A few holiday tips and tricks...

I think I've finally recovered from the long weekend flurry of Christmas prep festivities. We were able to cross everything off our to-do list. All that training really paid off.


We even managed to squeeze in a little brow maintenance. Both mine and the Big Ballerina's. Yup. BB got her eyebrows waxed for the first time this weekend. She survived. And I'm happy to report. I did too.

What is not surviving is my waistline. Even without cooking the full-monty turkey dinner this year, I still managed to eat massive amounts of food. And I can't seem to stop.

At one point I asked BB to throw my jeans in the washing machine for me. She picked them up. Stared at them for a minute. And asked incredulously, "Are these Daddy's?!?" Oh dear Lord! I know they're called boyfriend jeans. But this is out of control.

My solution? Get rid of the two Thanksgiving pies. Pronto! Now throwing them away would be a sin. I couldn't do that. No. I had a better idea.

Let the ballerinas eat pie for breakfast. As a mid-day snack. And again for dessert. The pies were gone in two days. And the ballerinas now think I'm the coolest mom on the planet. Win-Win. They even ate pie while decorating their gingerbread houses. Who knew gumdrops went so well with pumpkin?

Last year was the first year I let the ballerinas make gingerbread houses. I learned the hard way that you can't just sit down and build these things in one sitting. That is. Unless you get smart.

And break out the ole glue gun. Works like a charm. Hot glue the structure together instead of using the icing. Save yourself a lot of time. And disappointed kids. Who will cry when they realize they have to wait 2-4 hours before they can get to the fun part.

 

So. How about you? Did you survive? Do any Black Friday shopping? Any Christmas prep? Any overeating? Got any suggestions for how to stop?!?

Happy Thanksgiving (or rather Happy Official Start of the Christmas Season)...

Whoohooo! Thanksgiving is finally here. I am so excited! Not because of our traditional Norman Rockwell sit-down-at-the-dining-room-table-with-the-fancy-china-turkey-dinner that I so fondly remember from my childhood. Nope. Because it's officially the start of the Christmas season! I can finally come out of the closet now.



Yes. I've been listening to the non-stop Christmas music station for almost two weeks now. If Christmas Carols was the Final Jeopardy category, I'd "Bet it all, Alex!" And I'd blow my winnings at the Black Friday sales.

The Little Ballerina talked me into hanging the stockings by the chimney with care about a week ago.

The nutcrackers have also found their posts above the fireplace.

Even the chickens have gotten into the holiday spirit.

The local grocery store has been selling trees for about a week now. I would have brought one home, but they didn't have the kind I like.

Don't get me wrong though. I do love Thanksgiving. The feast. The fun. The family. Uncle Jimmy will be coming over this afternoon for Thanksgiving "sushi." The ballerinas voted for sushi over turkey. Works for me. I am very grateful and thankful for all the blessings we have. But since our family can't all be together this year, I'm happy to take the easy way out. We will stop to reflect today. To give thanks. To remember those who can't be with us.

But not for too long. Our weekend plans our loaded.

I wish you all a very happy Thanksgiving! I am grateful that you have all come into my life...be it on this side of the keyboard or the virtual side. Your friendship and support have been such a blessing. Thank you for being there.

I'll be home for Christmas...

A local radio station started playing Christmas music last Friday. And not the happy, jolly, get-in-the-Christmas-spirit music like Jingle Bells. But rather the hard-core carols, the likes of O Holy Night and Hark the Herald Angels Sing.

At first I was disgusted. Really? Starting on November 11, we need to start proclaiming and rejoicing? Really? What happened to Veteran's Day? And Thanksgiving? I immediately switched stations.

Then on Sunday, as I was flipping through the presets on my car stereo, they were playing I'll Be Home for Christmas. And I stopped and listened. And then I smiled. My grinchly little heart began to swell.

You see, BSD will be home for Christmas. When he first left in September, that thought did little more than depress me. I didn't want to deal with all the planning and decorating and shopping by myself. I wanted to ignore all things holiday. Fast-forward to Christmas morning. Move on to New Year's Eve.

But inch by inch, I've started to let the holiday spirit creep in. I've started to plan. Just a little. I've started to shop. Just a little. And I've started listening to their Christmas carols. Just a little.

Yes. By the time Christmas rolls around. FORTY ONE days from now. I just may be staring into the mirror at one of THOSE people. An ugly Christmas sweater wearing, jingle bell earrings dangling, Santa hat donning, pitch pipe blowing, crazy Christmas caroler. Those bastards won me over. With I'll Be Home for Christmas.

I don't know if the ballerinas will survive. It's 77 degrees here today. And this is how I sent LB off to school this morning.  Christmas? Bring it.

Ten on Ten: November 2011

Happy Ten on Ten! Today started with the typical school routines. And ended with a little ladies night out. And in between we seem to have done nothing but eat. One of these months I'm going to have to try setting a timer to go off at the same time each hour to record more of the action.

Looking forward to peeking in on everyone else's days here. C'mon and join me.

My cup is full...

I had a birthday. On Monday. Shhhh. I didn't turn a year older. I just had some cake. And got a few really fabulous gifts.

Don't you just love when someone knows you so well that they can pick out the absolute most perfect gift? That's the kind of birthday this was.

My friend, Anne has this killer screen porch. Perfect spot for relaxing after a day at the beach. This summer she added a hand painted wooden sign that reads...

When the sky turns pink, it's time for a drink.

It was love at first sight. So guess what I got for my birthday this year? My own version of that sign. But with a different sentiment. That I adore. And looks oh, so pretty in my kitchen. Thank you, Anne!

BSD wasn't here to celebrate. So I took the liberty of buying my own gift this year. I was going to splurge on a new lens. With his blessing. But instead I decided to buy a pair of shoes. For a lot less. That mean a lot more.

A pair of Tom's for me. And a pair for a child in need. I am happy. If you've ever considered a pair of these, I highly recommend them. They are crazy comfortable. The winter answer to flip flops.

And then, the best present of the day? A special gift made by the Big Ballerina. She didn't have BSD to take her shopping so she had to think outside the box. Not only am I touched to my core by her thoughtfulness and effort, I am also incredibly impressed with her creativity. I think she may be onto something here.

For those of you who don't know, I have a major Diet Coke addiction. Diet Coke from a fountain. With just the right amount of ice. No bottles or cans, please. So for my birthday I received my very own, specially decorated Super Big Gulp. Along with a matching card that read...

"May all your cups be filled with 2/3 ice and Diet Coke."

Now.that.is.love.

Zombie, Zombie, Zombiee...eee...eeee....

Halloween this year was all about the gross and the gore. Gross Boo's. Gorey costumes. Haunted houses. Thriller. The theme song ... a resounding Zombie.

It was fun. But I'm over it. 

Next year I'm looking forward to bringing shiny, happy people back. I want to feel the love. Kumbaya, my Lord, Kumbaya. Maybe a little Love Shack. You get my drift.

Yup. I'm ready for a new soundtrack. Anyone with me?

REM - Shiny happy people by val6210