind of things that we remember of our childhood, like our traditions and then we can get into what we do with our family.

[B]

Now can I ask you real quick one question before that?

[A]

No.

[B]

Okay. Yes. Over ask.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

And cue music. No, the, what was the, the results of the poll you had on November 1st or post Thanksgiving?

[A]

What was crazy? It was a house divided.

[B]

Oh really?

[A]

It was literally, I think 48 November 1st.

[B]

Right.

[A]

And then what's left? 52. 52. Is that math? Is that right? 52. Not until after Thanksgiving. I, I was actually shocked by that because I really thought way more people did it early in November, way more than after Thanksgiving then. But it was really a house divided. 50. 50. It was crazy.

[B]

There you go.

[A]

Yeah, I mean that's, that's crazy. I would never want to wait, you know, I think.

[B]

So going back to where you're, we're talking about like childhood. I think a lot of it probably comes from your childhood and my Gut tells me the older you are. Like in my 40s, like, I would not decorate until after Thanksgiving because that's how I grew up. It was a. I was gonna ask you what did sudo yo. It was the day after Thanksgiving. Black Friday. Excuse me? Black Friday was a. We would go shopping. I do remember that because we'd have the. The magazine. I remembered, like, we go to the mall in the morning sometimes, but then it was always. That was a day. My mom decorated the mall. Right? Literally.

[A]

Crazy. I miss malls.

[B]

Southridge in Greenfield, Wisconsin. The people out there know it. Yeah. Shout out to Greenfield.

[A]

We are shocked. That mall is still alive. Still keep thinking it's gonna die.

[B]

Bowling alley in it now. It's like no stores, but like, everything's closed inside. But they got a pretty cool bowling alley. Anyway, this isn't a shout out to Southridge, but we actually had fun when we went last time. But she started the day after Thanksgiving, and it was a hard nothing before. It was Thanksgiving and then Christmas season. And then I remember the Carpenters would always be playing on a record player.

[A]

Oh, Carpenters. My dad loved them.

[B]

Yeah, that was. That was the album. And. And eventually I remember a little bit older, like middle school, maybe early high school or. No, middle school. Must have been old school. Mannheim steamroller.

[A]

Yep. 100. That was a childhood.

[B]

Yeah, man. That's when it got hardcore. That was like. That was hardcore. It's like pre Metal Christmas. I mean, I would jam to that.

[A]

No, it was before Trap Christmas. You know how I played the Trap Christmas on Instagram. But. But you're mean. One Mr. Drink and then it's like. Yeah, techno.

[B]

And I think a lot of it is. Is going into like, the analog youth. And. And just bear with me one second. I'm gonna walk through this second. My childhood.

[A]

Are you telling me it's about to get long and lengthy?

[B]

It's not necessarily long with it, but I just want to explain the psychology of it. I think there's something to this.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

My childhood was built off of like four channels. 4, 6, 8, 12 and 24. Whatever. That's like five channels, right? That was on the TV. That was on the TV.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Right. And there was. You could technically record, I guess we had a VHS player, but it was still like likes with Blockbuster and all that was big. But you didn't watch movies at any given time. It was. Your life revolved around the schedules of what was out there and the consumerism what was put out there. So I remember the Great Pumpkin from Charlie Brown. Like A lot of Charlie Brown memories. Great Pumpkin was a big deal. And then the Thanksgiving one because, like, primetime cartoons. I mean, that's huge. Your life was huge. Like, you had. You had the Cartoon Network.

[A]

I had every cheater. I had everything. Everything you're saying it's like I had still, like, dish. Like I had.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

I don't watch anything.

[B]

No, no, no. This was like Thursday night, 7pm and you'd be like, ready the whole day. Every kid at school be talking about this, like, charlie Brown's on tonight. And then like, this, like. And you didn't like it. It's not like you really liked it that much, but you could watch cartoons.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

At prime time. I mean, that was huge. And then the Christmas one, so all these, like, seasons were, like, compartmentalized on that. So I think a lot of it separated it, that it didn't blend over. Now it's like Christmas before Halloween. Like you did, you crazy lady, three years ago. No, you're lunatic.

[A]

Well, that's because I had a magazine shoot.

[B]

Remember you decorated. I thought that was.

[A]

It was crazy.

[B]

Crazy.

[A]

Okay, so there's a story there. We had a magazine shoot and it was for the Christmas edition. So they asked me for my home to be decorated for Christmas. And so I had my. My home decorated for Christmas before freaking Halloween. Like, my neighbors are probably looking in being like, this lady's psycho. It wasn't a Halloween tree. It was literally decked out in Christmas.

[B]

Like, red and full on Christmas.

[A]

Yeah, but there was a reason for that.

[B]

We have pictures of us in Halloween costumes in front of the tree.

[A]

That's not normal. Like, I've never. I only did that that one year because of that magazine. I like I said, I'm slowly into the beginning of November again. It's November 1st and I haven't done a thing. So I'm not like, you know, that person that's in. Some people are like, November 1st done, like, instant.

[B]

The day before Halloween, you told me to take down the Christmas ornament stuff. And I said, I know.

[A]

Well, because I wanted it to be ready for me when I wanted. I wanted it in my face.

[B]

You're welcome. You're welcome for, like, helping, like.

[A]

No, I wish you would have, you jerk.

[B]

You're welcome to me. I'm saying you're welcome to myself.

[A]

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[B]

What did you guys start?

[A]

So I it's funny, I texted my mom this this morning because I knew we were going to talk about this and I asked her. I have a memory of it being after Christmas when I was really. Or I'm sorry, after Thanksgiving. The tree would go up when I was really young. But then something changed and I can't remember if it's just my mom started hosting Thanksgiving for a lot of people. My aunt Molly moved to the same town as us so we had like my cousin Abby and Molly and Tim and my family. And so I'm wondering if that's what did it because then all of a sudden the Christmas stuff went up before Thanksgiving because my mom wanted to like have it beautiful for the Thanksgiving meal. So it switched. So it started earlier and then for summary because I remember it being earlier in my. I remember always having Thanksgiving with a Christmas tree in the background. And so maybe that's why I like it too. Again, it's really just laziness. If I'm gonna bust my butt for five Days of putting up trees and home decorations. I want to enjoy it longer than four weeks. I do.

[B]

I think it all kind of depends on your family. Yeah. Like, because now my mom has evolved to Thanksgiving before Christmas because of us traveling for Thanksgiving.

[A]

Yes. So we go to Wisconsin for Thanksgiving, and sue has now started putting her Christmas stuff up before we get there because she wants the kids to, like, open up gifts and act like it's Christmas at her house during Thanksgiving. So the kids love it. It's like, literally, they get two months.

[B]

Of Christmas and we'll talk about, like, how we've set up things later. Right. About why we go to wind and why. And how we set up boundaries and.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

I mean, it's been awesome, but. Yeah. So. So what about. So here I'll go back to the traditions of us, we. At Thanksgiving was just. I always did Thanksgiving generally at my mom's. And my parents were divorced when I.

[A]

Grew up, so mine was at my house, too.

[B]

So I. For the most part, I remember most Thanksgiving still with my mom, and my dad would come down at Christmas and I would be at my grandma's, and it was always Christmas Eve, always Christmas Eve at my grandma's house, my dad's. Mom's.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

And that was a huge to do there. It was a big.

[A]

That was like a good meeting spot for your dad to come. Because your dad wouldn't come to, like, your mom's house and hang out.

[B]

No, there wasn't. We didn't have joint Christmases.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

I know some families, blended families do that now, and that's kind of cool. I think if you have that relationship, if you are divorced and you can still spend a evening together, that's kind of awesome. I think that would be cool for a kid.

[A]

But my cousin, we didn't do that. My aunt would always have her husband come and they would do Christmas, like opening gifts at her house in the morning, and then he would, like, leave. And they're our house. Yeah. And so when they were divorced all those years.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

You know, they.

[B]

We don't still do it. Can't really speak personally about it. It was just about our family. But it was still worked on my. It was up. There wasn't toxicity and like around Christmas time.

[A]

But it was good that you had a meeting spot.

[B]

So I do that at my grandma's. And then we would come back, and then it was opening Santa and presents for my mom Saturday morning. And it was a rule, one gift at a time. Sorry. Saturday morning. Christmas morning. I feel like Christmas always Lands on a Saturday, right in your. As your kid. It's always a Saturday. Yeah, Every day is a Saturday during holiday. Every. But we would do one gift at a time, and you had to wait.

[A]

Same.

[B]

Had to wait.

[A]

Same family. That's crazy.

[B]

So do people go nuts and just loud, like. Like rip and roll?

[A]

I think so, Mike. But I don't understand that. That's not fun. Christmas will be over in 20 minutes, don't you think?

[B]

I mean, the way it works for our family, Christmas, like, it takes so long.

[A]

But I love it. I love it.

[B]

We have, like, sessions. It's like. It's like marathon Christmas marathon. There's times I'm like, can we just open everything, please?

[A]

No, that's the worst. You have to have break for breakfast, and you come back and you start over again.

[B]

Look, when I came into your family, I did learn that there was a whole nother thing. So the first year, I didn't realize. Stockings. Okay, we'll talk about stockings. Because stockings is a thing, right?

[A]

I like this.

[B]

We did stockings at St. Nick's Day. St. Nick's Day is a German tradition.

[A]

I know. You didn't do it during Christmas Day.

[B]

No.

[A]

Interesting.

[B]

No, no, no.

[A]

Explain. Explain St. Nick's Day.

[B]

So I can't. I actually don't know the exact day. I think it's a sixth.

[A]

December 6th. Honey, you taught me that.

[B]

Yeah, I know. I know. I can't. I'm sorry. I can't remember the exact day. I'm sadly going around, like, St. Nick's Day is tomorrow. So St. Nick's Day is this, like, German tradition where it's like, pre Santa. Explain it.

[A]

Like, I'd never heard until I married you.

[B]

So. But it's a stocking. And we would put it. Since we didn't have a mantle, we would put it on our door handle and then. And then St. Nick, who is like, Santa's. In my mind. It was Santa's cousin. I don't know why I thought that strange. I really. I swear. That's really what I thought it was.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

I thought it was. Anna's cousin came by and just gave us a bunch of candy and, like, one little toy. Right? That's usually how it was.

[A]

Okay, so it's like, I. I think technically it came. It was a German tradition because I looked into it after you told me about it, and you're like, our kids need to do St. Nick's Day. And I'm like, what cultish, weird thing is this? And you're like, no, it's A German thing. So I looked into it. It's December 6th and kids would put their shoes outside of their doors.

[B]

Yep.

[A]

And then St. Nick would come and fill it with candy.

[B]

Yeah. And so it was just tiny. It was just small stuff. So my, my viewpoint was stockings were just, you know, stocking stuff where you put some candy in there.

[A]

It's all junk.

[B]

Yeah. You just put a candy in there and call it good. All good. Right. Like, so the first, first year we did stockings, Jen's like, don't forget the stocking stuffers.

[A]

So I talked just like that.

[B]

So it's so hurting. Family loves our stockings. We gotta open it up before breakfast because it's so important. That's literally how it was. So.

[A]

You're so annoying.

[B]

So I went to probably my favorite last minute gift place in the world, which is cvs, not sponsored, but I wish I had a sponsorship deal. So if you're listening to cvs, reach out. Because I could pimp out some CVS as seen on TV stuff because I.

[A]

Own all of it. Thank you very much for listening.

[B]

But anyway, so I went and watched some candy and some junk items. And I think you get this is where the as for scene TV thing. Because it was. It's usually joke stuff for me. And you were pissed.

[A]

I wasn't. I was only pissed if I couldn't use it. You learned, really. No, that wasn't why I was pissed, Mike. I've never been pissed at cvs. I was pissed that you did it the day of. No, no.

[B]

Well, yeah, because again, I thought there.

[A]

Was a whole nother topic, y'. All.

[B]

They weren't like a big deal.

[A]

My turn to talk. You've had the mic for a long time. When we first met, Mike would go and buy gifts on Christmas Eve.

[B]

Oh yeah, I did. That was another tradition I would put.

[A]

You know what's viral me. Because that's. It's Christmas Eve. We need to be with the family hanging out and. No, this man's running over Timbuktu buying presents because he didn't put forth effort before.

[B]

No, I did effort.

[A]

So mad.

[B]

But I. In my. So I don't. You don't do that anymore? No, I don't. As a single guy. In my mind it was. I liked shopping that day. I don't know why I had this. I actually genuinely liked going out that day and seeing the craziness and being a part of it. And it was something that I actually did like to do and I didn't realize until it was verbally expressed. In a very intentional way. You're like Mike, very aggressive when you shop on Christmas Eve. You make me feel less than because it feels like you don't put time and effort into your presence. For me.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

No, you didn't say that.

[A]

I didn't say that, but I meant something like that. It's true. You're being sarcastic. No. So the thing that I got mad at you about was on my stuff.

[B]

It was just. It was like last minute stuff.

[A]

No, my stocking was just filled of crap, like candy and stuff. And he did. He was like, wait, what? It's all just dollar crap that I would never use into my. In my mind, that's a waste of money. That's. That's how I feel.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And so I explained that to him, and I'm like, hey, babe, this is how we do stockings in this family. And I was like, we do practical gifts, like things we can actually use. This is basically like a gift. Like the stocking with everything in it is basically another really great gift.

[B]

Jen put a barbecue grill in my stocking. I mean, it was a propane tank the next year, so I could actually use it. It was incredible.

[A]

Whatever. But, like, like a magazine subscription or an eyeliner or a favorite mascara or maybe office pens that you love or blue light reading glasses or fuzzy socks or underwear.

[B]

Reading glasses. So, like, what a scam.

[A]

It's not.

[B]

I know you say it's not.

[A]

It's not.

[B]

I don't use them.

[A]

It's not.

[B]

I know it's. I know you say it's not.

[A]

So Haley wears them at work. Haley's my assistant, if you don't know who I'm talking about. And she. We look at computers a lot, especially her. And so she wears her blue lights because if she doesn't, she feels super fatigued and, like, tired.

[B]

And so I know I use black lights.

[A]

What?

[B]

Never mind.

[A]

All right, back to Christmas. So the stocking, I. I'm very much like a practical stock. If you're gonna spend a dollar on me, I'd like it to go towards something I'm actually gonna use. You know, I don't know. I don't want candy. So we used to practical stuff. Now the kids is like little dollar toys and stuff because they like.

[B]

Well, anyway. But the point is, is your family started this tradition that stockings just like stockings. These are like. These are like legit pre gifts. It's almost like a gift you would normally give. You just end up putting in a stocking. So it's your pre time. It's like your tiny gifts and I. That's it. I learned it and I kind of like it because it's just, you know, like, you know, what do we limit our numbers at? We kind of set boundaries on present sometimes. We always blow it. Every single year we obliterate it. But yes, we still try to stay within it. And those are worst starts. And I think that's fun. I do think it's fun.

[A]

I'm glad you like that.

[B]

Well, I know it's now. It just. Yeah, it's fun now. I just didn't know. I didn't. Again, you did. I didn't know. It wasn't communicated to me.

[A]

But now you know.

[B]

So. Okay, so Christmas Day for you. Give me a rundown how it was in your household. Because it was. I mean, it's a thing.

[A]

So it's a huge thing. And I've tried to carry this into my family.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

So we grew up in a home that was like law. It's a ranch style home. So it was long and like a straight line, if you think about it. And so the family room and the kitchen were like in the middle, right. And then my parents were off to the right little wing and I, the kids were off to the left. And what separated the kids rooms to the living room was a sliding pocket door. And that was like a hallway, you remember, into the back of the rooms.

[B]

I do.

[A]

So my parents would shut the pocket door at night on Christmas Eve after we went to bed. And we were not allowed to come through that pocket door until they came and got us or we like knocked on it and yelled at them. But usually my parents were good. They were always up before us. We never woke them up. They always came and got us first. And then my dad would always play. What is that, Gene? Gene? I don't know. It's a Christmas. Oh, I'm gonna that Rockefeller. Rockefeller Christmas.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And he'd play Rockefeller.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And it was the first song that was like.

[B]

Norman Rockwell dashing through this. Is it Norman Rockwell?

[A]

Yes, Norman Rockwell. Chris Rockwell Christmas.

[B]

It's obscene.

[A]

And he would blast that. It was. This is kind of crazy now that I say it out loud, but I have the best memories. I'm telling you, every single Christmas of my childhood, he would blast that. And then he'd go, okay. And we'd open that pocket door and we shoot out and we'd see all the gifts for the first time. And so my parents always withheld gifts. They put a few out for like, making our tree look cute with Gifts, sure. But they withheld the majority, which is what I continue to do for our kids. So whenever they walk out, it just looks like an insane amount of gifts to a kid. You know what I mean? Even to an adult.

[B]

Every person's gift.

[A]

Every person's gift is out there now. And it's just like, what? And as a kid, you're like, these are all for me. Even though they're not, you know, like for my aunts and uncles and grandparents. But they looked so massive. So every single stinking childhood, we came out to that song. It's such a nostalgic, like, fun memory. And now I force my kids to do it too. And they don't listen. They come out early and then my CD is not playing yet.

[B]

Speaking of cd, this was a whole thing.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

For. Oh, gosh, what got me five, six years ago, seven years. You're like, we have to do it because we didn't do it the first couple years because we were going to your parents home and they did in the morning. Then we were. We were traveling and then we decided our home. We'll talk about that in a little bit. Like why we start to do our home. But you had to have that cd.

[A]

Had to.

[B]

And we don't really have a CD player. We don't remember. We were like scrambling.

[A]

It's because here I'm going to look again. It's not on. He's not on, Norman. It's not on Spotify or anything.

[B]

Well, we have a CD player now. We just realized he can play it off the Xbox, so that kind of helped. But.

[A]

Norman. Is it Rockwall?

[B]

Rock Rockefeller? No, no, Norman Rockwell. I don't know. Anyway, it's. It's an old school cd. It's not available on any streaming service. But it was. It is. It's a. It's a very 90s sound.

[A]

It's amazing.

[B]

It's like a big choir. It's a little manic, but it's a good way to wake up.

[A]

It is manic. I would say that too, but I love it so much. It's so nostalgic. It's called Norman Rockwell. I'm looking at it on ebay. Norman Rockwell. Christmas Homecoming. That's what it is.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Christmas Home.

[B]

I mean, everyone's favorite.

[A]

Why don't I look?

[B]

I mean, that thing is number trending on the charts. It's going to be Taylor Swift this year. You know that.

[A]

Whatever. Don't even get me started on Taylor Swift. Okay. Anyways, what about you? Do you. You do you have Any memories of. Oh, you. Because that was hard. I know you guys didn't do anything like that because the first time I visited at your house, remember, I was having a very difficult time being away from my parents during Christmas. I cried. I was pregnant. So emotional.

[B]

You went to.

[A]

The pastor was talking about a squirrel. Like, a story about a squirrel. And I was like, why are we talking about a squirrel on Christmas Eve? Like, I upset. I was emotional and pregnant. I was crying in the bathroom.

[B]

It was a weird. It was like a weird year. And I don't know why, like, the. Did. Did my sister not. Was my sister not there? I don't know. We didn't end up. We ended up going to a random church. I don't even know why we went to this random church. We went to this. This small church that was a denomination that we were not even. But it is a Christian church. We're like, look, whatever, let's just go. It's Christmas Eve. Let's. Let's. Let's just do it. And so we went in, and it was. It was the. Probably the most interesting service that we've had.

[A]

And it was crazy, and it didn't feel like home. And I was. I, like, look back, and I was being. I want to say, like, I was being a huge brat, but also, it was my first Christmas ever away from my family, and I was very pregnant. So I want to say I was a brat, but also I was just being hormonal and pregnant. And so I was crying. I was trying not to cry in front of Mike. I was bawling in the bathroom. Someone came and checked on me. Worked at the church. Like, a man was like, are you okay, honey? I'm like, yeah, I'm just pregnant. I just. Silly, you know, trying to, like, talk myself down. But then, like, we woke up on Christmas and everyone, like, was, like, doing stuff in the kitchen, and I'm like, what are we? We're supposed to be jammies? Like, opening gifts? Like, it was weird.

[B]

I think this is the first time that you had a transition from childhood to adulthood because your brothers, at the time, you had one brother, was still in high school, right? So it was a very. Yeah, it was very different.

[A]

You're right. I was missing my family. They were all doing Christmas without me. How I felt.

[B]

And this is like, hey, welcome to. There are no kids. Like, that morning, my sister didn't have my nephews there, right? So it wasn't like this wake up and everything's going. It's just adults doing Christmas and It's part of the joy of. Of Christmas is in childhood, and that's when things shift and change. And you kind of your.

[A]

No. Correct me if I'm wrong. Our Christmases feel just like my childhood.

[B]

Christmas because I make them because we have kids.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

If. If we're doing. When our kids. When they're, like, out of the home without kids and we're still doing this. We're. We're. We're gonna. They're gonna say we're weird.

[A]

I'm gonna do.

[B]

So we're still gonna be doing this.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

It'll be. Just be me and you. And you're gonna make me walk out. You lady. And you're like, michael, get back to your room. Santa. Santa just brought the gifts.

[A]

Yes, I will. That would bring me joy. If you let me do that, I'm.

[B]

Walking down with it. Hold on. Let me. Let me press the elevator button.

[A]

We have an elevator.

[B]

Well, I'm gonna have all stair elevators. That's gonna bring me.

[A]

Oh, the stair chair.

[B]

Yeah, I want a stair chair. Even if I'm not.

[A]

Dang. We have an elevator.

[B]

Even. Even if I don't need it. I want it same. Like when I'm 80, I'm like, I don't want to walk these stairs.

[A]

I don't want one now. I. You know, why not be nice? You could text, like, get a couple texts out while you're writing.

[B]

How would you beautify that? I mean, it's, like, right in the middle. So you just own it.

[A]

You don't it. Maybe put some cushions on it.

[B]

Yeah. Make it a dumb waiter can, like, cramp myself in it.

[A]

Oh, my gosh. If y' all haven't seen the Watcher, you need to watch it. It's such a good show. Is it on Netflix? What was it on?

[B]

What? Netflix?

[A]

Yeah, Netflix. The Watcher is very good. You should watch it anyways. I do.

[B]

I love the rest. I love the fact that they totally resolved everything at the end. I mean, everything's completely.

[A]

Don't give anything away.

[B]

Completely solved.

[A]

Don't give anything away. Spoiler alert. He's being sarcastic. But still say that.

[B]

How would you know that? Can I tell about one tradition? I love that my. That I dad started. And I do love this. This is one that Jen seriously thought we had issues because it was so different than what she experienced. And this is one. She didn't get it.

[A]

I didn't get it.

[B]

Well, about. About our. About Santa coming on Christmas Eve.

[A]

No, I got it. It was just kind of morbid and Santa is like an old drunk guy with diseases.

[B]

I don't know Santa. Santa's usually Eastern European, and it has an alcohol problem.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Family. So I'm like, maybe a little senile. So my dad and all our kids know this isn't the real Santa. We know this. It's not the real.

[A]

It's not the real Santa, guys.

[B]

So this isn't the real Santa. This is our family tradition. Santa. Right. So we dress up. I dress up now. This year's transition. Last year.

[A]

Well, hold on. It was your dad, so talk about your dad.

[B]

My dad started this. It was at my grandma's. And I already said this. On the Christmas Eve, we would go there, and this was where all my cousins and all my family would be. There was a big. It's probably 40 people there. But Santa would come and. And would, you know, knock on the windows and jingle the bells. And my dad, you know, it was actually this whole thing started this. My dad would say, gotta go get seven up. Always was seven up for some reason. We're out of seven up in ice.

[A]

Oh, yeah.

[B]

Everyone. Hey, everybody. We're out of seven up in ice. And that was the code word that.

[A]

I could totally see your dad saying it just like that, too.

[B]

Just making sure everyone know he's leaving. Gotta know you're leaving. So he'd leave. And it was awesome. And it was actually good. As a kid, I, you know, and, you know, kind of picked up on it. Kind of didn't. So he'd leave. They go to the garage, everyone change. It was. It was like he changed back. And then my uncles, what also was happening is my dad and my uncle, and generally some of the older adults, males, would go to the garage and probably have a couple drinks out there too, just like, preparing. And then Santa would come in. And Santa was. Was fun.

[A]

Santa was crazy. I remember when I first witnessed it, I was like, what is happening? He would love it so much. Mike Senior was hilarious. But the way he would act is, like, literally like he was wasted. And he'd be, like, falling all over the place. And he had, like, a pillow for, like, a belly, but it'd slide down to, like, his front.

[B]

Santa talks a little bit like this. He kind of sounds like the Wisconsin Prospector.

[A]

He sounds like a wasted Wisconsin Prospector. And so all the kids are kind of looking at him like. Like, what is wrong with this person? And I'm just looking at Vaughn, like, with my shrug, like, hands up, like, say, it's so. I don't want to tell him It's Santa.

[B]

Well, it's not. I mean, it's. It's our Santa. It's our fun Santa.

[A]

So that came. I didn't think it was. I mean, I thought it was weird. I didn't see, like, why. I just thought it was different, you know, I did. I'm all for fun and games, but if he looks like he has an alcohol problem.

[B]

But it was fun because my. My dad's really goofy and he would like, he'd make cute. He'd sing Jingle Bells and the kids love it. He'd start doing the twist as he's doing Jingle Bells and then dancing and you know, like disco dancing. And then remember he always has to use the bathroom and it ends up like in a closet somewhere because he can't find the bathroom.

[A]

Yeah. I'm telling y'. All just the story gets deeper and deeper about what he would do.

[B]

So last year I was past the baton at the age of 45 years old. I was passed baton. And I mean, I still. I still. You. I think you were. Were. Were concerned about.

[A]

Are you gonna do it?

[B]

Well, he had my Santa. I brought the Eastern European descent of it. Remember I told it was a Turkish. I think I said what it was. See Santa Claus. He was talking like this.

[A]

It's just weird, guys. That's Italian. Let's see. It's just weird, y'.

[B]

All.

[A]

It's just messed up because our kids are looking at Santa like, what the heck's wrong with him? Why is he talking funny?

[B]

But it's like, you know, that jolly.

[A]

That jolly, happy, rosy cheek Santa, it just poops on it.

[B]

It.

[A]

And it makes it this weird.

[B]

It is hilarious. Tell me you did not laugh.

[A]

I laughed out of awkwardness of what. What is. What is going on?

[B]

All right, maybe if I'm Santa this year again, I'm gonna share a couple clips this year if you can. Because I. I think I have in the past. I just think it was an Academy Award winning type of.

[A]

Okay, you need to do it again because we still have Vivi. Vivi will run from you. She will not sit on your lap or talk to you as Santa. There's no way the other kids will know exactly who you are. So you only have one other kid you already know.

[B]

Yeah, Juan and Berkeley know already that, that that's. This is. This is the fake we. We. This is deep fake Santa. Like, it's me pretending I'm Santa. That's how. Like, it's okay. This is because Santa, who means Santa, can't come out on the 23rd.

[A]

Yeah, you can't.

[B]

That'd be the 24th.

[A]

I mean, the kids know it's percent. It's a. It's a messenger from the real Santa.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And he's here. We have a lot of good traditions, so I think we'll pause here in part two. We can dissect a few of the traditions that we have held on to, as well as things that I can only speak on behalf of me and Mike can speak on behalf of him. But I'm also going to dive into things that I've done as far as boundaries I've set and things and I guess tricks that I've done around Christmas time that keeps me less stressed. So we'll kind of dive into that. How do you manage stress around such a crazy, busy, fun season of life?

[B]

Keyword fun, Right?

[A]

It's supposed to be fun. And that's the point, is if it's not fun and if it's stressful, you ain't doing something right. And you can fix it. You can fix it.

[B]

Before we go, we forgot one thing.

[A]

What?

[B]

It's time for jar Weird Questions Job Weird questions. And we got a whole new batch of them. Here we go. This is. This I think is a good one for you. And I know you could probably have a whole podcast on this one, but I want you to keep it like, I think this could maybe stem into another subject. Okay, Jen? This one comes from Cindy. A19.8913.

[A]

Okay, Cindy, you don't need to call them out.

[B]

Well, I'm going to. All right, if you could live in any decade, which would it be and why? And then part two, how old would you be in that era?

[A]

1950S.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

18.

[B]

An 18 year old in the 1950s.

[A]

An 18 year old at 1950.

[B]

Would you be married?

[A]

18. Starting at 1950. So that means I'd be in 1960. I'd be 28.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Maybe I'd be 18 and 55.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

Why 18 and 55? And that way I could be so basically.

[B]

So why.

[A]

I think it's fascinating to see the. The stark differences of the 50s to the 60s. I really want to see the movement of like the housewife and the expectations of women take a rapid turn into the 60s of like the fun movement in the tight skirts and showing more body and being like, holy crap, that's scandalous. And people in up. I just want to see. I want to see how that was because it's such a stark difference as far as, like, just, I don't know. I don't to want like feminism, I guess, but I, I've always been fascinated to watch like you literally have the Leave it to Beaver family. And in the 60s was all like leading into the 70s, which was, you know, Woodstock.

[B]

And I think some of these, our minds are. Are we think what we see on TV and movies and stuff.

[A]

No, it's true. I've talked to my grandma about it.

[B]

And I think you like the, I mean, I know you like the aesthetics of the 50s.

[A]

I do in the 70s. I like 50s, 60s and 70s. I'm obsessed with all of it.

[B]

It.

[A]

But I remember I even talked to my grandma about like the 50s and she was like, it's such a, it was such a simpler time and like, you know, morals were intact and like, you know, like just very, you know, her view on it.

[B]

There was a more black and white. I mean I think there was.

[A]

I just want to see that.

[B]

Ain't no social media.

[A]

Yeah, I just want to see that. Like, would I be like this rebel because I have like a mouth on me and I'm not dainty? I don't know, I just think it'd be kind of fun. Like let's go, let's go back and marvelous.

[B]

Ms. Mabel Maisel. Yes.

[A]

Yeah. Let's just drop me in 1955 so I can shake things up a bit. I don't know, like, I think it'd be fun.

[B]

I like that show. You do remind me of that character. Or that character reminds me of you. Yes. She's. She's sharp and she's. She's pretty like you.

[A]

She's very pretty.

[B]

Yeah. You're prettier.

[A]

No, she's prettier. Don't mind my face right now. I'll come across. I can say prettier bed.

[B]

All right.

[A]

What about you?

[B]

You know, it's, that's a, that's a tricky question because there are different eras. And the weird thing is is I'm probably going to say my grandparents era, which was the 40s, which went through World War II. And the crazy thing is it probably would mean I was in World War II, which is like, who wants to be in that war? But there was such a different generational and pivotal change in society through that as well. So there is an aspect of, of, you know, the industrialism and the, you know, the, the belief of patriotism and the common goal and fighting fascism and like really having something that people had a common understanding of kind of, you know, there's a lot of like gray areas that we, you Know that aren't talked about in textbooks and obviously in war and stuff, but. And haven't been through it. It's just. It's just. I don't know why that war seemed different and. And that era seemed different, but again, it's the nostalgic aspect of probably knowing your grandparents and also, like, wanting to, like, see what things were like with her yet, like. And then going even older. It becomes almost just like textbooks. I don't know, like, do I. I don't think. I don't want to live in the. In like, the, like, the first century. Seems like it'd be really hard and awful. No electricity.

[A]

Well, also, I'm anxious to see, like. Do you notice how, like, I. I see it in men and women, but especially women. You know, the women, like, talk different back in the 40s and 50s, too. Like, they sound more like, proper and feminine. Like, listen to Marilyn Monroe talk. Listen to it.

[B]

You mean the actresses? Same with. The same with the actors.

[A]

No, all of them. Yeah, Women, they just talk. Listen to, like, ads from the 1950s and stuff.

[B]

But it's not just women. It was all.

[A]

Yeah, that's what he said.

[B]

All people.

[A]

No, all people, not actors. But, like, it's just crazy. Like, they even talk, like, more permanent, proper. They don't have, like. You know what I mean? They don't have, like, filler words. It's just.

[B]

Well, they did, but they didn't. They didn't display that on TV and ads. People still had slang in vernacular. That was. That was. It was just what you heard.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Again, this is what, like in film.

[A]

True.

[B]

Every day ism. It's just like when you're. When your teacher, when you're a kid, said you can't write like you talk because that's improper English. That's not proper writing.

[A]

Oh, no, I'm. I'm talking about even, like, interviews and stuff. Mike, It. It didn't. People do like that in interviews now. Like, that's how people talk. But interviews. Back then, it was just more. It's just. I don't know. I'm just excited. I would.

[B]

More formal.

[A]

It was more formal.

[B]

Just more traditional. Very traditional. I don't know if it's a weird question, but I'm saying. I know this is something you've talked about a lot of times because you always bring it up during. Matt, you love Mad Men.

[A]

I love Mad Men. I'm telling you. 50s and 60s. I want to hit both of them.

[B]

Maisel, you always are like, what would it be like to live during then.

[A]

I want to live from 55 to 65. I want to go back there. I think that'd be really cool.

[B]

No, I do.

[A]

What a good question.

[B]

I do like the cars of that era. So that's one thing I would say. In the 60s, the cars couldn't care less.

[A]

Couldn't care less. Well, on that note, season or no season two. Well, I cannot get filming in seasons out of my head. Part two is ready to be listened to. We will dive into stressors of the holidays, how we manage it, and maybe some tricks that you could use if you're getting stressed out in the holiday, maybe things you haven't thought about, or it could be just a big old pile of heaping garbage advice. Who knows? But it's ready to be listening.

[B]

Because maybe you'll do what we do and you'll be like, this is the worst.

[A]

Yeah, I'm never listening to anything they say.

[B]

And if that's the case, and if it is the worst, give us a five star review. And even if it's not, give us a five. Even if you love it, give us a five star review because that's how we'll know. The only way we're gonna be able to hear if you didn't like the advice is five star review this.

[A]

Okay. All right. And with that, goodbye guys.

[B]

See ya.

[A]

You, me and Mike is a production of the Rambling Redhead from thirteen Media.

[B]

Subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts or wherever podcasts are available. While you're at it, leave us a five star rating.

[A]

While you're there, have an idea for a topic you'd like us to discuss? Leave a review on Apple Podcasts or send us a message on Instagram. We would love to share your idea on the show. For a daily dose of our crazy lives, follow us on Instagram, thereambling Redhead and iketodrick and catch no dimoreno on hgtv. Remember, part two is ready to be listened to right now. So go do that.