May you all have a wonderful season!

Filled with Joy and Laughter

Love

Friends and Family

Merry Christmas!

Almost all ready to go.

• Need to finish the mountain of laundry.
• Finish the glass panel I have in progress, I know there is a last minute shopper out there who NEEDS it.
• Wrap the gifts and get my Mom to pick them up, so that the mystery of santa will stay alive for a while longer.
•  While I am finishing laundry, I will pack for five and we should be good to go.

I am really looking forward to it. I do want to see everyone, but mostly I want to get out! I am just ready to go, go go! Also it will be nice to have some blog worthy material for a change… It feels like I am in a blog slump… BLAH…

I am excited to get this album…  I like the Patty Page version better  BUT it’s all good and The White Stripes is great for getting my butt in gear to clean! ! !

Which I need to do today!

What’s your booty shaking music for cleaning?

This was a fun find… Someone merged the two!

Instead of a regular arm, Carl had been born with a pigeon’s wing The odd thing was, no one had ever laughed at his wing~~ not even the mean kids at school. Then one day he realized why: He looked in the mirror and saw that HE WAS A PIGEON! He shit right there, as he often did, Wherever he was.

~Jack Handy

How long do you hold a grudge?

awwww… Booger snot!

Going to my Rent’s house for Christmas dinner with my Pop’s side of the family.

Ben got me two new Photoshop books for Christmas… I like them!

When we were younger it was always a challenge to try and figure out what the gifts were. My sister was a big proponent of sniffing things out and knowing all before Christmas. I am not saying I am innocent of this crime, but I can easily say that she was the instigator, as D is in most of our adventures.  

My moms favorite spot was always the top of the closet, because it was a hard reach for us and the sweaters folded at the top were easy to bury the bootie under. Sometimes there would be a stash under the bed, but only if it was a larger item, or  often not something for us, but for friends and relatives.

 It didn’t take my Mom long to figure out that we were sniffing around and threats would fly. They were the usual, coal in the stocking or no visit from Santa at all.  After a couple Christmas’,  gift’s didn’t come home at all, she started leaving them at the office

We have a friend that we were practically raised with, I consider her a sister of my heart and H and D were inseparable when we were younger.  Our Mother’s are best friends. They would go shopping together and I assume the gifts would be stashed together because they would bring them all home and hide in the back bedroom of the house, wrapping and giggling and talking together.

The first year they did this, D and H were still determined to know what their gifts were before Christmas. After the threats were given of stay away or you will get nothing and the door was closed the plotting began.

How to see what was going on behind the door? Glasses were taken out of the cupboard and held to the door as they strained to hear any little rattle or jingle, any tell tale sound of the mysteries beyond. Locks were tested, note slipped under the door,  nothing opened the door and the giggles behind the door became mocking and louder.

Suddenly I could see the bulb light over my younger sisters head. It was brilliant, I must admit. There were two windows into that room, two ! So out the door they flew, to the back of the house. A quick consultation was had about the where and how. H was to be hoisted onto D’s shoulders and then report what could be seen.

I just sat back and watch as the farce unfolded.

The laughter had to be off of the charts and the shushing each other was not quiet… H’s eight year old eyes just reached the edge of the window as she was still gasping for breath from laughter that just would not stop. All of a sudden D let out a yelp through her laughter, “You peed on me!”  Just then  there was an abrupt yell from inside and the slamming of curtains…well if curtains could be slammed they would have been.

H was still laughing and D was laughing so hard, her legs were wobbling and the two fell to the ground still laughing.  So the plan was foiled,  there were wet pants and wet shoulders and uncontrollable laughter galore, but no one was the wiser about the gifts.  

I believe that once the clean up was done and the Mother’s came out there was a lecture about what was deserved and all that. The laughter went on for days.

My sister and her best friend gave me the best gift. A memory that will last forever. A memory of them at eight, young, fun, inquisitive and full of laughter.  When I think of it and them my heart fills with Love.

Thanks for the gift you two.

An overall wearing teddy bear, a fly rod, and a diamond ring, anyone know what these three thing have in common?

Anyone?  No?

They are three of my favorite gifts from Christmas past. I know, Christmas isn’t supposed to be about the presents.  It is about generosity of spirit, kindness, and giving of ourselves. Who are we kidding really, we all like the gifts.

We like thinking about what we are going to get, of course, but there is joy in the consideration of others too. Browsing  the isles searching for just the right thing for that someone, and when you find it, you can’t wait to see what they will do when they open it, sometimes the anticipation of that is  better then the opening of our own gifts. Or if your like me you enjoy the making, the opportunity to put love into every piece of what your doing  for someone else. Over the years the time to make things has gotten less and less but I still manage to get in a few, after all I need to have some fun.

The kids and Ben were looking at one of my favorite gifts yesterday, an album my sister in law made me before I married her brother. I especially like getting presents people have made for me. I can always feel the love.

Ok, enough of the schmaltz. I do get carried away. The point of the post was the getting NOT the giving.

I’m sure that over the years I have received many, many presents and I liked them all. But there are always the favorites. I want to hear about your favorites!

What is something that you received in a Christmas past that still makes you smile?

Since I went on and on about giving too…

What is a favorite thing that you have given someone in the past?

I realize I haven’t been posting much about ME lately. That’s because there isn’t much to post, so I figure why BORE you…

Today I will though… Who knows maybe you all need some sleeping material.

Here goes, My life this year in review.

• Ben was working independently for awhile this year, but took a new position about an hour from home. SO he is commuting almost two hours a day. Not sure how I feel about it still… Its a great place to work though so we shall see.

• Completed almost nothing on the travel list this year, but that is to be expected with gas prices the way they have been and the belt tightening because of job change. We will catch up on travel next year, I know we will. 

• I started selling my art finally this year!  Pictures and glass work and I hope to continue it. I wish I was more careful with my time and scheduling though, I am working on it.

• Found out that I have successfully completed the two prerequisite classes I need for my nursing certification BUT they expire after five years and I took mine fifteen years ago.  Not sure that was/is the right direction for me anyway, I keep being pulled that way and then decide against it.

• Found and have become enthralled with Photoshop. Did you know that there is such a career as graphic design? Hmmm yes, I know, I can be a moron.

• Cooper is almost potty trained hopefully it will be a done deal before the end of the year. HEY that is a BIG accomplishment, if I did nothing else all year, just that… I would feel successful.

• The house is still in bits and pieces. the kids rooms are done, now to finish the bathroom. In February it will have been a year that I have been without a bathtub. This is a big deal for me… Baths are my therapy… so if I seemed  bit of a NUT then you know why. Actually I’m always this way, but I need to blame it on something. Hopefully we will get that bathroom finished right after the holidays. 

I am sure that I have forgotten many things. I mean more had to happen this year, right?

Well there is that potty training thing, so if nothing else did happen I’m covered.