Christmas 2011

We had a busy Christmas weekend this year. We had no shortage of gatherings, and definitely no shortage of gifts. Our first stop was at mom's on Christmas eve. The kids had a blast, especially with Glen, but the highlight of the evening was the Magical Mystery Table (all you Beatles fans sing along, Roll up, roll up for the mystery table...). At some point during the night, my mom's table got set for dinner. She thought Granny had come over and done it, but no. She asked me, but it wasn't me, either. She has NO clue who in the world came in and set her table. Whoever it was, came in, found the leaves for the table and put them in, got out two table cloths, which mom NEVER uses two, and set the table with the correct number of places. She's asked everyone she knows, and no one will claim the mystery table. I still think it was the Lunesta, but considering she never uses two table cloths and never puts the unused placemats on top of the fridge (which she can hardly reach anyway), it may not have been. We like to think it was Ma-ma since she always used two tablecloths and always put unused place mats on top of the fridge.
Three Angry Birds crazed kids playing with the real life version.
The kids were up bright and early Christmas morning at 6:00. We had to have a discussion the night before on acceptable times to wake up. Last year they were up and ready at 4:45... Santa brought an ipod touch and a PSP this year and that made their day. And I didn't even get a picture of them with their prized possessions, nor did I get a picture of the two of them together. I really slacked in the picture taking area this holiday!

WE went to Kent and Karen's for lunch and presents. The kids had a good time with their cousins.
Then it was on to Me-maw's for dinner. Love Aunt Sherri's hat! Here they are all looking for the pickle in the tree.
The day after we went to Christopher's mom and dad's. We always have to get a family picture and we have to be in the same spot each year. This was as good as it got. I'm loving Christopher's annual "face,", the mystery hand growing from Preston's chin and Jess looking off into space.
Now that Christmas is over, the kids have been busy in Legoland (aka, our basement). There are well over 5,000 pieces needing put together. At this rate, it may be next Christmas before they're all put together!
Overall, our Christmas was really nice. Busy, but nice.

Merry Christmas to all...

And to all a good night.

I wish each and every one of you a merry Christmas. I am so thankful for so many things, and such great family, who always lightens my mood, no matter how bad I'm feeling. Thank you!

So tonight, I ask you to remember the real meaning of Christmas and the miracle that it was. Take time to thank God for all of your blessings and to reflect. God had certainly blessed our family, and I am so thankful tonight that my Granny's brain scan revealed nothing wrong. Although she did find out that she has atrial fibrilation (heart condition), she's been placed on medication for it and will be seeing a cardiologist soon. Knowing that she's not facing cancer is such a relief. God is GOOD!

Twas the week before Christmas

And all through the house...

Now, if I were clever, I'd come up with some sweet rhyme to go along with my all-time favorite story, but I'm much to worn out for that. But it is the week before Christmas and it's busy, but fun. The kids are excited and counting down the days. Tomorrow is Preston's class party that I got wrangled into helping with. I feel like I volunteer so much there that they might as well put me on the payroll! WE've got two gatherings under our belts so far, so it's really nice to have some of them done.

The shopping is 100% done. The kids' gifts are wrapped and hopefully safely hidden. I just have to wrap Pa's annual Christmas toilet paper and we're ready to go.

I've been baking up a storm the past few days and making candy. Some of it had to have another batch made this morning because (cough, cough) it had been eaten already. I have to have 5 tins of goodies made by morning for teachers. I will be SO glad when all of it is out of the house. I can't tell you the amount of crap I've consumed in the past 3 days. I'll need a crash diet come Dec. 26th.

The kids get out for break Thursday afternoon and they'll be home through Jan. 3. Thank goodness for new toys! Friday the kids and I are ringing the Salvation Army bell and we're praying for "warm" weather. Looks like dry and upper 40's, so really, it could be a lot worse! It should be fun!

And just because I needed something else thrown in to do, the kids clogged the toilet this morning and didn't tell me. Then when I flushed it and left the room, the flipper got stuck and the toilet ran and overflowed all over the bathroom. I'm seriously thanking God that it didn't make it to the rug... But it did seep down and leak into the laundry room downstairs. Seriously...

As random as can be

• Well, today we said goodbye to Kate's glasses. They were beyond repair. Since our insurance will cover a new pair next month, they let us have a loaner pair until then. Considering her prescription changed significantly enough between last January and March to need new glasses, I think this was a wise move. Who wants to pay full-price for new frames a month before they're practically free?
• Really, who wants to put "in debt" on their license plates? Do we really all need to know that you're fiscally irresponsible? Try selling your car and getting a bike. This town's small enough to get everywhere on bike. No gas, get in shape, and money to pay off some debt. It's a win-win situation!
  
• Christmas shopping is DONE. Making gifts is NOT. Our second Christmas is Saturday and one gift is not ready. I need to sew, sew, sew.
• Tomorrow is Granny's CT scan. Please pray for her health.
• I baked my first batch of Christmas goodies today. I have to have them all done by Tuesday to give to Kate's Girl Scout leaders. Shall be a busy weekend.
• Why is it that the older your kids get, the smaller the gifts become and the more they cost? Seriously, a few years ago, I could have bought a LOT of stuff for the money we plopped down on an ipod Touch that's roughly the size of a flat potato.
• Preston is begging to send off for more Sea Monkeys. We don't have good luck with them.
• Nonnie will not stay out of the Christmas tree stand. He gets way in the back where we can't reach him and splashes all the water out onto the presents. Who says cats don't like water?
  

Basketball- 1: Kate- 0

Kate had a little run-in with a basketball at school today. Apparently, a boy missed the hoop and hit Kate in the face as she and her friends were walking by. It broke her glasses, which in turn cut her cheek in two places. The poor girl, her face was SO swollen when she got home from school.

But did she bother to go to the office to tell them? No. Instead, she then went to lunch and tried to wear her glasses, which were missing one arm. She then went on to class where the teacher saw her face and broken glasses and sent someone down to the office to get a kit to fix the glasses. He was able to temporarily fix them, but they've since broken again, so we'll be making a trip to the eye dr. tomorrow to see what they can do. Thank goodness for a warranty! But not so good that she can't see out of her spare glasses since they are her old prescription. Boo.

I still can't believe she didn't tell the office and at least let me know. Heck, she could have sent me a text! So she came home saying her head felt like it did after she'd had the laughing gas at the dentist. I thought she possibly had a concussion, so I called Christopher, who left work, telling me to call his mom (a nurse). Dee stopped by and deemed her "just fine" and told her to keep ice on it. She didn't have any symptoms of a concussion and otherwise felt fine, so we didn't call the dr. Hopefully, though, we don't have any accidents tomorrow if she wears her old glasses!

The ears have it

And right now, one thing Preston's ears don't have, is an infection or fluid! YEEEAAAAH!

Overall, his post-op visit was uneventful- except for Dr. S. seeing us at the receptionist's counter and threw a huge wad of paper at Preston, but hit the receptionist instead! So then he had to go get it and throw it at Preston again! He is SUCH a big goof!

His tubes are right where they're supposed to be and his left eardrum looks like it should (albeit scarred). He said he really, really, really, really hopes this will be his last set, but then went on to say that he has a handful of adults that he has with recurrent infections/tubes (me, raising my hand). With my family's history, he doesn't stand much of a chance. His hope is that this set will last through winter, which they better! Most likely, they'll be out by summer, just in time for our trip to the mountains in June... That would not be a good thing. Last time we went, it was 8 days after he got his 2nd set put in, so he did just fine. I on the other hand, spent the entire week in major pain and pressure, and couldn't hear anything. MISERY. He's scheduled to go back the week after we return, but I think I'll reschedule it for the week before we go, so that if they're out, we can possibly get a Rx to take along as precaution, or at least let Dr. S. know so we can call in and get one if necessary.

Preston and I had a nice little afternoon date together and had a really good time. We had lunch at Cracker Barrel before his appointment and he liked that, even if he didn't get to go play checkers. WE ran a few errands around Effingham before we left, too, finishing up on people's gifts. Now, if I could just get the kids finished up!

Random dump

So much is going on right now that trying to put it all into a blog post with paragraphs would most likely take all day. So here's a big brain dump to keep you all updated.

• It's Santa's Kottage time at Preston's school and I've been helping out. Basically, it's a bunch of junk set up into a store and the kids go buy stuff for their loved ones. It's a neat concept, really and the kids enjoy it. Sometimes, though, you wonder who they're picking stuff out for when they buy their dad a tub of slime...
• I'm in the middle of sewing dolls for our adopted family and am already so burned out. The sewing machine's been on the dining room table for a week and still, not even one doll is finished.
• I still need to figure out a gift for one person on our list, and a few extras for the kids, and I'm DONE!
• Tonight is Kate's winter band concert. There's nothing like waiting until the last minute to think about what she's going to wear (seriously, I forgot). Luckily, she has her black pants and white shirt, but I forgot about shoes and Wal-Mart has none in her size unless she goes for Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz or something a 5 year old would wear. Nice...
• Tomorrow is Preston's post-op ENT appointment. I expect it will be a smooth and quick appointment. He's done really well so far with this set even though it's only been 6 weeks (really? It seems so much longer). Dr. S. said that he'd hang his hat on this being his last set. I've heard that several times already...
• Please pray for Granny. She's having a brain scan tonight and I'm really worried. She's been waking up dizzy and nauseated lately and that's not a good sign. Please pray for a good, clear scan. Right now, I'm doing well trusting God will keep her OK, but I know once she has the scan and we're waiting for results, it will be a lot more nerve-wracking. And her scan isn't until 7:00 tonight. Who in the world actually stays that late at night to do scans and make patients mull over it all day long until then?
• Saturday we're going to Popeye's with Jess and Reid to celebrate Reid's birthday. I can't wait! Their French dressing is TDF! And no, it's not Popeye's Fried Chicken, although I do get the fried chicken when we go!
  

Busy weekend

Friday night we went with Mom and Granny to Woburn to see the lights. This was always a fun tradition until the owners moved to Hawaii and sold their displays to a place in Greenville. Although we still like going there, it's just not as fun as being able to get out and walk around. These people moved back and started their displays again, and I think they are even better than before!


Saturday was the "big" Christmas parade downtown. I say "big" as in it only lasted about 5 minutes. But we had to go to see Kate march. It was our very first time to go to the Christmas parade, EVER. We've never had a reason to stand in the cold to watch it! Glen and Cooper came to watch, and it was Glen's very first parade ever. He loved it!
See Kate? She's next to Molly in the grey stocking cap!
Today I went up to mom's to help Granny wrap the shoes for the coats and shoes ministry. It's something near and dear to my heart and always something I look forward to each year. They work SO hard to provide kids with coats and shoes each year.

It also started snowing and snowed all day at a pretty good clip! Now, had it not been 60 degrees yesterday morning, the snow would've stuck. But it did stick to the trees and looked so pretty! We're supposed to get some more overnight and that will probably stick since it's barely been above freezing all day. They're warning of black ice for tomorrow's commute, which is always scary. Three years ago this week, Christopher had his big wreck on the interstate when someone slid on black ice and he followed suit.
After dinner, the kids and I went back up to mom's to finish wrapping shoes. They LOVE doing this each year. They make a game of it and play "mail man" and take all of the wrapped packages to their designated piles. After a full day of wrapping, we wrapped 360 pairs of shoes and got them ALL done in ONE day! It's never happened before, and I know Granny and Pa are so relieved to have that done. We finished up the coats this morning before we set into the shoes, so that is some major progress!

An Erin Condren Giveaway!

I don't think I've taken the time yet to blog about my lil old Erin Condren Life Planner that I got back last month. I seriously love this thing. It's been a life saver, although I still forget to write down when to return library books...

Anyway, Jess over at MyBeatlesBabies is hosting an Erin Condren giveaway, and I couldn't help but share this with you, because I'm just that nice! Head over to her site and sign up and you could win a $25 Erin Condren gift certificate! Enter here!