blogging in the new year

So it’s New Year’s Eve, and here I sit. Blogging.  I’m sure I’m not the only one, though.

Many of you have done a year in review, and honestly I really don’t want to review this year.  For the most part, it was just hard.

So I think I’ll stick to a Christmas break in review kinda deal.  We’ve really enjoyed having time off during the holiday.  We’ve had some family time and just relaxed without work and school stresses pressing in on us. And that’s been so nice.  We’ve watched movies together.  We’ve eaten together. We’ve gone shopping together.  I could go on and on. 

We’ve even watched it snow together.  I can’t say that we played in it… because we didn’t.  I kind of hate that, but I also hate the cold. I was a little surprised that hubs and Boo didn’t want to get out in it, but we HAD been “out in it” technically returning home from the resort place, and I guess after all that drama, we just weren’t up to it anymore.

But I took pictures!  Out the front door.

And out the back door. OK.. I actually didn’t open a door to take that one.. I parted the blinds with two fingers and took the pic with the other hand. It’s good to have a talent, I guess.

But I think this pic sums up the weather we’ve had of late... with or without the snow.

Just wake me when it’s over.  This pic totally cracks me up.. she’s hugging her back foot!  Yes, that’s my unmade bed.  And yes, that’s about a billion blankets. 

Winter, I am not a fan.

Happy New Year everybody. Stay safe. Stay warm! : )

a new one

I’ve started a new blog… as a tag-along to this one.   

I’m just doing this to save you from the daily ramble about that stuff, if you aren’t interested. I don’t know if it will work out for me or just end up being a pain.  I might enjoy the new blog or I might kill it. We’ll see.

But anyway…Hop on over and check it out.  

WFMW-posters and sticky stuff

My last post was about the totally cute poster we had made for Miss Boo.

Remember?!

I just love it. It makes me smile every time I walk past her room. It’s just so stinkin’ cute. And because one person several of you asked, (and a few of you are probably curious) I thought I’d share how this whole thing came to be.

We went to Ikea several months ago and in the pet section, they had these cute pics of cats and dogs really close up. They were cute, but all I could think of was my cat is cuter than those cats. But those large pics gave me an idea.

So I took a pic of the cat.

And had it doctored up to suit Boo’s taste.

I had noticed an ad months ago on weareTHATfamily for a place called Online Poster Printing. I had checked them out a few months back so I knew right where to send my pic of the cat to be made into a poster.

And she could not have been more pleased and surprised!

And we were thrilled with the speed of delivery and the quality. Very impressive!

So we hung it on the wall. I didn’t want to use tape because it’s kinda tacky and this was a nice poster. I’ve used these…

in the past and love the way they work so we used them again. The poster won’t slip and we can take it off the wall to move it without messing up anything. Love it.

Online Poster Printing and Command Poster Strips work for me. To see other Works for Me Wednesday posts, hop on over to weareTHATfamily.

*Note: Nobody gave me these products and nobody is twisting my arm to say anything nice about them either. I bought them myself and I like ‘em, so I decided to tell you about them! : )

Oh yeah..something else...there's another post under this one. I was a busy girl today.

last random dozen of 09!

1. Do you find it gross to share drinks with family? Friends? Yes.  Kids = backwash city! :p

2. What have you learned this year? (You didn't see a question of that weight coming, did you? At least not for #2.)  I have no idea. I guess I’m not a weighty thinker today.  LOL

3. When do you dismantle the Christmas decorations? Ha! We took them down on Christmas day. Presents gone. Christmas over. I’m always glad to see the decorations come on the day after Thanksgiving… and then glad to see them go as well!

4. Something you wish to accomplish before the end of 2009 is:  I dunno.  Get warm maybe?! 

5. How do you feel about winter (after Christmas)?  See #4. I hate cold weather.  The good thing about seeing January come is that eventually it will be warm again. Hurray!

6. Have you participated in after-Christmas sales? Nope. It’s cold and snowy and we’ve stayed in for the most part.

7. Do you have plans for New Year's Eve? Nope.

8. Is there anything special awaiting you in January? Nope.  Boo goes to the ortho to get fitted for braces. I’m kind of looking forward to seeing her in those.  I think they’re cute. I know that probably sounds weird.

9. If your life this year was a movie, what category or genre would it be? (Romance, Comedy, Drama, Thriller, Suspense, Farcical, etc.)  Drama.  My dad died this year and that was a huge, stressful deal.  But of course, my family makes me laugh every day… so ya gotta throw comedy in there too. : )

10. How much time per day do you spend blogging? Please do not lie. I will know.  What, are you Santa or something??? LOL  Um… a lot.  I read a lot. And then I write too, of course. Some posts don’t take much time, although I tend to read my posts over and over and tweak them to make sure sentences don’t read awkwardly etc. And that takes time.  And depending on the subject matter… sometimes heavier topics take longer than silly little photo driven posts. 

11. Who runs your household? Let’s see.  There are things my hubby does.  He does the bills. And he helps with homework. And I see to a lot of other things.  If there is a problem with the house, I hire whomever and get it fixed.  We remodeled and I hired and handled the contractor and the plans.. hubs never even met him.  Hubs remembers birthdays etc, but I usually buy the cards.  It’s a split.  We each have different strengths and things that matter to us.

 
12. Share one hope/dream for 2010.  Lose some weight. Spend more time with God.  Ooops, that was two things.  I hope the blog police don’t come after me. LOL

To see everybody else’s Random-ness, hop over to Linda’s place at 2nd Cup! 

so if it’s not a bb gun

Remember this?

It wasn’t a Red Ryder BB Gun after all. 

Turns out it was one of these! 

 

She loves it!

And it looks really cute in place too! Excuse the unmade bed… just keepin’ in real here, people.  : )

Art imitating life…

or immortalized in poster…

or something.

white Christmas

We planned a little getaway for ourselves. There is a hotel near us with an indoor waterpark. We thought that would be a fun thing to do, so we planned our trip to arrive there on Wednesday evening and return on Christmas morning.  Well…

It started snowing around lunch on Thursday.  We watched out every window as we played and enjoyed the resort.

And then finally things took a nasty turn for the worse and we pulled the plug on our second night, checked out and came on home. 

The drive home was tedious at best and we even slipped a couple of times. We made it home safely and then had to navigate our steep driveway.  After three or four tries, we made it safely in.  We unloaded and got bunkered in for our white Christmas.

It was beautiful.  And it may be the only one we see here in our lifetimes too. The weather man said it’s been 83 years since there was a white Christmas where we live.

It was enough snow to be messy, but not quite enough to build a snowman in.  Since we got back home in the dark on Thursday evening, we didn’t play outside.  Friday morning we just enjoyed the snow from the window.  It was pretty from inside and we didn’t get cold. : )  I did take a couple pics from the dining room window of the backyard though. woo hoo.

It really was a very unusual holiday.  It’s a long story… for another day.  But I will say that we really enjoyed just getting out, relaxing and being able to spend more time with each other.  Hubs is off work until after the new year and we’ve been enjoying some family time.  And that’s good. Whatever time of year it is.  *smile*

couldn't have said it better

I couldn't have said it better myself!

Such true words for today. For every day.

Go here and read what Lysa has to say.

You'll be glad you did.

I know *I* was.

That's all! : )

lest we forget

….what Christmas is all about.

I love this!  I think it’s really easy to get focused on all the things that are wrong…

especially at this time of year…

and forget what the Real Gift is. 

May I be ever mindful of that as I start the coming week and celebrate His birth.

not a good day

Today is not a good day. 

Boo is off seeing a movie with friends, so it’s quiet here. I did some laundry.  Then I noticed that a tiny bit of bleach (maybe?) got on one of my favorite shirts.  Even though the shirt is old and nothing to brag about, it was a favorite because it fit and felt good and was warm to wear.  And I hate to wear clothes when they’re messed up.  I guess that means my favorite shirt will now be shoved to the back of the closet and only dragged out when I have a cold or something.  Depressing.

I was working on my scrapbook calendars the other day and got them to a point  I could put the bulk of the tools away and could not find the grid for my circle cutter.  I don’t think I threw it away, but I have no idea where that silly thing is.

Aaaaand the other day I was looking for something else, and remembered something little that somebody made for me when I was a kid… that I know for a fact that I still have… and I can’t find it.

Combine aaaaaaall of that with the fact that Christmases just aren’t that happy for me anyway. 

Hubs will be off work from Christmas eve until the 4th of January. That’s a bright spot…although we don’t have any plans.  We’ve talked about maybe even bugging out over the holiday but I know we won’t do that.  It does sound fun though.  So if you were going to pull a Christmas with the Kranks and bug out over the holidays, where would you go? 

it blustered

A couple of days ago I read the forecast for yesterday.  It said it was going to be blustery and cold.  Did he go to the Winnie the Pooh school of weather forecasting or what?!

Anyhoo…. it really was blustery chilly yesterday. And since it’s finals week for high school, Boo’s been getting out before lunch and spending a lot of time in her room studying for the next day’s tests. And it’s chilly in there. 

This is probably not what anybody ever imagined when they put the finishing touches on this butter churn I inherited recently. But it kept the little space heater off the floor and made her room nice and cozy for an afternoon of study.

And just because I think it’s cute….

…Miss Boo’s room decorated for the holidays.   She likes the colored lights too, so we strung those around her window. It turned out really cute.

Kinda fun and festive-ish in a kid/teen sort of way.

Random Dozen

It’s Random Dozen time again!  

1. Gingerbread: For or against? Discuss.  I guess I am somewhat ‘for’.  I usually buy a kit and we make a house every year. But I haven’t ever made it from scratch.  Would love a good recipe for it… loaf form….to eat, not to decorate… and by good, I mean not loaded with fat.

2. Is it important to you to always stay (live) close to family?  We all just live where we live.  Hubs moved 9 hours away from home the weekend after he finished college so….. ?  It just is what it is for us.

3. Which holiday pretend character do you wish really existed?  Buddy the Elf.  We all need a little ‘happy’ sometimes. Although I think we could all do without the tights.

4. Which holiday movie best represents how you feel about Christmas or life?  A Charlie Brown Christmas

5. Is there a particular Christmas song that you're enjoying now? Any that you're tired of? Ring the Bells. Don’t know of any that I’m tired of, but I haven’t been listening to tons of Cmas music anyway.

 
6. What is your favorite way to remember those less fortunate at Christmastime?  Giving to the bell ringers, Operation Christmas Child etc. In years past, we’ve helped host parties for the less fortunate.  Had angel tree type things with Sunday school classes.  It differs year to year.

 
7. Does it upset you to see "Xmas" instead of Christmas? How about "Happy Holidays" etc., instead of "Merry Christmas?"  I don’t know.  To see what we’ve made of Christmas, sometimes I wonder if Jesus would rather we just left him out of it, to be perfectly honest. It brings out the best… and the worst in people.  Greed, coveting, and the horrible behavior in kids sometimes because they WANT. I know.. not the most popular answer. But you ask for us to tell, so I’m telling how I feel about it sometimes.  But to answer your specific question… if I’m trying to shorten Christmas, I’ll type Cmas instead.  : )

 
8. How many Christmas programs are you attending this month?  One, so far.  And there will possibly be one more.

 
9. Are you dreaming of a white Christmas? Any chance of that dream becoming a reality?  I would love some snow but not on Christmas… too many travelers…and snow cripples the south. It would just be too hard on too many people.

 
10. Tell me about a Christmas present you received as a child. Pics are always nice.  I remember one year I wanted this little electronic thing called Merlin.  I wanted it really really bad. Of course my parents had all but dashed all hope of me getting it but I got one. I loved that silly thing and played with it for years. 

11. How many Christmas parties are you attending this month?  zero.  Don’t know that we’ve gone to many CMAS parties since we had kids anyway.  Strange, isn’t it?

 
12. How do you keep yourself centered on the significance of Christmas?  Really seeking Him out and not letting the stress keep me from worshipping Him.

To check out everybody else’s answers to The Random, hop on over to Linda’s at 2nd Cup!

maybe….

….it’s a RedRyderbbgun…withacompassinthestock.

Or maybe not. : )

a spoon full of sugar

…. or smooshing her head real tight… helps the medicine go down in the most undelightful way.

I know… lame. But it’s one of those either you’ll laugh about it or it will become more of a nasty job than it already is sort of things. So today we’re laughing at my smoosh-faced kitty. Say what you will, but she swallows the nasty pill and we can move on with our lives. : )

*added* We have a "pill popper" thingy... used to stick the pill into the back of her mouth. But she has still got to swallow it. Hence the smooshy face part! : ) We do the 'blow on her nose' thing too. We can't tell if it works, but we do it a few times anyway. LOL

Have a great weekend everybody!

sorta wordless sorta not

Today it’s pretty chilly out.  See!

 

TWENTY-FIVE, people!  I live in Texas and to me, this is cold. 

I need me some of this…

…and some of this….

…and of course, a little bit of this.

Yum!

And I’ll probably be needing these today too.

(thick socks and warm shoes)

That little snowman mouse on the left side is probably one of my favorites.  He is just sooo cuuuuuute! : )

It’s beginning to feel look a lot like Christmas!

Random Dozen #15

1. Which physical trait do you now accept--maybe not love, but accept--and no longer feel extremely self-conscious about?   Probably my ears. They kinda stick out. I’ve covered them all my life. Still do. And don’t have any intentions of changing that, but they don’t bother me like they did when I was younger.  I guess it helps that I have control of fixing my own hair now (I’m not wearing it pulled into a harsh pony tail in the back) and nobody is calling me Dumbo anymore. LOL Sometimes I wish I could just slap my hair up in a pony tail though. So I get a little jealous of all you girls with nice flat ears.  : )

2. This week Meredith Baxter Birney, best known as the mom on the favorite 80s sitcom "Family Ties" came out of the closet, which led me to formulate this question: Who do you think is/was the best TV mom?  Well, it certainly wasn’t her…even before this revelation!  Maybe June Cleaver.. so idyllic.  Maybe Claire Huxtable.   Um.. the mom on Father Knows Best.  Gosh I can’t think of many… after I post this I’m sure I’ll think of the perfect answer.

3. Do you speak any foreign languages? Are there any you'd like to learn?  Nope.  I wouldn’t mind learning American Sign Language (ASL).  Daughter is learning it and it’s just so expressive and beautiful.

4. Who is your personal hero?  People who have a real walk with God. 

5. What is one holiday food that you find extremely difficult to resist over- indulging in?  Dressing. 

 
6. Tell me about a Christmas decoration that has special meaning or sentimental value. This is the last ornament our son chose. We knew at the time that it would be his last Christmas and he loved that little ornament so much. 

 
7. How do you feel about snow?  I love it when we’re all home safe, have power and it’s a snow day.

8. On average, how many hours of sleep do you get each night? Not that I'm jealous of any number over three or anything.  7  But I am quite a napper, so I wonder sometimes if I’m getting enough.

 
9. Tell me about your first crush.  Dunno that I ever really had one… and if I did, I guess I don’t remember it.

10. You're stuck in a room for 2 hours with only a chalkboard and chalk. What will you write/draw?  I am no artist. I would probably write my name.  And then write it backwards. I know.. I’m weird. I’m a lefty and I have this thing about writing backwards.  And I’d probably doodle a couple of little things too.

11. Do you dress for the current temp or for the day's forecast?  Forecast for the day.  If it’s 35 outside but it’s supposed to hit 75, I’d be burning up in a turtleneck.  But that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t bring along a jacket or a hoodie that I can shed (or add) later in the day.

 
12. Favorite Christmas movie is?  I have no idea. I was thinking about that the other day. I really don’t know.  I can think of some movies, but I can’t say any of them are “favorites”.  A Christmas Story makes me laugh evvvery year and we watch it because hubs likes it. But it gets on my nerves after a while because it seems like there’s a lot of hollerin’ and carryin’ on in that movie. 

To check out everybody else’s Random-ness, hop on over to Lid’s place.

gettin’ scrappy

When November and December start rolling around, I start gathering my thoughts… and my photos… because I know it’s time to get scrappy! Scrapbook calendars, that is!

Last year my theme was Disney, of course, since we went over Thanksgiving. I had loads of cute photos.

This year’s theme… weeeeell… we did go to  DC and I did take a lot of photos. But they don’t necessarily fall under the category of ‘cute’.  So I have several photos from the DC trip… and one from Austin… and a few from our recent trip to visit family in Missouri. 

I’ve started gathering supplies.

But I need a few more things. Then I’ll be ready to set up shop and get scrappy!  And calendary!

I also bought these when I went to Hobby Lobby yesterday.

Because somebody can’t stay away from the tree and seems to enjoy eating little bits of it.  She ended up sick and she’s on pills twice a day for an upset tummy.  Volunteers… anyone…anyone?  The vet told me to put balloons under the tree. Supposedly cats don’t like the movement and they’ll stay away. 

I guess I need to get on it!

the pageant

A church we were involved with in the past has hosted a Christmas pageant for many many years. It’s very professionally done and always amazing. I used to go before I met hubs. And then he and I used to go together until we had little ones, since it was hard to get a sitter for them. And then life and church moves and the like happened, and we haven’t been since 2000. Hubs even worked on the crew in 1999 and 2000. Anyway, we have a long history with this group but haven’t seen most of them in years.

So we decided tonight to go to the pageant since this is pageant weekend, as it’s affectionately called. This is the first pageant Boo has seen. She was entertained and moved by it. We recognized people in the crew and on stage, since we’ve had history with many of them. We even had the opportunity to chat with some old friends before and afterwards. What a sweet time.

Anyway, it was a beautiful evening. It always starts out with something current with many songs of the holiday. Bright costumes, dance numbers and lots of fun. And then there is a shift to Biblical scenes including Jesus’ ministry on earth, His death on the cross and the nativity. Very moving experience every time.

This year they also included cardboard testimonies (similar to these). I think that was my favorite part. I recognized some of the faces and knew some of their stories. But many others I did not and it was very moving. Very real and that’s what made it all the more special.

So I feel a little lighter in spirit right now… not feeling quite as Grinch-like as usual. Feeling expectant of the holidays… not the presents and the fun… but looking forward to celebrating Jesus’ birth and anticipating all He has in store this Christmas season.

Christmas tree ‘09

Every year we usually put up our tree right after Thanksgiving.  When I was a kid, it seemed like we were the last family I knew to put up the tree and that drove me nuts, so now that it’s up to me, we do it early. I love it. 

When we were first married, I wanted a blue and mauve tree, since my house was ‘country blue and mauve’. (I have since been liberated, thankyouverymuch, but hey, it was a long time ago!)  Anyway, I wanted non traditional colors on my tree and there were none to be had.  At least none that I could get MY hands on.  So I made my own. They weren’t all that fancy and I’ve since thrown them out, but I have the pictures. It was ‘cute’.  And I guess at the time, that’s what I was going for.  A friend and I were discussing this yesterday, and I was telling her how Hobby Lobby carries every color of ornament you can imagine now and how I must have just been ahead of the times.  She was as well, since she had a stunning mauve and crystal tree before she had kids.  NOW her tree is traditional red and gold etc. (But she still has the other stuff.)  I used to decorate that tree with her on a Friday night back in the day. And then usually spend another Friday night together with her hanging out putting it all away when the season is over.  NOW she decorates it with her family and I usually end up helping her put it all away sometime in January.  LOL

This year seemed a bit like the passing of the torch.  Instead of me doing most of it and directing Boo as to where things go, we just told her to have at it and every now and then we would point out a ‘hole’ and she hurried to fill it. She did a great job and it turned out really pretty.  Every year hubs would pick Boo up and let her put the angel on top of the tree.  This year she stood on the arm of the couch and did it herself.  I’m sure hubs is glad she did it that way!  She’s grown! LOL

There are lots of special dated ornaments on the tree. Things both kids picked out through the years. Things we picked on vacations etc.  Here are a few….

There are several kitty ornaments… of course.

And some mice.  Most of my mice didn’t even make the tree this year. I’m thinking about getting a smaller tabletop tree and doing it just in mice… just for me.  : )

And some vacation ones… of course Disney!

And this year was DC…well that ornament is of Mount Vernon, but it still counts.  : )

Here’s the whole thing.  Yes we have a ‘skinny tree’… but we love it.  We don’t have to move any furniture and it fits nicely in a corner where we can all enjoy it.  This is our second skinny tree and this one doesn’t shine the lights as brightly, so I’m not as pleased with it overall.

And then there’s the kitty enjoying our work.  : )