First day of my last year in my 30's
We have had an awesome holiday so far. On Christmas Eve we had a bunch of wonderful friends over for an open house and people came and left and it was all good. I was frantic for a while thinking I'd not made enough food and wasn't organised enough but I think it all turned out just fine. Thankfully a couple of friends arrived just in the nick of time to help me keep #3 busy and whip some cream. I was planning on taking photos of all the food and activity but I was just too busy. I really appreciate everyone coming by and taking time out of their busy holiday schedule to join us. It was truly a beautiful day. We never broke out the wine but the punch (both children and adult versions) disappeared and apparently my dh drank all the homemade eggnog.
Christmas day arrived very early (course I was up very late sharing some wonderful Irish Coffees with my husband and chatting with our visiting friend from Calgary, so early is a relative thing...it was after 7 so that's good at least). The kids opened their stockings, presents were passed around and the mayhem ensued. The kids were completely spoiled by all (for them it's a benefit of being the only grandchildren on both sides) and dh and I did well by each other. Then I made a lemon breakfast blintz bake that is very good and very high in fat but hey, it's Christmas. I also made the bacon that 4ever29 showed me and that both her and Magnificent M swear by. I didn't have parchment paper but tried to improvise. It wasn't quite as good as R's but it was good and next time I'll have it perfected I know. Try, try again! LOL Mmmmmmm, bacon.
I also decided to save our pork loin for a day when others could share it with us so we just had appetizers again for dinner. I honestly didn't feel like cooking again (had cooked so much the previous two days) and since it was mostly for dh and I we decided we were happy with leftover appy's. We got the kids to bed early and just relaxed together. It was very nice.
Today, I slept in and was allowed to (meaning the kids were instructed to leave me be) since it is my birthday. I will now be starting the first day of the last year in my 30's. Guess I'll be 4ever39. Scary how old that sounds and yet how young I really feel. There is no part of me that feels I should be this age. I hope that means I have a young heart and mind. I remember being younger and thinking this age was ancient. I still have so much I plan to do and I pray that I'll be given all the time I need to do it.
Santa Baby
The kids are waiting for Santa tonight and I'll just be glad once he's been and gone. Any more ramped up and my kids will be flying. I've got some last minute preparations to do and then, hopefully, I'm done.
C'mon Santa Baby...."Hurry down the chimney tonight" :-)
It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas
I'm starting to feel festive! LOL Yes, it took me a while and #3 and I are fighting, what is our 3rd or 4th ear infection in so many months BUT the Christmas spirit is starting to fill me up.
Look at our beautiful tree:
We finally found a pretty star for the top (not pictured above) and it sits beautifully up there but it doesn't light up so we miss that.
#2 and I had a girls time out together and we came home with this tree. First we went and had hot chocolate (peppermint mocha for me) at Starbucks, then we looked for a present for #1 from her and #3 and then we bought this tree. It is huge! It touched the ceiling and I had to break a bit off to fit the star on it. You should have seen us trying to stuff this in our car. Our old car had a roof rack, this one doesn't. With three car seats we don't have a lot of room to manouveur but I did a lot of juggling and rammed it in. #2 had pine needles in her face for a bit but luckily we weren't far from home! LOL
I think I'm in Love
...but not to worry I will not be cheating on my husband, as I believe he is just as enamoured as I. Well maybe not. Who knows.
I just know I had the best bacon of my life today. How can bacon be that good? Well let me tell you my friend: Apparently you just add brown sugar and you put your bacon in the oven instead of frying it. I promise you your whole outlook on bacon will change.
My outlook on a number of things changed today I think. I'm not sure entirely how or what as I'm still thinking on a lot of them but it's just a feeling I have. At this point all I'm willing to offer is that I ate some of the best breakfast food I've had in forever, enjoyed some mighty good conversation and was filled with joy. Then I came home to make my own version of a strata for dinner that included a spiced smoked salmon, green onions, peas and cream cheese. I do not think my scale will thank me tomorrow for today. However, my mouth did. Therefore, I gave my scale the day off.
I am thankful for many things today.
When is the holiday over?
And by that I mean the school holiday - not necessarily Christmas. #1 child has been home 4 days, count 'em - 4 whole days, on his school break and already my house is in complete uproar.
Now I love #1 child like there is no tomorrow and I will continue to do so but I am about to dive in to the brink of madness and not come back. We have a very delicate routine #2, #3 and I. Very delicate. It is important that that balance not be upset as then #3 doesn't sleep. He NEEDS to sleep. Especially now, as he has another ear infection (so do I but I don't have time for it therefore I am praying it right on out of my body).
I am literally so tired of breaking up squabbles and overly rough horseplay between #1 and #2 OR just as I have #3 asleep someone running yelling through the house and waking him up. Then he thinks he's done sleeping because, you know, 5 minutes is good enough for him.
I have tried to come up with creative uses for the kids time. I have tried to spend time with them. I have tried bribing them with Santa (oh yes, I have so sue me) and explained the naughty list yet again. I have talked of discipline and so many things yet the closer we get to CHristmas the more ramped up they get. Especially #1. His ADHD gets particularly bad at Christmas. At least this year we have him on the herbal and other program we are doing and it is moderately better than last year. Last year not only was he hyper, he was sad. Hyper and sad is not a good combination.
OK, my rant is over and I think I feel less like crying now. Sometimes I just feel the desire to get it all out. Now to go find a vat of chocolate to soak in - too heck with the diet! (Nah, not really but maybe just a little! LOL)
Oh look here's one...
Now - doesn't that look lovely!
Rubber ducky, you're the one
I make stuff
I just made the best salad in the ENTIRE world. Seriously. I was making bacon and eggs for #2 child and was wanting something a bit healthier for myself and looking at the bacon drippings in the pan when I had an idea. I remembered this from some cooking show I watched and I turned the pan on low and added balsamic vinegar which sizzled and cooked up all the brown bits and oil (I did only say a
bit healthier! LOL). Then I added some minced garlic and let it reduce. In a large bowl I assembled a spring green salad mix, diced tomatoes and red peppers, craisins, feta, one piece of bacon chopped up and a small amount of crushed walnuts. I poured some of the dressing over top. OMG! This salad rocks. I think I'm in love. Sigh.
Earlier this week I finished #2 child's second slipper, having made the first back in August. Yeah, I know, I was busy. She was thrilled with her slippers (that she begged me to make her after seeing #3 child's hat, who knows why), she had picked the colour and the style. She wore them for all of five minutes and hasn't worn them since. She is like her mother who hates to wear socks (I didn't even in the snow) but it is cold on the floor in this house and I do wear slippers when it is that cold on the feet. Here are her slippers being modelled by her:
The show is over and the fun was free
For all the work that went in to Christmas Cafe it sure went by fast. It was funny how when I was in it, it seemed to take forever and now it's over. I enjoyed some days more than others, decided that I'm not good if others aren't organised, and I discovered something new in the show each and every time I heard it (and if you were counting, which I'm sure you weren't, that was 11 "official" performances and 3 more rehearsal performances so that's a lot).
The actors were all very good and should be proud of themselves. Especially, the younger ones. Doing a run like that is not always easy even for adults and these kids just did a bang up job. I think Frosty also deserves an extra bit of applause for sitting there and not moving for half the play. How he didn't fall asleep and fall off his sleigh I'll never know.
I learned a few other things this last week but mostly that sometimes my sarcasm isn't lost on people. I know I should curb it sometimes but there are times when...well, there are times, that's all.
The last thing I learned is that my dh is hot. Yes, I know he is my dh and I always have thought him cute but this week, watching him help in a variety of capacities as jack-of-all-trades guy around the set and at Jacawafab (or however you spell that - basically our youth group fun thing), I found him hot. Especially when he was all dressed up on Friday and he did that all by himself (ha - usually I have to make him wear dressy clothes). The funniest thing about that was as he was running around or playing he split his pants. That's what you get for doing an inflatable obstacle course in dress clothes (I got a jammed toe and swollen ankle and my pants started coming off part way through the obstacle course but nothing ripped so that is a good thing). He didn't care, just kept right on going. He even beat one of our youth guys who is very fast and a talented sports guy. I was impressed.
So now me and my weary bones (did I mention that I'm pretty much too old to be running around and doing inflatable obstacle courses with young kids?) are very happy that this is all over for another year. Just like summer kids' camp it is fun for a while and then even nicer when it's over.
