stuff... and lots of it!!

first of all sugar is evil – it’s 7am and I’m sitting here eating a brownie!! normally we have no junk food in the house… seriously if you get a bug up your butt for a munchie around here you have to manufacture something out of whatever most closely resembles junk – one of my favorite concoctions is oats mixed with peanut butter and brown sugar

what kind of pathetic snack is that?! it’s like one step above a granola bar – and you can’t even try to pig out on it because all those oats will give you a tummy ache!!

but every year at this time our house (like every other house) is filled to the rafters with junk food, cookies, candies, cakes and pies

since junky snacks are such a rare treat around here I find myself somehow gorging on them and rationing them at the same time – it’s Friday now and we’re down to the few remaining brownies I didn’t send to work with Sam and some potato chip fragments at the bottom of a bag – the chocolate covered peanuts are pretty much all that remains of the whitmans sampler Sam’s boss sent him home with last Friday

I’m definitely to the point where I don’t ever want to see sugar again!!

I went grocery shopping yesterday and bought lots of fruits and veggies and good stuff to get us back into some kind of normal eating habits again – YAY!! (I say now… give me a week or two and I’ll be digging through the couch cushions looking for a stray M&M)

so it’s almost new years… I should probably come up with some resolutions – although I’m tempted not to since it seems to be kind of a set up for failure – I’m not sure I’ve ever met anyone that has stuck with their resolutions

nevertheless I’m going to give it a whirl and take a few steps toward being the kind of person I really want to be

one: try and learn to be more mindful (I hate that word… it’s so… I dunno… psychobabblish) the last therapist I went to was always telling me I need to learn to be more mindful and for some reason it just sounded like nails on a chalk board every time she said it… perhaps because it’s true!! – step one… figure out what the hell mindfulness is and create a mindfulness action plan

that brings us to number two: concentrate on thinking before I speak – I’ve managed to work on this quite a bit but I’ve been slipping lately and I don’t like it

three: take better care of my self… make and stick to a healthier eating and exercise plan – consider resurrecting my diet blog

four: get better acquainted with Mr. Clean – when I was a kid I dreamed of one day making my furniture smell like lemons and my windows sparkle – but for some of us life happens and you find yourself slowly being sucked down into a place where you can’t be bothered - so my goal is to take better care of the house… don’t just do the bare minimum, going for the illusion of clean… I want this place to sparkle as much as it can – just because things aren’t exactly how I’d like them doesn’t mean I have to let it all look like crap!!

after all, a clean house is a happy house… why should my man work hard all day and have to come home to a place that looks like a bomb went off in it?

ok that’s more than enough to try to work on for one year!!


do you guys have any big new years plans or traditions? once in a while a friend will try to make new years plans with us… but we have a rule… we don’t leave our house on new years eve - PERIOD!! in the past any time we ever decided to go out and do the typical new years thing we have always regretted it… usually long before midnight even rolls around we find ourselves wishing we had just stayed home – soooo now that’s exactly what we do!!

I usually make us a special dinner – this year I’m leaning toward this:

(obviously a two person portion)


which I’ve mentioned before but I have no problem repeating myself hehehe

it’s a kinda surf & turf thing I cooked up a couple years ago that we both really like…. I’ll use a venison tenderloin – and key food had shrimp on sale

normally I would sear the meat in a pan and then finish it off in the oven – but it’s been so nice out I might just grill it haaa – anyway you make the steak and shrimp scampi... and grilled swiss sammiches on peasant bread - (we get this yummy french ementhal and peasant bread) grilled in what’s left of the garlicy butter that didn’t make it out of the scampi pan

then slice the steak and lay it over the cheesy toasty bread and spoon the scampi and garlicy buttery goodness over top

it’s super yummy!!

New Years is also the time of the big TWILIGHT ZONE MARATHON on sci-fi!! if you know me you know that this is not a time to bug me… I’ll turn that puppy on the minute it starts and unless I’m forced, I won’t turn it off until the final scene ends… even if I’m sleeping!! actually that’s not true… once in a while if an episode I’m not TOTALLY in love with comes on I’ll flip over to the annual honeymooners marathon – but for the most part I’m a total nut job when it comes to the twilight zone!!

it drives poor Sam crazy… he’s usually good for an hour or so but after that he starts losing his mind – as I’m sure most sane people would – but I can’t help it!! I gotta get my twlight zone fix!! hehehe

this year however – in addition to the big twilight zone marathon – two different channels are running MASH marathons!!

I’m not sure I’m gonna know what to do with myself!! I’m in LOVE with MASH – not quite as much as the twilight zone… but pretty close!!

I imagine I’ll mostly stick with the twilight zone and once in a while switch off to MASH just to get a little break from reality hehehe

the spousal unit and I will probably play a game or two and just enjoy eachothers company for the weekend in the peace and quiet of our house – my mother is even going away so we won’t even have her bugging us from next door… that should be nice!! a good meal and good snuggle time with my man… maybe I’ll kick his butt at scrabble or something hehehe – and of course HOURS and HOURS or twilight zoney goodness!! or MASH…. I’m so confused

of course all of this conflict could be eliminated if only I had the dvd’s of these shows – which brings us to my birthday… next Thursday I’ll be turning 28 again and after what seems like years of pestering – Brian has finally convinced me to set up an amazon wish list I assume because it’s always been his dream to lavish me with gifts… and really who can blame him? I mean I do so love presents and by golly I deserve them!!

of course I don't want anyone to feel left out so I thought I'd urge you all to buy me lots of nifty presents too… because after all a girl only turns 28 once… or 7 times depending on the girl

so if you… or any passing strangers would like to buy me things I can’t say’s I’d discourage you – go on... ya know you want to!! hehehe

I'm only kidding - I REALLY set that up as a reminder to myself because whenever anybody asks me what I want I draw a blank - this way I'll be able to either refer to that myself or tell them to

BUT if mysterious gifts do start coming my way I surely won't complain haaaa

oh... also this weekend I'm hoping to go out and buy the new aquarium set up I’ve been wanting for 3 years (ever since we had to move into my mother’s mold factory and all my old fish died and I sold my whole setup to a friend of ours)

I’ve been waiting and waiting for the right time to be able to replace it and Sam keeps telling me ‘soon’ or ‘after this’ or ‘after that’ – but I have my Christmas money – and should be getting birthday money too... my hope is to pay off my main doctor bill and get my fishies!! WOO HOO


finally - our computer has been acting up a lot lately and since neither of us seems to want to bother trying to fix it we're sending it off to the shop - probably on tuesday but just in case we manage to bring it in sooner I'm warning you now I may appear to be MIA for a couple days... so wish me luck that things go smoothly because really one day is fine without this idiot box... but two or more and I start getting the shakes... and nobody wants that!! but just in case - I hope everyone has their earthquake survival kits!!

ok enough babbling - HAPPY NEW YEAR everyone... I hope you all have big fun and stay safe and don't make any unrealistic resolutions and buy me lots of birthday presents and don't get hung over but if you do I hope it passes quickly - remember to drink a glass of water for every alcoholic beverage!! - also don't drink and drive and don't take any wooden nickels - DO buy me lots of presents... did I already mention that? oh and most importantly... be sure to drink your ovaltine!!

see ya next year!! hehehe *GAG* I hate that line!!

more holiday ramblings...

ok I don’t know about you – but I think Christmas should come every 6 months instead of every 12!!

seriously!!

because if it came every 6 months we’d all have a chance of remembering what a nightmare it all is and stop ourselves from getting too involved before it’s too late!!

I think the fact that it only comes once a year puts pressure on all of us to make it extra special – my new philosophy is to make every day special and to have more contact with my family (I almost said 'loved ones' there but thought better of it!!) so that I don’t feel so much pressure at Christmastime to make sure I spend quality time with each of them and get them extra special gifts and all that

Christmas is NOT supposed to be about who got or gave what and whether or not it was better than the next guys gift – it’s supposed to be about togetherness and comfort and joy and all that…

it shouldn’t send us all running to hide at the first break in conversation

it shouldn’t leave us all feeling like a big old slice of dingleberry pie… with a scoop of resentment, by the end of the weekend – it should leave us feeling warm and fuzzy and full of good memories

I feel like this entire weekend was a blur… I barely even remember seeing my grandfather or my far away aunt who are the whole reason I even go over to my local aunts house in the first place

my grandfather’s wife pissed me off at least 3 times in the couple hours we were there – she’s one of these people who thinks walmart stands for all that makes this country great

so she’s a twit and she’s old so she ain’t gonna change!! it’s a shame though because we were beginning to make some real progress with my grandfather before she came along!!

anyway the best part of christmas this year was the kids… there’s one little one on each side, a nearly 3 year old girl on mine and a just over 3 year old boy on his – so they were just starting to understand the concept of Santa and all that this year which is when it really starts getting fun

although it made me sad to think that next year my niece will most likely be 2000 miles away celebrating a very desert Christmas with a house full of virtual strangers – my sister, who does themed trees every year is already planning a chili pepper theme for next year… YUCK!!

oh well I’m fighting a monster headache today so it’s best not to think too hard on that move – I have plenty of time over the next couple weeks to vomit over that!!

them moving is why I decided to have a little holiday get together over here yesterday… I figured it may be the last Christmas we get to spend with my niece for a while and I wanted to remember it and I wanted her to have an actual Christmas day event because otherwise her christmas would have basically been over before it began with no special hoopla on the actual day

of course now I’m exhausted and my house is overflowing with dirty dishes – why oh why didn’t I put DISHWASHER in my wish list this year?! hehehe

our apartment came with a portable dishwasher – ya know the kind that you hook up to your sink… we ‘remodelded’ the basically non-existent kitchen (in other words we cobbed a kitchen together out of remnants of stuff that had been left behind by other tenants and by doing so left no room for the rolling dishasher – it’s been sitting in my mother’s kitchen for 2 years now collecting dust but I’m half tempted to drag it over here today just to run these dishes through it

but as usual I made enough food for an army so on the plus side I have enough leftovers to choke a horse – so I won’t be complaining I have nothing to eat for lunch for at least a month!! hehehe

Sam got me the first 3 Harry Potter dvd’s – I think because I was wearing out the vhs versions we borrowed from his mother

I think once I get these dishes done I’ll start watching them today – there’s all sorts of extra junk on them to keep me busy for days!!

I also got a nice chunk of cash from various relatives – now I have to decide whether I should put it toward my medical bills or spend it on myself… altogether I owe close to $1000 in medical bills (and my breathing problem is still a mystery we have yet to solve) – I currently have about $250 and since that barely makes a dent I’m inclined to just continue paying it off like I have been and just have fun with this money

on the other hand it would completely pay off what I owe to the actual doctors office – which even though they’ve been the most cooperative that bill also continues to increase each time I have to go there… so it would be kind of nice to just start the year off with a clean slate there and with the 50% fee reduction I qualified for I’d be able to pay as I go from then on (which hopefully won’t be often)

since I should also be getting MORE money a couple weeks from now for my birthday (if grandpa still remembers who I am by then) maybe I could just have some fun with THAT money instead

there’s not much I really want to buy for myself… I mean I kinda want to get a new aquarium setup… that alone could easily eat up every dime – I’d also maybe like to get some new clothes and MORE dvd’s of course – there are ALWAYS dvd’s that I want - we got a blockbuster gift card for an unknown amount of money (probably $25) – I could get a bunch of used dvd’s with that!! haaaa

ahh don’t mind me - I’m just batting my thoughts around some here

it’s funny… for the couple weeks leading up to Christmas I get excited.. I almost can’t wait for it to get here… however I also don’t want it to hurry up because I’m enjoying that holiday feeling – but by the time Christmas eve rolls around I REALLY start longing for it to come to an end so we can get back to our normal quiet every day lives

at the same time though, normally once all the festivities have come to an end I have a sudden drop in mood and I feel a huge letdown – obviously what goes up must come down and that includes moods

part of what does me in is diet… I eat like crap for about a solid week leading up to and including Christmas… I seriously don’t think I’ve consumed one morsel of vegetation in at least week… nope it’s all been fat and salt and cheese and cream and sugar and the way I feel it totally baffles me to know that this is the normal diet of so many people!!

this week I’ll start my annual detox and make a menu of nothing but good for us foods… hopefully it won’t shock our systems too much hehehe

seriously all I want to do is eat salad and drink water!! – no wonder so many people vow to go on diets for their new years resolutions!!

oh well I guess I’ll shut up now as I keep being interrupted and am losing track of my thoughts

I hope you all had a super awesome holiday!!

p.s. thanks Brian and NSM for your help with Sam's gifts - I think he's happy with all the new music!! hehehe

YEEHAW the clocks a tickin'

there is this commercial where a woman appears to be composing the note for a gift that says something like 'happy holidays from the two of us... or more like one person who did everything and one who has no idea what's inside'

ok so it's not just me!!

I always chuckle when I see that commercial… I mean seriously - what is the deal with that?! I'm not a big male basher - in fact I despise male bashing - but once in a while I just want to know what the hell they would do without us when it comes to this stuff... honestly would they just show up empty handed everywhere they went? and if so wouldn’t they feel like crap when people are handing them gifts and they have nothing to give them in return? (maybe I should ask Sam’s sister about that, she's kinda like a man when it comes to that stuff haaaa)

orrrrrr would they just not go anywhere? I think this would be Sam’s plan! - I'm pretty sure his perfect christmas would consist of sitting at home by himself (or maybe with me... I hope!) eating turkey pot pies and watching 24 hours of a christmas story

I'm not really one to talk considering my perfect new years consists of sitting at home pigging out on junk food and watching 24 hours of the twilight zone hehehe

anyway I’ve been waiting for about 3 weeks for the spousal unit to tell me what he wants to give his grandfather for Christmas – I usually make him some kind of candy or cookies – but I need to know what kind… this is nothing new and I guess it’s partly my fault for always coming up with SOMETHING at the last minute – but this year I have quite a bit more to do than normal and I’m seriously tempted to just blow it off and see how he deals with it on Christmas eve when we see his grandpa and he has nothing to give him

but since the old man has had like 3 heart attacks and 4 strokes I worry about every event being his last (even though he seems to get around better than most healthy people I know) – ahh I guess once again I’ll pull SOMETHING out of my ass at the last minute

I bitch but when it comes down to it I’m incredibly fortunate… Sam is usually very helpful when it comes to crunch time for cookie week or any type of party preparations… he’s always willing to help me so I get less frazzled by all the last minute junk...

of course I think he may have ulterior motives… like if I’m too tired and frazzled there will surely be no sex hehehe

anyway it’s Friday and I have a really good head start on stuff around here… as soon as I’m done with this post I’m making a big pot of venison stew so that I don’t have to worry about dinner for the rest of the day (or lunch for the next couple days)

I have neat little (not so little) to-do lists for each day and as long as I keep this idiot box turned off I should have no problem completing everything on the lists…

I think I've knocked my cookie list down to 6 or 7 (it'll have to be 7 because we all know I don't do sixies!!)

I'm making chocolate chip cookies, chocolate crinkles, russian tea cookies (which are basically just little round nut cookies rolled in powdered sugar), thumprints - I found this yummy looking seedless blackberry jam because Sam's mother can't eat seeds (insert rolling eyes here) - I'm also making fudge and buckeyes (peanut butter balls dipped in chocolate) - if I get around to it I'd also like to make rolled cookies, ya know the kind you do with cookie cutters and icing or sprinkles - I ALWAYS set out to do those and I NEVER actually get around to it =( I think I'll make the dough today so that I guilt myself into making them rather than losing all that dough haaaa

I'll probably also make chocolate covered pretzels OR popcorn as well

this doesn't even include the things I need to make for the little get together I'm hosting on christmas day... so obviously I'm gonna be kinda busy... but with my lists, a little patience, a lot of chocolate and some help from my hero (that's Sam incase you didn't know) hehehe I expect the next few days to run pretty smooth - I'm excited... it's almost the weekend, Sam will be home for 3 days... that means lots of hugs and smiles - yes... there must be hugs and smiles!! hehehe the alternative is surely snarls and slamming doors and I don't want that... we had enough of that last weekend haaaa

anyway I just wanted to pop in here and... I dunno... vent a little? hehehe before I get into the really hardcore baking and cleaning and other assorted things

if you're like me and have signed on to do butt loads of work, then I wish you good luck and lots of energy!! but if you're kicking back having a relaxed weekend I've found some stuff to keep you occupied in my absence so no more of you have to suffer the torturous hell that M suffered recently of looking at my other blogs hehehe

first of all Sam and I have gone and elfed ourselves… I highly recommend you do the same… it’s easy, it’s free and best of all it’s absolutely hysterical!! to see OUR elves click on these handy dandy links:

HIS and HERS

if you look down at the bottom of the page the elves are on there are links to all sorts of other nifty activities to waste your time with - I think my favorite is don't shoot your eye out where you stand in the middle of the woods with a bb gun and shoot... getting points for each item the bb bounces off of... but be careful or you'll shoot your eye out!!

also as if last weeks glimpse into the life of Tavin Dillard wasn't enough... this week it's christmastime at the trailer park... and Tavin's got himself an oversized tree, some hubba bubba and a giant marshmallow surprise!!



HO HO HO everyone!! have a GREAT holiday/weekend/whatever hehehe see ya next week!!

kitty unplugged...

ahh Christmas – I always have grand plans!! I start out all cheery and hopeful and make lists of all the ambitious projects I plan to undertake… I have a mile long list of cookies and candies I want to make for everyone – plus between Christmas eve and Christmas day we usually have 4 places we need to visit!! this year however, since my sister is moving and has sold all her furniture, she won’t be doing her annual Christmas dinner… so guess who signed on to do it!!

DING DING DING – ME!!

so now in addition to the four thousand pounds of cookies and candies I’m making… and our overpacked holiday visiting schedule (on christmas eve I have to try to make it over to my aunts for an hour or so just so I can see my grandfather who’s new wife refuses to miss Christmas with her family [even though they blew off thanksgiving with us in favor of them!!] – when I leave there we have to go over to Sam’s aunt & uncle’s [on his dad’s side] for the annual ham and booze bonanza!! usually when we leave there and make our way home we have about 5 hours to sleep before we have to get up and get ready to go over to his sister’s house to open presents with his mother’s side of the family!!) – isn’t divorce grand?! I now have to plan, organize and prepare some kind of cozy little holiday hors d'œuvre party for the people in MY family who I barely got to see the night before

usually by this point our house looks like a bakery exploded – there are crumbs everywhere, sprinkles on the floor like little ball bearings threatening to sweep me off my feet, dough hanging from my tree and sticking in my hair and I’m usually so covered in flour and sugar that I look like the abominable snow-monster!! the fact that I even manage to get dressed and out the door is practically a christmas miracle!!

so how am I going to pull off all this baking AND host a delightful little martha stewart happy fucking christmas party all within the same weekend?

I don’t know!! but somehow I will… I’m not gonna stress over it… I have faith… or is it hope? maybe it’s just stupidty!! hehehe

one thing’s for sure… I won’t be able to be here much!! so if after today I start looking like I’m fading away, don’t worry about me – it’s just that well…

you may not know this about me but I am mesmerized by the soft warm glow of the computer… it lures me in like Sally Struthers to a crate of 3rd world food rations

I can be quietly minding my own business in the kitchen or living room and as soon as I catch the glare of this screen in my peripheral vision it sucks me in like a tractor beam!!

therefore, for the next week or so… while I start getting my baking and party preparations in order I’ll have to keep this idiot box unplugged… that seems a bit extreme, right? do I actually have to contort myself into the gumby-like position it takes to reach the outlet this thing is plugged into?

it’s either that or have the spousal unit take my keyboard to work with him like he did last year!! – since my whole entire life is trapped inside this idiot box I kinda need it all here incase I forget a step or accidentally incinerate a recipe or something!!

I just thought I’d give you all a heads up on my holiday situation now – I’ll still be around… just not posting as regularly or commenting as much for about the next 10 days – if you don’t hear from me by then send in a search party… I may have been crushed under a pile of fudge and buckeyes!!

that actually doesn’t sound like a bad way to go!! hehehe

anyway… to keep you all mildly entertained – here is another TOTALLY AWESOME christmas video!!

where have all the good times gone?

remember when you were a kid (back in the days before everyone had vcr's) - the excitement when you knew there was going to be something special on tv?

that ONE time of year when they showed The Wizard of Oz or the Great Pumpkin… or the cute little claymation looking Christmas shows, like Santa Claus is Coming to Town or Rudolph

you’d see the advertisement and get all excited because you knew you’d get to stay up late and maybe have some hot chocolate or popcorn or something special like that (I won't even get into how NOT special those treats are anymore... that's a whole 'nother post in itself!!)

but when it came to those tv specials, your parents would use them as a threat for as long as possible!! ‘if you don’t do your homework - make your bed - stop making noise - clean your room you’re not staying up to watch Rudolph this year!!’

those threats would stop you in your tracks because life just wouldn’t be right if you didn’t have that special night!!

when show time FINALLY rolled around, half the time we’d struggle to keep our eyes open because for some reason they always played these shows at a time that was after when we normally went to bed… but one way or another we were NOT going to miss those shows!!

we still look back on those nights and smile… I don’t know how it is with you… but with me, my sister and Natalie (the friend who moved to Ohio) whenever we discover that one of these shows is going to be on, we call the others all excited… leaving messages to make sure they know… ‘YAY Frosty is on Friday night!!’

because these shows hold special memories for us from a time when all was right with the world – when even though things might have been crummy a lot of the time… there were still those special nights to look forward to that made you all warm inside

nowadays it seems like there’s nothing special anymore... no rare treats to form special memories around - - nowadays it seems we're bombarded by these things which used to be special and fun and occasional!! it’s not enough that all these shows are available on dvd – now that once a year chance to see The Wizard of Oz has been replaced by

THREE CHANCES TO WATCH!!

when they play it Friday, Saturday AND Sunday nights… and if THAT isn’t enough you know they’ll do it again at least once or twice more throughout the year!!

there’s one channel that plays all the old Christmas ‘specials’ for hours it seems… almost every day for the entire month of December!! you know if you miss it today they’ll be showing it again tomorrow or the next day – there’s nothing SPECIAL about these 'specials' at all anymore!!

I mean seriously how busy are people these days that they can’t take the time to sit down and have one special night once in a while… to kick back and sip cocoa and pop popcorn and stay up late and feel warm and excited and filled with wonder… to make memories that last a lifetime… do we REALLY need all these chances to watch? you know what happens then… the more chances you have… the more you put things off

instead of making the time, you think ‘oh we’ll catch it the next time around’
and it becomes more of a chore than something special… something you probably wind up feeling guilty for blowing off… and before you know it those special times have passed us by

even something as simple as getting to see a movie has become an expectation instead of a treat!! the fact that something like the Wizard of Oz is going to be on is certainly no kind of a bargaining tool anymore… if it's lost it's novelty it's lost everthing!! and with that loss goes a little bit of US, our traditions, our warm moments... our hearts

it makes me sad really… how did we get here and why does it have to be this way? where HAVE all the good times gone? and how do we get them back?!

I'm in love....

you probably know by now, I get crushes on some sorta weird characters - Jughead for example!!

I can’t help it... it’s like I always say… I have no control over the things my brain decides to like... hence my love of crappy 80’s music!!

so anyway I'm doin' a little 'christmas shopping' on youtube yesterday morning when I came across just about the most funniest, sweetest, most adorable thing I’ve seen in a long long time!!

‘Tavin Dillard’ a character so sweet and pitiful you can't help but love him!!

these are some of the best videos I've ever seen – EVER!! and there are a bunch of 'em – but I'm posting this one because it gives you the best idea of what poor Tavin is all about... so there ya go... without further ado... this weeks TOTALLY AWESOME VIDEO!!

sicky poo...

I’ve been fighting a cold since Saturday… I guess I’m due… according to my records (blog archives) I haven’t had a cold since the end of last October!! not bad… I made it over a year!! when I was younger I would sometimes go years without getting these things… I guess I’m getting weaker in my old age!! hehehe

anyway it started with a scratchy throat that kept getting scratchier as the day went on… then it felt like post nasal drip that would hit that scratchy bit and tickle causing me to cough until I blew my nose and drank some water… this went on for two days… and that’s all I had for symptoms… I didn’t even feel particularly ill – I was at least still functioning close to normal

yesterday I woke up with a migraine… after about 40 minutes I thought I was going to throw up – if you’re prone to migraines you probably know that there is most likely no physical discomfort worse than throwing up while you have one!! I’ve never given birth but I’m guessing the pain and discomfort rate about the same on the severity scale – only with child birth you get a child afterward… with a migraine all you get is…. NOTHING!!

if someone wants to come in here and tell me child birth is worse than a severe migraine then I’ll be sure to get my tubes tied ASAP!! hehehe

anyway… I took excedrin which, trust me being able to take JUST that is a MAJOR improvement over what I used to have to do for my migraines ~knock on wood~

THANK GOD the excedrin finally worked and aside from being totally drained from the headache I felt half way decent yesterday… the scratchy throat seemed to be gone… I thought maybe I had won the fight against that cold… silly me!!

it must have just backed up a bit and started picking up steam… around dinner time I started feeling that thing where your sinuses are SO clear that it almost hurts to breathe and you just KNOW it’s only a matter of time before it dries out those little nose holes in your throat making it difficult to swallow… before finally you end up so plugged up you feel like your head weighs 80 pounds

fortunately it skipped over the dried out throat pain thingy and moved right into sneezing and congestion – YIPPIE!!

strangely enough I slept well last night… but as soon as I got up this morning the sneezing and congestion came right back – and I feel wiped out!!

fortunately thanks to that scratchy throat bit over the weekend, I planned ahead and made a menu for the week that should be easy to prepare that I can get done early in the day so that by the afternoon (when I typically start feeling REALLY crappy) I won’t have to worry about dinner too much… they’re also meals that should provide us with leftovers… so I don’t have to worry about lunches while I’m sick and snuggled in my big comfy chair watching movies and napping!!

words can’t express how grateful I am to be able to at least TRY to get the rest I need when I’m sick like this… I always feel so bad for Sam when he comes down with something because he’s always working in some cold warehouse or outside where it’s REALLY cold… lifting heavy things and straining himself

seriously if I had to do that stuff I’d crumble into a pile on the ground (even if I wasn’t sick) haaaa but being sick I can’t even imagine it… it must be like having to go to school with a cold!! ICK remember those days when your parents wouldn’t let you stay home for whatever reason and you had to sit through school with the watery eyes and the nose running down your face and that whole bit… WHO can learn when they feel like that?!!

seriously… if I ever have kids I’m never sending them to school with a cold!!

ANYWAY… poor Sam has been battling his own cold for a couple weeks now… he probably gave it to me haaaa I hope we don’t pass it back and forth all winter (is that even possible?)

what sucks is… if I’m sick how am I supposed to take care of him? if he’s sick and having to go to work anyway I at least want to be able to rub his feet once in a while or make him tea or a special meal – but if I’m sick too I’m sorry but I’m just not likely to get up from steaming my sinuses to rub someone else’s feet ya know? unless he was REALLY hurting… then I would at least try hehehe

anyway you know what I mean… it sucks when both people are sick at the same time

of course I feel like I get to ‘rest’ all day while he’s off slaving away in the cold – he deserves slightly more pampering hehehe

don’t get me wrong… he takes care of me too… the other day when I started feeling this coming on he did the dishes for me and the bulk of the grocery shopping… the two things I think he hates most in the world!! haaaa – so that was super sweet of him

oh well I better wrap this up so I can go start this YUMMY pot roast and straighten up a bit so I can rest without feeling like there are chores hanging over my head

this is a pretty sucky time of year to come down with a cold :(

I feel like I have so much to do... and I haven't even gotten my christmas cards in the mail yet!! maybe I'll work on them today while I'm watching my Harry Potter movie!! but I'll be sure not to actually LICK the envelopes!! I'll use a wet sponge so's to not spread my germs around too much!! hehehe

with a little rest and A LOT of water, echinacea and COLD EEZE I hope to have this thing under control by the weekend!!

boo boo pony....

I saw the cutest thing while strolling through Le Target the other day... a FurReal PONY!! if you’re not familiar with FurReal friends they are these sort of animatronic stuffed animals… kinda like Teddy Ruxpin for the 21st century.

last year I desperately wanted to get my niece (who I always call ‘monkey’) the FurReal ‘cuddle chimp’ - isn't he just too cute?!! but I couldn't find one anywhere!!

of course this year there are chimps everywhere but she's moving far far away a couple weeks after Christmas and it's been requested that nobody get them anything that's too big to take on the plane... so I can’t get her one :(

anyway as I was saying – they’ve come out with this pony!! it’s about 3 feet tall... as you can see in the picture above, it’s actually big enough for a kid to sit on!!

I couldn’t get anywhere near it at target because there were hordes of children gathered around petting it and watching in utter amazement as it did it’s thing…

what ‘thing’ is that, you ask? ok so you didn’t ask… but it's my blog so I’m telling you anyway!! hehehe through some sort of sensors it can detect when it’s being brushed and will move it’s head in your direction… it also blinks it’s eyes, moves it’s ears and tail… and actually whinnies and snorts!! – AND if a child sits on it, it will BOUNCE!!! for a 3 year old (my nieces age) that’s practically a real pony!! – I guess that’s how they got their name hehehe

if it wasn’t totally out of our price range (over $500) and she wasn’t moving far far away I would TOTALLY buy this for her!! I just KNOW if she walked out of her room on Christmas morning and saw THAT under the tree she would totally FLIP HER LID!!!

instead she’ll have to make do with the practical and space saving rolling back pack filled with art supplies and other assorted travel friendly stuff we plan to get her

even though I knew there was to be no FurReal pony in our immediate future I couldn’t help myself… Saturday morning when I woke up (before the roosters… again!!) I decided to see if they had this awesome pony at amazon… ya know incase we hit the lottery before her birthday… I could order it on there and get free shipping!! because even if I won the lottery I’d take advantage of super bargains like THAT!! hehehe

anyway… as I was reading the product features there was a sort of odd warning that caught my eye... wanna hear it? here it goes….

"Adults take note: Pony comes unassembled in box with head detatched. You may wish to not open the box around your children if they may be frightened by a box with a decapitated horse inside."

haaaa imagine that!! here you think you’ve gone and bought this super amazing awesome fun toy for the favorite child in your life and they open the box only to discover a PG version of the Godfather’s horse head scene!!

is it just me or is that not just laugh out loud FUNNY?!!?! I almost fell out of my chair when I read that I was laughing so hard!!

what happened to my new york winters?

ok it’s December 1st and all last night I was wishing I hadn’t taken the screens out of the windows yet because it was over 60º and I REALLY could have used some fresh air!!

today is the day I plan on putting up my Charlie Brown christmas twig – how am I supposed to get into the spirit of decorating it in this weather? I’m supposed to be drinking hot chocolate and burning my favorite balsam incense not sipping lemonade and barbequing… I feel like I should be coloring easter eggs, not stringing up lights!!

not that I’m complaining… oh no!! I plan to fully enjoy this freakish weather for as long as it lasts!! I know it won’t be long before I’m digging out tunnels just to get to the mailbox and shuffling around on the ice like a mentally ill penguin!!

but for now… just to help get us into the true spirit of the season - here’s a TOTALLY AWESOME christmas video…