Saturday, December 4, 2010

Calm before the storm

In the past week I have hosted: a Thanksgiving dinner, a birthday celebration, a taco feast, and a sleepover for 11 year old girls. I tell you I am so tired of cooking! It was fun while I was doing it but now? Ugh. And Christmas is 3 weeks from today. How does this sneak up on me! I am always surprised to find how close it is. Thankfully my kids are all older and able to find stuff they want online and link it to me on Facebook. Makes things a whole lot easier. Now if they could only like CHEAP stuff!
 Been having headaches every morning. Someone said sounded like sinus stuff but I'm always freaked out and thinking it's my blood pressure and I'm going to have a stroke or something. It's been a bit since I've had that checked. I think I'll pop into the clinic and have them check me out.
Getting ready for my son and his wife for a 2 week visit over Christmas! We're all counting the days, and can't wait to see each other! I'm so glad everyone likes being here. Even my daughter Rachel who moved out to her own place is planning on spending the night Christmas Eve so we can all be together Christmas morning. And with our tradition of passing out all presents then opening them one by one by age it takes a nice long time. It was always fun when I had a baby cause I got to open their presents for them! NO BABIES ANYMORE yay!
Sometimes I get a little pensive at holiday time. It is so different now. No little ones, who can't sleep because they're so excited for presents. I love my kids so much, and as they get older their personalities have developed in such fun ways--it's never boring in my home! So I'm glad about that, and the closeness we share. I won't have an empty nest for many years, but I'm kind of having some kind of syndrome.
We have many fun holiday things coming up in the days ahead. An ornament exchange party, a white elephant party, caroling, Christmas party for the youth group which I have 3 kids in, Christmas cantata which I have a solo in (! and I'm new at this church!) and the Wednesday night prayer meeting before Christmas is all music, so me Bethany and MaryGrace are coming up with stuff, like duets and solos and all. Fun fun fun.
 Sometime in all that mess I will be making my standard Christmas cookies and candies. Everyone's favorite? Chocolate covered peanut butter balls. My grandmother made them when I was little and then my mother and now me. I have to make them SECRETLY and then hide them in the freezer in a package labeled LIVER or CHICKEN. That way nobody will sneak and eat them. I also make peanut blossoms, white choc covered pretzels, and if I'm bold I make peanut brittle which I have such a hard time with (one year it was green! I've never figured out why that happened but when I called my Mother she laughed so hard--miss you Mom) toffee which I have a hard time with and sugar cookies, the rolled and cut out with cookie cutter kind that you can decorate. It's hard for me with all the sweets around. I will have much self control to exert so I eat only ONE. And not ONE several times a day!
And is it cold or what! Haven't been walking very far because of that. Is there ever going to be the perfect weather for walking? Where I don't sweat from the heat and I'm not freezing to death?
I asked for a kitten for Christmas. I wonder if I'll get it? And all the Mrs. Pollifax books.
Have a great day folks.