Merry Christmas to all ....

 . . .  and to all a good night!

From Our House to Yours

(click on picture for larger view)

Thank you to all my readers and friends (known and unknown) who have shared our journey this last year.  I appreciate all of you! 

Another Christmas Tradition

Lord of the Rings movie marathon.

(it appears that Mary and Mark are the only ones interested in the movie)

Life is good!

btw, Jack and I were in his room watching Monday night football :)

Cookie Time

Let the decorating begin

Jack "helped" out too :)

finished product!

We had a fun day decorating Christmas cookies with the kids.  We didn't have the competition we had last year, but I think the younger kids did a great job of decorating.

Hope you all have a great week leading up to Christmas Day .... take time to slow down and enjoy the moment.

Peace

Have a peaceful weekend my friends.

A Little Bit of Christmas

We got our real tree up this weekend and finished decorating the inside of the house for Christmas! (we are skipping the outside decorations this year).

We call this "Mom's" tree

Is this not the best decoration for us Starbucks lovers!

This weekend we'll be decorating cookies with the little kids.  I'm not sure I'll get the older kids here to have another cookie decorating contest like we had last year.  Regardless, it will be lots of fun (and lots of work).

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Christmas List

This one is a keeper.

We Interrupt Our Regularly Scheduled Program

The wave of good health we've been riding came splashing down (nothing serious enough to constitute "crashing down"). The stomach flu (not H1N1) hit our house this weekend.  Eric got it first and then I got it. I get sick about once every three years, so I was due.  It was only a 36 hour bug and I was "hit" the minute I walked in the door from work on Monday (thankfully I didn't get sick at work).  I'm feeling much better today.  The only bummer was that Mark was out of town, so I was flying solo with Jack and Eric, which made for a miserable Monday night/Tuesday.  Mark was in Minnesota visiting his mom for her 90th birthday.  Mark is the youngest of six and I am the second oldest of six.  So, it's not that he's so much older than me, his mom is just 20 years older than my mom! Mark got back home tonight and it's nice to have my helper back :)

Thank you all for your comments, suggestions and instructions regarding the pain in my back/butt/leg.  It's improved significantly over the last week - the pain isn't nearly as intense, but it's still there.  I think the consensus is that it's sciatica.  Eventually, I'll make an appointment with my PCP (which I don't even have because I never see a doctor, so I guess I need to find one) and hopefully get a script for physical therapy.  I'm thinking the massage idea is a good one too.  I really appreciate you all caring and taking the time to share your ideas.

The countdown to Christmas is upon us.  I'm one of those people who waits until the week before Christmas to go shopping.  My plan this Christmas is "less is more".  An easy plan to implement with most my kids. I can think of one, however, who will give us grief.  Then again, he gives us grief no matter what.

I'm still trying to decide if I going to send out Christmas cards.  My Christmas card has always been a picture of my kids.  I think last year was the first year since Hilary was born that I didn't send out cards with a picture. This year, I can't even get motivated to send out cards ... picture or no picture.  Every year it gets harder because of Jack .... not really something that's easy to explain and not something most people would begin to understand.

But, I really love getting all your Christmas cards and seeing pictures of your families.  Jenny -- you were my first Christmas card of the year! Karen L.  --- LOVED your card! (very creative)

Thanks for checking in.  Have a fun weekend and stay warm all my Midwest and East Coast friends.

Life's Little Disappointments

My friend's daughter plays violin in a youth orchestra.  My friend also happens to be Jack's nurse one day a week.  Today was my friend's day to take care of Jack and when she showed up this morning she asked if I wanted to take Jack to see her daughter's Christmas concert this evening. My friend feels bad for Jack because he rarely gets out of the house.  I thought about it for a second and decided "yes", we will go. It will be fun for Jack and I love Christmas concerts.  I "snuck" out of work early.  Well, actually, I didn't get to sneak out -- my boss came into my office at 4:27 (I had to leave at 4:30) to talk about a project he needed help with and I had to tell him ... "later, I gotta go because I have plans!"

I hurry home (as much as I can hurry when my commute to/from work is 40 minutes each way), quick iron pants for me and a shirt for Eric, change my clothes, get Eric dressed, (Jack was already dressed and in his wheelchair thanks to my friend), freshen my make-up, gather Jack's "to go" bags and get Jack and all his stuff loaded into the van by 6pm sharp! Phew, I even have time to spare.

Go to start the van and .... dead battery.  Damn.  I yell for Mark and ask him to hurry and jump the battery. He hooks up the jumper cables, I turn the key and ..... nothing.  Friggin' nothing.  The battery is d.e.a.d.  Double damn.

I call my friend and tell her we won't be there.  Unload Jack from the car and decide if he can't go to the Christmas concert, he can at least go for a walk around the block to look at Christmas lights.  So we go for a walk.  We come home, I get Jack out of his chair and back into bed. Then I grab a handful of chocolate hershey kisses and a beer and have my pity party.

Just another one of life's little disappointments.

In addition to life's latest disappointment, I am also suffering the consequences of years of lifting fifty plus pounds of dead weight (aka: Jack).  I've been experiencing lower back/buttock/leg pain for several months now, but the pain has now escalated to the point that I can hardly tolerate sitting down for any length of time - which makes driving unbearable.  The pain is only on one side (my right side).  I have such an aversion to doctors that I haven't seen anyone about it yet, but I think I might have to soon because it's almost becoming dangerous for me to drive with all the seating position changes I have to make (while driving) just to help ease the pain.  I don't have time to see doctors or go to physical therapy.  Seriously, I don't!

On the upside, I arrived home to a package from my dear friend Carrie with the "UP" dvd for Jack and a Starbuck's card for me.  Thanks Carrie .... your timing was perfect.

Life is still GOOD.  'Tis the season and we WILL enjoy it .... we will!