Change is in the Air
I wanted something funky and fun for the blog... not sure if this is it. I'll probably mess with it a few more times over the next few days... so don't be frightened if you stop by and the blog looks a little random or weird. Not that it doesn't already look random and weird, but you know what I mean.
I think this will be an interesting year for us. We're making some big decisions and wondering how in the world it's all gonna work out... I feel a bit like this right now...

The first step is always the hardest, right?
So, off we go, into a new year. I'm sure it will be full of craziness. After all, the last 32 years of my life have been that way, I have no reason to believe that it will stop now!
Happy New Year!

Stupid
Have you ever looked at something and thought... "Hey, I bet I could do that!" and then when you actually TRIED to do that thing you realized it was much MUCH harder than it looked. Yeah. Case in point:
This is Baby Girl.

Please notice her lovely golden hair. I am not sure what possessed me... you see, I cut all the boys' hair the other day. No big deal - I just take the razor and buzz them. Easy as pie (well, except for Little Bug... but that's another post for another day). Baby Girl came and said she wanted her hair cut. I told her we could take her to have it cut. But that's not what she wanted. She wanted ME to do it. And, in my disillusioned state I thought, "That shouldn't be too hard... "
FAMOUS LAST WORDS!
She wanted it just a little bit shorter. So I cut a tiny bit off and realized that the sides were uneven. So, I cut a little more... now the sides were even, but the back was longer than the sides. I kept snipping and cutting. At one point I told her I had to cut a little more off and she burst into tears.
"Mom, if you keep cutting, I'll be a BOY!!"
I admit that tears welled up in my eyes... what had I done??
I trimmed and evened things out, but it's short. A lot shorter than what she had told me she wanted. And the back? It's still longer than the front, but I don't dare try to fix it...
See all those fun little jagged edges? Yeah... sigh... she doesn't hold still and I don't know what I'm doing. Bad combo...

I curled it this last Sunday to hide all the mistakes... you can see from this picture that the sides are a lot shorter... I've given my child the "wedge" haircut from the 70's. Think Dorothy Hamill sans bangs.

She's still my little cutie but I really hate what I've done to her hair! Sigh. It's a good thing it will grow back...

Slam
The Sound of Music was on t.v. last night. I didn't get to watch it, but I did see enough commercials to get the music stuck in my head :)
I was buzzing around the house singing "My Favorite Things" and this is the conversation that followed...

Red: Mom, what is that song from?
Me: What do you mean? (I twirl and continue singing) Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens...
Red: Is it from a movie?
Me: Yes.... bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens...
Red getting a little exasperated with his crazy mom: What movie is it from?
Me: It's called The Sound of Music.... (singing a little louder) brown paper packages tied up with strings...
Red: Doesn't sound like music to me!

Oh how I love my pre-teen child!

Resolve: Not Just a Carpet Cleaner
It's that time of year again. Around this time of year I tend to set goals and make resolutions that I have absolutely no intention of keeping. I usually set mediocre goals so that when I fail, it's not such a big deal. If I say that I plan on eating healthy for a week and then only make it 10 minutes, it's not as bad as if the original goal had been for a year. Yes, I basically set myself up for failure each year.
But this year I've been thinking about my time and how I spend it. A few weeks ago I taught a lesson to the women at church about unity and how sacrifice can bring us closer together. I had read about the early pioneers of the church tithing their time - one out of every ten days was given to the Lord to work on the temple. And I wondered - how would my life be different if I tithed my time?
I can't really give a full day every ten days, but what if I tithed the hours of my day? What if I gave 10% of my time each day to the Lord? It comes out to 2 hours and 24 minutes. How would I be different if I did this?
Then I started thinking about how I spend my time during the day. I have about 16-17 hours each day where I am awake and functioning (well, semi-functioning). Sometimes it's more, sometimes it's less. Those hours are squandered on trivial things. Things that don't improve me. Things that don't bring joy to my life or the life of my family. Things that keep me from progressing in any way, shape or form. It makes me sad to think that I don't feel a sense of purpose in my life at this time.
And so, it's time to become resolute.
I can't afford to set myself up to fail again this year. I could opt to just not set any goals (I've done that before) but I feel compelled to do something this year. I'm tired of sitting around watching life pass me by.
Last year I had hoped to lose 10 pounds. The year has passed me by and I still have those 10 pounds (plus a few extra). The time passed and I did nothing. I don't want to look back on another year and wonder what I accomplished with my time.
And so, as usual, I turn to you by bloggin buddies: Do you set goals or resolutions with the new year? If so, how do you keep yourself motivated to follow through?

Hmmm...
I've been trying all day to write a Christmas post. At first I thought I could come up with something really deep and profound to share with you. But, it's fairly safe to say neither of those words describes me. Then I wanted to be very spiritual and thoughtful. But that didn't really work out either. My message then progressed to something very silly and a tad on the bizarre side. A little too silly and bizarre if you ask me. And so, instead, you get this:
From our Craziness...
to yours (because, let's face it, if you're reading this blog, you must be a little crazy)
Merry Christmas!
I hope that the true spirit of the season fills your heart and stays with you throughout the coming year!

Day One
There are moms out there that look forward to their kids being out of school. They love the time with their kids. They enjoy doing projects and playing. They are organized and ready for any craziness that could creep into their day.
I am not one of those moms.
Oh, I love my kids and I love to be with them, but I fly by the seat of my pants. I'm a little crazy and tend to be more than a little unorganized. I procrastinate and don't plan ahead as much as I should. Often times this leads to chaos in our home. This week is going to be a good example of that.
My kids are bored - already. It's only the first day of Christmas break and they can't seem to find anything to do but watch movies and play video games. I really don't want to spend the next two weeks plugged into the t.v.
But, I didn't plan. I didn't prepare. I don't really have anything for them to do and so now? Well, now I'm paying the price.
When kids are bored they do the most natural thing possible - they fight. We have had some lovely disagreements today over toys, treats, Wii games, lunch, movies...etc.
It doesn't help that I have no desire to leave the house. The snow-bats (a.k.a. cranky old people who are escaping the frozen north) have descended on our valley and their driving is more than frightening (yes, I know that there are a lot of very nice old people who drive very well... there just aren't very many of them HERE).
I do not want to stand in lines with my kids at this moment. I'll stay home and let them drive me crazy before I take them out in public by myself. Especially since they are all in such stellar moods (it doesn't help that I had the brilliant idea of letting them sleep under the Christmas tree last night... Little Bug didn't get to sleep till 11:00 and Red and Baby Girl were up for the day by 6:00... so, my idea was good in theory, but perhaps not in reality).
They don't want to play outside. They don't want to play with their toys... I think they are too excited about the possibility of new toys. They don't want to do anything and I'm going insane!
Thoughts? Ideas? What do you do with your kids to keep them from getting bored during the holiday break?


help

Yesterday
We accomplished a lot yesterday. We cleaned the house, did a little laundry, dropped off Toys for Tots items, recycled our plastic bottles, went to the bank, fed the ducks, walked around the park, saw "The Tale of Despereaux", ate at a new place called The Slice (and loved it) and then used my plethora of 50% off coupons at JoAnn Fabric. WHEW! Just to highlight a few little things...

Toys for Tots is something we try to do every year. One of the local furniture stores had an advertisement on t.v. saying "Come help us fill our sleigh with toys for kids here in the valley!" So, I, being fairly literal, thought they had some kind of sleigh set up to put the toys in. I got the kids all excited about putting the toys into this sleigh... only to find out it was two cardboard boxes. Kind of anticlimactic, but still good for the kids to remember that this season is about giving.

"The Tale of Despereaux" was cute. Our family was fairly split on how we felt about it. Red and I have both read the book. Now, we didn't expect it to be EXACTLY the same, but they changed it a lot! The overall message in the book is different from that in the movie. It was kind of disappointing for us. But, Baby Girl and Hubby, who haven't read the book, quite liked the movie. Little Bug was not impressed (but, he may have not been feeling well... he woke up this morning at 5:00 with the flu that I had earlier this week... good times). There were parts that seemed a little intense for a movie that was rated G, but other than that, it was good.


As for the 50% off coupons... from now till the 24th JoAnn's is having their "Coupon Commotion" and they sent out an ad with about twelve 50% off coupons for different things. Last time I was there a lady gave me her coupons saying that she wouldn't be using them. Then they stuffed coupons into my bag at the checkout. Then I got the ones in the mail... I had TONS of coupons! I bought a few beads that were already 40% off, but I had enough coupons to get everything else in my bag for 50% off! It was fantastic and made me very, very happy :) Coupons have that affect on me...

And, to top the day off, Little Bug wore his new shoes all day! I know that's not a big thing to most people, but he has a lot of sensory issues. New shoes are a really hard thing for him. It was a struggle to get them on, but once they were there, he did great!

All in all, we had a really fantastic day! How has your weekend been?

Randomly Random

Who doesn't love a completely random meandering post? I can't seem to gather enough thoughts to write a real blog post right now... sorry!

• Thanks so much for all the well wishes yesterday! Apparently I had a 24 hour bug because I feel great today. Yesterday was so miserable. I woke up and felt like someone was jabbing two knives into the back of my head. Then we had the dizziness, dry heaves and fevers. Fun stuff! But, Hubby was able to take Baby Girl to work with him for awhile. So, I was able to rest and SLEEP! I think that helped more than anything.
• I'm doing a major cop-out for gifts for teachers this year. I bought a Barnes and Noble gift card for the classroom. I never know what to get teachers, but I would think that they could always use new books, right? It was just going to be too expensive to buy everyone a gift... Little Bug has 8 people that work with him in his class! Plus two bus drivers... so the classroom is getting a gift this year... is that really lame? Or do you think it will be okay?
• I was grocery shopping and decided to smile at everyone I saw. Most people smiled back and even said "Hello" or "How are you?" But one kid ...grrr. He was probably about 16-17 and I gave him my best friendly grin. He stared at me, rolled his eyes and walked away. I am so not looking forward to having teenagers.
• We didn't get snow in the valley, but our mountains got dumped on. Some areas got 2 feet of snow! I know that's not a lot to some of you Northern Folk, but around these parts, that's a pretty amazing storm. They have closed Interstates and Highways all over Southern California because of this freak storm.

• We were at the mall today and I felt like I was at a weird street fair/carnival. Maybe it's just because I don't ever go to the mall, but all the people at the booths in the center kept trying to attack me! Every time I would walk past they would spring out from some hiding place and ask if I'd like to let them curl Baby Girl's hair (wait...what?) or try their newest lotion. I kept expecting someone to ask if they could guess my weight and birthday or see if I'd like to whack a mole and win a giant stuffed teddy bear...
• Red wrote a sweet letter to Santa the other day. He asked Santa to use the "materials" from his gifts to make a really great gift for his brother and sister. Now, Red knows the truth about Santa, so I'm not sure if he was sucking up or just being really kind. I'm going to choose to believe he was being a sweetheart.
• I haven't done laundry all week. My children will have to go to school naked tomorrow if I don't do something about it...
• I think we are going to take the kids to see "The Tale of Despereaux" this weekend. Red and I both really loved the book and can't wait to see how it translates onto the big screen. Are there any other movies coming out for the holidays? We have two weeks off from school and I'm looking for ways to keep the troops entertained!

Well, I think that's it for now. I'm not sure how much I'll be posting in the next little while. I am hoping to get caught up on blog reading in the next few days though... I'm way behind. Till then, adieu!

Haiku and Other Nonsense
Five blankets, still cold.
Stomach quivers, headache throbs.
Flu season is here.

Yeah. I've got the flu. Lucky me. Just thought I'd take a moment to let you know that I accomplished everything from my list yesterday. And it's a good thing since I won't be going anywhere today.
Now, onto the "Other Nonsense". As many of you know, I live in Southern California. It's warm here. Sorry, but it is. It doesn't snow... usually. But tonight?? Well, it's supposed to rain all night and drop below freezing... which means snow! We may see something like this...
tomorrow morning! How crazy is that?
Okay... I'm going back to bed now. The nonsense is over...

Wait... What?
I hate frantic days. Especially during the holidays. I'd rather just sit home and watch movies or catch up on my blog reading. Or do laundry. I would actually rather do laundry than the list of things I have to do today. Sad, eh? Here's my list of things that must be accomplished today in no particular order

• Take packages to the post office. I know. I'm really late in doing this, but I sold something* on eBay. It ends this morning and I want to get it in the mail ASAP. Plus, I still have Christmas packages floating around that should have been sent a week ago. Sigh.
• Pack up one of my nativities and take it to the church for decor. I have been asked to help decorate for a Christmas party for the women in our church. I've been asked or signed up to do 50 other things for this party, but we'll talk about those later.
• Call all the women who said they would do a part in the program for tonight and remind them to come early.
• Make an apple crisp for the party.
• Make corn chowder for the party.
• Get costumes for the program tonight pulled together.
• Gather all the items and be to the church by 6:30 without spilling hot soup or apple crisp or forgetting anything :)
• Practice my parts for the program. I'm singing in a quartet and possibly doing a speaking part since one of the women might not be able to be there.
• Go to the store and buy styrofoam peanuts for Red's class. He has no idea why he needs them. I don't know either. Can you buy styrofoam peanuts?? I've never looked for them before...
• And, to top it all off, it's Tuesday. Tuesday is early release for my boys. They will be home by 1:00. I have to have all my errands outside of the home DONE by that time.

So, there you have it. Craziness abounds in our home today. I admit, having to make the corn chowder is my own fault. I signed up to do it. Well, all of it is my fault. I'm a procrastinator and a person that has a hard time saying "no". Which is a bad combination :) I'm really not complaining. It shouldn't be too bad of a day. I'm just tired. Little Bug was up last night around midnight... which means I was up last night around midnight. Blah!
Wish me luck!

* I decided to sell my Twilight books. I went on eBay and found a set just like mine that was selling for $56 - that's more than what I paid for my books! I like money more than I like the books (please don't hate me Twilight fans)... so off they go :)

Through the Years...
I wanted to start a new holiday tradition this year. Of course, it won't actually be a "tradition" till we've done it for a few years. But you've got to start somewhere, right?
I took some garland, wrapped it with ribbon and put it around our front door.
Then I found my favorite photos from this last year, resized the pictures, created an 8x10 document and arranged 6-8 photos on each page. After that I printed them up at Costco, brought them home and cut out the individual shots. Then the fun began.
We looked at each picture and I had the kids try to guess where we had been, who we were with, and what had happened that day. After we talked about each picture we hung it on the garland with a tiny clothes pin or a paper clip. It was so fun to take a look back at our year and see some of the really fun things we had done. I was amazed at how much the kids remembered! We giggled as we looked at photos from Halloween and Disneyland. We groaned a little bit over the shots from our crazy drive through the desert. We loved the pictures that showed all the fun things we had done at the beach. We smiled at photos from birthdays and scout events. We talked about friends and family that had come to visit and the great times we had with them. We had fun reliving it all. And to top it off, I think the door looks great! I love the thought of going in and out of our home through an arch of photos representing our favorite memories from the last year. Hopefully as we see these photos every day, they will help us remember how great our family is. I think this is something that we will try to do each year!
What holiday traditions do you love? Have you started any new traditions this year?

Things I've Learned While Preparing Christmas Cards

1. Gel pens are BAD for the backs of photos. The ink doesn't dry... ever. Well, okay, maybe it eventually does, but not till you've smeared it all over the place and made a huge mess!
2. http://www.whitepages.com/ is an awesome site for locating long lost friends addresses. It's also kind of creepy to see how much information they had about me on there...
3. There is no such thing as the perfect family photo. Find a semi decent one and move on.
4. You don't have to send cards to every person you know... no really... you don't!
5. The person who invented the Avery Wizard Label program was someone who had hand addressed their Christmas cards and realized that their hands would never be the same. Next year I will use the program, if I can get my fingers to work by then.
6. If someone volunteers to help, accept it! Even having another person put on the stamps can be a big help.
7. Don't wait too long or your Christmas cards may end up being New Years cards... or even Martin Luther King Day cards...
8. Have a good attitude. If you're grumbling or complaining (not that I would EVER do that) while addressing the cards, it kind of defeats the purpose. Sure... you may have written an address WRONG 3 different times, but it's the thought that counts. And negative thoughts never helped anyone...
9. Don't talk and write at the same time. You will soon find that you are writing your conversation down instead of happy thoughts or addresses.

And there you have it! Hopefully you can learn from my mistakes wisdom and enjoy your time getting cards ready.
Do you have any tips to add to the list for making Christmas cards easier?

Have You Ever...
It's that time again. Time for me to post odd random things that are perhaps a bit weird in the hopes that some of you can relate just a bit. Thus making me feel a little less like a total weirdo.
Without further ado...
Have you ever...
... decided not to send out Christmas cards and then changed your mind last minute and scrambled to gather addresses and get them out the door? (If you'd like a card, I'd love to send one... email me your address)
... entered a contest on this blog? (Please be aware that this woman writes in SATIRE... everything is supposed to be silly and fun, NOT taken seriously)
... taken your kids shopping and given them hints of things your spouse can get you for Christmas?
... made a big decision and then felt really unsure of yourself?
... hiked in an area and hoped that you'd be able to go back again soon only to find out that the field trip you signed up to go on with your son's class is going to the same place? (I really love it up there and can't wait to go again)
... had a child change their minds 100 times about what they want from Santa this year?
... moved ornaments around on your tree because you hate having "holes" in the decor?
... watched a Barbie Christmas Carol?
... bought a gift for your spouse and then second guessed yourself... but can't do anything about it because you bought said gift in another state (Idaho)?
... been financially irresponsible during the holidays (ahem)?
... gotten a head cold right before you are supposed to sing in a program?
... hit the "spellcheck" button and felt a sense of joy as it said "no misspellings found"?
Okay... I think that's it for now. If you can identify with any of these items, please, let me know. It will make me feel a bit less lonely :)

Update in Pictures
Lots of pictures today about really random things... enjoy!
We got our fake tree up and decorated. Even though I'm not in love with the tree itself, I do love the fact that we gathered together and had fun decorating it! And, I do really like the way it looks, even if it doesn't smell the way I want.Little Bug took a break from decorating to play with our Fisher Price Nativity.It was Baby Girl's turn to put the star on this year. She was so excited!
Our hike on Saturday was amazing! The Autism Society chartered a bus to take us to the canyons. We watched Ratatouille and played around in style. When we got there we looked at some homes made out of palm fronds called "quiches". I'm sure that's not how you spell it, but that's how it's pronounced!The area was beautiful with lots of majestic rock formations and a stream! We live in a desert and it was so odd to see a natural stream out there.Our party at church was so fun! Hubby wasn't feeling very well after his test (which, he thinks he did okay on... we won't know till January) so I took Baby Girl and Red to the party. Little Bug doesn't always do well with crowds in confined spaces. So, he stayed home and played with Dad for the night. I got our costumes done but Baby Girl refused to have her picture taken. So, this is the best shot I have. She's the one in the bright green.Red agreed to pose with some of the "coins" they made for everyone to buy their dinner at the different little stands they had created. My birthday on Sunday was fantastic. Hubby made corn chowder for dinner and this is what we had for dessert...I still have some in my fridge if anyone would like to come over!
And, my last bit of randomness comes from this morning. I was opening blinds when I saw this guy...
That's some kind of hawk. And that pile of fluff he's sitting on? That would be a pigeon. Needless to say, I haven't eaten anything this morning. I can't seem to find my appetite just yet...
And there you have it! Lots of randomness just for you. I know you're excited, but please... try to contain yourselves :)

Today
My children don't believe in sleeping in. I think they are under the misconception that sleeping in will do them severe bodily harm. Does anyone know how to convince them otherwise? Little Bug was ready for the day to start at 5:00 this morning. Everyone else was up by 6:00. Don't they realize all of the things I have to do today? And now I will have to accomplish those things on a limited amount of sleep. You'd think that they'd figure out that I don't function well when I'm sleep deprived.
Our first thing is already done. Hubby got out the door to take the LSAT test for law school. He has put a lot of time into studying and preparing. I'm sure he will do really well on this test.
Items number two on our list is a hike. Several months ago I signed our little family up to go on a hike with the Autism Society. They chartered buses to take us to the destination. They have had a lot of people bail out for this activity. I don't feel like we can and I don't really want to. I've never seen the canyons they are taking us to and I really want to go. It will be a little crazy just me and the kids... but, uh, I can do it... I think.
After that we come home and get cleaned up. Then we have to make brownies and costumes for our church Christmas party. They want everyone to come dressed in clothes from "ancient times". Specifically, Book of Mormon times. Then we have to be to the church by 5:30.
To top it off, we're waiting for news on Hubby's dad. My FIL has been in the hospital for some tests. We're waiting for answers and hopefully we will have some soon.
It's going to be busy. Very busy. Oh, and tomorrow? We'll tomorrow I'll be 32 years old! I plan on taking it pretty darn easy tomorrow. That should make up for the craziness of today, right? Well, we're going to take a hike (ha!). Have a fantastic weekend!

Meme
I never do pronounce that right. I always say it as "ME! ME!" because that's what the darn things are usually about... ME! I got this as an email, but thought I'd use it here on the blog for fun! Feel free to play along if you'd like...
1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? For every other gift giving holiday we do bags. But for Christmas it HAS to be wrapping paper
2. Real tree or Artificial? Sniff... sniff... I don't want to talk about it. (if you missed my WHINE fest about going from real to artificial, you can read all about my sadness here... although, the fake tree is growing on me. Not that it can really grow, being fake and all, but whatever)
3. When do you put up the tree? As soon after Thanksgiving as possible
4. When do you take the tree down? Um... whenever I get around to it. Sometimes it's right after Christmas other times it's been the middle of January.
5. Do you like eggnog? No! And for the life of me, I can't figure out why others do!
6. Favorite gift received as a child? Hmm... I got a walkman one year and I carried that thing with me everywhere I went! Loved it :)
7. Hardest person to buy for? Hubby and Red. Hubby won't ever tell me what he would like and Red is getting to a stage where he doesn't want toys and everything he does want is EXPENSIVE!
8. Easiest person to buy for? Baby Girl - she wants everything!
9. Do you have a nativity scene? I think I have 4 full scenes and then 5+ with just Jesus or Joseph, Mary and Jesus
10. Mail or email Christmas cards? I'm sorry... did you say something? Sigh... I admit it. I'm the WORST Christmas card person in the world. I haven't sent any out for a long time...
11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? I can't really think of one...
12. Favorite Christmas Movie? ELF!! hee hee... love that movie!
13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? I shop all year long and hide it away... which can be problematic when I go to find the gifts and can't remember where they are at.
14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? I don't think so
15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Just one thing? Hmmm... well, there's fudge... and butter cookies... and cinnamon rolls... and candy canes... and chocolate carmel pretzels... and hot cocoa... and...
16. Lights on the tree? Yep!
17. Favorite Christmas song? I can't pick just one. It's an impossibility. My playlist is a pretty good indicator of what I like (although, this is the same playlist I have on our family blog and so some of the song selections were not mine ;))
18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? I used to love to travel, but I'm becoming more of a homebody
19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer's? Yep
20. Angel on the tree top or a star? Star
21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? We each open a new pair of P.J.'s (as opposed to opening an OLD pair of P.J.'s) on Christmas Eve and everything else on Christmas morning
22. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? People complaining about the season. It just reminds me how far we've gotten from the true meaning of the holiday.
23. Favorite ornament theme or color? I have lots of favorite ornaments. When I was a kid my mom bought us a new ornament each year and tucked it away in a box. When I got married, she gave me the box plus all the ornaments that had been given to me over the years or that I had made. It was a great thing to have on our first Christmas as a couple! I'm doing the same thing for my kids and they love it!
24. Favorite for Christmas dinner? Hubby usually makes Puerto Rican chicken and rice
25. What do you want for Christmas this year? Instructions on EXACTLY what I should be doing with my life. That's not too much to ask... is it?

Forgetful
Before we left for Idaho I did all the laundry. I was so pleased with myself because usually I leave it till we come home. Then I have laundry from the trip AND all the stuff I left here. This time I was on the ball... or so I thought.
Yesterday Baby Girl took a bath. When she was done she told me she wanted her elephant towel. A friend had made the towel when she was born. It has her name on it and a little elephant. So, I started to look for the towel.
Not in that bathroom. Not in my bathroom. Not in her room or the boys' room. Not in any of the cupboards or closets where I keep towels. I was starting to wonder if a towel eating monster came into my home while we were gone because I noticed that most of my towels were missing.
Then, I had a thought. A yucky, nasty, horrible thought. Could I have? No... no way. But I thought I'd check anyway... and yes. Yes I did. How could I have forgotten them?? I left a batch of towels in the WASHING MACHINE for a week and a half!
The edges on some of them were a tan-yellow color and the smell... blech! Totally over powering!
Unfortunately, the kids "special" towels, including Baby Girl's elephant one, were in there. I had to try and save them. I set the machine to super wash and put bleach and detergent in. Rinsed them twice. Then washed them again with Borax. They are now in the dryer. I haven't had the guts to go check and see if they are ruined forever or if they were salvageable... if you'll hold on for a moment, I'll go check.....
The look okay.
They smell okay.
The real test is getting one of the items wet ...
I got one of the dish rags wet and the verdict is....
SAVED!!
Apparently the two washings with a plethora of cleaners did the trick.
Still can't believe I completely overlooked that last batch of laundry. You know, they say that a stegosaurus brain was the size of a walnut. I think I just might be a descendant.

Surrender
There are some aromas that bring to mind holiday memories. I love the smell of hot cider (even though I'm not a fan of drinking it - weird, I know), goodies baking in the oven and fresh cut pine trees! Unfortunately, most of us are allergic to the pine trees.
I never had troubles as a kid. I don't remember feeling like my head was so full it was going to explode or sneezing till my lungs begged for mercy. But, as I've gotten older, the allergies have kicked in. I think Little Bug, Baby Girl and Hubby are all affected by it too. Red is the only one it doesn't seem to bother. And he could care less about what kind of tree we have - as long as there are gifts under it with his name on them, then he's good.
We're so miserable when we have a fresh tree and seems so silly to suffer for such a small thing. Yet, we've done it for a long time. I grew up with a real tree. We've been married for 10 years and we've had a real tree each and every year. It's tradition.
But this year is different. We already have really bad head colds and we're tired of feeling blah. I couldn't justify making my family more sickly than we already are. I gave in. I bought a fake tree.
And now? I want to cry. It seems so ridiculous to be so upset over this, but it makes me so sad. 33 years (almost) of having that wonderful smell in my home and now it's gone.
Does anyone know of a candle or spray or something that smells wonderfully Christmas-y? It doesn't necessarily have to be a pine scent, just something holiday-ish.
In the mean time, I think I'll go bake some cookies to make myself feel better...

Sporadic Speculation

• We're home! We're slightly sick, but we're home. Visiting family in Idaho was fantastic. We didn't get to see the lights on Temple Square though. There was a concert there that night and we were afraid that there would be TONS of people. Little Bug does not do well in crowds. So, we stopped and stayed with friends that night. It was so great to visit with them.
• I did not finish my 50,000 words for the NaNoWriMo thing. I'm disappointed, but it's okay. I plan on trying again next year.
• I love my shower. I know that's an odd thing to say... let me explain. While in Idaho I dreaded every shower. You see, my parents have no water pressure. So, it feels like a spit bath (how's that for a mental image?!). My in-law's shower head is about 5' high. I'm 5'6" which means I have to bend myself into odd positions to wash my hair. I can't tell you how good it felt to stand up straight in a normal stream of water when we got home.
• I've changed the blog look (it's not my favorite) and added Christmas music. I know there are those of you who are not fond of the music starting when the blog comes up, but I really want the Christmas music going. So, please, don't boycott my blog during the month of December :)
• I was able to buy the last figurines in the Willow Tree Nativity that I needed! I still need the creche (please don't ask me how to pronounce it... I have no idea... usually I call it "the manger thingy"). I'll take pictures and post them eventually.
• My Mom and I hit 3 Black Friday sales. We went to smaller stores and missed all the crazy crowds. I still got what I wanted and didn't have to beat anyone up for it.
• I am almost done with my holiday shopping. I am struggling with things for my Hubby. I have one thing, but I'm not sure what else to get. Any suggestions?
• I feel like Wonder Woman today! I got everything from our trip unpacked, put our Christmas decorations up, changed the blog look, did dishes, played with Baby Girl and finished off the fudge :) Tonight we'll get our tree and I'm going to have everyone help to get the house looking fantastic! All in all it's been a good day