Here's to you

 

 

If we were sitting down together right now, I would pour you a glass of orange juice, some champs, and I would lift my glass and offer a toast to you. Here is to 2013, its going to be our year.

 

There is something so magical about having a mimosa on New Year's Eve. It seems so festive, bubbly, and exciting.

 

I would tell you that my 2012 was a good-hard year. Then I would ask you how your year was.

Did you reach your goals? Did you go on an adventure? Did you do something that scared you?  Did you hold tight to your family and tell them you love them? Did you lose someone close to you? How is work going? How is the family doing?

 

Then I would look you in the eye, and tell you that I have stopped watching the news because it hurts too much. I would tell you that I am a bit nervous, kind of scared, and totally irritated with our politicians right now. I would tell you how angry I am at them, both sides, for screwing around with our future.

 

But then, I would look at you and tell you that I am not going to let some yahoo's out in Washington dictate my future.

 

I would tell you how I am going to make resolutions again this year, even thought I didn't achieve them all last year.

 

This is a new start, a new year, another chance to change, another chance to make a difference, another chance to start over.

 

I am looking forward to this clean slate.

 

 

I would put down my cup, give you a hug, and let you know that we are all going to be ok. Things are uncertain, things are confusing, things are hard, but we are all going to be ok. I am looking foward to a new year. Its going to be a good one, I can feel it.

 

What are you looking towards?

 

Happy New Year to you, my friends. 

Friday Confessions

Here are my weekly confessions

1. I have not washed my water bottle I take to the gym in at least a month.

2. I sat on several public toilets during our road trip around Texas this week.

3. Breakfast was cinnamon rolls, lunch was chocolate cake, and dinner was cookies yesterday.

4. I cut I front of about 10 women at a gas station.

5. I went thirty six hours without brushing my teeth.

 

Fess up peeps.

 

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Different Christmas

I guess I should tell you that traditions are sacred to me, especially the ones that we have been doing since my childhood. Heck, some traditions that I started last week on a whim are sacred and important to me. They give me a sense of stability and focus in a world that is ultimately out of control, that changes moment to moment, with very little to count on. P does something once, and if he never does it again, I freak and think he is bucking tradition and withdrawing his love. See, one thing you need to know about this family is, we kind of kill it at Christmas. Our traditions are great, the food is awesome, and we have been doing things exactly the same since the 80's. We eat the same food, go to the same places, the only things that change are the outfits, cars, and hairstyles. Imagine how distraught I was when I came home to find, Different Christmas.

Last year, my parents moved their Christmas tree. For more than 20 years, the tree stood in the same place year after year. Then suddenly, last year, they willy-nilly moved the tree without any respect to my feelings, my objections, or pleas to leave it where it had historically always been. That is strike 1.

This year, my 86 year old grandmother moved her tree. I walked into her home on the 23rd to visit and the first thing I asked was "Grandma, why did you move the tree?" She replied, "I told J (my cousin) to just put it up anywhere this year."  Strike 2 family.

Every year, my grandmother gives everyone money for Christmas. It always comes to us in bank envelopes with our names on it. Those envelopes are folded and put into small Christmas bags that grandma circle grandma's tree. And after we open our present, she says "Give me back those bags." I have been getting my Christmas present out of that same bag since I started talking. This year, no bags. Grandma just went to her closet and passed out envelopes to everyone. WTF I want my bag grandma.....you just earned this family strike 3.

This year, there were more people around grandmas kitchen table for Christmas Eve lunch than ever before. Did you catch the first change? More people. Cousins brought boyfriends, and sketchy man friend/maybe fiance friends. And uncle brought lady friend/promise ring/girlfriend/possibly wife number 4 to lunch. Second change, Christmas Eve lunch. Lunch I tell you. Have you ever heard of such a thing? A Christmas Eve lunch at Grandmas? Gumbo is good, but not as good when you have it at lunch rather than dinner. New people, that's strike 4 and early food, strike 5.

And we went to the afternoon service at church. We have never gone to the afternoon service at church in my entire life. We have always gone to church at midnight, each and every single year of my existence. Even in my asthma filled, croup having, nearly getting pneumonia life, have we ever skipped church at midnight. But this year, my mother flippantly told me we are going early this year. I really want to call this one strike 6, but I am positive, that if I call out my Lord and Savior, it would be me that got the strike, both literally and spiritually. So, no strike for you Jesus, but I wont forget this one.

And, the nativity scene was moved this year. No giant baby in the nativity scene on the left side of the church this year. Again, I hesitate to give a strike on this one. See above for rational.

Hold on where, are we?
WTF?

Why is everyone monkeying around with our traditions? Why is everything suddenly changing? Why is it this year we decide to unlove everything we have loved about Christmas for decades? Why do we keep calling it Christmas? We should probably change the name to Winter Solstice, lets eat a bunch of food and sit around Day.

To say I have been losing it mentally these past few days would be an understatement. But, I have put on a happy face and kept trucking on.

But, I guess I have to give myself some perspective, because even though those changes are upsetting, I know that the big traditions are still the same.

I know how fortunate I am to still have my grandmother. She is aging quickly, but I still get to go to her home where she has lived since 1950 and eat a Cajun feast with my family. That is the most important thing.

I am also fortunate to have my parents. They open their home to anyone all year, especially during the Christmas season, so I guess I can forgive them for moving the tree and changing church times.

I am blessed with a husband who has allowed us to spend every single Christmas since we have been dating with my family. That's a tradition that I take for granted every year. I know he does it because he loves my family, but I also know he does it because P puts me and my needs before himself everyday.

And, minus one sketchy manfriendpleasedontlookinmydirectionortalktomeorsaymynameandfortheloveofGoddontsitnexttomeguy, those new people were really nice and fun.

I guess the little changes don't matter in the grand scheme of things do they? What matters is that I get to stay up late and hang out with people I love and that love me. I get to celebrate the birth of my Savior. I get to sing, pray, and eat birthday cake for Jesus. I get to come to a home where I feel safe, loved, and be around all the people that mean the most to me in the world. I get to drive around town, and every single turn I make, I am thrust down memory lane, and smile as I drive by the street where my childhood best friend lived.

All in all, its been a good Christmas. Not the best, I mean, with all those strikes how could it be. I would give this a 9.64 on the Christmas rating scale. I was hoping to be WOWED this year and have a Christmas that was off the charts like 2 years ago, the last year when everything was the same. That year was awesome. It was like a 25 or something. Even though I didn't recognize how good I had it at the time, I should have.

Merry Christmas y'all. Go hug your families, eat good food, and don't do anything new. And if you  watch the news and find out about a girl that was struck down by a lightning bolt, that will probably be me.

What are some of your tradition? Anything new this year?

Friday confessions

1. There is a chair in our tree. It's been there for two weeks. We have yet to move it.

2.Dirty towels have been sitting our our back deck for weeks.

3. We watched the Miss Universe pageant in its entirety.

4. We made fun of all the girls in the Miss Universe pageant

5. I watched, laughed, and sent funny videos to my friends of the Miss Universe pageant.

 

Fess up.

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I just got so annoyed

Have you been getting more credit card offers in the mail lately? Me too. We have gotten at least one offer per day for the past 2 weeks. It is really annoying. P and I have not purchased anything on credit in at least 5 years. In all of that time, we have only purchased one item with borrowed money, our house. Other than that, everything we have purchased has been with cash. 

Every time I get one of those blasted offers in the mail I get even more annoyed. I know it is really petty, but I have started to take justice into my own hands.

Step 1, open the credit card offer, and remove all paper work with our names on it.

 Step 2: Rip up all the pages, and the envelope said offer came in.

 Step 3: Put all pieces into the prepaid envelope

 Step 4: Mail prepaid envelope back to the credit card company.

I know it is petty. I know it is childish. But, I figure, I am taking up a little bit of their time, I am helping to support the US postal system, and I am annoying the credit card companies. Plus, these companies charge insanely high rates to their clients. They often often unethical and have horrible business practices. 

This is my little form of protest. It is how I am sticking it to the man. 

Have you been getting more credit card offers? What do you do with offers that you don't want?

Friday confessions

1. I sleep with my legs together because I fear that if I spread them, I will pee on myself in my sleep.

2. Whenever I drink wine, I am paranoid that I will vomit in my sleep and choke on it and die like Jimmy Hendrix.

3. I ate an entire jar of Biscoff spread in two days.

4. I gave my dog people food. That is something I vowed to never do.

 

Fess up peeps!

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Christmas with Cash

I am done Christmas shopping!! Well, almost. I have maybe one or two more presents to buy, but that is it. Otherwise I am done done done done.

 This year, P and I saved money through out the year, and by October, we had saved up enough cash to pay  for our all of our gifts. It is funny that this year, I have come in under budget on each gift I purchased. I was able to use coupons, get some deals, and score some sales. Plus, it really does hurt when you fork over the cold hard cash. While I was out shopping, I debated each gift. I think because I did not swipe my debit card, it became so much more real to me.

I do have to admit one thing. This year has been a lot easier because for Christmas this year, P and I are giving each other a ski trip in February. So rather than give gifts to unwrap, we are just putting the money we would spend on each other into our vacation account.


One thing I would like to point out is the absence of our Christmas tree. We have two dogs and they are very well behaved. There is one problem, the white one, Bear, tends to urinate on plants until they die. Outside or in, he makes it his goal to kill any living thing he can.

We had a fern, and every time he went outside he urinated on it. A few weeks ago, we picked out a tree, had decorations in our basket at the store, and P looked at me and said, "We cannot put a living plant inside. Bear will have a field day." So no tree, no decorations for us this year.

How are you doing on your Christmas shopping?

Crutching Along

I am on crutches. There they are. Sitting up against the window in the office. My loyal dog has not left my side. Well, he walks about 5 steps away to gaze out the window, but the sweet dog has been doing his best to take care of me.

A few years ago while training for my second marathon, I developed a planters wart on the ball of my foot. I had to lanced off. It hurt like heck and I was on crutches for about 2 weeks the first time.

Well, the thing came back in the exact same spot on my foot. These past 2 months, running has been really painful because of this thing. I went to the doctor, he lanced it again, and I am on crutches, again.
It really blows, but I know it will make my running less painful.

The only good thing about being on crutches......people have been really nice to me!

The Weekend, and Snow in Texas after an 80 degree day?

P and I had a very exciting weekend.

I came home Friday from work, and P was at his company Christmas party. (No spouses allowed) I got to work cleaning the house. Yes, I know how to rage. As I was cleaning the kitchen, I turned on the dish washer I noticed water filling up in both sinks. I turned on the garbage disposal, and water started shooting up from the other side of the sink. CRAP! I called P, and could not get a hold of him, so I finally started bailing water from the sink and throwing it out in the yard. I ended up bailing a couple of gallons out of the sink over the course of an hour.

I made a video, sent it to P and he told me everything would be fine. I tried to load the video for you, but for some reason, I can't figure out how to get it up.

We tried putting Draino down the pipes and that didn't work, so finally we rented a machine and ended up doing this.

Good job P. He rented this machine to snake the pipes. There was some scary black gunk that came out of those pipes. Fortunately for us, P was able to fix the sink problems himself. We spent about 100.00 on the chemicals, a few things from Home Depot and the machine rental. When all was said and done, we saved ourselves anywhere from 300.00-600.00 by doing it ourselves. Scratch that, P saved us that money by having the know how to do it all himself while I stood by watching and asking him if we needed to get a plumber out.

The BEST news of all is that I woke up this morning to SNOW. Yesterday it was nearly 80 degrees, and a front blew in last night and we woke up to SNOW. IN TEXAS.

Yes, that is about one zillionth of an inch on the ground and it only stuck to the deck not the ground, but we woke up to SNOW. I know that some of y'all live up North you see snow all the time and hate it all. But, this is Texas. I have seen snow in this state 4 times in my entire life.

All this snow put me in a great mood this morning.

How was your weekend?

Friday confessions

1. I drove to the gym ran 1 mile and drove right back home.

2. I have run 4 miles this week.

3. Apparently throwing food on a spot in the corner of my yard is not composting like I thought.

4. Apparently my dogs have been getting extra meals by eating my "compost"

 

Fess up peeps.

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