Month: December 2012

Whew… what a week. So much for the ideal, relaxing Christmas. I feel like I’ve been going full steam since Sunday. Just one more day to get through, though, and then I can hopefully wind down 2012 on a calmer note.

So… Christmas happened! We spent Christmas Eve with Drew’s family. As is customary, Drew and I took our usual goofy hold-the-camera-out-to-there shot.

When I showed him this one, I laughed like crazy. He said that I looked like a maniac. Ha! Yeah, pretty much. At least I was able to get a photo of all three kids, together, smiling, looking at the camera! It was a true Christmas miracle.

After dinner, we high-tailed it back here to put out cookies for Santa and tuck the wee ones in bed. And can you believe it? We woke up to snow! It was so pretty!

Christmas morning was full of presents, coffee, cocoa, doughnuts, and getting things ready for lunch. This year Drew’s mom sent us a Honeybaked Ham, so we had that along with penne vodka and salad. It was a fun, but exhausting day.

The next day, Jake had a playdate, which turned into a sleepover. We also had a snow/sleet storm, which, while not ideal, was not as bad as it could have been and allowed for some good playtime in the snow on Thursday.

Today my parents came down to exchange gifts, visit, and have lunch. It was much too short a visit this time, but we’ll head up to Massachusetts soon. Mom did love the loopy scarf I made for her – yay! Of course, I didn’t take a photo of it (or the scarves I made for Drew’s mom and aunt), so I guess I’ll have to make one more so I can write up the tutorial.

We all were certainly spoiled this year. Mama got a fancy new bike, books, jewelry, scarves, movies… The kids are awash in Legos, Wii and DS games, Lalaloopsies, Strawberry Shortcake, books, craft stuff… Oh boy! And Drew really seemed to like the Wacom tablet I gave him to hopefully make the photo editing for his comics easier.

Tomorrow morning I work at the library, and then we have a birthday party to go to. After that? Honestly, I’m thinking of picking up pizza and a bottle of chardonnay on the way home and not doing a darn thing all night.

For New Year’s Eve I’m thinking cheese fondue, fun appetizers, a movie or two, and seeing who falls asleep first. All bets are on me 😉

I hope your holiday was full of good cheer! Do you have any exciting plan for NYE?

Here we go, starting the week. I feel like it’s such a weird time right now… I’m trying to feel joyful about Christmas next week, but I have such a hard time feeling happy when I know parents (and an entire community) just about an hour away are grieving and coming to terms with a new reality. Nevertheless, life does go on. I’m hopeful that we all will learn something from this horrific event, and maybe somehow it will all make us better people.

The Weather:::  It’s cold, rainy, and nasty outside. I really would love a little snow.

Right now I am::: Watching cartoons with Laura as she plays with Legos.

Thinking::: About last-minute gifts and Christmas preparations

On my reading pile:::
Probably not the most thrilling reads for most people, but they’re interesting to me 🙂 Flirting yet again with the idea of grad school. It wouldn’t be for a few years, and I’m not positive I want to make the committment (not to mention shell out the money), but in the meantime…
What They Don’t Teach You in Library School by Elisabeth Doucett
The Portable MLIS: Insights from the Experts by Ken Haycock (Editor), Brooke E. Sheldon (Editor)

On my tv:::
I’ve mostly been watching old SNL on Netflix lately, and occasionally an episode of Oddities.

On the menu for this week:::
Sunday: Gyros, chick pea salad
Monday: Chicken burrito bowls
Tuesday: Steak, baked potatoes, green beans, salad
Wednesday: Boneless BBQ pork ribs, broccoli, corn bread, salad
Thursday: Leftovers or out to eat
Friday: Chicken Parmesan, whole wheat spaghetti, salad
Saturday: Potato-leek soup, burgers, salad

On my to do list:::
Laundry, vacuuming, wash the kitchen floor

What I am sewing, crocheting, knitting or creating:::
I need to finish a few crochet Christmas gifts still!

Homemaking Tips:::
Use your old dryer sheets to clean your faucets. Simply wet them with warm water and scrub. It helps remove mineral deposits.

Looking around the house:::
It’s all a big mess because cleaning was just not important to me over the weekend. I really need to tidy everything up.

From the camera:::

On my prayer list:::
Residents of Newtown, especially the families of the victims
Friends and family
Peace of heart for so many who find themselves sad or troubled at this time of year.

Linking up: Happy Homemaker Monday at Diary of a SAHM

I don’t know about you, but it’s been a weird weekend here. I just haven’t been able to shake the horrible feeling I think each of us experienced upon hearing about Friday’s tragic shootings. Thank goodness we don’t have cable TV because I know the news coverage would just put me over the edge. It was bad enough that I broke down in tears upon seeing the front page of the paper when I brought it into work at the library on Saturday. Luckily I was able to get it together before anyone came in.

I just didn’t really feel like doing much of anything. As I said, I did work Saturday morning, and the boys attended a day-long Advent celebration at church. We did do one exciting thing, though… we brought home the two new kitties we adopted! Meet Pepper and Margo.

Pepper was going after some stray cucumbers that fell on the floor during dinner.

Margo was being so cute.

They are 6 months old and very lovey and very playful. They already fit right in with our family!

There was also tea drinking.

And gingerbread house decorating.

I also made a peanut butter pie for dessert and it was so super delicious! Yes, I will be posting the recipe later this week. But for now, I’m going to get the kiddos in bed, get in my PJs, and call it a night.

A year ago my dad made me this awesome caddy for my glue gun, complete with a tile to catch the glue drips and a box to hold extra glue sticks. It is still completely awesome. I had to fix some Christmas decorations this morning, and it was nice to not have to balance my glue gun on that little flip-down foot that never really holds it up. Love it.

This week has just flown by. I’ve been so busy with so many different things. I wish tonight I could just curl up after dinner and spend the evening relaxing with my family, but we have a scouting activity to attend, so the coziness will have to wait until later. Years ago when I lived in Boston bedroom furniture would have been the thing I wanted most on a night like this — a big bed, soft pillows. But tonight I’d be happy anywhere, so long as my family is nearby.