Christmas Gifts, Baby Cousin's Birthday, Ralph S. Mouse

You know, I've decided that I'm further along with my Christmas gifts than I thought I was! This is exciting to me. I've still got a few other folks to get something for, but it's nowhere near as awful a prospect as I expected it to be! I guess I plan ahead better than I thought I do! There's one thing I ordered, and I'm hoping against hope that it arrives in time to be gifted for Christmas. If not, then I'm not sure what I'll do...although I suppose it's not a huge deal. I've got a TON of stuff to do this weekend because I promised Kiddo that we'd work on decorating the house. I think we're supposed to go get icicle lights for our house...? I've got to get Kiddo to clarify that for me. I'll leave getting the antique Mary, Joseph and Baby Jesus lighted plastic lawn ornaments out to my very capable and creative Hubby. But, though I'm scared of heights, I want to do the lights on the house myself. Or, at least be there to direct Hubby while he's doing it. Inside there is quite a bit of picking up and rearranging we need to do in order to accommodate our Christmas Tree. That is going to get done this weekend come H*** or high water. This Christmas is going to be me making it a good, fun, exciting and memorable time for the kids, which means I need to get off my duff and do it. Does anyone remember the Beverly Cleary Ralph S. Mouse series? Mouse and the Motorcycle etc...? I got the three books for Kiddo for Christmas. I know they're still a bit too advanced for his actual stage of reading ability, but I think he'll really enjoy them. I plan to read these to him a little bit as often as I can. His reading ability, though, is skyrocketing! I'm SO extremely proud of him. He actually was able to check a book out of the library at school this week and when he got home, he read the entire thing to me - with no help. When I asked him if he'd read it before he said, "No. It just looked interesting so I got it." It was about bears. He amazes me. Little Bit, ever the Diva, woke up from a nap yesterday hungry. But, rather than say, "I'm hungry!" or "I want a snack!" (which she is perfectly capable of doing) she simply stood there and cried. Big, fat, wet tears. Snot. The whole shebang. Finally, after Hubby and I got her ready, she, Kiddo and I went out to eat. After food she was much more cooperative and happy. Then we went to Wally-World to get a few things. They wanted to pick out a gift for their baby cousin (Who turns 1 today, by the way! Happy Birthday Baby Cousin! We love you!) for Christmas. So we went up and down all the toy aisles and the kids were SO good! They didn't once ask for something for themselves. They kept saying things like, "No - she's too little for that." or "No, that's a toy for a boy!" They finally decided on one of those wooden puzzles with animal cut outs on the front and a fat knob for babies to grasp? Kind of a match the piece to the picture thing. They were very proud of their decision and I was very proud that they worked together and agreed on something for someone else without arguments. Anyway - I guess that's about it! Have a great weekend! TTFN JMS

Oh...just stuff today. Nothin' special.

Do you know those people who do all the funky things with keyboard characters? Example (albeit a really super bad one) ...**^**...**^**... Ayup...that was really bad. Anyway - some people make these really exotic swirls and complicated loops, tall hills and deep valleys - all using just keyboard characters!!! AND I CANNOT FIGURE OUT HOW THEY DO IT! Who in the world has that much time!? Phew. Ok. Now I've gotten that outta my system. What's new in your world today? I'm really looking for some interaction here, folks! Does anyone even read my blog anymore? Sigh. Feelin' cyber-lonely! TTFN JMS

Small Joys

♥ the first sip of an ice cold Coke ♥ a fluffy bathrobe, warm, right out of the dryer ♥ a freshly made bed with no wrinkles ♥ "Mommy's home!" said with as much excitement and happiness that a 5 and a 2 year old can muster. ♥ a small space heater on cold toes under the desk ♥ finding $$ in a pocket of a pair of pants you haven't worn in a while ♥ getting on the scale thinking you'll be depressed again, only to find that you've lost a couple of pounds ♥ brownies ♥ an Etsy sale (Ha! - had to throw that one in, because it IS a joy...) ♥ Light & Writing's Blog: http://lightandwriting.blogspot.com ♥ watching my children sleep ♥ a hot bath and a good book These are just a few of mine. What are your small joys? TTFN JMS

Thankgiving to Christmas: Call me a Non-Depressed Mommy!

You know what I'm going to do tonight? I'm going to eat wonderful turkey dinner leftovers from last night (Hubby fried a turkey last night because he didn't get to do it on Thursday for Thanksgiving...), cranberry salad, sweet potato casserole etc... YUM! Then know what I'm gonna do? I'm gonna clean up and rearrange the living room so we can accommodate our Christmas Tree! I want to find a fresh, real wreath for the front door... Hmmm...I can almost smell those spruce cuttings now! (Speaking of smelling stuff...I keep getting a whiff of wintergreen mint in the hallway at my office. It's driving me nuts because I cannot figure out where it's coming from!) Hubby is working late tonight, so I thought that the kids and I could put on some loud and jazzy Christmas music and go to town. They'll probably dance and run around while I do the work, but I'm sure they'll want to help some... Anyway - I'm actually looking forward to Christmas this year. Usually it's a very difficult time for me and I get horribly depressed. But Hubby said something the other day that was like the proverbial slap in the face (he did NOT, repeat NOT actually slap me). He said, "Just remember, it's for the kids." And he's right. So this year, I will be all about the kids, making sure Christmas is fun for them and that they have a happy, non-depressed mommy. I guess I just need to start thinking about some gifts so there's something under the tree on Christmas morning, eh? TTFN JMS PS: WOW! I just re-read that post. Boy, was it random or what?