Christmas Aftermath

O.M.G.I.A.T (Oh my gosh, I am tired!)

But I’m also very happy. It’s been a real whirlwind Christmas. And the whirlwind’s name is Lia. I spent the week before Christmas at Sarah’s and had massive “Lia time” there. Then we all came up here the day before Christmas Eve and spent another week together. Talk about happy overload! Wouldn’t trade it for the world, though! And today Sarah and Lia leave and I will have lots of peace and quiet. Which will soothe my somewhat frazzled self for about half a day. Then I will start missing Lia again….

Sarah and I did get the place picked up though, and toys sorted as to what stays here and what goes back down to Fresno. Usually my first order of business is to clear a walking path through the house. After lunch, though, today’s plan is to pay bills. Talk about a let-down after all the joy! Then I’ll start some laundry. Then I’ll TAKE A NAP!! Tonight we go out to dinner with Marv’s bro and sis-in-law and mom. Then we can GO TO BED EARLY!! And SLEEP IN THE NEXT DAY!!

We need to rest up over the weekend because Monday is NEW YEAR’S EVE and we’re hosting this year. So there will be fun, frivolity, and friends.

BRING IT ON, 2013! I’m ready!!!

Stressings into Blessings

This first picture is kinda what I’ve been feeling the last couple of day. When I realized that I was going to be out of town the week before Christmas, I realized that there was a LOT of stuff that I wanted to get done before leaving. Since I won’t be getting back until the evening of the 23^rd, that kinda put a real time pressure on me.

I think I finally got done with what I thought was important, and can now relax a little and start packing. I always am surprised at how stressful this time of year is. And it doesn’t need to be. We put this pressure on ourselves, for the most part.

This next picture is really what Christmas is about. Remembering the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. There is NOTHING else you need for the holiday to be complete. Don’t get me wrong…I LOVE the decorated tree, giving presents, all sorts of goodies and treats, parties. But they are not a requirement. Christ is. He is my reason for living. And I praise Him for another Christmas with my family and friends. They are the best gifts I could ever get.

Blessed Christmas to all of you!

The 3 Amigos Go Shopping

My friends Mary, Paula and I are The 3 Amigos. We just click together so well and have a lot of fun when we’re together. Our trips to Chico are real highlights for me. Sometimes we browse, sometimes we shop a little, sometimes we just do lunch. Wednesday we did all 3 with a vengeance…this is our story.

We started at Hula’s for lunch. Mongolian BBQ is such a treat! And there is no way to eat it all, so I almost always get another 2 meals out of the leftovers. And I learned a new trick for putting the food in your bowl. I’ve always just smashed everything down with my hands, but I saw a couple in the line ahead of me that had the right idea: take an extra bowl and use THAT to smash the food down. Amazing! Unfortunately, I’d already started down the line and had been smashing with my hands…but next time! Watch out! And someday, I WILL learn how to do chopsticks!

After lunch we proceeded to go to 8 places. Paula and I had a bit of an idea of just what we were looking for on this trip so we wouldn’t waste a lot of time browsing. This was a SHOPPING trip. Or maybe I should say, this was a BUYING trip.

I bought something at every place except Kohl’s. That store wasn’t on my list. And it turned out I didn’t find anything at Barnes & Noble that justified using a coupon. And I was able to eliminate one store entirely. I know you’re dying to know what I got, so here’s the list:

Family Christian Store: This wasn’t on my original list, but it was right next to Hula’s, so why not? They had some neat Christmas t-shirts on sale, so I got 4 different ones. I’d been wanting to get some new t-shirts anyway, and I like my shirts to say something, and if they can be Christian ones, all the better.

Natural herb store: This place wasn’t on my original list either, but Mary needed to go there. I was able to get some much need colloidal silver for when I go to the dentist. Score! AND I got a senior discount as well! DOUBLE SCORE!!

Trader Joe’s: FONDUE FONDUE FONDUE! For some reason, TJ only carries packaged fondue in the winter. I’ve whined to them several times about making it available all year round, but to no avail. So I got 6 packages. They last a long time in the fridge and it’s the BEST meal for a cold day. Or even a hot day. Fondue is good anytime. And of course, what is a trip to TJ without getting a bunch of sweet stuff. This is what impulse buying gets me: 2 different kinds of cookies, chocolate orange sticks and caramels.

Target: Stocking stuffer for Lia and some more of those canvas cubes for the cubby in the guest room.

Costco: Gifts for Sarah and Marv. Although I REALLY wanted to get the tequila-filled glass decanter shaped like a shotgun for Marv (and was 3 feet tall) I passed on that because it was $50 and we really don’t drink much in the way of tequila. If it had been any other whiskey and had been maybe $30, I would’ve gotten that in the blink of an eye. Who DOESN’T want a glass rifle decanter? I did snag a huge bottle of Jack Daniels though. Hot toddies, here I come! The biggest score, though, was the premium Keurig that was on sale. I’ve always wanted one of those and had planned on checking out the sale ones at Bed Bad & Beyond, but this was a better one AND was on sale! So I got my Keurig and eliminated the need to go to another store. (We were on a time limit, by the way)

Cost Plus World Market: Mead was the main reason I was there, and I only got one bottle. I’m the only one who likes the stuff. Then I had to look at all the Christmas ornaments. So many ornaments and not enough trees! I found a beautiful peacock ornament for Lia. She’s into peacocks right now. And penguins. And owls. And of course I had to get a cute little wooden cat one for me.

And that was it. The last stop was Barnes & Noble, but the coupon I had was for toys/games and I didn’t see anything I wanted either for Lia or me.

So we hurried home and Paula dropped Mary and I off at my house. Mary and I went in and heated up some of our leftovers from Hula’s and managed to get to church in time for the Advent service. And after the service, there was coffee and PIE! Perfect end to a perfect day with THE 3 AMIGOS!!! (Paula wasn’t at church; she had to pick up Dusty at the vet.)