A Toast

Twas the week before Christmas and in our new place
We had another new tree, the other one being too big for the space.

We have a beautiful new fireplace that we never will use
Because it uses gas logs, causing higher utility dues

But it was nice to have a real mantel to hang our stockings up where
St. Nicholas could put a few knick-knacks in there

Three presents for each, wrapped with love and care
Except for the husband, who had one gift to spare

On this day he was born, as I’m sure you were already aware
since he believes this momentous day to be a very special affair
In fact, according to him, we should all have a t-shirt to wear ;)

If you did not receive yours please be sure to let him know
As I’ve tried explaining to him before that it just isn’t so

So babe, I apologize for this late birthday post
And ask you all to raise your glass for a belated birthday toast
To this husband of mine, whom I love the most

Happy Belated Birthday, Babe, I love you!

Grilling Goodness #11

Guess what time it is??

That's right! It's time, once again, for some Golden Goodness.



Please feel free to play along and don't forget to go back to Tina's site and fill in Mr. Linky to let her know you played. I know she would love to hear what you have to say. :)



1. What pain reliever do you swear by?

I'm not a big fan of taking medicine. In fact, I'm so bad that I will walk around all day long complaining of a headache and it will never occur to me that I should take something until someone asks if I have.

DUH!!!

So I guess you could say there isn't one singe pain reliever that I swear by; but, when I finally do break down and take something, it's usually Tylenol.

2. Have you gotten up-to-date with a flat screen HDTV?

Nope, but if anyone would like to make a donation towards the cause, I would not turn it away. ;) I'm just sayin'!

3. Have you honked at anyone lately?

I'm more of a 'vocal driver' than a 'horn honker' (I've decided it's a genetic disorder that runs in my family.) so I'm more likely to cuss at you than to honk at you.



However, just the other day I honked at this man on the interstate. He was trying to be in my lane and his lane too. I had no where to go so I honked, he moved back over and I went along my merry way (away from him!)

4. What is your favorite household product?

When I think of household products, I think of cleaning and that is not something that makes me happy so I don't really know what my favorite household product would be but I guess we all know - thanks to Amy - that it isn't Endust. ;)

5. What is the earliest you've gotten up this week and why?

Around 5:30 or 6:00 - to get ready for work.

6. Do you travel out of town for Christmas?

Most of our relatives are right here in town so there is never a need to travel. We usually stay home and enjoy our time together.

7. Have you been listening to Christmas music? (Favorite?)

I listened to it the other day, when I was in the car with mom; does that count??

8. When do you exchange gifts with family?

We open our gifts on Christmas morning - usually at the crack of dawn, before even the birds wake, because of two excited little girls who can't wait any longer.

The Office Christmas Party

Today was the office Christmas party and you'll never guess who made an appearance?!?!

Each year our team has an office Christmas party and while they are always fun and never boring - ordering lunch, playing games and exchanging gifts - this year's party is one that is sure to go down in the books.

After eating lunch and playing a couple of fun Christmas related office games, such as Santa's Secret Elf - as named by me; an office game that I learned of through some online research - and a fill in the blank word game, where you filled in the missing parts of the poem, 'Twas the Nigh Before Christmas', it was time for the main attraction: Dirty Santa.

If you've never heard of or played the Dirty Santa game, let me just tell you... this is a wicked little game that is good for groups and is sure to bring lots of laughter - and a possible grudge or two. ;)

The gist of this game is that everyone brings in a generic gift (generic of course meaning non gender specific, something that anyone could use) and then each person picks a number. When it's your turn, you can either pick a gift from the pile or swipe someone else's gift (a gift can only be swiped once per round), ending once all the gifts have been opened.

You never know what you will end up with.

For instance, there were several gifts that I had my eyes on this time, a Malco movie gift card and a couple of cute snowmen gifts - gift cards, snowmen and Christmas type decorations are always a big hit with our group.

It was the last round, one gift on the table and one person left to pick.

I had my Malco gift card, and thought I was going to get away with it too; but then, she took her pick of the litter, setting off a chain of gift snatching that eventually lead to my Malco movie gift card landing in the hands of another. :(

I swiped and they swiped and then it was finally down to her. She is one of our older team members - I would put her in the grandmother range, and by that I mean the my grandmother range, not my children's grandmother range - she has been with the company some thirty odd years, she loves to travel, is very soft spoken and one of the nicest people you would ever want to meet.

She had her gift throughout the entirety of the game and then, in the last round, the very same chain of events that lead to my Malco movie gift card getting snagged, caused her to lose her pretty ceramic Christmas Tree - I was so sad for her because that gift looked like it was made just for her. :(

She looked around the room and then decided to end it by going to the table for the very last gift.

She opened the bag and was rather excited when she saw it was a CD. You see, she - like the rest of us - probably thought it was a Christmas CD. But, as she slowly pulled it out of the bag for further examination, laughter exploded from the room - beginning with one of my co-workers and myself, as we saw the picture on the back cover and began to realize exactly what it was that she had just picked.

That's right folks! Someone (who shall remain nameless) bought Beyonce's newest CD as a gift, for our office Christmas party - a party consisting of twenty people who range in age, sex, race, creed, personalities and interests.

H-E-L-L-OOOOO?!?!?!

Are you kidding me?

Please tell me that he did not really buy Beyonce's CD, with her half naked picture on the back cover, for an office Christmas party gift and of all the people, in that entire room full of people, she is the one who ended up with it.

I. could. have. died!

Then, after she had examined the cover from front to back and placed it back into the bag, amid the wails of laughter, this sweet lady looked up and said, "What makes you all think I wouldn't like Beyonce?"

Of course, the mental image that I had in my head at that moment did not mesh - at all - with the grandmotherly image that I have of her.

I somehow, have a very difficult time picturing her sticking her rear end out, 'spankin' dat ass', while singing, "if you like it then you shoulda put a ring on it."

Nope! Just can't see it.

But that's her, a team player with a great sense of humor.

Hmmm? I wonder if she'll burn a copy of her new CD for me?? ;) What do y'all think?

In the end, I went home with a very cute little Snowman dude - also, as named by me ;) - a nice seasonal picture frame - one can never have too many picture frames, amen? - and a very pretty ornament for my tree. :)

Grilling Goodness #10

Alright y'all, it's time once again for Tina's fun and wonderful Grilling Goodness. But, before I begin, I should first tell you all the story behind OJ's other glove - which I posted about here.

Sorry about that, it wasn't my intention to leave you all hanging but life had other plans and knocked me on my butt with a sudden illness that I have still not recovered from.

I'm sure you all remember a few Friday's ago, when OJ was finally being found guilty for yet another crime he committed and was sentenced to several years in prison - where many believe he should have been several years ago, but I digress...

So, that afternoon I was leaving work and right there on the ledge was one, single, leather glove and as I walked passed the glove I chuckled to myself as I thought, "Hey look! It's OJ's other glove."

Not one to keep my silly, sad and sometimes sick sense of humor to myself, I ran back in to snap a picture (because you know us bloggers always carry a camera with us in the event that we come across a story) so I could share with all of my blogging buddies.

And there you have it- the boring, and somewhat silly, story behind the glove.

Now on with the Goodness... If you are interested in playing to please feel free to do so. I know that Tina would love to hear what you've got to say. Oh, and don't forget to link back to her and also to sign your name on Mr. Linky to let her know you played. :)

1. How many Christmas parties have you attended or will you attend?

Well, if you count the office party, that would be two. We have an office party each year and then we also have Ms. Jewal's annual Christmas celebration. Not sure if those qualify as 'parties' but for the purposes of answering this question we'll say that they do... ;)

2. What is your favorite dish to take to a party?

Anything that is easy to make and doesn't require cooking. I usually take my world famous - okay so maybe not really known throughout the entire world but I haven't met a person yet who hasn't loved it - fruit compote.

I know, I know. The name of it isn't very appealing and being honest, it isn't a 'pretty' dish either but it tastes wonderful - and that's all that counts, right?

3. When you're at home and your feet are chilled, do you wear socks or houseshoes?

I have both. I'm really not much on shoes so it used to be that I would always wear my warm and fuzzy socks when my feet got cold - house shoes always seemed to make my feet sweat - but I finally found a pair of house shoes that I really like and so now I wear them whenever putting something on my feet becomes absolutely necessary.

4. What are your plans for this weekend?

My plans were wonderful. My weekend, notsomuch.

This weekend Tina was supposed to pick up Sara and they were supposed to head over to my new crib where Amy would also be visiting. It was supposed to be a day full of silly stories and much laughter. A day when wearing your Spanx would not be such a great idea.

Unfortunately, I got sick (as did Sara). :(

I didn't want to cancel because too much had gone into making this day happen - on both sides - so Tina and Amy still came to see me and we had as good a time as is possible with me feeling as lousy as I did.

But don't you worry, we will find a time - when all of our busy calenders are clear and our health is good - to meet up again; and that will be a day for Depends. ;)

5. What is the most expensive Christmas gift you are buying for your children this year?

My youngest is four years old and still very easy to please. Her gifts don't cost very much and I think the most expensive thing she's getting is a doll house.

My oldest, on the other hand, is twelve and has asked for a laptop this year.

6. Do you have a family portrait made each year?

Family portraits, no. But I did, once upon a time, take my girls to have their pictures taken every year. But that can get expensive and so my wonderful hubby bought me a nice camera one year and since then I have taken my own Christmas pictures of the girls.

Then, with the help of Shutterfly, I make the most adorable calendars each year, filled with fun pictures of the girls, for family and friends.

Doing this has saved us hundreds of dollars during the Christmas holiday's.

7. Do you drive your kids around looking for decorated homes?

When I was young, it was sort of a Christmas tradition for us to ride around on Christmas Eve and look at all the pretty lights.

Looking back on it now, I'm sure that was my parent's way of getting us up and out of the house so we would stop asking if it was Christmas yet. ;) And it did help to pass the time.

Anyway, we do look at the lights whenever we are out riding around but it's not something that we load up and head out with specific intentions of doing. Maybe we should though, both of my girls really enjoy looking at all the pretty lights.

8. What is your least favorite thing about cold weather?

How about the cold weather?!?! I guess you could say that I am not a fan of cold weather :(

Hey Look! I found OJ's other glove!!

New Homes, Book Clubs and Awards

Look at all of these wonderful things going on...

First we took a flying leap of faith and moved into a new home; where we discovered that sometimes, the grass IS greener on the other side of the proverbial fence. :)

It's impossible to describe the feeling of peace that my family and I have felt since we moved, but that is exactly what we all feel, peace.

God is good, amen??

Next, I found the worlds greatest book club!



I have received several new books and audio books (with more still on the way) and all I had to do was list the books that I had lying around the house that had already been read.

This is a dream site for people like me who love to read. :)

Then my best blogging bud, Amy from In My Life, bestowed upon little ol' me this "Uber" bloggy award.

Here is a little bit about the award:

The "uber" (synonym for super) is a blog award given to sites who:

- inspire you

- make you smile and laugh

- or maybe give you amazing information

- a great read

- has an amazing design

- and any other reason you can think of that makes them uber amazing!

Thank you, Amy, so much for thinking of me for this lovely award. I think you're 'uber' amazing too!

The rules of the award are:

1. Put the logo on your blog or post.

2. Nominate at least five blogs (can be more) that for you are uber amazing.

3. Let them know that they have received this uber amazing award by commenting on their blog.

4. Share the love by linking to this post and the person you received the award from.

It's hard for me to narrow this down to just five people so how about I pass it on to all twelve of my peeps - because really, I love them all!!

So, If you are one of my peeps (Kelli, Jody, Denise, Dianne, Laura, Mia, Kellen, Sara, Amy, Diane, and Tina) then I think you are Ubar Amazing and this award is for you! :)

Grilling Goodness #9

YAY! It's time for another round of Grilling Goodness. I looked for it last week but our hostess must have been busy eating turkey or something ;) *Sheesh!*

Click here if you would like to play too - and don't forget to go back and tell Mr. Linky that you posted. :)

1. Do you send out Christmas cards? Have you done it yet?

Christmas cards are kind of like dinosaurs, aren't they??

Once upon a time, long, long ago, I used to send Christmas cards every year. But as the years passed on and the cost of stamps went up, the number of cards sent went down, until they finally became extinct - replaced by the cost efficient "Free" e-cards.

Every year I get a Christmas card from my friend Tina. And every year I think how nice it was for her to think of me and I tell myself that I am going to start sending cards again; but then the next year rolls around and the sending of the cards gets overlooked - once again.

Maybe this year will be the year that the dinosaurs Christmas cards return (don't laugh, it could happen).

Please stay tuned to find out... ;)

2. When you cook chicken, do you cook a whole chicken?

When and if I ever cook chicken, I'll let you know ;)

3. What is your favorite Christmas movie?

Oh, this is a hard one...there are so many good Christmas movies and I truly love them all but my all time favorite has to be It's A Wonderful Life.

4. How often do you go to the grocery store?

I hate going grocery shopping so I usually try to avoid it whenever possible.

Most of the time, I'll try to hold off until the hubby gets back and then send him; but we usually have to go at least once a week - I might be able to stretch it out to once every two weeks, if I play my cards right.

5. Do you play games online?

Not really, but for a while there I was addicted to playing the games on Webkinz - don't judge, they're really fun!

6. Do you make your bed everyday?

Um yeah, sure. Isn't that obvious in this here picture that I took??

7. What is one of your favorite websites? (Hopefully this is understood, but please share only the G rated sites! lol)

G Rated, huh? Gosh, that really narrows it down for me....

And for those of you who don't know me...KIDDING!!!

There are many informative websites out there that I really, really like: dictionary.com and snopes.com are two prime examples. However, my newest, most favoritest website is

~~~ drum roll please ~~~

I first heard about this wonderful website by one of my favorite blogging buddy's, Mama Mia. I said I was going to check it out, but then I forgot. :(

About a month later, I was talking to another of my bestest blogging buds, Amy from In My Life, when she reminded me about it - at which point I ran right over to check it out and fell immediately in love!!

This is quite possibly the answer to a low budget, avid reader's prayer. If you like to read, I strongly suggest checking this one out.

8. What gives you the most laughter in life?

It's hard to nail this answer down to one single thing. Laughter is a key element in my life and I like to surround myself with as much of it as possible.

My husband, my children, my friends and myself; I am blessed with laughter ever single day by at least one, if not all, of these people.

The Polar Express

Many bloggers took a bloggy break over the Thanksgiving holidays.

So now we've made it past the Thanksgiving holiday and it's time for the stories to begin again.

Join us, as we take you along with us on our little trip to the Polar Express:

First, we boarded the train and gave our tickets to the conductor.

Then we were seated at our table, as we waited for our first course...

Ahhh, there it is now...Hot Chocolate (but be careful because it's very hot!)

Next came our chicken tenders and fries

And while we ate, this handsome gentleman entertained us with a reading of The Polar Express.

After the reading, he gave each of the children a magical bell from Santa's sleigh.

When all the magical bells had been handed out, he told the girls and boys to raise them up high and jingle them. "Ah what a beautiful sound." He said, "too bad the grown ups can't hear them."

And for desert we were served a very warm, very soft, very good, chocolate chip cookie.

Afterwards, we went out and had our pictures taken.

Our conductor was wonderful with the children.

He was especially taken with Spice.

When we were listening to the story, she broke the silence with her exclamation that the hot chocolate was too hot and that it had burned her tongue.

A few minutes later, he came in with a cup of ice water for her.

How nice was that??

After our journey, the girls wanted to take a carriage ride.

Meet Jeff.

Jeff took us for a pleasant ride around the square.

The girls really enjoyed the ride - as is evident in this sweet picture.

*Sigh*

These precious moments are few and far between - good thing I caught it on camera; otherwise, I might not believe it myself. ;)

Thank you, Jeff! We enjoyed our ride.

Oh, and this is Jeff's friend. We don't know his name, but he seemed to be in the Christmas spirit.

Next, we went over to the center of the square and took a few Christmas pictures.

And finally, we strode over to check out the log cabin.

I just love looking at places like this. Let me walk around in an old, abandoned building, envisioning how it used to look and what the people who lived there were like, and I'm a happy camper.

If Spice doesn't look too happy, it's because her horrible mother said no when asked if this was were Santa lives.

She didn't hear the hope in her heart when the question was posed to her.

She didn't see the wistfulness in her eyes.

And she didn't know that she had crushed her dream with that one word response, until she saw this...

Aw baby, Mommy's sorry. Santa doesn't live here. But maybe he does stay here whenever he's in town...

Well, that back peddling must have worked because this is the end. I hope you enjoyed virtually coming along with us on our little Polar Express journey this weekend.

Happy Holiday's!

A Spelling Lesson

Did you know that the average four year old asks 437 questions a day??

That's just a little bit of trivia that the husband learned while sitting in his library, reading his bathroom reader, the other night.

We have a four year old.

Our four year old asks a LOT of questions every day. In fact, there are days when 437 seems like a low average to me - I'm just sayin' ;)

Along with the MANY questions that our four year old asks, she is also working on some of her other skills:

Our four year old is learning to write her name.

Our four year old wants to read.

Our four year old likes to pretend that she knows how to read.

And sometimes, our four year old thinks she can spell.

Take, for instance, the other day when our four year old was in the bathroom at the same time that her mother was stepping out of the shower.

I will spare you (and myself) the embarrassment of the majority of her queries on this particular day.

After all, if you've ever had children before, you understand that stepping out of the shower, in all of your glory, is NOT something that you want to do, unless you are prepared for the barrage of questions that will no doubt come flying at you.

After answering and/or evading many of her inquiries, she finally turned her attention to a mole...


"Mommy, what's that?"

"It's a mole."

"A hole?"

"No, a mole."

"A hole?"

"No baby, a mole not a hole."

"A hole."

"No, it's a Mole: M-O-L-E, Mole!"

"That's what I said, A Hole: A-Y-Z Hole!"

Tis The Season

The Christmas extravaganza has begun.

Is it just me, or does it seem that the holiday season gets pushed out earlier and earlier each year? I swear, this year I saw Christmas decorations when I went to get my daughter's Halloween costumes!! Does that not seem like a bit much to you all?

Around this time every year, I start making a list of items that look like they would make good gifts. After making the list, I start doing the research and checking out the customer reviews on the products that I have chosen. If you are at all like us, we spend way too much money on all of these Christmas gifts to be flushing it down the toilet on defective products.

After making the list and checking it twice, I then go out and shop for the items that made the cut. Usually, this list is rather long; but this year I’ve decided to change the way we do Christmas. I mean seriously, if baby Jesus only got three gifts – and He is the reason for the season – can someone explain why we lavish our children with so many gifts and toys that they couldn’t possibly appreciate them all?

Nine times out of ten, only three out of the tons of gifts that they receive will get played with on a regular basis. The remaining items get tossed to the back of a closet, bottom of a toy box, or stuffed under a bed until an unsuspecting parental figure comes along to clean the room. And I’m sure that we all know what happens next in this little scenario and so, I digress…

This years Christmas shopping was done with my newest philosophy in mind: New House…New Rules

There were scores of circumstances surrounding our recent move and there were many talks between myself and God as to whether or not this was the right thing for my family. I am completely at peace with the decision that we made because, for once, I feel like I listened to His voice and let Him guide me to where He wants us to be. As a show of gratitude, I resolved to make more of an effort to become a stronger Christian role model for my family. What better way to show the sincerity of my dedication than to bring the Christmas season back to what it is really all about?!?!

This year, instead of making Christmas all about the children – which is not a bad thing, mind you – I am determined to make it more about Him. My children will each receive three gifts – one representing each gift given by the three wise men – and one Santa Claus item.

In changing the way that we celebrate this joyous occasion, it is my hope that my children will grow up to understand the true meaning of Christmas as opposed to the commercialization of what it has become. And, if I’m being completely honest, that my pocketbook will not be stretched so thin each year, which is very stressful - and the older they get, the more stretching ‘said’ pocketbook must do. UGH! It’s a never ending, vicious, cycle.

So, now that I’ve shared my story with you, I’m curious….How do you and your loved ones choose to celebrate the Christmas Holiday’s? Do you lavish them with gifts, or do you limit the amount of gifts they receive?

I would love to hear your thoughts about this and please don’t be shy; I don’t think that there are any wrong answers here. However you and your family celebrate is the right way for you! :)

Grilling Goodness #8

Last weeks Grilling Goodness was in honor of Tina's wonderful husband, Donald. It was Donald's birthday (Happy Birthday, Donald!) so she chose some questions that her readers could answer about their spouse, significant other, or themselves - however they wanted to play. Since I too have a wonderful husband, I think I'll answer my questions about him as well. Let's commence...


1. Sitting in front of the TV, what’s on the screen?
It depends, he is pretty eclectic about things he watches. Sometimes it's the History Channel or the Animal Planet. It could be some of those informative shows like, "How Did They Make That" or it might be something that makes you appreciate what you do like, "Dirtiest Jobs." Sometimes it's a music channel like MTV, BET or VH1; but here lately, it's Howard Stern. What is it about him that all men love anyway?? I just don't get it.


2. You’re out to eat; what kind of dressing does he get on his salad?
He won't be getting any kind of dressing because he doesn't eat "rabbit food." Usually, he will request a cup of soup instead of a salad; but if he must get a salad, he will order it with Ranch and give it to Sugar.

3. What’s one food he doesn’t like?
Good thing I'm answering these questions about the hubby, because this list for me could get rather long.

One food he won't eat, besides salads, is Chitin's - BLECH!! and who could blame him?? Certainly not me!

However, I will tell you about a story that he did one Thanksgiving, when Sugar was about two years old and would eat anything you put on her plate. He thought it would be fun to see if she would eat chitin's so he put some on her plate, right beside her dressing. She quickly spit them out and hasn't touched dressing since that day.

4. What is his favorite type of sandwich?
Any sandwich with a lot of meat on it.

5. What would this person eat everyday if he could?
Chicken wings. He loves chicken wings!!

6. What is his favorite cereal?
I guess you can add this to the list of things he won't eat. He's not much of a breakfast food eater, and doesn't eat cereal at all.

7. What would he never wear?
I'm going to go with a speedo. He would never wear one of those and if he ever did, I wouldn't claim him as mine...I'm just sayin' ;)

8. What is his favorite sports team?
Fortunately for me, he's not that into the whole sports thing but his favorite Pro-Football team is the Chicago Bears and he supports the U of M Tigers in college basketball.

Seeing the World Through Two New Eyes

Last weekend the girls and I went shopping with mom.

As we walked in to the store, I noticed they had a sign for "Free Eye Exams Today".

Going through the open enrollment process, for benefits, at work and trying to decide if I should get vision or not, I sat down in the chair for my Free Exam.

The nice lady sat across from me and asked that I look into a big gray machine. "Okay, this exam is for reading," she said. "Can you read line 6 for me?"

"Ummmm, no." I tell her

"How about line 5?"

"Nope, not really."

"Okay, what about line 4?"

Line 4 I can read and I spout off the letters, as if I should get a gold star or a cookie or something as a consolation prize for being able to see them.

"Well, that's 20/50. You should be wearing reading glasses," She says.

"Yes, I do" I reply, sheepishly.

"How old are you?" she asks.

Quickly doing the math in my head, "37" I mumble respond.

"Uh-hu!" she chides, "You know, the closer you get to forty..."

YES, YES, I KNOW!! My inner voice screams.

I wish everyone would stop reminding me that I'm creeping up on barreling down on 40. I'm trying to tiptoe into it so that maybe my body won't notice when I hit the big four-o. Sheesh!

Haven't they ever turned forty before? Don't they remember what it was like?

What is it about forty anyway? When people find out your close to forty, they look at you differently, with an understanding, pitying look in their eyes. It's like a magic number or something - like the amount of miles you hit in your car before things start breaking down and needing repair.

I've still got a few miles left on these tires, folks. Don't start trading me in for a new model just yet.

But my eyes....well, seems like they may need an upgrade.

She replaces the reading exam with the distance exam and asks if I can read line 7, to which I simply laugh.

"Okay, what about line 6?"

"I don't know; am I supposed to see two sixes?" I ask

"No" She says and asks, "how about line 5?"

"I see two fives too."

"Line 4?"

Yes! I can read line four and I read the letters off to her once more.

"Again, that's 20/50. You need to make an appointment for an eye doctor, quickly" she tells me in her motherly, I wouldn't ride in a car with you, voice.

Guess that decides it for the benefits, huh?

Today I got my glasses and now I'm seeing the world through two new eyes.

Wow! Things look crisper!

But how about me?? How do I look with these foreign objects on my face??

(Just ignore all of those chins, m'kay? Thanks!)

(Oh yeah, and we've only been here three weeks so please ignore the boxes too. Thanks alot! :)

Our Beautiful New Dishwasher