Done

Thirty days of posting!  I did it!  The posts might not have been of much quality some days, but I am pleased with myself for getting something in writing each day. I had anticipated this being one of my weaker years.  I'm in a very weird place right now.  Introspection has shown that there are really two big factors contributing to my perpetual funk.  

The first is the coming of the empty nest.  In less time than it takes to cook a baby, we'll have no kids living at home.  I realize that this is part of life and that everyone goes through it; I don't think that I have the market cornered on loving and missing your kids.  It's possible that being an only child (of an only child) has shaped me a little differently than many though; I cling to those close to me very tightly because there are so few people close to me.  The value that I place on family time is exorbitant.  It's made for some wonderful traditions and memories over the years, but it is also making the coming changes very hard.  

Similarly, the other big factor is family related as well.  I'm having a rather difficult time with the changing dynamic in my family due to my mom's illness.  I won't get in to all of the details as some are personal, and some will just sound like me whining.  I'll just say that I'm not dealing with it very well and leave it at that.  

Both of those things, as well as a few other issues, have kept me in a continuous state of yuck for a while now.  That's why I've tried so hard this month to take my eyes off of myself and focus on being thankful.  It's harder to wallow in your own junk when you're trying to keep a stream of thanksgiving going.  I think I'm on the right track; I was given a great reminder this morning when our Associate Pastor quoted Philippians 2:3-5.

"Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves.  Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had."

What perfect words to keep me going!  As I enter this Christmas season with substantially more baggage than I usually carry around, I was admonished to keep my attitude in check.  Instead of thinking about myself and what I'm dealing with and keeping my eyes inward, I am to look at how I can serve others and lift them up!  It's such a freeing thought, really.  Whether it's serving my family, my friends, or complete strangers, I need to be mindful of opportunities that I have to make a difference for other people.  I'm excited! 

My final thought, since it relates to my current situation, is a movie quote that I heard the other night.  Bonnie Hunt says it at the end of Cheaper By The Dozen 2 (I may have been watching it and crying a little bit the other night).  It's a beautiful quote and it helped me put things into perspective, even if for just a little while.  I'll leave you with her time-appropriate words, and wish you a wonderful holiday season and a very Merry Christmas!  Thank you for taking this journey with me.  -xoxo

Letting go is the hardest thing you can do as a parent.  

You have to settle with the past, engage in the present, and believe in the future.  

That vacation at Lake Winnetka reminded Tom and me that 

we're always learning as parents, and that the bond is forever.

Even as the kids grow up and venture out on their own, 

we'll always be with them and they'll always be with us...

because life is a voyage that is homeward bound.

The Last List

For the final Ten on Tuesday, and since I’ll officially be able to turn on my Christmas lights in less than forty-eight hours, I thought I’d share ten of my favorite holiday traditions.   

1.  The Bowl Schedule.  I mentioned this in my football post a few weeks back, but the Bowl Schedule going up always means that the holidays really are here.  I love it!

2.  Nachos.  Nachos are pretty much my favorite thing ever; I’d eat them every day if possible.  Knowing that I can’t, the Christmas break is always especially exciting for me as that is the one time of year that I buy the big can of Que Bueno from Costco.  We eat lots of nachos over the break!

3.  The Way That We Unwrap Gifts.  We’ve never been one of those “everyone tear into your gifts” type of family.  Gift opening takes hours as the six of us (my parents come over) take turns, each opening one gift at a time.  After a sufficient amount of oohing and ahhing, the next person may begin.  I love it.

4.  My Santa Rule.  Obviously when the kids were little, Santa couldn’t come until they were fast asleep.  He’s still like that.  Santa can’t come, therefore the stockings can’t be filled, until they’re in bed.  I love being the last one up, putting the finishing touches on everything.

5.  My Christmas Tree.  I love, love, love my Christmas tree; it makes me so happy!

6.  Shopping With My Dad.  Every year, for as long as I can remember, my dad and I have a shopping date.  He takes me to dinner, and then we go shopping for my mom.  I look forward to it every year.

7.  Christmas Eve Breakfast.  Ever since the boys were babies, we all get up super early (6am…that’s early for holiday time) and go to breakfast.  Since December 24^th is actually my favorite day of the year, it’s the perfect way for me to start the day.

8.  Peanut Butter Balls.  I only make them in December and I don’t give out the recipe; a true family favorite.  They will be loaded in both the fridge and the freezer the day that John gets home for Christmas break.

9.  Christmas Movies.  There are seven that I must watch every year; there are more that I watch every couple of years.  Can’t wait.

10.  Stille Nacht by Mannheim Steamroller.  It’s my ultimate, favorite Christmas song.  If I hear it coming on the radio, I immediately turn it off; I avoid it for the entire season.  Then, when everything is done and everyone is in bed on Christmas Eve, at the end of my favorite day, I get ready for bed, crawl in, turn off the lights, turn on the song, and close my eyes.  I let the beauty of the music wash over me.  It’s the only one of my traditions that is truly, solely for me.  It’s my moment of perfect peace.

 

I Surrender

Maybe it's a sign of getting older in general, or maybe it's just the place that I've been in for the last couple of years, who knows?  Whatever the reason, I've been trying really hard (this year especially) to not get carried away in all of the Christmas hoopla just yet.  

I've tried to stay focused on November, with the coming holiday being Thanksgiving.

I love Christmas, don't get me wrong.  Christmastime is my absolute favorite time of year and in years past I've immediately thrown myself in to all things Christmas as soon as the jack-o-lanterns were put away.  Something is different now, though.  I don't like how we've become so focused on Christmas that Thanksgiving loses it meaning and the only reason people think about it at all is that it means that you're just hours away from Black Friday.  Heck...some people even call it Grey Thursday.  

Not Thanksgiving, but Grey Thursday!!!

So it isn't easy, both from a retail perspective and from a giddy-that-your-favorite-time-of-year-is-coming perspective, but I've been trying very hard to put Christmas in the back of my mind for a while. 

Things were going along fairly well until this last week.

I saw these laying around the workroom.  Clearly a teacher was busy prepping.

And this.  Granted, it's our Giving Tree and we need to get it out early, but still.
There's now a Christmas tree sitting four feet away from my desk.

And these.  Many lights are up (presumably left from last year), but these were actually turned on.
(Sorry about the poor picture, I may have been driving...)

And then I turned TV on and saw it.  THE commercial. 
The one that I hadn't seen yet, and the one that in my mind signifies that Christmas is truly here.

The thing that finally did it, that put me over the edge? 
My wonderful husband surprised me with a gift this afternoon. 

So I will still celebrate Thanksgiving, wholeheartedly.  I will be thankful.  So very thankful.
I will thoroughly enjoy two days of turkey and stuffing and pie and potato casserole (please, Aunt Lissa!), and I am looking forward to the time spent with family and friends.  Can't wait for my boy to get home!

But I won't fight the arrival of Christmastime anymore.  I'll open my new CD and embrace it.

Bring it on.

Where Are You, Christmas?

This morning I found myself at the mall and while the mall itself didn't have all of it's decorations up, Christmas was evident in each and every store that I was in.  Christmas music playing over the speakers, tress that were lit up, all of the annoying little displays that block the aisles...it has begun!  Generally this would have made me very happy; you know me...I'm all about Christmastime!  Today, however, I found that it totally stressed me out!  With all that's going on in my life right now, I feel like I can completely relate to Faith Hill's "Where Are You, Christmas?" 

It could be that I was just grumpy because I wasn't finding what I was looking for; it seems that when you're my size, there are significantly less cute things available.  It might have something to do with all of the Christmas related things on my to-do list; I feel behind!  I think the biggest thing, though, is that I really, truly have no idea what to get my loves this year.

When your kids are little, at least in my experience, it's super easy to make them happy.  One trek through Toys R Us and you're good to go.  Now it's harder.  It's not that they want things that are out of reach or unattainable, they just truly don't have a list!  What do you get for older teenage boys who have no idea what they want??

The easy thing would be to say something like, "...since you didn't provide me with a list, you don't get anything."  But I can't do that!  Giving gifts is truly one of my favorite things ever and I love to shower my loved ones with presents at Christmastime.  I'll just have to keep pondering and hope that something comes to me.

It's got to, right??

I'm Driving My Parents Nuts

"I'll have our lists to you by the weekend!"

Unfortunately, I've said those words to my folks multiple times over the last three weeks or so.  I don't think they believe me anymore.

The lists that I'm referring to, obviously, are our Christmas lists.  Each year, the four of us come up with a Christmas list and we give it to my folks; mom and dad, in return, give us lists for each of them.  This year, while they have already provided us with fabulous lists, I've got nothing to give them.

I'm not trying to be difficult, really I'm not.  Nor is it a case of me not wanting any Christmas gifts; of course I do...receiving gifts is fun.  It's just that I can't really think of anything to put on my list this year.  There's nothing that I desperately need and several things that I want are too expensive.  I'm just out of practical ideas.  Andy and the boys aren't doing any better.  Andy's got one thing on his list, John has two, and Matthew wins with four items.

We're such a gift-giving family that this is hard!  We LOVE to give gifts to each other!  I miss the days when the boys were little and wanted a million little action figures or toy cars or something.  That was awesome!  You could spend $30 and have a ton of little things to wrap.

Sigh.  With the tree now up, I feel so much pressure!  Perhaps tonight, miracle of miracles, we'll all be struck with amazing ideas while we sleep!  It never hurts to hope. 

A Timely Reminder

Before you read on, please take four minutes and watch the video below. It's not the original music video, but it's the one with the best audio and they really do a great job with the photos. Even if you know the song, please watch it, think about the words, and then come back to me...



So, what did you think?

If you're at all like me, it struck a chord and caused you to consider your typical Christmas season. It seems that we spend much of the year waiting for Christmastime to arrive and then it rushes by in a flurry of parties, shopping, presents and responsibilities. It's over before we realize it and it was all one big blur. My head started to spin when I realized that I have to bake around 400 cookies tomorrow; I thought to myself, "It's already started and it's not even December yet!"

Maybe I'm just more reflective these days since my kids are getting older. I seem to notice every second that ticks by, and it's one second less that they'll be here and life will exist as I know it. Adulthood is knocking at the door for them and I'm trying to make the most of all of the time that we have together.

Whatever stage of life you find yourself in, I encourage you to think about the coming month. What are the important things? What really matters? I challenge you to make an effort to slow down this year, to remember what Christmas is really about.

Make this Christmas special, not by attending as many parties as possible or by giving the most expensive gifts, but by remembering the true reason that we celebrate Christmas and by spending time with those you love.

One Ringy Dingy...

There are a few things that I get geeked out about and take very seriously; high on that list is my ring tones.

I love having different ring tones on my cell phone. It's quite fun to have a variety of songs play throughout the day and I like to be able to tell who is calling. Perhaps I'm a bit of a control freak. At any rate, on my previous phone, I could download songs but I was at the mercy of the clip that they published. No more! My newest phone, being of the smart persuasion, is able to not only play any song imaginable (either by download or by importing from iTunes), but I can "trim" the song so that the portion selected is exactly what I hear when someone calls. I know. It's awesome.

Today, since Christmas season is clearly and officially upon us, I spent some time loading my Christmas ring tones. I have one song that is my default tone, and I assigned separate songs to the six people who call me the most.

The songs that I choose vary from year to year; I suppose it depends on my mood when I'm doing it. This year, I have quite a mix of selections: Glee, George Straight, The Drifters, White Heart, The Muppets, Stan Boreson, and a Bing Crosby/Fred Astaire duet. I love it!

I'm ready.
Now all I need is a phone call; it's been a very quiet afternoon.

Ten on Tuesday, Sort Of

Since I'm kind of on a roll with lists this year, and it is Tuesday, I am bringing you a list of my top eleven Christmas movies. Yes, you read that right; it's a list of eleven. I tried and tried, but I couldn't get the list down to ten. Each movie on this list loved; I couldn't leave one off. You may want to get a cup of coffee or something...this could take awhile.

Typically I don't place the items in a particular order but today I actually am; I'm going to count down to my favorite Christmas movie of all time. No fair scrolling to the end and peeking...you've got to start with #11!


11. Babes in Toyland a.k.a March of the Wooden Soldiers (1934). I'm a huge Laurel and Hardy fan; this movie delights me. Matt is trying to tell me that it's not a Christmas movie; maybe he's right. However, Santa is in the movie and the heroes at the end are his Wooden Soldiers. That makes it Christmas enough for me. It's not Stan and Ollie's best work but I love it anyway.

10. Christmas Eve On Sesame Street (1978). Long before Elmo and countless other annoying Muppets, Big Bird was worried about how Santa was going to fit down the chimney. Bert and Ernie were exchanging gifts, Cookie Monster was trying hard to get a letter written to Santa and Bob was reminding us to keep Christmas with us all through the year. I can't remember a year when I haven't watched this at Christmastime.

9. National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989). Poor Clark. All he wants is a "fun old-fashioned family Christmas" and properly working Christmas lights.

8. Elf (2003). This one ties for newest movie on the list but from the first time that I watched it with my buddies, I knew that it was going to be a classic.

7. Love Actually (2003). This is the other newbie on the list; I adore it! It's a fabulous ensemble piece. (*Disclaimer: this movie has a few extremely racy parts, watch at your own risk.)

6. A Christmas Story (1983). We have a miniature leg lamp in our living room. Need I say more?

5. Going My Way (1944). It's hard to go wrong with Bing, but the biggest reason that I love this one is that Barry Fitzgerald reminds me so much of my Granddad. SO much.

4. Holiday Inn (1942). "Oh, Linda Mason." Love it! But do I prefer the singing or the dancing? Ack! A question for the ages!

3. Mixed Nuts (1994). Words cannot express the genius of this movie. It's hysterical and brilliant and touching and perfect! I have a date to watch it with some people that I love this year; I'm beyond excited!

2. White Christmas (1954). Bing's classic. My #2 and John's favorite; we watch it together every year and that makes it even more wonderful. He brought it up the other day; he asked if I'd save this one for Christmas break so that he can watch it with me. Happiness.

And my all time, favorite Christmas movie....

1. It's A Wonderful Life (1946). I don't need to explain it; whether you love it or not, you certainly know it. It never, ever gets old. It's the last Christmas movie that I watch each year; I watch it on December 24th. I will love it forever. Once I've watched this movie and listened to my favorite Christmas song (ha..now you'll wonder), I'm ready for Christmas.


This brings to a close my contribution to NaBloPoMo for 2010. Thank you for spending some time with me this month. I really do enjoy taking the time to write and I appreciate your comments and feedback.

As November comes to a close and December arrives, I wish you all the very best this Christmas season. Enjoy the cooler weather, have fun decorating and baking and going to parties, spend time with those dear to you. But most of all, remember our Savior. He came into this world so that he could take on our sin. Yours and mine. He bridged the gap between us and our Heavenly Father so that one day we can spend eternity with Him. Christ is Christmas.

Merry Christmas, everyone!

And So It Begins

Day two of our Thanksgiving celebration was a huge success! The food was delicious and we're stuffed full of pie and candy. Decorations have been put out and we watched four entire football games today; it was perfect!

The kids have gone to bed and the house is now perfectly quiet. As my Mister and I sit here enjoying the soft glow of electric sex, we officially welcome the Christmas season. Hope it's magical!

Just A Little Decorating

I didn't intend to put up the Christmas decorations out back.

Here's what happened...

A few weeks ago, I purchased some nifty little solar-powered Christmas lights to string along the fence on the side of the house. I was planning to put them up on Thursday when I do the outdoor decorations out front. Knowing myself and admitting that I'd be super disappointed if they didn't work, I decided to throw them up today. You know, just to test them. Armed with cup hooks and zip ties, I successfully strung them and mounted the solar-thingy so that it can charge.

Once I got that done, I decided to put the rest of the stuff out there so that I don't have to mess with it later. I have these little lighted Christmas trees that I use (thanks Ruth and Barbara!), and this year I added some LED branch things (they're like these but multi-colored). I was hoping that it would look like a magical Christmas wonderland in between my rose bushes.

Also, just to clarify...other than a quick test,
I won't be turning them on until Friday.
I might even keep the blinds closed so that I can't see them.
You know, there are rules to follow...

I Feel It In My Fingers, I Feel It In My....Toes

Clearly KYXY (a local radio station) isn't paying attention t0 my blog. Last night when I turned the radio on, they were playing....Christmas music! Instantly, several thoughts raced through my head. The first was, "Hey, it's too early." Closely following was, "Yay, Christmas music!" The thought that won was, "Ick. I really hate this song."

As I hurried to find another station, I started thinking about Christmas music. It's a terribly personal thing; one person's favorite could quite easily be another's least favorite. Last year, I shared with you my ten favorite albums, maybe this year I'll do a Ten on Tuesday of my favorite songs. Wow, that would be difficult; so many to choose from!

Today, in honor of the song that I caught a few bars of last night, I thought I'd share with you some of my least favorite songs. You can call it a Six on Sunday. But you don't have to. If you'd prefer, you can just call it a list of my least favorite Christmas songs.

1. "All I Want For Christmas Is You" by Mariah Carey. I don't like her in general, but for some reason hearing her sing this song drives me nuts. It's very overplayed.

2. "Silent Night" by Stevie Nicks. It sounds like she's gargling.

3. "We Wish You A Merry Christmas" by Enya. It puts me to sleep. This song is supposed to be happy and jolly; in Enya's version there is none of that. I sounds like, well, any other Enya song.

4. "Happy Christmas (War Is Over)" by John Lennon and Yoko Ono. This one isn't awful but I feel that it deserves honorable mention due to Yoko's warbling in the background. If she were left out of it, I'd really like this song. As it is, I find myself listening to the first half and then turning it off.

5. "Christmas at KYXY." This song is actually "Christmas in Dixie" by Alabama. While it's totally a cheese-ball country song, it's not awful for what it is. The problem is that a few years back, some one at KYXY decided to change the lyrics so every time it says Christmas in Dixie, it says Christmas at KYXY (pronounced kicksie). Ridiculous.

6. Finally, the one that started this train of thought, the one that I heard last night....."Wonderful Christmastime" by Paul McCartney. As one online writer said when reviewing this song, "Look, kids -- Daddy got a new synthesizer for Christmas!" Yep, he nailed it. I really, really can't stand it.

So there you have it; six Christmas songs that drive me batty. I left hymns/carols out; there are a few bad eggs in that category as well. How about you? Is there a Christmas song that you always hope will disappear before the holidays roll around again? I'm curious...

It's Too Early! (I Think....)

While driving home from a PTSA meeting last night, I noticed that one of the apartments several blocks from my house had their Christmas lights up.

What?!? That's too early! Don't get me wrong, I'm a Christmas junkie. I've even been tempted to put my own lights up but thankfully I have a friend who reigns me in when I get too close to the deep end. While they're beautiful and I can't wait to get everything up, I can't be in such a hurry to get to Christmas that I pass over Thanksgiving.

I spent the last few blocks of my drive thinking that the early Christmas-ers were nuts. There's an order to things. The lights (in my universe) go up on Thanksgiving. The tree and all of the indoor decorations will go up two days later. Everything in it's proper time. And while I am anxious to start playing some Christmas music, I'll wait. I'll enjoy the season that is upon us rather than rushing into the next one.

These were my thoughts as I drove the rest of the way home.

But as I pulled into my driveway and got out of my car, I realized that it made me terribly, ridiculously happy to see the Christmas lights. It totally made my night.

So I take back all of the negative thoughts that I had toward my apartment neighbors. I'll enjoy the last few days of this season and I'll certainly enjoy a yummy meal and some extra time with family and friends next week. Additionally, I promise that nothing will go up in my house until the appropriate time. But let the Christmas season begin!!!

Complete

We finished getting all of the Christmas stuff out today. I am so thankful for the memories that came with each decoration as I pulled it out of the box...

The advent calendar that my Grandma made me is in place. She made it when I was a baby; I don't remember a Christmas without it. It's old, yellowed and so very sequined, but she made it...for me...I love it.

The tree is up in the boys' room. So very bright, so many lights! But we had so much fun decorating it tonight. I will always cherish moments like this.

Matt wanted to put his nativity scene on his dresser this year. I love that even though it only has seven pieces, he spent about a full five minutes placing them exactly how he thought they should go. I also love that he didn't let his (autographed) Tony Gwynn Rookie Card get too far away from the action. Precious.

I couldn't resist snapping this one. My babies are getting so big! John's on top; that's his foot. Matt's on the bottom, snuggled up in the blanket. The pink thing hanging over Matthew is a post-it; he has something that he wants to remember for tomorrow so he wrote himself a note. And the other white thing hanging..socks. In case his feet get cold in the night. Sigh. I love my boys.

Finally, I love that if you head downstairs, you'll be greeted with the "glow of electric sex". Classic.

Many more decorations fill the house, each with it's own memory. And just think...we are beginning a whole new season for memory-making!

As November draws to a close, and so does NaBloPoMo, I would like to thank you for visiting me every day. It's been fun!

Goodnight, and may you have a very blessed Christmas season!

Oops!

Hmmm. Once AC got our tree nicely tucked in it's corner,
he realized that he was stuck in the corner with it!


Never fear! AC made it safely out,
and I commenced with the decorating.
Sigh. I love our tree.

Yay Christmas!!!

Great Illustrated Classics

No, I'm not talking about the book series. I'm talking about when one of my favorite, classic movies coincides with everyday life and makes for a perfect illustration. Let me explain...

Today in U.S. History, the kids and I were discussing Andrew Jackson and some of the decisions that he made during his presidency. Among other things, he hated banks, and he targeted the National Bank, trying to bring it down.

It turned into a discussion on how banks work; how banks don't just have money in the vault to cover all of their accounts. I was trying to explain it clearly, and how if everyone wanted all of their money at the same time, the bank would be in trouble. And then it hit me! I had the perfect illustration sitting right there on my DVD shelf.

Please observe:



This morning, three of my favorite things collided in my living room: Christmas, movies and history! Loved it!