On our way to daycare this morning, we got stopped at a red light next to a cement truck, which inspired much pointing and shouting, "Mama, twuck! Seh-mahn twuck!" from DS and a discussion of how the cement was inside the rolling drum, turning around and around until it was ready to be used. DD & DS were both vastly entertained watching the drum spin around and around, and I realized that certain jobs have a cachet for kids that is lost for grown-ups.
For example, a fire truck never fails to inspire comment from both of our kids, as do ambulances, cherry pickers, cranes, "bobbies" (any form of construction equipment, be it diggers, excavators, etc). Likewise the guys who are up in the cherry picker trimming trees or working on power lines are viewed with a certain awe by kids. Anything where the person is up high or using a big machine will never cease to be cool to little ones.
Similiarly, anyone who gets to use neat equipment or make big noises has a cool job. Even the garbage man has a cool job to kids. He drives this neat truck with a special lift on it and he gets to stop whenever he likes and use flashing lights. Ditto the street sweeper, or the schoolbus driver. Schoolbuses never fail to inspire comments, as they might be carrying other kids inside and thus are worthy of great scrutiny and speculation about where they are going. Are they coming from school, or going to school?
The fire truck and police cars at the county fair were nearly as a big a hit as the rides for our kids, I think. The police cars and motorcycles were littered with neat lights and sirens and equipment, and the fire truck has all the bells and whistles (literally) that you could imagine. All hot stuff to young children, and all the people who work in them are just cool, in a way that kids get and adults sometimes forget.
I have decided that if it's a cool job to a kid, it has to be a cool job forever. I mean, what job could be better than having little kids point at you in awe or keep a fervent watch for your vehicle while they are being towed around town by their parents? Those types of jobs can never lose their 'cool' cachet. Impressing children has to count for something even when you're old enough to be annoyed at being caught behind the street sweeper. After all, a lot of those jobs have precious few perks to adults, might as well enjoy the adulation that comes from the pint-sized perspective!
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Monday, February 2, 2009
My Mother Will Never Die
I was chatting with some friends on Sunday about parenting and the difference in perspective when you are actually the parent, instead of the child. My friends are at various stages of life and their kids' ages reflect that, so it's fun to talk about what changes and what stays the same as your kiddos grow up. And one of my friend's kids was listening to our conversation. As it happens this young lady is 14 and a full-blown teenager, and after we were all chuckling about something I asked her, "I'll bet you think your parents make lots of mistakes, huh?" She just laughed (as did her mom) and I said, "You don't have to tell us, but we all know--you're going to do things differently when YOU'RE the mom, right?" She said, "Oh yeah."
LOL! How well I remember saying the same thing as a teenager. I knew exactly what my parents were screwing up with regard to my upbringing (and my siblings'), and by golly *I* would never say/do what they did! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! As proof of God's great sense of humor, here are a few things I have found myself saying which I distinctly recall swearing I would NEVER SAY as a mom.
LOL! How well I remember saying the same thing as a teenager. I knew exactly what my parents were screwing up with regard to my upbringing (and my siblings'), and by golly *I* would never say/do what they did! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! As proof of God's great sense of humor, here are a few things I have found myself saying which I distinctly recall swearing I would NEVER SAY as a mom.
- Do I need to stop this car and pull over?
- How many times do I have to tell you to {do X}?
- Are you listening to me?
- If you do that one more time, you'll be sorry! (talk about an empty threat...the most meaningless threat of punishment there is the unexplained punishment)
- Don't make me come in there!
- There are hungry children who would be grateful to eat that dinner. (again, totally meaningless...because any smart child will instantly offer to give it to them!)
- Because I said so, that's why.
- Stop teasing your brother. (says the woman who used to tease HER brother)
- If these toys aren't cleaned up in five minutes I'm throwing them away. (to be fair it's usually DH who says this...I put toys into time-out if they aren't tidied up)
- This is your last chance.
I know there are more which I can't remember right now. And as our kids get older, more and more old chestnuts that I used to hate hearing as a kid will be spouting forth from my lips. Is it any wonder my parents are so well entertained when they visit us? Payback is hell!
Monday, January 19, 2009
What On Earth Will Occur in 6 Months' Time
I wish I could say our bathroom was looking more, well, finished. We've just had a three day weekend, surely we could have gotten something done in there, right? But no. We had a birthday party to throw on Saturday, then to clean up after, and Sunday was our day of rest (as it ought to have been). Today we finally got the Christmas lights and wreaths down from the house. (And may I just say that having a bunch of parents and kids under the age of 7 over for a birthday party with Christmas lights & wreath still prominently displayed on the 17th of January was just a WEE bit embarrassing? Ahem.)
We also let the kids have a good roll around on their new bike or in their new toy car, as the case may be. It was a nice day today--not too cold this afternoon, sunny. All in all a treat for a January day in the Pacific NW, so we wanted to enjoy it. Nonetheless, I had some faint idea of getting the rest of the backerboard up in the tub, at least so I could say to myself that it was buttoned up. Nope.
I am feeling horrid because we still have a friend's tile saw sitting out on our back deck, and it's been nearly 2 months since it's been used. I know he wasn't using it for anything, but I hate having someone's borrowed expensive tool sitting gathering dust when we should be pushing forward with this. I also hate the fact that our kids have practically forgotten what it's like to have a fun bath with each other and all their bath toys. Our son hates showers and tolerates them, but I feel like he gets tortured every time we wash his hair. I don't like that.
Of course I am pregnant and hormonal and moody, so that is probably influencing me. I am also waiting for my first paycheck of the quarter, and that is always not fun, because I've postponed some necessary purchases until then. And I don't like waiting to buy things we need (who does?). This is the yucky and necessary part of a budget and being responsible (or doing my best imitation thereof).
But I am wondering exactly what the heck we are going to do in six months' time when we have my in-laws coming to stay for six weeks or thereabouts, and we have no guest room to put them in? The former guest room is now our son's room, and the only place for guests to bunk down presently is on our uncomfortable sleeper sofa (and how well my parents liked it at Christmas...not). And to have 2 adults bunking on a temporary bed in the middle of an open den for six weeks?? Erm, not what I would call a recipe for success! They need a place to call their own, where they can go off and trust that little hands will not paw through their things or disturb them when they need a nap.
Which leaves us with two options, really. Option one is to dislodge DS from his bedroom for six weeks and set him up in his sister's room with his bed. I am not too fond of this option, because I don't know how well it will fly, and we can't exactly test run it for six weeks, can we? It is either a disaster or not, and leaves us with no plan B, except aforementioned sleeper sofa. We can't bring him into our room, because we will have the new baby in there, and there just isn't going to be room. And we could move DD out of her room and into DS' room, but she has more permanent pieces of furniture that would be hard to move, and thus harder to accommodate some adult-sized beds.
Option two is to get our cottage (the detached garage) cleared out of all the crap we have stored in it, or at least put it in some semblance of order, and get our butts (& budget) geared up to put in a toilet and sink with cold running water, at a minimum. I could set aside some funds from my pay toward said bathroom improvement, but we have no idea whether the county would give us a hard time about putting it in, or if we would have to add a new standalone septic tank, etc. And we don't know how we would go about adding it in to the existing septic. Um, fun! But really, we could not ask two people in their sixties to bunk down in a cottage with no bathroom facilities, as making a pilgrimage to the main house in the middle of the night for a toilet is hardly workable.
*sigh* I don't know what we are going to do. I really don't. Neither option is really nice, and we have to figure something out, and SOON if we are going to get a workable plan in place. I really don't know what to pursue. Ay-yi-yi, this is what happens when you move to a house with one fewer bedrooms!
We also let the kids have a good roll around on their new bike or in their new toy car, as the case may be. It was a nice day today--not too cold this afternoon, sunny. All in all a treat for a January day in the Pacific NW, so we wanted to enjoy it. Nonetheless, I had some faint idea of getting the rest of the backerboard up in the tub, at least so I could say to myself that it was buttoned up. Nope.
I am feeling horrid because we still have a friend's tile saw sitting out on our back deck, and it's been nearly 2 months since it's been used. I know he wasn't using it for anything, but I hate having someone's borrowed expensive tool sitting gathering dust when we should be pushing forward with this. I also hate the fact that our kids have practically forgotten what it's like to have a fun bath with each other and all their bath toys. Our son hates showers and tolerates them, but I feel like he gets tortured every time we wash his hair. I don't like that.
Of course I am pregnant and hormonal and moody, so that is probably influencing me. I am also waiting for my first paycheck of the quarter, and that is always not fun, because I've postponed some necessary purchases until then. And I don't like waiting to buy things we need (who does?). This is the yucky and necessary part of a budget and being responsible (or doing my best imitation thereof).
But I am wondering exactly what the heck we are going to do in six months' time when we have my in-laws coming to stay for six weeks or thereabouts, and we have no guest room to put them in? The former guest room is now our son's room, and the only place for guests to bunk down presently is on our uncomfortable sleeper sofa (and how well my parents liked it at Christmas...not). And to have 2 adults bunking on a temporary bed in the middle of an open den for six weeks?? Erm, not what I would call a recipe for success! They need a place to call their own, where they can go off and trust that little hands will not paw through their things or disturb them when they need a nap.
Which leaves us with two options, really. Option one is to dislodge DS from his bedroom for six weeks and set him up in his sister's room with his bed. I am not too fond of this option, because I don't know how well it will fly, and we can't exactly test run it for six weeks, can we? It is either a disaster or not, and leaves us with no plan B, except aforementioned sleeper sofa. We can't bring him into our room, because we will have the new baby in there, and there just isn't going to be room. And we could move DD out of her room and into DS' room, but she has more permanent pieces of furniture that would be hard to move, and thus harder to accommodate some adult-sized beds.
Option two is to get our cottage (the detached garage) cleared out of all the crap we have stored in it, or at least put it in some semblance of order, and get our butts (& budget) geared up to put in a toilet and sink with cold running water, at a minimum. I could set aside some funds from my pay toward said bathroom improvement, but we have no idea whether the county would give us a hard time about putting it in, or if we would have to add a new standalone septic tank, etc. And we don't know how we would go about adding it in to the existing septic. Um, fun! But really, we could not ask two people in their sixties to bunk down in a cottage with no bathroom facilities, as making a pilgrimage to the main house in the middle of the night for a toilet is hardly workable.
*sigh* I don't know what we are going to do. I really don't. Neither option is really nice, and we have to figure something out, and SOON if we are going to get a workable plan in place. I really don't know what to pursue. Ay-yi-yi, this is what happens when you move to a house with one fewer bedrooms!
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Yowzers, This is Some Ride
Well, as part of our increased attack on our debt snowball, I am working full-time this quarter. It sounds impressive, but really working full-time as an adjunct faculty member just means I am teaching three classes. And they are all the same class, so really I am prepping for one lecture/lab combination, and teaching it twice (one lecture and 2 lab sections, then one lecture/lab combo--yes it's confusing).
I wasn't slated to teach 3 classes this quarter, but I got a call from the dean on the Friday before the quarter started (on Monday). They had a long waitlist for another section of this class, and wanted to know if I would be interested in teaching another section...which oh by the way would bump me up to full-time pay from the adjunct payscale, including benefits. Um, heck ya! For reference, it's more than DOUBLE the pay of the adjunct gig, to add that one class...sure makes sense from a math perspective. So DH & I figured out if the schedule would work for us, and once we determined that we decided to go for it.
The downside is that I have put the kiddos in daycare for a few hours every day. The normal section of this class is offered daily, so I have to be on campus for about two hours every day. They are old enough to enjoy playing with other kids, but it's still not optimal. DS is adjusting slowly, but the teachers are amazed at how well he does since he's never been in daycare before. Today when I picked him up he was singing "Itsy Bitsy Spider" and doing the hand movements with his teacher--so cute! DD is just fine with it--she views it as her second school (after preschool) and she is quite happy to be there. Still, knowing they are only little once, I am sorry to miss out on any time with them. I am selfish that way, I suppose.
My students are great so far, which is helpful. It's far harder to motivate oneself to do a super job of explaining things if you feel like the students are totally non-engaged. I believe I have just described the reason that I am not a public school teacher! However, most of my students are older, coming back to school to retrain for a new career. They are motivated and they are paying their own way, which makes a huge difference in how they handle the coursework.
I am in the second week now, so I've got eight more to go. It's going to be a tough slog, especially the beginning of the week. I have lectures and labs each day, and it's tiring. Of course it doesn't help that we are expecting our third child, so I've been battling pregnancy insomnia and fatigue. Fortunately I am into the second trimester now, so I can hope I will get my energy back like I did with the other two pregnancies. And I am just starting the grading grind...lab data and quizzes, plus homework! Plus writing my first exam in a few weeks. Phew! It's going to be a busy eight weeks.
I wasn't slated to teach 3 classes this quarter, but I got a call from the dean on the Friday before the quarter started (on Monday). They had a long waitlist for another section of this class, and wanted to know if I would be interested in teaching another section...which oh by the way would bump me up to full-time pay from the adjunct payscale, including benefits. Um, heck ya! For reference, it's more than DOUBLE the pay of the adjunct gig, to add that one class...sure makes sense from a math perspective. So DH & I figured out if the schedule would work for us, and once we determined that we decided to go for it.
The downside is that I have put the kiddos in daycare for a few hours every day. The normal section of this class is offered daily, so I have to be on campus for about two hours every day. They are old enough to enjoy playing with other kids, but it's still not optimal. DS is adjusting slowly, but the teachers are amazed at how well he does since he's never been in daycare before. Today when I picked him up he was singing "Itsy Bitsy Spider" and doing the hand movements with his teacher--so cute! DD is just fine with it--she views it as her second school (after preschool) and she is quite happy to be there. Still, knowing they are only little once, I am sorry to miss out on any time with them. I am selfish that way, I suppose.
My students are great so far, which is helpful. It's far harder to motivate oneself to do a super job of explaining things if you feel like the students are totally non-engaged. I believe I have just described the reason that I am not a public school teacher! However, most of my students are older, coming back to school to retrain for a new career. They are motivated and they are paying their own way, which makes a huge difference in how they handle the coursework.
I am in the second week now, so I've got eight more to go. It's going to be a tough slog, especially the beginning of the week. I have lectures and labs each day, and it's tiring. Of course it doesn't help that we are expecting our third child, so I've been battling pregnancy insomnia and fatigue. Fortunately I am into the second trimester now, so I can hope I will get my energy back like I did with the other two pregnancies. And I am just starting the grading grind...lab data and quizzes, plus homework! Plus writing my first exam in a few weeks. Phew! It's going to be a busy eight weeks.
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Happy New Year!
I hope you too are contemplating positive changes you wish to make in the New Year, although I am not much of one for New Year's resolutions. Apart from wishing to be more productive in general, I have a fond hope of seeing clutter drastically reduced yet again in our house. I think we are slowly making progress in the right direction--at least things are being given permanent homes and we are making some habits of tidying up paperwork right away. I just hope we are able to simplify things further in the coming year, since we are going to be super busy.
I hope you had a good Christmas, as did we. My parents had a great time with the kids and the kids are already asking when Grandma and Grandpa are coming to visit again. As it happens, that will probably occur in mid-August or so, which will be a welcome summer visit. And my in-laws are planning a trek over as well, so I am hopeful of sharing the bountiful produce from our garden with them all.
I am certainly not sorry to say goodbye to the plagues and troubles of the past year. To put them in perspective, we have really had a soft year for troubles considering what so many others are facing. Still, I would be glad of a respite for a while from home repairs and necessary projects, and would like to see us put forth our efforts toward some worthwhile but 'optional' projects instead. It would be really fun to see the kids enjoying their free playset, for example, complete with sandbox and swings. I know they would get a lot of use of it, so hopefully we can get that up by mid-spring for full summer enjoyment.
I hope you all have a wonderful 2009. Let us hope that we greet the New Year with hope and contentment with our multitude of blessings, and consider too how we can all share them a bit more in the New Year. Happy New Year!
I hope you had a good Christmas, as did we. My parents had a great time with the kids and the kids are already asking when Grandma and Grandpa are coming to visit again. As it happens, that will probably occur in mid-August or so, which will be a welcome summer visit. And my in-laws are planning a trek over as well, so I am hopeful of sharing the bountiful produce from our garden with them all.
I am certainly not sorry to say goodbye to the plagues and troubles of the past year. To put them in perspective, we have really had a soft year for troubles considering what so many others are facing. Still, I would be glad of a respite for a while from home repairs and necessary projects, and would like to see us put forth our efforts toward some worthwhile but 'optional' projects instead. It would be really fun to see the kids enjoying their free playset, for example, complete with sandbox and swings. I know they would get a lot of use of it, so hopefully we can get that up by mid-spring for full summer enjoyment.
I hope you all have a wonderful 2009. Let us hope that we greet the New Year with hope and contentment with our multitude of blessings, and consider too how we can all share them a bit more in the New Year. Happy New Year!
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
All I Want for Christmas
I want my linen closet back. Seriously. Its shelves are covered with construction materials and tools, while my linens are strewn all over the house in vacuum space bags. Our children are ripping them one by one by playing on them like their own version of the preformed foam play structures at the mall. I trip over two bags when I go into the laundry room to do laundry, I skirt around five in our bedroom, and have to move two more from in front of my sewing machine when I need to sew, or in front of the hall closet when I need to get something or put something away. I am really tired of it, almost more so than the whole lack of a tiled tub surround thing. It's just the last straw at this point, as I contemplate our cluttered surfaces and what needs to be done before my parents arrive on Sunday. I just don't need that "one more thing", know what I mean?
I know that I am going to continue to divest us of extraneous "stuff" in the coming year. In fact, if I can get my parents to be accommodating enough with the kids, I am going to clean out a few things while they are here. Maybe by setting a good example they will do the same in their house when they get home. I have no illusions about where I get my clutterbug tendencies from. What I am realizing, however, is that if you don't use something on a regular basis, it's really not necessary to have it in your house. There are a lot of things that can be multi-taskers, and the uni-taskers are getting the boot around here. I don't have the energy to put it all away and the kids certainly don't do us any favors in that respect.
I still don't have all the Christmas decorations up. Frankly there are 2 more things that I want to see up, and the rest I can happily see packed away in the attic until next year, when hopefully I will have more energy.
If you haven't checked it out, read Luke 16. Talk about a convicting chapter on money and how to be a wise steward of it! I am humbled by our abysmal money management, in particular my abysmal money management. That, too, needs to change in the New Year. I can't do it alone, though. I am going to have to stick to a plan and be accountable. It is hard to change bad habits, because they are so very comfortable to us here. Ugh. Ever noticed how what is the most comfortable is often the worst thing for you in the long term? Luke 16--it's all there. I'm telling you, we need to be accountable. I'm thinking it's time to call our friends who have successfully completed their debt snowball and get some serious monthly accountability going. Big sigh. Yeah, it's going to suck, but it's so completely necessary it's not even funny. We need to kiss our credit card debt goodbye yesterday with this economy. Wish us luck!
I know that I am going to continue to divest us of extraneous "stuff" in the coming year. In fact, if I can get my parents to be accommodating enough with the kids, I am going to clean out a few things while they are here. Maybe by setting a good example they will do the same in their house when they get home. I have no illusions about where I get my clutterbug tendencies from. What I am realizing, however, is that if you don't use something on a regular basis, it's really not necessary to have it in your house. There are a lot of things that can be multi-taskers, and the uni-taskers are getting the boot around here. I don't have the energy to put it all away and the kids certainly don't do us any favors in that respect.
I still don't have all the Christmas decorations up. Frankly there are 2 more things that I want to see up, and the rest I can happily see packed away in the attic until next year, when hopefully I will have more energy.
If you haven't checked it out, read Luke 16. Talk about a convicting chapter on money and how to be a wise steward of it! I am humbled by our abysmal money management, in particular my abysmal money management. That, too, needs to change in the New Year. I can't do it alone, though. I am going to have to stick to a plan and be accountable. It is hard to change bad habits, because they are so very comfortable to us here. Ugh. Ever noticed how what is the most comfortable is often the worst thing for you in the long term? Luke 16--it's all there. I'm telling you, we need to be accountable. I'm thinking it's time to call our friends who have successfully completed their debt snowball and get some serious monthly accountability going. Big sigh. Yeah, it's going to suck, but it's so completely necessary it's not even funny. We need to kiss our credit card debt goodbye yesterday with this economy. Wish us luck!
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Mid-December Madness
Well as seems to be warranted with our house, there is always a perpetual problem popping up requiring prompt attention. (Boy would my English teacher Mrs. Wilson be proud of that alliteration...) Now we have an open neutral somewhere on the circuit that powers most of our bedroom and our son's bedroom. Oh joy. After checking all the non-working outlets and the working outlets adjacent to the non-working ones, my DH thinks he has pinpointed the trouble spot to be a poor splice that is probably in the attic. We spotted this little bit of wire and electrical tape over by the far wall once when we were up there, and said to ourselves that this was something that required further investigation. Apparently that time has come, because from what we can figure out, that is where some prior owner spliced in the electrical line for the exterior lights on the cottage/garage. It's sort of a good thing that they left it sort of poking up there from the wall, because if that had done it correctly with a junction box we would have no idea that it was there. DH suspects that the pigtail going back to the outlet on my side of the bed has come loose, which gives us an open neutral on the rest of the circuit. So we are going to buy a junction box and properly install it in the attic, and DH is going to ensure that splice is correct so we don't need to worry about fire hazards and such. In the meantime, we are on day two of the circuit remaining off for safety, and I am using a floor lamp with an extension cord for our bedroom.
Additionally, I have finally solved the MIL present dilemma and hastily shipped off a cute old-style photograph of the kiddos to her, with enough time that it should arrive before Christmas and be safely tucked under the tree. MIL was a bit sad that there was no present for her under the tree in the box I shipped earlier, and that left DH & I scrambling to find something appropriate. I mean, the reason there was nothing in there for her, was that we didn't find anything she'd like or would use! So given the exorbitant cost of shipping things to Ireland, it didn't seem wise to ship something that we knew was just useless crap. We fall on the old standbys of gift cards when nothing appropriate presents itself on this side of the water, and thus was my MIL left with no personally wrapped and addressed present. *sigh* As an aside, how is it that wives get stuck with the Christmas shopping for their husband's family?? Anyway, I feel confident she will love the photo and we can send along an accessory for her new mobile phone from an Irish website, and we're done. *Phew* Fortunately DH's brother-in-law and younger sister will be just as happy with gift cards, so we just have to order those and call it good.
I also have not bought anything for my mother, or my grandparents or great aunt. I should be able to get Wal Mart gift cards or some such for my grandparents and great aunt, as they are too old for useless stuff and I know they would actually use and appreciate the money toward their Wal Mart purchases. My mom is a bit more puzzling, because despite her Amazon wishlist there is nothing that really screams, "I would love this!" We got a pass this year on my dad because my siblings and I chipped in on a really expensive Shun knife that he wanted, so I know he will use it and love it. It's harder to convince myself that my mom will love getting the new Enya Christmas CD on Christmas Day (if she hasn't bought it for herself already), or a new pair of Lee Women's pants in chocolate twill. Just not feeling the love there. She buys her favorite author's books as soon as they come out, and again, pre-ordering a book that is not out for four months is just a little weeny for my taste.
We are still working through the massive pile of Christmas cards that need to be addressed and mailed off. It's great on the one hand to have so many friends and family, but on the other hand it is a lot of work too. I am just hoping that more of our friends reciprocate, because I really love getting Christmas cards. It's the right thing to do to send the cards, but it's hard to justify sending out 200+ cards if you only get about 50-60 in return.
And I still don't have all the Christmas decorations up. Both trees are in the house, and upright...but only one is fully decorated. I was working on the other one today, but discovered that the new lights we just bought at Wal Mart do not work. Grrrrr...*eye tic* So now I get to return them to Wal Mart, and go to another store to buy more lights (because really, if the first box didn't work, who in their right mind would buy the same brand again?).
Did I mention that the bathroom isn't done yet? Yeah. No tub surround. Not even the tile backerboard up. Does this annoy me? Oh yeah, you bet it does. My parents arrive in a little over a WEEK. I would like to have tile up, thanks. You know, the whole progress thing that indicates that our children will SOMEDAY be able to have baths again in their new $400 tub. Little things like that. And my drywall seaming is still too imperfect for my liking, so I have to smooth over some of the rough spots and re-texture the walls, then re-paint those areas. I don't think we'll ever be done.
And we have other good stuff and bad stuff going on too. DH stepped on a nail on Sunday and had to get a tetanus shot. We had a coyote in our yard yesterday morning, which I had to scare off (I don't want them feeling at home in our yard, TYVM). At least the small birds seem to have rediscovered the suet feeder, which I finally re-hung after being certain that large mammals of the genus Ursus would be hibernating by now. And DH is actually getting a Christmas bonus, which is a big praise in this day and age! Of course it is all going to our debt snowball, but YAY REDUCTION OF DEBT!
Nothing to do but press on, I'm afraid. I still have apples to can. Someday, I will be done...someday...
Additionally, I have finally solved the MIL present dilemma and hastily shipped off a cute old-style photograph of the kiddos to her, with enough time that it should arrive before Christmas and be safely tucked under the tree. MIL was a bit sad that there was no present for her under the tree in the box I shipped earlier, and that left DH & I scrambling to find something appropriate. I mean, the reason there was nothing in there for her, was that we didn't find anything she'd like or would use! So given the exorbitant cost of shipping things to Ireland, it didn't seem wise to ship something that we knew was just useless crap. We fall on the old standbys of gift cards when nothing appropriate presents itself on this side of the water, and thus was my MIL left with no personally wrapped and addressed present. *sigh* As an aside, how is it that wives get stuck with the Christmas shopping for their husband's family?? Anyway, I feel confident she will love the photo and we can send along an accessory for her new mobile phone from an Irish website, and we're done. *Phew* Fortunately DH's brother-in-law and younger sister will be just as happy with gift cards, so we just have to order those and call it good.
I also have not bought anything for my mother, or my grandparents or great aunt. I should be able to get Wal Mart gift cards or some such for my grandparents and great aunt, as they are too old for useless stuff and I know they would actually use and appreciate the money toward their Wal Mart purchases. My mom is a bit more puzzling, because despite her Amazon wishlist there is nothing that really screams, "I would love this!" We got a pass this year on my dad because my siblings and I chipped in on a really expensive Shun knife that he wanted, so I know he will use it and love it. It's harder to convince myself that my mom will love getting the new Enya Christmas CD on Christmas Day (if she hasn't bought it for herself already), or a new pair of Lee Women's pants in chocolate twill. Just not feeling the love there. She buys her favorite author's books as soon as they come out, and again, pre-ordering a book that is not out for four months is just a little weeny for my taste.
We are still working through the massive pile of Christmas cards that need to be addressed and mailed off. It's great on the one hand to have so many friends and family, but on the other hand it is a lot of work too. I am just hoping that more of our friends reciprocate, because I really love getting Christmas cards. It's the right thing to do to send the cards, but it's hard to justify sending out 200+ cards if you only get about 50-60 in return.
And I still don't have all the Christmas decorations up. Both trees are in the house, and upright...but only one is fully decorated. I was working on the other one today, but discovered that the new lights we just bought at Wal Mart do not work. Grrrrr...*eye tic* So now I get to return them to Wal Mart, and go to another store to buy more lights (because really, if the first box didn't work, who in their right mind would buy the same brand again?).
Did I mention that the bathroom isn't done yet? Yeah. No tub surround. Not even the tile backerboard up. Does this annoy me? Oh yeah, you bet it does. My parents arrive in a little over a WEEK. I would like to have tile up, thanks. You know, the whole progress thing that indicates that our children will SOMEDAY be able to have baths again in their new $400 tub. Little things like that. And my drywall seaming is still too imperfect for my liking, so I have to smooth over some of the rough spots and re-texture the walls, then re-paint those areas. I don't think we'll ever be done.
And we have other good stuff and bad stuff going on too. DH stepped on a nail on Sunday and had to get a tetanus shot. We had a coyote in our yard yesterday morning, which I had to scare off (I don't want them feeling at home in our yard, TYVM). At least the small birds seem to have rediscovered the suet feeder, which I finally re-hung after being certain that large mammals of the genus Ursus would be hibernating by now. And DH is actually getting a Christmas bonus, which is a big praise in this day and age! Of course it is all going to our debt snowball, but YAY REDUCTION OF DEBT!
Nothing to do but press on, I'm afraid. I still have apples to can. Someday, I will be done...someday...
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