Post-Christmas report

The 7 YO recovered from his fever Friday. My Parents came to town Friday. The graciously stayed with the boys Saturday night while I went to dinner at a Friends and Hubby went and visited his sister in the hospital.

On Sunday our Christmas started about 1:30 with the hour drive to my Brother's (B2) house. We had appetizer's courtsey of SIL 1. Then the kids opened their presents. the 7yo got a football that seems to have been his favorite gift. But He still need to take a closer look at the things he got. Then we all went to 5:00 Mass. We came home and had a great dinner and then the grown-ups opened presents. We got home about 10:00. The 11YO made a big deal about putting out a plate with cookies and grapes for Santa.

We told the boys they had to wait until 7 AM to open gifts. The 11YO did not want to get up when 7:00 came around. They got football jerseys, sleeping bags, video games for the Gameboy and XBOX. The 7 YO got a Game Boy Micro. The 11 YO had gotten his the weekend before because he was required to pay for half of it since he lost his Game Boy advanced and his Game Boy Sp over the past year.

My Parents brought me my heart's desire from their trip to Germany: The Hummel Nativity. Just the Holy family, but I have wanted it for years.

Christmas Day was quiet after the opening of the gifts. Then at 6PM we went to a party with my Mom's family. There are over 80 family members. We were missing only 13. Santa came as usual. I did notice that my & yo was uncomfortable when Santa came in. I was hoping to preserve the innocence another year or so.

Hubby's Sister did come home from the Hospital Christmas eve. She's have some hard times over the past 2 years starting with her husband asking for a divorce Christmas Day 04. Over that time depression and loneliness seemed to have driven her to making Vodka her best friend. It caught up with her and now she is recovering. I am praying that she continue to recover and that my MIL provides enough support to help but that she is strong enough to allow SIL without breaking herself mentally, emotionally and financially.

But all-in-all, we are very blessed and lucky.

The Virus invades the house

So Wednesday was interesting. Hubby called me at work about 1:40 to tell me his 33 Yo Sister was intensive care and Mom was very upset. So we decided that I would come home early since I drove all the way in. My carpool parner had overslept, so we both drove. (The Lord does work in mysterious ways) But anyways, i would come hom in time to get the boys, get some dinner in them and take them to wrestling practice. He would go get his Mom and go to the hospital with her at visiting hours.

After I hag up with him, the phone rings. It's the school. The 7 Yo has a 101 degree fever. So I called Hubby who picks up the boy and I head home so I can send Hubby to spend time with his Mom.

Anyways, a day and a half later, my SIL is out of intensive care and apparently dealing with some demons like a divorce and unemployment. She might come home Sunday. I hope she knows she has a Mom, a Dad, tw0 brothers, SILs, 5 nephews and at least 1 cousin worried and concerned for her.

The 7 Yo still has a fever. Maybe the classic Influenza, but he only has a small amount of congestions. But he gets up, watched TV, maybe plays Xbox, naps, eats, watches more TV. He all but refuses to take Tylenol. I have Bubble gum flavor, grape flavor, cheables, meltaways,, etc...

But staying home yesterday gave me time to get caught up on a lot of stuff. Presents are wrapped. Most gifts are purchased, and important rooms of the house got cleaned.

My parents arrive today. So here's hoping that their flu shots protect them from the virus lurking in our house.

Works for Me Wednesday

Here's a works for me Wednesday post, first in a long time. I have stretched myself too thin this year. Having a long commute to work justs adds to everything. I love to decorate for Christmas. I have a lovely collection of Nativities I like to put out. I have decided that only a few will got out this year. My parents are staying with us for a week, but I am not hosting any parties at my house. It is kind of hard, because I do enjoy decorating. There is a possibility I night get to it this weekend. It will not diminish the joy of Christmas and the celebration of the birth of Christ.

Giving myself permission not to have my house decorated to the nines. That works for me.

For more ideas, check out Shannon's blog

Blog Tag

Hey I was tagged by John over at Adult ADD and Money For 5 Things you do not know about me.

1. My Parents names me Margaret after my Grandmother
2. But they gave me the nickname of Missy
3. I changed the name I wanted people to call me when I went to high School (Boy were the 40 people who went with me from Grade school to The same High school confused, but most adapted)
4. I actually taught myself to like coffee a few years ago. I decided that it might be a healthier way to get my caffine that drinking cold and fizzy stuff.
5. I really dislike vacuuming. My floor has to be really bad before I'll pull out the beast. But usually I can get my boys to do it.

I want to tag Shane.

Menu Plan Monday

I need to get back on track now that the wrestling meet I plaaned and ran is over. (Yipee!)

Mon- Tacos - provided I did put the frozen ground been in the fridge. I remember pulling it out of the freezer this morning...

Tues - Mom's Shopping night

Wed - (Wrestling Practice) - Soup and Sandwiches

Thurs - Tuna Noodle Casserole

Fri - No Sure...

For more great menu plans, go visit Laura

New Orleans trip

My Girl's trip to New Orleans was fantastic. I had been there in 1998. Becasue we sepnt most of our timein the French quarter, which is high ground and was spared from flooding, we did not observe any of the hurricane-induced damage.

Highlights:

• Saturday evening dinner at The Commander's Palace
• Cemetery tour
• Beignets - Although it took me until Sunday to get K & S there, but once there, we went twice on Sunday and twice on Monday.
• Mass at the St. Louis Cathedral
• Voodoo Brew Cocktails to go
• We did have hurricanes at Pat O's
• Bourbon street where we were told "This is Bourbon Street Ladies, not Sesame Street!"
• Walking tour of the Garden district.

Here's a pciture of me eating a Beignet

Christmas Tour of Homes -

Hi Everyone, I wanted to participate in BooMama's Christmas tour of homes, but since my life has been Madcap lately, I have not found the time to finish decorating. But a Couple of years ago I took some pictures of some of my Nativity collection.




Finally I have a picture of my tree when the boys got tired of putting the ornaments on it.

Thanks for visiting. Between my 4 day trip to New Orleans with the Girls, a wrestling meet that I have to run this weekend and Christmas shopping that is not done, I hope to get my Nativities out for display. I do enjoy them.

Checkout Boo Mama's site for more homes

Attending Church today

So today is the Feast of the Immaculate Conception ,a Catholic Holy day of Obligation. So I fulfilled my obligation by attending a Mass on the main College Campus.

I enjoy attending such a service because to attend one of these is a conscious act. It is not "Let's go to Sunday Mass because that's what we do on Sundays". While that's not bad, Holy Day Masses seem to me to have more energy. I feel like those who make the effort really want to be there.

It made my heart soar to celebrate a simple Mass with about 40-45 people. I esitmate 2/3 of them were students. I was surprised to observe that there were more young men than young women .

I offered a silent intention that these young people continue their Faith journey and make good parents or maybe even one or more of these young men will decided to enter the Priesthood. May these youg people help steer the Catholic Church away fromt he danger zones that are always lurking so close.

Spread too thin

Ok, I'm not really panicked about this, but strangely detached like I am a ghost watching myself scramble. I have too much going on this year.

There is of course the Christmas shopping. I am having trouble thinking of cool gifts for the 11 YO. And he's no help. He's too much like his Dad.

Then there is the Wrestling club. I am the director. That is like the chief cook and bottle washer. I collected the paperwork and money. I created the roster. I wnet on line, entered names and purchased the USA Wrestling club memebership cards. I purchased the local association Weigh-in cards. I got each wrestler's name, USA card, birthday and age printed on a card (40 of them). I assessed tehir wieghts and determined what size singlet they need, handed out singlets, and ordered additional singlets. I determined the number of t-shirts needed. I gathered the timers, score displays, and ankle bands for the meet. I made sure Hubby was all ready for this weekends meet.

I started to think about our home meet on the 17th. I have to communicated with the teams that are coming to let them know when they should be there, round up parent help, contract with referees, contact the pizza suppliers, buy the food for the concession stand...

And tomorrow, I am flying to New Orleans for a 4-day girls get away. When we scheduled it I had no idea our first meet would be this early. I hoped not to schedule our home meet for Dec 17th.

The fact that this year I am commuting and hour each ay to and from work is not helping. Hubby's got a big project going on at work and has been putting in overtime. However, last year at this time we did have the home meet the same weekend, however, hubby was finishing up his bachelor's degree and he graduated the day before the meet and we had out of town company in....

Why do I do this to myself? I stilla want to finish decorating the house.

Not Successful!

So I signed up for the 30-day Organizational Challenge. I failed. I managed to get the white table cleared off, but that was so I could wrap some Christmas gifts.

I really need to purge. I am having difficulty with that. I love to do all sorts of crafts. It's also nice when the 11 YO tells you, "I need to make a virus", I can gather pipe cleaners, raffia, a toilet paper tube, a clear glass ornament, glue and other odds and ends and viola, a model of a virus.

I did put my scrapbooking supplies away. I have a rolling tote to take to crops. I decided that would make a good place to store my 12x12 paper.
And yes, there are 2 sewing machines. My Mom was going to get rid of here, but it has the removable arm. Mine (that had been my Grandmother's) - does not. The free arm feature is most helpful for tight spaces like sew patch on boys pants to cover holes in the knee. Also, one is set up for quilting.

So why was I unable to get too it all? Busy-ness, I am the directory of the kid's wrestling team. I do have the paper work organized and ready to go for our meet Dec 17th ?!. I have also been trying to keep off of my sore foot, so I spent a lot of time sitting with my foot elevated and an ice pack on it.

So I am going out of town this weekend. - Girl's trip to New Orleans to celebrate our mutual 40th birthday's this year. We decided to grace the struggling city with our tourist dollars. Then I need to buy stuff for the concession stand at the meet and finish my Christmas shopping. Some day I want to finsih decorating my house for Christmas. We have 2 trees up and lights outside. My NAtivity collection needs to come out. Maybe I'll have it done by Friday for Boo Mama's bloggy holiday tour of homes.

So I will revisit my craft area after the first of the year. B ehind the camera is another set of shelves and a cubby unser the stairs. right now the bins of Christmas decorations have been pulled out. There is a path to get to the washer and dryer. I'll put away the decorations and tackle my supplies again.

But visit Laura's site for successful stories and her contest.

Stocking surprises

Mom: So what did St. Nick bring you?
7YO: Oh, the movie Cars, Bubble Gum, and orange and the usual stuff

The "usual stuff" was Hershey's miniatures, Reese's cups and a candy cane.

I got "Bearnaked for the Holiday's" - Holiday songs form the Bearnaked Ladies..

Feast of St. Nicholas - Dec. 6

St. Nicholas was born in 271 AD and died around 342 on Dec 6th. near Asia Minor. He was a bishop in the town of Myra, in modern day Turkey. He was a good friend to the poor and helpless.

Children put out their shoes the night of Dec 5 and he filles them with candy, nuts and Oranges.
The image of St. Nichloas ahs become merged with Santa Claus. I found some great information at wikipedia

When I was a child, St. Nick would leave a small toy or comic book or magazine. These days, St. Nick leaves a Christmas-themed musical CD or Movie (DVD) at our house.

Christmas Meme

1. Egg nog or hot chocolate? Hot Chocolate. But Maybe I need to try Egg Nog.
2. Does Santa wrap presents or just set them under the tree? Wrap, with special paper that is not in the general collection
3. Colored lights or white? I prefer colored, Hubby likes white. The tree we got last year has white lights. We’ll put colored on the live tree in the basement
4. Do you hang mistletoe? Sometimes
5. When do you decorate for Christmas? I tend to do it close to the Feast of St. Nicholas since we need the stocking up for him to fill the night of the 5th. Hubby put up the tree last weekend.
6. What is your favorite holiday dish, excluding dessert? Ham, but Hubby is not a big fan. Mom used to make Au Gratin potatoes for Chirstmas dinner
7. Favorite holiday memory as a child? Going to the annual Christmas party of a club my Grandfather belonged to.
8. When and how, did you learn the truth about Santa? Not really sure… Grandpa and several UNcles have been Santa Clause Helpers...
9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? We celebrated Christmas with Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles and cousins on my Dad’s side on Christmas eve, so there were plenty of presents. Now we get together with my family in the same fashion. We go to Mass, have a big dinner and open presents.
10. How do you decorate your Christmas tree? Last year we got a smaller tree for the living room. I edited to ornaments so that we have the White house ornaments, 10-20 glass ornaments, some other special ornaments and photo ornaments. I did one of each boy every year. Last night I sat next to it looking at a picture of the 11 yo in a “Baby’s First Christmas” ornament with of a picture of him from last year. We put a live tree in the basement family room. It gets homemade ornaments on it.
11. Snow. Love it or hate it? I love in Ohio – I like it
12. Can you ice skate? Yes -
13. Do you remember your favorite gift? Not really. I remember a handmade Raggedy Ann Doll when I was a teen. I remember an Andy Gibb album as an Exchange form my cousin.
14. What is the most important thing about the holidays to you? Enjoying the season: the music, the lights, the decorations. Getting together with Friends and family.
15. What is your favorite holiday dessert? Fudge
16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? My Mom’s family getting together Christmas night for a party. Santa pays us a visit on his way back to the North Pole. There are 70 of us in 4 generations.
17. What tops your tree? An Angel I made out of Mom’s wedding dress that I also wore. _ Actually the pieces left over after I made a Baptismal gown.
18. Which do you prefer, giving or receiving? Both
19. What is your favorite Christmas song? O Holy Night, Carol of the Bells, Mary Did You Know…
20. Candy canes. Yuck or yum? Yum.

Menu Plan Monday

I need to get back on the band wagon:

Sunday - Roasted Chicekn

Monday - Cheeseburger Sloppy joes

Tuesday - Rice a Roni and Chicken - Last week, out of some desparation, hubby cooked up a package of Rice A Roni to go witht he Burgers he made Monday night. Well, The brugers were done and the rice was not. So We ate and put the Rice a Roni in the fridge. Tueday I actually got home first (Hubby's been putting in OT) and I cut up leftover chicken and warmed it with the rice, warmed a veggie and called it dinner. The boys loved it wand wanted it again.

Wednesday - Tacos - Boys request

Thursday - Spaghetti and Meatballs

Friday - unsure

Well, I was going to send you to Laura's Org Junkie site for more Menus but she's off until tomorrow

When kids decorate the tree

Notice the bare top and the bare bottom and all the ornaments bunched up... The 7 yo was trying hard to put ornaments on the back side of the tree.

Then they got tired and went down to play with half of the ornaments to be put on the tree