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Smells of hot chocolate, the unwavering cheerfulness of the Christmas music blaring over the loudspeakers, and children running around excitedly were almost enough to pull Iduna out of her panic.
It was December, a favorite time of year for Iduna and her family. They loved the festivities and extra family time, and Elsa’s birthday brought even more reason to celebrate. But the preparing for Christmas was unbelievably stressful, especially now that Anna had started walking all over the place and her little hands were prone to knocking over ornaments or grabbing a few too many sweets.
She had already bought the presents for Elsa and Anna, but Christmas Eve was the following night and she hadn’t even decided the menu for dinner yet. Elsa wanted pickled herring again; they’d had it yesterday for her fifth birthday but she loved it. Anna, on the other hand, was a very picky eater who would turn up her nose at everything unless the promise of chocolate for dessert was enough to encourage her. That came as no surprise to Iduna, though. The whole family loved chocolate, so it was already decided that their dessert would be chocolate chip kringla cookies.
Iduna figured that she would prepare pinnekjøtt as the main dish, with lefse and clementines on the side. She and Agnarr had thought about straying from his family’s tradition of eating lamb chops, but it was becoming a favorite for their own family. As she purchased the groceries and went home, she mused about past holidays that they had shared.
At first, she had been sad that there would never be any large Christmas gatherings, as both her and Agnarr had lost their parents at a young age, save for Agnarr’s estranged father who provided him with nothing but a fancy education and, one day, a sizable inheritance. But Destin and Halima were close family friends who acted as grandparents to Anna and Elsa, and Iduna couldn’t deny that the smaller size of guests had to have made for easier preparations.
When she got home, she was unexpectedly greeted at the door by Agnarr holding a piece of mistletoe above her head and leaning forward for a kiss. Iduna was pleasantly surprised by this gesture, but of course it was welcomed and she sunk into his arms as the two of them kissed and hugged in the doorway.
She suddenly realized how quiet it was. “Agnarr, where are Elsa and Anna?” she asked.
“Well…” Agnarr started. “Destin is watching them over at his place. I thought we could have a date night!”
“But- it’s almost Christmas and there’s so much to do!” Iduna protested.
“I know, but you’ve been working so hard and you deserve a night to enjoy yourself,” Agnarr replied.
Iduna knew she couldn’t argue with him, and she was secretly pleased that her husband had thought of doing this for her. She also loved the fact that he didn’t try to spruce up anything particularly nice; they would be staying at home and relaxing.
Agnarr had made lutefisk, one of Iduna’s favorite dishes. It was more than a little overdone, but to her it was the thought that counted. Afterwards they cuddled up on the couch and watched some Hallmark Christmas movies that were showing on TV. It was fun to joke around about how cliché they were, but secretly Iduna enjoyed the movies and couldn’t help but think of her and Agnarr when seeing the couples fall in love.
They hadn’t had a picture-perfect romance, but despite the odds it felt clear from the start that they were meant to be. Agnarr was so understanding, and he always noticed when she was upset or stressed. She loved his little quirks, and appreciated his willingness to live a simple life and focus on their girls. Iduna was glad to have a family of her own to love, and she knew Agnarr was too, since his childhood wasn’t particularly happy. Their two daughters were so different from each other, but they got along well, and she could see parts of herself and Agnarr in each of them.
Underneath the glittering Christmas tree, wrapped in Agnarr’s arms and snuggled in a blanket, Iduna knew that she was safe and loved, and her family would have a very merry Christmas.