YAY it’s OVER!!

don’t get me wrong… I LOVE Christmas – but I think the older you get the more exhausting it is… I’m starting to understand why the grandparents are always sacked out in a chair within a couple hours – if this is how I feel now, I can’t imagine what it must be like when you’re 80!!

anyway… things went pretty well – my cookie baking went surprisingly smoothly
Sam helped a bit… my mother and I made cut out cookies and I left a bunch undecorated so that Sam and I could ice them… I thought that would be a cute thing to do together - I’m sure men love it when their women get ideas like that haaaa

I didn’t leave TOO many for us to do… I knew the novelty would wear off quickly (and I was right!) hehehe

he also helped me fill the peanut butter sandwich cookies and coated the tea cookies for me… AND helped me box everything up
the next day before our company came, he helped straighten up and vacuumed!!
oh and I almost forgot… even though he was helping his friend move all weekend he actually CLEANED OUR BATHROOM when he got home on Sunday!!

I think he did more work around the house than I did all weekend – of course I was baking from dawn to well past dusk for 3 days straight – which also means washing A LOT of sticky, sugary, chocolatey dishes – YUCK!!

if I didn't stupidly go and get everyone hooked on 4 different things that need to be rolled into balls, the whole project would go A LOT quicker - but when you have to sit there for what seems like hours on end rolling dough into 1-inch balls and either coating them with powdered sugar or flattening them with a fork... or dipping them in chocolate it starts to get really time consuming!!

I don't mind though... I just plop down in front of the tv haaaa (I'm sure that's a big surprise)

everything came out really well… I only screwed up one pan out of all the stuff I made (forgot to flatten out a pan of the peanut butter cookies with a fork before baking them) but that was ok… I still had plenty to make the sandwiches and Sam got to eat the screwed up ones hehehe

I tried to take a picture of all the cookies – but I was having trouble getting them all into the shot haaaa this was the best I could do



you can see how I couldn’t resist nibbling on (err I mean taste testing) the fudge – but that’s ok because there’s a whole other pan of fudge down between the chocolate crinkles and the peanut butter sammich cookies

see the iced cookies in front of the chocolate chips? Sam did the pretty stars and bells – I did the trees

there are more cut out cookies in a container hiding behind the chocolate chip cookies, but you can’t really see them…

so anyway… that is what I was up to this weekend

once all the cookies were baked it was time to go on our usual Christmas rounds... first my aunt's house on Christmas eve afternoon, then his aunts (on his father's side) for dinner - and then Christmas morning with his mother's side

then of course we had the Bickerson's and their 9 year old son over for Christmas dinner, which was very quiet and relaxed... the wife and I played scrabble while Sam helped the kiddo with his new MP3 player... the husband spent most of the afternoon curled up under a blanket, snoring haaaa (he had a rough week) as I said they were moving for about 3 days straight... into a house that from what I understand, was previously occupied by pigs... or poo flinging monkeys... or perhaps an entire circus of slobs - seriously... flooring had to be ripped up and replaced... every surface had to be scoured and/or painted... and they're still not done with everything - in the middle of all that, they had to try to have some sort of a normal Christmas for their kid - so I'll forgive him for crashing haaaa

his wife... not so much - she kept trying to wake him up, which I thought was kinda funny... and kinda MEAN - he kept snarling at her... I thought he was going to bite her or something haaaa that would have been AWESOME!!!

anyway... like I said I LOVE Christmas... but boy am I glad that its over!!

crunch...

in order to help reduce my stress I’ve had the ol’ blogeroo on the back burner – but I wanted to pop in and say SOMETHING before I forget how…

it’s crunch time… between now and Sunday night I have to make 3-4 batches of chocolate chip cookies, 2 batches of buckeyes, 1-2 batches of fudge, 2 batches of Russian tea cookies, 2 batches of chocolate crinkles, 2 chocolate bundt cakes and sticky toffee pudding

then Monday I have to make appetizers for my aunts Christmas eve dinner – and for some reason I’ve signed on to do dinner here with the Bickersons on Christmas day… nothin’ fancy though – just gonna throw a roast in the crock pot and roast some veggies

but today is Sam’s birthday… so he comes first… I’m making him a spice cake with maple cream (hopefully) – that depends on my ability to make maple cream at the last minute hehehe I was under the impression that all you had to do was toss it in the mixer and let it whip - but apparently first you have to get it to a certain temperature, then let it cool... then stir it by hand until it's the right consistency - I REALLY don’t know what I was thinking saying I’d MAKE the maple cream!! surely it would have made more sense to BUY maple cream!! anyway – keep your fingers crossed… I am wonder woman I can do ANYTHING!! – right? hehehe

obviously I have no business being here - but like I said... I just wanted to pop in and say hi - now that I've done that, I probably won't be around much until after Christmas...

FORTUNATELY there are people out there with lots of extra time on their hands who come up with festive, happy memory inducing and or funny things for me to post to distract us from some of the unpleasantness of the season and help keep us in the holiday spirit

for example: SCROOGE YOURSELF from the people that brought you ELF YOURSELF - if you thought the elves were funny, you HAVE to see SCROOGE

other fun stuff from office max… including two of MY favorites ‘don’t shoot your eye out’ and ‘roast a turkey’

oh and then there's this fascinating CHRISTMAS MEME:

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? depends on the gift – I have OCD issues with paper and wrapping so I’m usually better off with bags

2. Real tree or artificial? the tree we have is artificial… but of course I would prefer a real tree

3. When do you put up the tree? usually right after thanksgiving

4. When do you take the tree down? right after new years

5. Do you like eggnog? not the store bought kind *YUCK* I made some from scratch last year that I kinda liked but I’m still working on perfecting it

6. Favorite gift received as a child? hmmm… probably my kitchen play set

7. Do you have a nativity scene? nope

8. Hardest person to buy for? without a doubt, my grandfather – what do you get an 80+ year old guy who has EVERYTHING – and anything he doesn’t have, he goes and gets himself

9. Easiest person to buy for? the cousins

10. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? I’m not a fan of gifts given just for the sake of giving SOMETHING – especially when it either shows how little you know me or how little thought you put into it – that being said… it IS the thought that counts

11. Mail or email Christmas cards? depends on the recipient

12. Favorite Christmas movie? probably a Christmas story… or Christmas vacation… gotta love Chevy Chase!!

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? I mostly bake for Christmas – any shopping I do is minimal and usually done some time in December

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? yup – and I’d do it again!!

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? sticky toffee pudding

16. Clear lights or colored on the tree? – well I PREFER the big old colored lights… but they don’t work with my Charlie Brown Christmas twig… so little white lights it is

17. Favorite Christmas song? I can’t think of one off the top of my head

18. Travel for Christmas or stay home?we don’t exactly travel – but we make the rounds to different family gatherings (one of the BIG downfalls to not having kids!!) between Christmas eve and Christmas day we usually have to be at 3-4 different family functions

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer? yes

20. Angel on the treetop or a star? I got a pretty crocheted angel last year as a gift so that’s what I have on there now… it used to be a star

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? Sam and I usually do Christmas morning – but since we have to be at so many places we’re usually opening gifts left and right for 2 days

22. most annoying thing about this time of year? the way people get so frazzled and will knock you over to get the last ‘whatever’ on the shelf or cut you off in traffic or run you over with their cart

23. How do you decorate your tree? it’s pretty classic… all my glass balls were my grandmother’s – they’re all from the 50’s and 60’s – some ornaments I made and some were gifts… otherwise I hang pine cones on it that Sam and I have gathered over the years and we usually make strings of popcorn and cranberries to hang on it, but we skipped that this year =(

24. favorite holiday memories as a child? decorating the tree, making cookies and waiting for Santa of course… I remember one year I swore I heard bells outside – I was so excited I couldn’t sleep all night!!

25. What is the most important thing about Christmas for you? being with family and friends

26. what is your favorite holiday tradition? watching Christmas movies and making the popcorn & cranberry strings for our tree and baking cookies

27. do you like candy canes? I can’t eat mint – it makes me sick

28. when and how did you learn the truth about Santa? I have no idea – I know I tried to hold onto that as long as possible because I knew once the cat was out of the bag it would never go back in!! I want to say that what REALLY made it clear was one year when my mother asked me to get something from the garage a couple days before Christmas and I saw two shiny new bicycles in there

29. can you ice skate? hell no!! I’m not even great on my feet let alone blades… or wheels… or even heels for that matter!!

30. What I love most about Christmas... just the warm fuzziness and memories mostly

oh and speaking of scrooge... in honor of Sam’s birthday… I give you THIS haaaa it couldn’t be more perfect!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE
XOXOXOX

lighten up...

"A smile costs nothing but gives much. It enriches those who receive without making poorer those who give. It takes but a moment, but the memory of it sometimes lasts forever. None is so rich or mighty that he cannot get along without it and none is so poor that he cannot be made rich by it. Yet a smile cannot be bought, begged, borrowed, or stolen, for it is something that is of no value to anyone until it is given away. Some people are too tired to give you a smile. Give them one of yours, as none needs a smile so much as he who has no more to give." ~Author Unknown

it’s that time of year again… the time when instead of reducing the number of daylight hours they should be increasing the number of hours in the day!!

it’s a vicious cycle… we’re busy and tired so we neglect things like taking care of ourselves… we eat like crap and run ourselves ragged which makes us even more tired and more stressed - and decreases productivity which makes everything take that much longer and seem that much more difficult

people get ugly this time of year… in an effort to find the best bargain or get their hands on the last ‘must have’ item on the shelf, or whatever it is that has everyone running around like chickens with their heads cut off… they snarl at you in line at the supermarket, ram your heels with their cart or elbow you when they turn around without paying attention, they cut you off in traffic or honk their horns incessantly… as if THAT will make things move faster

how many car accidents occur because people are in such a hurry to get wherever they’re going that they don’t care how many cars get piled up behind them? I dunno but it sure seems like I see an awful lot of fender benders (or worse) this time of year - wouldn't the people you're in a hurry to get to rather have you there in one piece? I know the people I'M in a hurry to get to would rather have ME there in one piece!!

we are ALL busy… we ALL have things to do and not enough time to do them in

doesn’t anyone remember the story of the tortoise and the hare? slow and steady wins the race, people!! wouldn’t it make more sense if we all took a deep breath and just prioritized our lives?

then maybe we’d have it in us to smile at the person next to us instead of snarling…

isn’t Christmastime supposed to be about peace, love, cheer, good will and all that?

is the assholery just a means to an end? and is it ok if it is? is it really ok to be a total fuck wad in pursuit of… what IS it we’re in pursuit of?

we should be in pursuit of the warmth and love of our friends and families – and that has nothing to do with what we buy or how quickly we get it there

there doesn’t seem to be much warmth, love, peace or good will going on out there – from what I see in people eyes it’s hard to imagine anyone loving some of them

maybe that’s the problem… they run around knocking people over, trying to buy people’s love

all it takes to make people happy is kindness… a warm smile, an understanding nod

instead of snarling at the person in line in front of you because they’re holding up the line by counting their change to pay for an item, think about WHY they might be doing that

instead of honking, passing half a dozen people or cutting them off in traffic… sit back take a deep breath and be thankful for the extra minute you have to just SIT there… use it to gather your thoughts and decompress – the world is NOT going to come to an end if you get wherever you’re going one minute later!!

instead of sighing loudly and tapping your foot when someone is making you wait… SMILE or make a joke – life is so much more pleasant this way… you’ll find that you don’t mind waiting so much when you engage the people around you… they ARE after all people just like you, with plans and schedules and things to do – why make it any more unpleasant than it has to be?

life is TOO short to walk around with your panties in a bunch all the time!! lighten up people… we're not running from Godzilla for cryin' out loud - it’s Christmastime!!

strays...

I know a month or so ago I told you about the two adorable ‘kittens’ (they’re not so much kittens now… they look like they were probably born in the spring) that mysteriously appeared in our yard – we’d see them once or twice a week, poking around the chicken coop or the table where I feed the birds or skulking around at the edge of the woods or the brush pile down the yard – obviously looking for a nice meal of fresh mouse or bird

they must have been raised around people because they look very healthy but they must have been a kept at a bit of a distance too, because they’re also a bit skittish – they get nervous when they hear or see us and usually take off before we can get close enough to get friendly – which is just as well I guess because as bad as I feel for them and as much as I would LOVE to… we REALLY can’t take them in – as I said before we just simply can’t afford the vet bills – we have a hard enough time taking proper care of the cat we already have (who is overdue on ALL of her vaccinations) which is another reason I’m kinda glad these two stay at a bit of a distance… I can’t afford to have my cat tangle with another stray and get sick like she did the last time… or god forbid come in contact with one of the diseases she’s no longer vaccinated against

I’ve been hoping that they’ll make their way over to my mother’s house and feel the warmth coming from her cat door then find their way inside and make themselves comfortable there

whenever we see them we put a bowl of food out and hope that they get to it before the ‘possums or raccoons – the plan is to slowly inch the bowl closer to my mother’s house until it is THERE that they go looking for food

but until a week or so ago we really weren’t seeing them often enough to make a difference… however the colder it gets the more I see them… a few days ago I spotted one of them eating chunks of STALE BREAD I had thrown out for the birds!!

BREAD!!

most cats don’t eat bread… how hungry and cold does a cat have to be to resort to eating stale bread chunks?

and he knew I was watching him… he was looking around like someone was about to steal the ‘feast’ out from under him – I just couldn’t stand to see that!! so this week we added cat food to our grocery list (sorry but I can’t afford to feed two ravenous strays our delicate princess’s special $40 a bag cat food!!)

anyway… it looks like they’re stuck with us now – they come by at least once a day looking for their new treat (pretty sad when a regular meal seems like a treat) but you can tell it is to them… they still have that look and nervousness like they don’t know when they’ll see food again

they nuzzle eachother and knock eachother over trying to get their heads in the bowl at the same time – it’s very cute and very sad at the same time

I HATE knowing that they’re outside in this cold weather… but I’m pretty sure they’ve found a dry place to sleep - either in my mother’s basement/crawlspace or her neighbor’s shed… at least until we get them used to people and figure out a way to give them a real home with my mother – which is by no means the DE-LUX accommodations I would like to see them have… but certainly better than their current situation

anyway… now that they’re around so much more I was able to get a couple (not so great) pictures of them











~ in the little video they're running from my house over toward the bowl of food they'd just emptied 5 minutes earlier... I guess maybe they were hoping it was magically full again

just lookit them... it makes me so MAD!! I mean HOW could anybody abandon these guys in the cold dark wilderness like that??!! =(

at least they have eachother

stop the insanity!!

soooo Tuesday afternoon there were two accidents within a few miles of our house… at least one of them must have hit a pole, because we lost power for a couple hours – when it came back I had no internet (which also meant I had no phone)

I wasn’t particularly upset… I was enjoying the peace and quiet… and I always notice I get more done when I’m not being lured in by the glowing light of this idiot box

I got my phone and internet back Wednesday morning… but they were shaky and then I lost them again that afternoon… and they were totally out all night and most of the day Thursday

meanwhile my mother was having the same issue… she was having a cow over the whole thing… she would come over here every couple hours waving her arms and looking like her head was going to explode, screaming ‘can you BELIEVE this SHIT?!?!’

I was fine with it… granted I’m not in love with the idea of not having a phone – especially when I know there isn’t a working phone anywhere nearby to run to in the event of an emergency – but still what are the odds of an emergency?

unless you’re a 55 year old smoker, with high blood pressure and anger issues, like my mother!! being without the internet or phone for a day or two is certainly NOT worth giving yourself a STROKE over – especially when we have no way to call 911 haaaa

every time she’d come over looking like she was going to blow a gasket I just shook my head… seriously WHAT is the point in getting yourself all worked up… it’ll be fixed when it’s fixed!! until then… Sam will be here with a cell phone all night and the neighbor on the other side has a cell phone… AND there’s a pay phone a minute down the road – you’re NOT completely cut off from the world!!

her house was built in the 1800’s – what does she think THOSE people did when they had an emergency?!!

as for the internet… I don’t really see what her big problem was… it’s not like it got in between her and her beloved FREE CELL haaaa

anyway… you can obviously tell that I’m my mother’s daughter by how quickly I can get off on a rant haaa

the point of this post was NOT what a wacko my mother is… although I’m sure I could fill post after post with examples of her insanity

the point is I was glad to be without the internet and phone!! She was having a meltdown and I was hoping it would stay out all day!!

and for good reason too – because the minute it came back the phone started ringing and people and things crept in and destroyed my peace and quiet and the progress I was making around the house!!

usually when I’m going to be without internet access it’s because of planned work being done or something being installed – when the whole idiot box is taken into the shop… and I (for the most part) look forward to the time without it

before hand I make lists of all the projects I want to do… like sort through old photos (of which I have THOUSANDS) or FINALLY put all my recipes into protective sleeves and file them away in the binder Sam bought me 3 years ago!!

I also plan to clean things that normally get neglected – I’ll usually detail the whole house… cleaning out cracks and crevices with toothpicks and toothbrushes… and other assorted oral health devices

I dust things way up high and organize everything in sight – and basically make the house look like I wish it looked all the time – in a way all the cleaning and detailing of things is due to procrastination… I CAN’T sit down and get involved in a project like the photos or recipes until EVERYTHING else is done… which is why I still have to sift through 50 out of focus shots of a goose in the back yard to find the one picture of my grandma looking like she’s trying to strangle my kitten (she was trying to get her to hold her head straight for the picture)

anyway… this weeks internet outage was no different even though it wasn’t planned… I got lots done and PLAN to do even more!!

I like how my house looks when it’s not bogged down with crap I just haven’t bothered to throw out and I like knowing that my husband is going to come home to neatness and order instead of clutter and chaos

the other night we were having tacos for dinner… I like soft tacos and he likes to make a sorta taco salad, using of the crunchy shells

I went to get my flour tortillas and they were all moldy – but I didn’t know that because they were buried in the bread basket, under 7 bags, each with one or two slices of stale bread in them – I thought THAT was bad enough

then yesterday… I was cleaning off the top of my chest freezer (which is where I keep the bread) it also turns into a catch all place for kitchen stuff… super market circulars, stuff I borrowed from my mother that needs to be returned – etc.

anyway… so I’m cleaning off the top of the chest freezer and what do I find? a whole ‘nother package of flour tortillas I had forgotten I bought!!

if only I had kept up on that I would have been able to have my taco the way I like it instead of settling for a stupid crunchy one!!

I was NOT too happy with myself… that just proves how much I’ve been letting stuff slip around here – I miss the days when I was on the ball (or at least I was able to make people THINK I was on the ball)

we can’t afford to be letting food get buried under the clutter… not with the way prices keep going up and up every week!!

I’ve done the same thing several times… with STAMPS of all things… I’ll buy a book of stamps and then (because I don’t use stamps very often) I misplace them and have to buy another – then the next thing I know I find all my old stamps only to realize that they’ve raised the price of postage 3 times… now I have 34 cent stamps, 37 cent stamps and 39 cent stamps – so not only did I buy more stamps unnecessarily, but then I have to go out and buy a shit load of 2 cents stamps to make the old stamps usable – GAH!!

I guess the point is I need to spend less time zoning out at my desk and more time taking care of my responsibilities!!

but it’s HARD when you have practically the whole world at your finger tips, ya know?

I’ll be going along just fine getting work done when I’ll see an ad for something and want to pop on here and see how much it costs or if I can find a better deal

or I see an actor or actress and can’t remember where I know them from – the answer is just a click away!!

someone calls and asks me for a recipe or for help with something they’re trying to do

EVERYTHING is in this idiot box!! and I can’t just sit down and grab a recipe quick – ohhh nooo!! as long as I’m sitting here I might as well check the news or weather and say hi to Brian and check my email and pop into a blog or two and before you know it 2 hours have gone by

if I look forward so much to times when this thing isn’t at my disposal and other times when it’s taken away unexpectedly I actually find myself hoping the issue doesn’t get resolved too quickly – WHY can’t I just ignore it otherwise???

I don’t know why!! do you know why? hehehe if you do and you have a cure, PLEASE let me know!!

for now the plan is to post this and then turn this stupid thing OFF!!

my goal for the day is to decorate the ol’ Charlie Brown Christmas twig and get some rest… I suddenly feel like I’m coming down with a cold and this is NO time of year to be sick!!

althoughhhhhh I hafta say – if I have to get sick, better NOW than 2 or 3 weeks from now!!

ok I’m done rambling now… have a GREAT weekend everyone!! =)

thanks... and stuff

lots of GREAT ideas and suggestions for my niece’s Christmas gift… and I’m still as lost as ever hehehe
funds may be more limited than I originally thought – so I’m really not sure what I’m gonna do now… but I’ll figure something out

Brian hurled about a thousand suggestions at me yesterday – one of which was disturbing enough to mention

seriously you HAVE to go there and listen to the samples!! you might wanna have a drink or two before you do though… it’s really rather… frightening!!

actually the Led Zeppelin version isn’t so bad (aside from sounding like a 4 year old banging on one of those old fisher price pianos

the REALLY disturbing ones (to me) were the Pink Floyd, Nirvana, Nine Inch Nails and Metallica versions
there’s nothing quite as disturbing as hearing Pink Floyd’s ‘Mother’ set to what is supposed to be a soothing lullaby sound… except maybe PLAYING IT for your baby!!

wait I’m wrong – there is something more disturbing – there are a few things more disturbing actually

1. a lullaby version of Nine Inch Nail’s ‘Closer’ (?!?!?!!! even if there are no words to this particular version, you know how it goes and you’ll still be hearing ‘I wanna fuck you like an animal’ in your head while you’re trying to get your baby to sleep)
2. a lullaby version of Nirvana’s ‘Something in the Way’ (one of the saddest songs ever written… to be honest I’m a little surprised they didn’t include Rape Me on the album)
3. a lullaby version of Metallica’s ‘Fade to Black’

I don’t care how clangy and juvenile you make it sound… you’ll still have those lyrics rolling through your mind

life it seems will fade away
drifting farther everyday
getting lost within myself
nothing matters no one else

I have lost the will to live
simply nothing more to give
there is nothing more for me
need the end to set me free

things aren't what they used to be
missing one inside of me
deadly loss this cant be real

cannot stand this hell i feel

emptiness is filling me
to the point of agony
growing darkness taking dawn
I was me but now, he’s gone

no one but me can save myself, but its too late
now I cant think, think why I should even try

yesterday seems as though it never existed
death greets me warm, now I will just say goodbye

YEAH!! those are thoughts I want floating around my head while I’m rocking a baby to sleep!!

If that’s not enough for you there is always the lullaby version of another great Metallica song – ‘ONE’ which is based on the movie Johnny Got His Gun (about a young man who is left with a perfectly lucid mind trapped inside the shell of his useless body after his arms, legs, sight, speech and hearing are blown away by a landmine at the end of WW1)

there is more… much more but while writing this post I’ve been listening to the REAL versions of these songs and I’m suddenly torn between wanting to end it all and wanting to make the most of my life (neither of which involve sitting in front of this idiot box!!)

speaking of soldiers though... before I go... someone sent me a link to something xerox is doing which I thought was pretty cool – regardless of how you may feel about the war and whatnot… it IS chirstmastime and there are an awful lot of young men and women spending this holiday in a not so festive situation

so if you’re interested – go HERE to make a card, which zerox will print up and send to a U.S. soldier who is stationed overseas

and best of all it’s totally FREE!! so you can send as many as you want – and brighten the day of someone in a sucky situation :)

annnnnnnd when you’re done there… don’t forget to go ELF YOURSELF - go on… do it!! I DID – in fact I elfed ALL OF US!!

WOO HOO - could we BE any cuter??!!