You can Say Merry Christmas to Me 2007

Blessings of having a baby in the house on Christmas day are too many to be numbered. The worry of wondering if a 9 year old will like what you bought them is at times overwhelming. However, a baby's first christmas is great! Give 'em a brightly colored bow that comes off easy, and they are happy for a good long time. Picking out bows are much easier. We were blessed with a wonderful christmas (Ernest Elf , who hid several times, included).

He doesn't seem to be as excited at 6:30 as his brother was

But they both cheered up pretty quickly!

Here are my "dangerous boys" opening their book.

A Happy end to a Blessed day!

Ernest the Elf

I thought I had lost my Christmas Spirit.

Wednesday night L my oldest grandson informed me that he thought that he had an Elf. He was sure that this elf was tricking him, and that it lived somewhere in his house. He even told his Dad that he thought the elf was "stalking" him. (Oh... life is fun when little ones try to use new words that they have learned.) L explained to me that he had started planning a way to trap the elf. He was sure that it was currently living in his closet. He had heard noises. He was sure it was the elf messin' with his stuff.

Thursday 8 PM, I was summoned to L's home to inspect the trap that he had fixed. He really put a lot of thought into catching this elf. He had a box, a stick (surprise, surprise), and a candy bar tied to the stick. He was sure he would catch the elf. After leaving his house, I joined in with Son #1 on the search for the perfect elf....of course; it was the one time when we could find nothing that would resemble an elf...so we planned a night of a near catch. We bought a couple of small toys. Son #1 waited until L was fast asleep, and went to inspect the elf trap. He exchanged the surprise items for the candy bar, and left a note stating that it was "a nice try", but L would have to try harder if he thought he could catch a "Christmas Elf".

Friday 7 AM, on my way to work, I got a phone call from L. He was talking very fast and explaining to me how he had almost caught the elf whose name was..."Ernest Elf" He read me the note that the "Elf" had left, and told me he knew the elf was still in the house, he knew because he had made sure that ALL the doors were closed. Apparently an elf can get into a house, but can only leave through a door. Well...this put us in a predicament. Now we had to find an elf. I called almost every toy store in the greater Houston area. Called most of the book stores, and quite a few Hallmark stores, only to be told either

A. No

B. No

or

C. Ummm...No.

I only had one person laugh at me. I encouraged co-workers, and friends to help, and finally did a Google search for Elf and Houston. I came up with a bunch of phone numbers, and finally the moment came when I heard something besides "No". Son #1 was given the location of the "Elf drop" (I really am serious about the drop part. In fact it was more than a little weird). The plan was laid;and a"Better" Elf trap was set.

Saturday 8AM "Grandma, I caught my elf"..."No way, elves are too smart to be caught"..."No really, I caught it, come see it" "How did you catch it?" Now the rest of the conversation I can't repeat word for word, but it had something to do with a baseball, string, a Hershey bar, a net, and a bed post? This I had to see. Now I have to give it to Son #1. All those years of terrorizing his brother had finally paid off. Now he was the coolest dad! The picture above is L with his elf Ernest. Ernest is very tricky. He almost got away at lunch today (Thanks to Hector and others at Lupe's. They pulled off the perfect heist with all the gusto of any mission impossible episode. I could almost hear the music in the background.) Luckily, Ernest was found hiding in a nearby palm tree. Apparently he is shy in crowds, and only wanted to get away from everyone, but still be able to watch L. I didn't lose my Christmas spirit. I found it in the palm tree with Ernest!

The psalmist stated that "Children are a gift of the Lord". I repeated this often when L's dad was little, and I felt like I was not the mom I wanted to be. But, today I have to admit that it came to mind again and only brought me joy.

Decisions, Decisions.....

I hate making decisions. I hate change in my life. I am not talking about the everyday should I wear blue, black or red, I mean change with a capital C. I like to stay with one relationship (I think my husband appreciates this decision...at least I hope he does). I don't like to change jobs. I despise having to change households. Give me my space and let me put down my roots, and feather my nest. We have recently been doing a little remodeling and sprucing up on our "nest", and I think I lived with a paint swatch for about 3 months. I also have a child who feels the same way I do(sorry dil 1, this quirk is my fault). On the other hand I have a husband and child who embrace change (dil 2, you can blame this on his dad). They love the challenge. They love the stimulation. I guess opposites really do attract. I have spent the last week talking with people who also embrace change like a warm cup of cocoa on a cold winter day. I just don't get it. Unfortunately these people (with the exception of my husband and child) do not understand how this makes me feel, and have been tying to push their comfort with change on to me. Being the "good pw" the I am, I have mostly smiled and nodded, all the while looking for a place to run away to. Boy, talk about wanting a "Calgon, take me away" moment or two or ten. So... those of you who know me, please do not think that I have picked up a nervous twitch, and please do not point out my new frown lines. Hopefully this to shall pass, and I will be my ever-loving self again soon.

What is this world coming to?

What??? Jack needs writers?... I am shocked! I have to say that I rarely watch much TV...who has the time? But January to June is my time with Son #1, family, and Frank ( who is also kind of family in a not really family but we love him and wish he were kind of way) Everyone who knows us knows not to call for the 1 hour a week (occasionally 2) that Jack is saving the world. In fact... the only time Son #1 was even close to being rude was when someone ( salesperson) called at a critical moment (apparently they did not know the world was in the hands of terrorist, and life as we know it was about to end). Sigh... I guess we will have to live with the fact that while Jack is still "the man" he does have his limitations. Apparently he cannot save the world and write about it too! Oh well.... maybe we will have to go back and watch a previous season (yes we have them) until the writers get this worked out.

So much to do....so little time

I need more time. I would love to know the location of the closest Automatic Time Machine. Hubby and I are in the process of updating our kitchen. Work at my day job is overwhelming with tasks (seems to be more chiefs than indians and I definitely count myself in the indian category). My day usually starts at 5 AM and lately has been ending somewhere after midnight. I am so thankful for my 1 hour commute. I can at least get in some reading, or catch a few winks ( no I am not driving) coming and going to work.

Don't get me wrong, I really like my job. It is just an overwhelming time of the year. I am really appreciative of the work my husband is doing around the house, but with the cool weather, and dark nights, I keep thinking that I would rather watch on old movie, than paint, or scrape, or put on new hinges, or sweep, or clean, or..... well you get the point.
If I could just find that machine, it would really help. Then I could find the time to do all the things I need to do (go to the gym and work off the pie from Thanksgiving), as well as the ones I want to do (snuggle on the couch and watch a good movie). My other option is to find someone who wants to pay me for doing what I really want to do in life. As soon as I figure out what that is I will let you know. Oh well... this to shall pass.

pw

Thanksgiving dinner

Carbs, Carbs, everywhere....and oh so much to eat!! I have just finished my prep for the big dinner on Thursday. I have never been much of a cook, and usually prove it over and over. My idea of preparing the meal is offering to stop and pick it up on the way home. But, since my true love and I are trying to lose a few pounds, we have decided to eat more from our own fridge, and less from the local eating establishments. So...that being said, I polled the family, asked what they wanted to eat, and have been searching for easy to fix, yet tasty additions to our Thanksgiving dinner. First off...none of us are that crazy about Turkey, so... being from Texas, our remedy is cross out turkey, add grilled steak and shrimp. Ohhhh, I like this plan already. Grilling is strictly the job of the men in my life!! Next, the side dishes...hmmmm, of course there must be potatoes..those from the pioneer woman (carb), and corn on the cob (carb, carb), oh...and mom would you fix some of that macaroni stuff (carb, carb, carb), the one from the girl you work with (thanks, TH). Plus, we must have a couple of pies. Suddenly I realize that I will be walking on the treadmill for the rest of the month just to walk off the meal. Oh well, I am thankful that I am able to do this, and spend time with all the guys (husband, 2 sons, 2 grandsons) and gals (2 daughters in law a.k.a., dil 1 and dil 2) in my life. I hope that you all have a blessed and Happy Thanksgiving, and I am sure you will be seeing me on the treadmill.


pw