Will I ever be able to leave the house again without imagining a bat flying at my face?

Because that's what happened to me on Sunday night.  Hope and I were leaving to go school supply shopping, and as I opened the door to our garage...something dark that I didn't understand at all came flappy flapping RIGHT AT MY FACE.

I shrieked like I haven't in some time and promptly slammed the door shut and did what any normal woman would do in this situation...SCREAMED FOR MY HUSBAND.  He was already on his way, after hearing my shrieking which I would find out later he was quite amused by.  I told him "something" was in the garage and it flew right at me like this (flopping my hands in front of my face) and it was definitely NOT A MOTH.

He calmly said "it was probably a bat, hon."  Which immediately sent my already confuzzled brain into full

I am just trying to get through the days without having a stroke

This is what I wrote in my journal on June 5th, the beginning of summer...

"I am just trying to get through each day without having a stroke...that's my goal, to not stroke out.  Maybe I have set the bar a bit too low, but at least it's somewhat achievable!  I go through this every summer - the end of the school year means another summer where my kids are home alone all day & I'm missing countless opportunities to be with them...having the fun, nurturing, guiding, protecting, supervising, laughing, talking, cleaning, shopping, cooking healthy meals, all the things I desire in my heart to do with and for them.  Instead, they are on their own eating hot pockets & frozen pizza and fighting & leaving the house whenever and going wherever with whoever...and I'm not there.  I'm so sad, worried, frustrated at why God has said 'no' to my years of praying (to be home).  God, help me.  This is worse than the other years because it might be the last year Nick and Vinny are home - and I've missed it."

Well, here we are approaching the end of the summer.  Some things have changed and I've learned quite a bit.  About myself and my kids and my husband and our God...

First of all, I didn't have a stroke.  That's a good thing.

Secondly, my kids are much more capable of managing themselves than I had given them credit for.  Yea, I know there were probably fights, but this summer I didn't get one single call (yet) by someone saying/yelling/crying because they were being picked on/ignored/infuriated by a sibling.  Progress?  I think so.  The kids are maturing and I'm so proud of them!  And me...I'm learning to let go a bit.  Just a bit.  Little bits at a time.  Is it possible to hold onto your kids too tightly?  If so, I've probably been guilty of that.  It's good for them to work out their disagreements themselves, without one of the parents swooping in and administering justice - which is sometimes necessary, but in the long run they don't learn how to work things out themselves and experience the consequences of not.  Hopefully through those experiences, they learn compassion and compromise and selflessness...and how to live with someone that you CAN'T STAND RIGHT NOW!!!  Not that I would know anything about that.

And then there's the food.  With our new juicing adventure, we are eliminating most processed food from the house.  So that means no more mac & cheese, frozen pizzas, and hot pockets. Oh the horror.  Either the kids will learn to make "real food" for lunch, or they will starve.  Or I suppose they will mooch food off their friends, or spend their spending money buying junk at the Cenex.  All of which I'm sure have been occurring. Our hope is that the "real food" concept will win out most of the time.  So far they have been gagging at our juices, but my kale, cuke, apple, carrot juice today is pretty delish!

I think I'll go enjoy it on our deck and chat with our kids and our dog and my husband and possibly journal some more.

Our summer in review, a new adventure, and why I shouldn't be blogging

Why is it that my kids can ignore me for hours, but as soon as I want to talk on the phone or go to bed, it's "Mom!  Mom!  Mom!  Mom!  Mom!"?  One would think that when kids become teenagers this phenomenon would end, but one would be wrong.  I was able to make the escape tonight, shoving my bedroom door closed as my youngest narrowly escaped getting his nose caught in the door.  I want to be available to my kids and all, but it's after 11:30 and we both work in the morning. 

Which is exactly why I shouldn't be blogging. 

Sleeping would be a better idea, but for some reason I'm not that tired.  I had a nap on the couch for an hour or so this evening, and slept in 'til 9 this morning, so I'm good.  Besides that, Vince and I have so much more energy now with our new adventure:  juicing!  We started two weeks ago and the results have been amazing!  I have lost 6 lbs and Mr. Wonderful has lost 13!  Jerk.  SO not fair.  I'm so happy for him us!

It all started because of this documentary, and it has changed our lives.  We watched it a few weeks ago, and even though we have talked about losing weight and made some feeble attempts at it over the years, this time something clicked...we are ready to make a change to improve our health and live the life we are meant to live.  It's only been two weeks, but what we have learned so far has been mind blowing!  Probably the most profound thing for me has been losing the cravings.  It happened within the first couple days, I literally don't think about food until I am feeling hungry.  I look at food differently now...as a source of nutrition instead of a way to escape stress.  We are having a juice and an egg for breakfast and another for lunch, and supper is lean protein with vegies and a salad.  We have so much more energy - I even played tennis yesterday afternoon!  I have had no headaches, and Vince's joint pain is gone.  We don't get sluggish or reach for the caffeine to get us through the days.  It's been nothing short of amazing so far and we are motivated to keep going.

So here we are 2/3 through another summer and my mind has not caught up with that fact.  Given the time and my need to both blog and sleep, here are some sentences about what I have learned so far this summer:

Having two boys in baseball significantly impacts our schedules and our ability to cook meals at home, but it's also super fun to hang out with the other parents and watch our boys rock it!

Nats are very annoying.

I have vacuumed approximately 47 lbs. of baseball sand from our house and vehicles.

Having a girl who loves to perform also significantly impacts our schedules and our ability to cook meals at home, but it's also super awesome to watch her do what she loves, and do it so well!

Flowers are beautiful!

Purchasing a ton of flowers and planting them in pots on our decks, and admiring their beauty everyday is very rewarding and relaxing.

If you don't keep up with the watering, they will die and you will end up throwing them out 2/3 of the way through the summer.  Again. 

Sigh.

Cooking with fresh herbs grown on your deck is delicious and super fun!

Your herbs will survive because your husband cares more about them than you do about the flowers, and thus they will get watered enough.

Having two boys entering their last year of highschool in a month is cause enough to COMPLETELY FREAK ME OUT!!! 

Oh dear, I need to go to sleep before I get myself all worked up.

Cottages, coffee, and our most favorite summertime thing

You know what is better than last night?  This night!  Our most favorite summertime thing to do as a family is sit on our deck around our fire pit, making s'mores and talking and being silly.  That is what we did for the first time of the season tonight, and it was wonderful.   All kinds of wonderful! 

Ever since the middles have gotten jobs and girlfriends and cars, we don't see nearly as much of them as we used to, and it's got this mama all wigged out sometimes.  To be honest, I don't like it.  Oh, I am proud of them and everything and I know this is part of their growing up and out from under our wings, but I'm not used to it.  I'm much happier when they are all here.  Home.  With us.  Not gone.  You get the picture. 

Well, today for most of the day we were all together (minus the two olders of course, and they are always missed).  But today, everyone who currently resides at our home was actually here at the same time and it was a little slice of heaven on earth.  It started with sleeping in, which is always a great way to start a Saturday.  Vince and I headed to town around 9:30 to do our usual Saturday morning ritual of breakfast, shopping, and coffee....iced mochas to be exact from the best coffee place in town -  Mugby Junction.  Hallo!  We had planned to get our flowers & herbs purchased and planted, but that will have to wait until tomorrow because when we got home, we got involved in projects around the house which filled up the rest of our afternoon...Vince worked on the kids' bikes and got the lawnmower running for Kyle to do the first mow of the season.  He also prepared some firewood and cleaned the grill while I swept the garage and assembled our pots and deck boxes for our planting adventure, and made a new header for my blog.  Nick went golfing with friends and then took a nap, Vinny did his own thing (as usual), Kyle got busy throwing stuff into the basketball hoop while jumping on his mini-tramp, and Hope had some friends over.  And then, possibly most exciting of all, we found the perfect non-victorian destination for our anniversary weekend!!  Thanks to my friend and fellow blogger Heather, we will be going here:  Hawks View Cottages and Lodges.  And I only have one thing to say about all this...

OH HEAVENLY DAY!! 

I'm just a tad bit excited about it.

Tomorrow will be just as wonderful...church, a trip to Pork & Plants for the best flowers in the area (I'll post pics of our creations) and another day with the middles and the youngers all home with us at the same time.  Yay! 

Some things, and some random couch ramblings

I have not moved off the couch for three hours, most of which were spent napping on Mr. Wonderful's shoulder, and I do not regret a minute of it.  He surfed the cable channels and I opened my eyes at random moments to see guys bargaining and finally settling on purchasing an old model car for $35,000...Guy Fiere eating something that looks like smoked pulled pork...and Hanibal Lector (TV version) looking and talking all creepy. 

I definitely needed a nap, aka an escape from reality, because my pre-nap reality was getting pretty crabby.

I'm not sure if it was my very busy week at work followed by evenings of running kids to and fro every single minute of every single night this week, or if it was the constant, incessant noise and demands and phone ringing since walking through the door tonight, or if it was the dog running from the front door to the back door to the front door to the back door - all while whining because Kyle was playing outside without her that caused me to nearly lose my mind.  But whatever the reason, I nearly did LOSE MY EVER-LOVING MIND tonight.  That nap was my saving grace. Along with a very smart husband who made me a Disaronno and Diet Coke and let me snooze on him while demanding absolutely nothing at all.  (Thank you, hon.)  He is very smart and knows when a woman - namely his woman - is about to blow and needs a self imposed time-out.

So.  My post-nap life now consists of continuing to sit on the couch between two of my loves...my husband and son...blogging, ignoring the tv, and wondering who farted.  All things that I do on a regular basis.  Except for the blogging.  It's been a while since I've done that, as evidenced by the Christmas theme on my blog header. 

The dubs and I have been researching bed and breakfasts lately.  We want to take a little getaway to celebrate our anniversary next month.  This process itself has proved to be kind of frustrating because we can't seem to find what we are looking for anywhere near here.  Nearly all of the B&B's in southeast MN have a Victorian theme, which we do not find appealing at all.  Overly flowery wall paper with coordinating (or not) bedding, and lots of clutter is not something either of us find relaxing or romantic.  What we have in mind is something that makes us feel like we are in a cabin in the mountains...rustic and modern with a hot tub and fireplace in the room...on a beach...with loons serenading us in the morning as we sit on our private veranda eating breakfast prepared by someone else.  And a waterfall.  Is that too much to ask?  I think not. 

Sigh. 

At this point I would settle for an overnight at the Holiday Inn...as long as it did not include spending the evening in the car, ignoring the tv or the phone ringing or a farting dog.  (The dog got blamed for the farting, of course.) 

Some more random couch ramblings...

I love Kwik Trip.  We get most of our regulars there - milk, OJ, eggs, butter, bananas, apples, bread and occasional (gross) breakfast sandwich and I have no problem with that.  But fresh meat?  Hamburger and steak and chicken?  Really Kwik Trip?  Not so sure about that.  May be just a bit out of your league. 

Microwave popcorn smells like butt.  In the year and a half that we were without a microwave and survived just fine, thank-you-very-much, I did not miss microwave popcorn at all.   Stove top popcorn is 110% better. 

I cannot wait for this movie to come out.  CAN NOT!

I have now been on the couch for the past four hours, and pretty soon I'm going to get up and go to bed and I don't feel one bit guilty.  We have a busy life and a full weekend ahead of us filled with laundry and projects and cleaning and bills and running kids to and fro and maybe planting some flowers and changing my blog header, so evenings like this are heavenly. 

In which I go on and on about books

When I was in 6th grade I read an entire book on a Saturday morning...

I had checked it out from our school library.  It doesn't look like something a typical 6th grade girl would read, right?  I know.  Weird.  I'm really not sure what attracted me to it.  Maybe a friend told me it was a good book.  Or maybe it was some lingering effects of my brief insignificant identity crisis from my earlier elementary years? Who knows...but I did love the book and couldn't put it down until I was done.  I wonder now if the people who made Fear Factor read it as a child (and then went horribly astray).  I can't stand that show, so it really makes no sense why I would have liked this book.  But I did.  

And after that I remember reading a couple Judy Bloom books, which I also loved:

Oh Judy Blume.  How I loved thee!  I wish I could say that these books launched me into a love of reading that spawned years and years and dozens of wonderful literary works!  But alas, it did not.  At that time in my life anyway, reading probably could have been added to my list of things that I liked the idea of, but didn't actually like.  

I don't remember reading much after those books - except for what I was required to read in high school lit classes, which was usually just the Cliffs Notes of the things I was required to read in high school lit classes.

I did give some romance novels a try in high school, only because some of my girlfriends were reading them. I tried what's her name...oh good grief she was a really popular....Daniel Steele!  But I just couldn't get past the first few pages.  When it comes to novels, I'm more of a "visual" reader...meaning I need to see the story played out on a screen in front of me with actors and props and music and the story spoon fed to me.  I'm not good at visualizing the characters and the scenes and keeping track of the story lines when it's just on paper.  

I started reading a little more in my college years.  I gave up on novels and started reading non-fiction. Things that would move me and inspire me and help me grow...yes!  That interested me!  I remember reading a few books during college, and there probably weren't many more than that because of all the reading college required (when Cliff just wouldn't cut it anymore).  And, well, the socializing may have had something to do with it as well.

So.

Vince and I just finished the 2 day task of giving our bedroom a makeover.  Well, not exactly a makeover, because we didn't purchase anything.  Mostly we dusted.  And that was enough.  We cleaned everything from floor to ceiling fan and oh my dear, I had no idea the amount of dust that would collect under one's bed when you haven't moved it or vacuumed under it for, oh I don't know, 5 YEARS!!  Yikes!  That was scary. 

Anyhoo, the last thing to be cleaned was our bookshelf and in the process I weeded out the books...and got rid of exactly none.  I love my books!  Vince has his favorites too that he wants to hold on to.  He reads mostly novels...sci fi and ones with knights and dragons and such.  Mine are all books on life...parenting, spiritual growth, mawaage, health.  The ones I liked enough to keep are underlined and hi-lighted and exclamation pointed and written in with the page corners folded over and maybe some coffee stains.  They are well loved and well worn and I like to page through them now and again to read my notes and get all re-inspired!  It's kind of hard to do that with my Nook, though.  It does have a hi-light feature, but it's just not the same.  I usually carry my Nook with me (thus necessitating a bigger purse) and I love the convenience of being able to carry multiple "books" and "magazines" at all times.  

At the bottom of my blog I have a "Shelfari", which is a virtual bookshelf that holds all of my favorite books.  If you scroll over a book it pops up and tells you more about it.  Pretty cool (you can make one too, and you don't have to have a blog).  The ones I have on my "shelf" are all of my favorites, but just in case you are wondering, here are my favoritest books ever...ones I'd recommend as "must reads" because they are seriously that good - in my opinion of course, and I can do that 'cause it's my blog :)  

For all women everywhere, you simply must read this book...you just have to.  Go buy/download/checkout/borrow this book right now and read and savor it, and let God tell you how beautiful and cherished you are.  Because you are.  Amen.

If you are married, get this book.  Go directly to this book.  Do not pass go and do not collect $200.  It will transform your relationship.  Crazy good.

For parents, this one is a goldmine.  I first read the adult version of "The Five Love Languages", and recently learned that they make one for teens, and it is on my "to read next" list...

And if you are going through a tough time, and even if you are not, this is probably my all-time favorite book. It reads like a novel, but the imagery and symbolism is so rich with meaning.  I have read it twice and will again, no doubt. 

The sequel is just as good...

And finally, these are my most recent reads...and they have literally MESSED ME UP!!!  I talked about the first book "7" here, and just recently finished Interrupted.  Seriously, I can't say enough about these books. The author, Jen Hatmaker, is hilarious and amazing and real and I love her.  She doesn't know it yet, tho.

More things I don't believe (and some that I do)

4)  You can be anything you want to be.  Isn't that what good parents tell their kids, to help them believe in themselves and have confidence?  What's wrong with that?  Lots, in my opinion.  All you have to do is watch a few American Idol try-outs to see the danger in giving a kid unbalanced praise.  Oh dear.  It's painful to watch, and makes us shake our heads in disbelief and wonder why no one told that poor kid the truth.  Sometime before they were humiliated on national television would have been nice. 

Praising our kids' efforts and successes is wonderful, we all need it.  But giving unbalanced praise is not loving.  It's deceptive and I think it creates a false sense of confidence.  It doesn't teach them to try harder.  If someone feels like everything they do is amazing, and that they can (or should be able to) do anything they want to, what happens to their sense of self worth when they face rejection, and failure in life?  They are crushed and disillusioned. 

I DO however believe that we can do anything GOD wants us to do!  If He calls us to it, He will equip us for it.  David didn't have the confidence to face the giant because he knew that he could...it was because he knew that God could.  THAT, kids, is how I want you to believe in yourselves...not in what you can do in your own strength, but in what God can do through you!!  There are truly no limits.

“Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing." - John 15:5

5)  God helps those who help themselves.  I have heard this given as a bible quote, as if it were in Proverbs or something.  But it's not in the bible at all.  In fact, over and over again the bible says that God wants us to depend on Him.  To wait on Him for direction, and to surrender (my new word for this year).   The truth is that we cannot help ourselves.  We need a Savior, who does not withhold rescue from those who have failed at "helping themselves".  In fact, it is in them that He does His most beautiful work.

"For You have been a strong-place for those who could not help themselves and for those in need because of much trouble. You have been a safe place from the storm and a shadow from the heat." - Isaiah 25:4

6)  Time heals all wounds.  I think it is true that time is necessary in the healing process.   And the deeper the wound, the longer it takes.  But just the passing of time doesn't bring about true healing.  I know some people who have been carrying around some serious wounds for years, decades even.  Time has passed and life has gone on and the wound has been hiding, but real healing hasn't taken place at all.  The hurt, the loss, the disappointment or betrayal has merely been buried.  It's much less visible than it was at first, but yet it remains. 

I once heard Beth Moore explain how to tell if a wound has healed or not...does it still hurt?  If it still hurts, it's a wound not a scar, because scars don't hurt.  Can you talk about it without the anger welling up inside?  Or the sadness, or the fear?  Maybe you know someone like this.  (Maybe it's you.)  The walking wounded...they are all around us, I am one of them.  I know there are some hurts that I have not healed from.  One in particular involves my deep desire to be home with my children.  It began while I was first pregnant with Nick, intensified the moment I watched my husband bring my baby boy into daycare and put him in her arms as I watched from the car, in tears, because I couldn't bring myself to do it.  And all the days and years since that moment, the ache remains.  My prayers have gone unanswered and I don't know why.  I really don't, and I try not to think about it or question God, but it's hard.  I want to be there for my kids.  I feel they need me at home just as much now in their teen years as when they were little.  I have prayed and I have cried and I have tried to put it out of my mind, yet our lives necessitate two incomes.  At least for now.  And the longer this wound goes unhealed, the more prone I am to bitterness.  The harder it is to hope and ask...again.  Time is running out and in a few years it won't matter anymore.  And I'll always wonder why. 

But God...

Even when dreams go unfulfilled...even when prayers seem to be unheard...I will remain true to the God who holds my life in His hands.  The One who knows the desires of my heart and works all things out for good.  ALL things.  For good.  He's the better judge of good than I am, by far.  What feels right to me may not be what's best at all. 

So, with trembling hands I release this hurt to my Healer, again.  What choice do I have?  Hold onto it and allow it to continue to fester and grow roots of bitterness in my heart?  No.  I choose healing and the freedom that it brings...from the only source of healing there is.  Time itself cannot heal, and we cannot heal ourselves.  Only God can truly heal a broken heart, a broken dream, a broken life.  IF I surrender. 

There's that word again...surrender.  He can't heal what we refuse to let go.  It's not an easy process...allowing Him to remove the bandage that is covering up that ugly thing that we have nursed or neglected for so long.  Allowing the light to expose it is the first step.  Sometimes it's the most painful, but the deepest of wounds may take much more than that.  There may be lots of gunk to remove (anger, sadness, fear) before new, healthy flesh can grow and true healing can take place.  Take it from someone who has gone through this process with God a number of times in my life, I can tell you it's worth it.  In the end, it is.

Some things I don't believe, and my new word for the year

1)  Everything happens for a reason.  "Didn't get the job?  Got dumped?  Haven't been able to get pregnant for six years and now the adoption fell through?  Awe, I'm sorry.  Just remember, everything happens for a reason."  It's meant to encourage, and help us make sense of something that just doesn't.  We are afraid that they are losing hope, and we are uncomfortable with grief, so we try and make it better by implying that there must be a good reason why bad things happen.  But I have a different perspective...sometimes things just suck because they do. Life doesn't always go our way, we screw up, and so do others.  Bad things happen.  It's not always God's will or His plan.  Sometimes it is, and I believe that sometimes He purposefully allows challenge and tragedy to touch our lives because he does have a reason for it.  He has something to teach us that is best learned in the valley, that we won't learn on the mountain top. Sometimes after the fact we do see God's hand at work.  But not always, and not every situation.  Don't tell me that it's God's will for a husband to leave his family.  Don't tell me God "wants" a young mother to get cancer.  Don't tell me that our son has rejected his faith, or that my best friend lost her child "for a reason" orchestrated by God.  It doesn't fit into the character of the God of the bible, the God I love and know.  He only wants good things for us, but when bad things do happen (and He promised that they would), He is there to help us through it...to hold us when it hurts so bad we don't think we can bear it.  And He ALWAYS provides the path through it and offers the strength to walk it out.  (We don't always accept the path or the strength that He offers, but it is there for everyone).  He will teach us something through every situation, if we allow it.  Even if the only lesson to be learned is that He is faithful.

"When you go through deep waters,     I will be with you.  When you go through rivers of difficulty,     you will not drown.  When you walk through the fire of oppression,     you will not be burned up;     the flames will not consume you. For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior." - Isaiah 43:2

2)  Listen to your heart.  What a great idea!  I think I'll do that because my heart is always honest and true and wise and not ever led astray by my fickle emotions.

Except, not.

It is a beautiful concept tho, and it would be a reliable way to discern our decisions if our hearts weren't so stupid sometimes.  "Yes I know he's (fill in the blank), but I LOVE HIM!!"  Mmm, k. How'd that work for ya? (Shut up, Dr. Phil!)

“The human heart is the most deceitful of all things"! - Jeremiah 17:9

3)  What doesn't kill you makes you stronger.  I've known some people, and I bet you have too, who have been through crappy stuff, who have been punched square in the face by life, and while they may be "tougher" for it, I wouldn't call it strength.

Sometimes "strength" looks suspiciously like bitterness.  When you've been betrayed and hurt again and again and (really?) again...it takes strength to forgive.

Sometimes it is paraded around as cynicism.  When you've lost something you had hoped for and dreamed for and lived for, something irreplaceable and sacred...it takes strength to hope again.

And sometimes it can look a lot like control.  When you're just not going to let it happen again, when you're done with the empty promises and the failing and the waiting...it takes strength to trust, to let go of the fear and surrender that broken dream to God.

Oooooh, it can be hard, can't it?  I get it, I so get it.  I've been in that place where I desperately wanted to forgive, to hope, and to trust...but it was just so tempting to give up, to put another brick or three on that wall, and tell everyone to just shove it because you are "done".  I've SO been there.  I'll most likely be there again at some point or two.  But what I am learning is that true strength comes only from surrender.  In human terms, that makes absolutely no sense at all.  Surrender means to give up, doesn't it?  It means weakness, not strength!  Well, call me crazy, but I've seen this concept at work enough times in my life to believe it.

Surrender.  Surrendering to nothing, is the end.  Surrendering to God is the beginning.  It's the fertile ground needed for God to begin to do His work in our lives.  When we take the posture of surrender, when we let go of trying to control, when we give up our defenses and our misguided attempts at forging our own way through...when we drop to our knees and open our hearts in true surrender...that's when hope breaks through.  Trust builds one day at a time, and forgiveness lightens our load as we begin to heal.  And strength blooms.

Surrender.  It's my new word for this year.

"Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away.  Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” - 2 Corinthians 12:8

More things I like the idea of but don't actually like

You can read the first "Things I like the idea of but don't actually like" here, because you know I wouldn't want you to miss anything.

Here goes 7 more...

8.  Having dogs.

Puppies are so stinkin' adorable.  I know this, so I just shouldn't look at them at all. Because when they are all curled up in my arms and I smell their puppy smell, I begin to have all these visions of playing fetch and happy children and snuggling by the fire. But then they come home, and the reality soon weighs quite heavily in the other direction:  They poop.  Yes I knew it came with the dog, but for some reason I underestimated how much, how smelly, and how annoying it is to have in the yard (and occasionally the house).  Then there's the whining, drooling, peeing on the carpet, chewing things, shedding, needing to be let out, and back in...and back out, and back in...and the chasing deer into the woods and tracking mud on the carpet and running (uninvited) into the neighbor's house (ok, that was funny) and the constant wondering where are the dogs?  What are they doing?  Do they need to be let out?  Fed?  Bathed?  Walked?  It's very distracting from the life of the peoples, which have enough troubles of their own.  And then there's the unfortunate event of coming home to find your dog has died, which was my experience last week, and was equally sad and disturbing.

9.  Setting up my Christmas Village.

I adore my Christmas Village!!  Oh how I look forward to it every year!  It's the first thing I want to see when Thanksgiving is over, and sometimes even before, and I must say a dozen times "I can't wait to set up my villaaaaaage!!!"  Until...it's actually time to set up my village.  In the midst of digging out a bajilion boxes from under the basement steps, my village amnesia begins to reverse itself and I remember how much it sucks.  Unpacking every single house and store and tree and little people takes hours and hours and makes me crazy, but by the time it's done and all the buildings are lit up and we are sprinkling the snowflakes all around it, all is well and nostalgic and I truly do enjoy it.

10.  Going on a cruise.

The idea of it is so romantic and relaxing!  I LOVE the ocean, and vacations, but there is just something about severe motion sickness and the accompanying dizziness and puking that kind of ruins the experience for me.  Take Dramamine, you say?  Sure, if I want to take a $2,000 nap. Sigh.

11. Riding in a convertible.

Soooo exciting!  With the sunshine and LRB cranked and the wind blowing through your hair, no? That's what I thought, until my college boyfriend (and future husband #1) got a convertible and I realized that the laws of motion are somehow reversed in a convertible.  One would assume that when your car is moving forward, and your body which is sitting in the car is also moving forward, that your long blonde hair would fly all sexy-like behind you like in the movies, right?  Except not. What actually happens is your hair flies forward and whips you in the face the ENTIRE TIME.  A few miles of that bliss and you turn into Melissa McCarthy parked between two cop cars trying to get out, and you may or may not censor your commentary.

12.  Self Check-outs.  I have written about this before (here) and unfortunately things haven't changed much.

13.  Hot tubs.  I do love hot tubs, actually!  Private ones - with bubbles and candles that only me and (maybe) my husband enter.  Public hotel or resort hot tubs, no thank you.  I shall not partake in that sort of marinade with others of possibly questionable hygiene.  YUCK!

14. Skiing.  What I imagine:  Gracefully slaloming down a white, snowy hill wearing one of those cute stocking caps with the tails and matching mittens, and oopsie!  Falling into a soft pile of snow, laughing as Mr. Cute helps me stand back up and brush the snow off my pants, as we make our way to the lodge to enjoy a cup of hot cocoa by the fire.  What it's actually like:  Panic and terror.  Going down the bunny hill with the tips of my skis pointed together (which some genius told me would help me slow down) and falling on ice chunks thinly veiled in snow.  After about 3 attempts at this, I will be sitting all crabby in the lodge, knees throbbing in pain, wanting to go home.   Fun, fun.

So there we go.  It's Sunday afternoon and I am happy to announce that I am 1/2 way through the 3rd season of Downton Abbey.  I have been marathoning it for the past couple weeks to try and catch up with the current season, and thus be able to watch it with the rest of the world and perhaps some friends.  Mr. W is on his way to the grocery store to pick up party supplies for the Super Bowl game today, which my sons will be watching at our house with friends.  It's about to get crazy here.  Happy Sunday!

It's a little bit late, but here are some of my favorite pictures from the Christmas

It has become a family tradition to get each other Hallmark ornaments for Christmas.  Vince started it, and it has become really special for everyone!  The kids enjoy trying to guess what ornament they are getting. Since this is the 4th year of doing this all together,  I decided to take pictures of the kids with theirs so as not to forget what we have given them and thus purchase the same one again in future years because that is SO something I would do.

Oh, the joy. I have and shall continue to use this photo as blackmail for my son for some time to come.  You should have seen the protest when I threatened to post it on his Facebook wall.

We finally got a family ornament...I have wanted one of these for forever!

This is my "I'm a loser" picture.  I see my brother and his fam like once a year, and this is the only picture I took of them at Christmas.  The only.  Just look at the joyous festivus moment!  My cousin Debbie and her family were also here, for the first time since our wedding, and I took less than one picture of them.  Super.  And my dad & stepmom...nein.  But hey, lucky enough I did happen to photograph half of my mom's face and my stepdad's arm.

Oh, my village...have I ever mentioned how much I adore my village?!  

We got a few new ones this year...Vince and I had gone shopping in LaCrosse a couple months before the holidays and stopped at a scrapbook store.  It was off the beaten path and we had to call them (twice) to get directions because we kept passing it.  Once we finally arrived we figured out why...the only signage on the building was for hot tubs.  Of course, silly me, why wouldn't a scrapbook shop be hidden inside a hot tub store?  Well, we weren't disappointed.  Not only was it an awesome scrappin' shop, but next to the hoses, squeegies and tub scrubbers (not kidding) were a crap ton of Dept. 56 villages and accessories all 50% off!  So we got a few new lovely pieces for the collection.  The one below is my favorite of the year...Scrooge & Marley!!  Complete with Bob Crachit and the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future!

Other new ones this year were the Spice & Mustard Shop...

...and the Village Candle shop.  Oh, happy day!

And the stockings were hung on the entertainment center with care (that's how we roll around here)!  Actually, we do have a fireplace downstairs and that's where the stockings are hung until Christmas eve.  We put up two trees every year, one upstairs and one down, and then we alternate which one we open gifts by.  This year it was upstairs, so we of course had to move the stockings, and the kids slept downstairs - another tradition that even as they keep getting bigger and bigger, they never outgrow!

Never a dull moment when Vince's siblings are here...oh wait, I take that back.  There are many, many dull moments...

And, our lovely kids :)

I love these crazy kids!