But at least I'm no longer growling at the furniture

It's been kind've a weird few days.  I got home from Kari's late Tuesday evening, and quite frankly I still feel tired & a little out of sorts.  Also my house remains a bit of a mess from the holiday.  That's partially because I forced myself to "take it easy" Wednesday & Thursday, thinking the rest would be good for me, but mainly I ended up neither rested nor tidy. 

I'm a putterer.  It's who I am.


Even weirder, yesterday I woke up GROUCHY.  Not a little cranky, mind you; that's not particularly unusual, but a full-on grouchy state is pretty odd for me.  A friend called me and I told her I had been wandering around the house feeling all GRRR.  I then proceeded to use my grouchy tone of voice with my mom.  While she was trying to ask me for a favor.  Let's face it.  That's just awkward for a favor-asker.  Realizing how I sounded but still feeling all GRRR, I desperately acknowledged my obnoxious state, begged her forgiveness, and told her run from me, to Run like the wind!

(I later saw my friend when she ran a coupon over my way, and it tickled me when she told me she had been a little worried about me, HA!  Obviously I'm usually a pretty good censorer mood-faker when interacting with my loved ones :)


Work should be full of easy and happy and joy (NOT) this week, because yet again I forgot that I needed time off next Friday (I've concluded that I dislike working on Friday nights, just FYI, because, FRIDAY NIGHT) so I will once again be working "overtime" all week to make it up.  I suspect this will help neither my mood nor my attitude. 

Heaven help us all.


What does seem to help at least moderately is old Murder, She Wrote reruns, as evidenced by the marathon of no less than five episodes I viewed last night when I should have been sleeping.  As I've said once or half-a-dozen times, Angela Lansbury is good for what ails ya.  She just is.


I also wanted to bring your attention to the riveting poll I have placed on my sidebar.  Y'all, I'M HOT.  And I'm sorta over it.  Yet I feel conflicted because time? It's going by way too fast.  So I'm curious about how you're feeling about summer on this hot July afternoon. 

Let's face it...we're all a lot sweatier this year. 

I hope that isn't rude to say.  I'm often a little unclear about rudeness parameters.


Okay I'm just going to admit it.  I have no idea what my point was when I hopped on here, but it's obviously long-gone now. 

Basically I was just missin' y'all and wanted to say hi.  


Enjoy the rest of your weekend :)

Christmas when it's 97 degrees? What's up with that??

My children have a lot of people who love them. 

A lot of people. 

This has been the case for basically forever, but after they got married the ante was upped, so to speak, manyfold.  Between the family complexities accompanying divorce and all the in-laws, over the last few years things had evolved to where I barely saw them over the Christmas holiday.  We would all sleep under the same roof, but the traditional dinners and what-have-you were filled up with All The Gatherings. 

A couple of Christmas Eves ago, after cooking for a couple of days straight and no one but me partaking of the yummy, I decided things needed to change.

Thus, Christmas in July was begun.  In December we still sleep under the same roof and wake up to have our breakfast pizza and open gifts in our jammies (oh the wonderfulness of sleepy-gift-opening in jammies), but I scaled way, waay back on all the cooking and frenzy of the Christmas Holiday.

We committed to prioritizing the weekend in July nearest the 25th just as we would December 25.  I shifted most of traditional cooking, and music, and decorating to July, and we all get to enjoy it together - - and I get to enjoy having my sweet family all to myself for those couple of days! 

And of course we draw names and share an inexpensive gift and give the littles small gifts because that's just FUN. 

After two years I think it's safe to say it's a great success in the manner of a great idea.  Katie summed up my feelings well when she observed that our July Christmas is much more whimsical, leaving December a more appropriately spiritual season. 

And I must admit, it works for us!

Happy Thursday, y'all!

Christmas in July 2011: A Pictoral Post

Because it would take too many words and paragraphs, I present to you our week in review.  in pictures.  and also in no particular order because otherwise, TOO HARD. 

 

 

Happy Wednesday!

Tuckered Out

Happy Tuesday :)

Snuggles and Laughs, and Bubbles in the Grass

Well the official Christmas festivities are over.


The gifts have been opened, and Christmas movies viewed, and messes made, and the requisite cupcakes consumed.



However, we're still in the visiting-with-each-other-portion of the holidays, otherwise known as my favorite part.  Jerm had to go back home Saturday night to be in church on Sunday morning, but Kate and the babies are here for a couple more days before they, Kari, & Drew all head to the beach for a few days. 


Sooo, we did what we often do in order to be all together all the time... we moved the party to Kari's!  Other than all the packing up that has to be done I always love this arrangement.  I slept in my own bed Saturday night, amid all the disaster area-ness that is my home post holiday, and then loaded up the car with all manner of toys, and left-overs, and dirty laundry, along with all of my work paraphernalia and yes, a pair or three of clean undies, and proceeded to make the 10-minute trek to my baby's home.


...where the hugging and baby jiggling and smushy-fruit-eating and sleeping-Audrey-snuggling re-commenced.


Good, good times.



So far, so good.  Audgie was pretty good about letting me work last night while still being utterly adorable and also HI-larious. 

That kid is just flat out fun, times a lot :)


Today Kari is going to bring Ky and Mason over for more wacky hijinks's, and I'm making the crock pot chicken along with mashed potatoes that my very own with-child daughter has been dreaming of for a week or three. 


I am predicting another very good day here in the valley. 



God has blessed me and my family with so very much, and I'm so thankful and try to never take one moment of our time together for granted.  I didn't post anything last week, but rest assured, I'm still counting! 

Below are a few more of my thousand. 




(A Thousand Gifts #623-634)

pink fingers and toes



his smiles that come when he sees me...

 ...and her sense of humor





watching my boys working together

overdue breakfast dates and favors from my neighbor











naptime snuggles








air conditioning!  and dishwashers!  and new car batteries!


grownup patience and toddler manners


and bubbles in the grass

Happy Monday!

p.s.  The above photos were taken by my wonderfully-talented Kari.  Thanks Darlin' for being such a sweet sharer.  I love you!

Because whimsy always brings along The Happy

Well here I am at 2:28 in the a.m.  Awake and wishing I wasn't.  I finished up work a few minutes after two, loaded the dishwasher & got it started, turned off the tree lights & headed to bed, but I'm still not quite ready to sleep.

There are no words for the foolishness that is my internal sleep scheduler. 

Weird.  Weird might be a word for it.

Or aggravating.  

Maddening is a contender.

I'll keep you posted.

Anyway, I don't imagine I'll be online much in the immediate future because y'all, all the Christmas-y goodness is about to commence!  

The gifts are wrapped & most of the food prepared.  I have the slip & slide with sprinkler and the baby pool out in the yard because of all THE HOT in the valley right now.  

I do need to make one more quick Kroger run and bake the cookies & cupcakes, and by the time I'm finished with that I imagine the family will be arriving, and bringing with them that lovely chaos that fills my world with all The Happy.

So from my house to yours on this weekend-closest-to-the-25th-in-July...

Merry Christmas!

A Wednesday Without Words - But Ain't She Somethin'?

Happy Wednesday!

So Lame Even a Great Title Couldn't Help

Well I've been pretty busy this week, and I predict things are going to get a whole lot busier before I get bored.  Yippee!

For starters I'm taking Friday off from work.  Since I have virtually no vacation time left I'm working overtime this week to make up the difference.  That really isn't so bad except for All The Fatigue that is surely to arrive right about the time things kick into high gear around here. 

This works for me because I rather enjoy whining and complaining and also bellyaching here on the worldwideweb. 

Y'all always make me feel better :)


Sorry.  Rabbit trail. 


Aw man!  I just completely lost my train of thought, and it was a sad little train to start with.


Sigh.


I'm a little bit without fascinating information today, but I guess every day can't be full of riveting.  I guess I should admit that while viewing my first three veryspecial Christmas episodes loaded on Hulu, I managed to tear up only three times.  There might or might not have been a bit of nose-blowing.  I can't really remember.

On a different note it might (not) interest you to know that I consumed two, count 'em two, Big Gulps before lunch today.  We have a new 7-Eleven down the street.  That's right, my favorite little Apple Mart is now long gone and has been replaced with a 7-Eleven.  I am ambivalent.  And conflicted. 

And ambivalent. 

The good part is it's open 24 hours a day.  What this means is when I'm working and full of the miserable I can zip down the street and purchase large quantities of caffeine, thereby rendering me unable to sleep until approximately four in the a-m. 

Contrary to how that might sound to you, I consider it a good thing, ha.





I'm also pleased to report that I'm pretty much done with the Christmas decorating.  Now I just need to work on my grocery listing and gift wrapping.  And cooking.  And also more Hulu-watching.



Oh y'all.  You are so kind to me and how do I repay you?  With what I am certain is my lamest post yet.  And it is with my abject apologies that I hit the ol' "publish" button.  I'll try to do better by ya next time. 


In the meantime, please feel free to enjoy the yummy goodness of these photos taken by my daughter, which have nothing to do with anything other than OH I JUST LOVE HIM - and I hope ya have a simply lovely evening!

Happy Tuesday!