Joy to the World

The final weeks are here! A quick update...did not make it to NYC. boo hoo. At the beginning of last week, things started happening. Too many and it put NYC in the too hard file. In a nutshell, I was promised a do over in the Spring, so I jumped on that one. I would much rather roam the city in Spring than bone chilling weather. So all is good, I have something to look forward to come 2011. Plus, I was a little under the weather all week, so probably better to have stayed home.


The final touches for the Holidays are in full swing. My to do list is getting re- written, condensed and prioritized. Things seemed to be falling into place. Maybe because I don't have any expectations for this year. Sad, but true. I did run up to the dollar store yesterday to pick up some more gift bags. See, I'm even taking the ez way out on wrapping! There in the parking lot was a pickup truck all decorated for Christmas. A lighted, decorated tree surrounded by giant presents in the bed... Ahhhh, what a warm and fuzzy feeling. I smiled! This year has been lost, but next year, I will fa la la la la.... Maybe I can reinvent the holidays to be joyful and fun. A new twist or tradition to mix it up a bit. Why not, maybe that is the problem, the same ol, same ol. I have a year to think about it. Every once in a while I will come across something that will kick me in the rear and motivate me and I think that pickup truck was it!

It's the most wonderful time of the year...

Getting ready to head out to hopefully finish up Santa's list. It looks like all the little boys and girls in my household have been good this year. At least that is their story and they are sticking to it. I think if I tried real hard, I could find some naughty episodes that would disqualify them from Santa wiggling his way down the chimney, but another year, another free pass. I also have the dilemma of choosing a gift for two men who have lived over 70 years and have just about everything known to mankind. Other than a 20 year old nymphomaniac, I am not sure I can find anything out there that would please them. I’m sure as they are unwrapping their gifts they think…”Another present, hooo hummmm”. I will confess that Les' dad did request a 20 year old for Christmas years ago. I bought him a Barbie doll and told him to be nice to her! :) That was the best I could do, hookers are out of my budget! I have found over the years, that they either tuck the gifts up on a shelf, or give them away. I’ve done gift cards before, but I find those so impersonal. Maybe, just by luck, I will find something special this year! If anyone has any great ideas, please feel free to share!
So with my list in hand, my boots, hat and gloves on….I’m off to partake in one of the great joys of the Holiday Season…Shop Shop Shop until you Drop!!!!! Have a great weekend

Wordless Wednesday.....

Whirlwind

Baking, shopping and packing...oh my! Trying to get it all done. I never, ever, have had my shopping done before the 23rd of December! Well, I take that back, It was 1983 I had it all taken care of early. That is only because my due date with Miss Marcy was suppose to be December 14th. So the nesting kicked in and I had everything ready by the end of November. Silly me, I could have waited- since baby #2 didn't arrive until well after the new year.
This year is not any different than every year before. Lots of gifts still to be bought. Most of the time I haven't a clue what to buy, that is my dilemma . I always seem to get finished, and I am for the most part, satisfied with the results. So why change now! It works for me. I can't imagine being so organized that I can kick back for the weeks preceding Christmas morning and soak up the festivities. I might be bored just sitting back waiting for it to arrive.
So, I'm off and running, just like everyone else. They don't call it the hustle bustle of the holiday's for nothing. Enjoy the chaos, for it only comes once a year...Thank goodness!

Tick tock, Tick Tock

We are winding 2010 down quickly.  2010, boy doesn't that almost sound like a space odyssey movie.  I cannot believe the future is that far upon us.  I took a minute to go back and read my post of Jan. 11th.  There I named 10 things that were important to me this year.  I must say that many have become less important over the year and others I have not really mastered, and I could add a few new ones to the list.  Being the procrastinator that I am- the eleventh hour is upon me- and I am scrambling to achieve some of my goals so I don't feel like a failure at the end of the year.  Yesterday, I finished removing the wallpaper in the kitchen nook!  Felt good about that one, until I looked in the kitchen itself and noticed I still have a wall left in there.  I will get that done, I promised myself, and at this point I think it is possible!  Over the last week, we did get a few of those nagging items crossed off the to do list.  I even accomplished a little Christmas shopping to boot.  So things are running smoothly at the moment.  Yeah, a little calm before the storm!  I know it will be short lived, but I think I will enjoy it for now, because you never know what tomorrow will bring!

The End.

Just a quick follow-up. First I want to thank everyone for their support during this journey. I have received many phone calls and emails regarding Sarah's story. The deep emotions I felt, were also felt by many of you and I appreciate the help and encouragement from each and every one of you during this process. It truly helped me come to make my final decision on where the big red box should end up. Thank you!
I know the ending was very anti climatic. I am not sure what we all thought might happen. I know I had much anxiety over it. My biggest concerns were meeting her parents. As I have said before, I didn't want to have to answer their questions. I didn't want them to ask if I came across a certain treasure that I deemed too damaged, or insignificant and tossed it away. I didn't want to know what they looked like, so if I saw them in Kroger’s, I wouldn't have to stop and ask how the story unfolded.

I have come to the conclusion that I don't want to know these things, because like you, I have dreamed up a fairy tale ending and I want that fairy tale ending to be true.
I want Grandma to go through the box and decide who should get what and when. I want the china to be given to Sarah's daughter at her wedding shower with a note that her mother wanted her to have these gifts that were presented to her at her wedding shower. I want the daughter to set her holiday table and cherish them, like I do with the treasures I have inherited from my mother and grandmothers. I want the christening outfits that I so carefully washed, pressed and preserved in Ziplocs to be given to the children when they baptize their children. When it's right for Sarah's children, I want them to be given the journal entries their mother wrote as she battled cancer and ultimately realized the disease would win and her children would grow up without her. I want too much for these strangers, that I want them to remain strangers so I can write my own ending and not have that taken away from me.
So, I consider the turn of events to be the best possible for me.  They allow me to live out my happy ending. So my Lifetime movie has ended, and I am at peace with it.   I don't need the sequel or the final chapter written, for it will forever be....... "and they lived happily ever after"



Smile.... It's December 1st! Stress Free Photos!