Merry Christmas!

You'd Better Watch Out!

Decided to take a break from the Christmas prep in the Diva House. The Manimal just took the garland off the Christmas tree, and suddenly there's a whole string of lights that, well, won't. A break seemed appropriate at this time.

At any rate, just wanted to share a site that's a lot of fun today and tonight as the Big Guy makes his way around the world. Did you know that NORAD tracks Santa? Check it out and see the cool places that he stops.

And, of course, if you do celebrate Christmas, be sure that you remember the reason for the season. And if you are a bit tired of the Christmas Carols at this point, how about a nice rendition of "Happy Birthday" for our Lord and Saviour?

May you and yours have a very Merry Christmas!

Captain Obvious

One of the things that irritates me to no end is when people find it necessary to state the very obvious. Such statements make me wonder why the person feels it so important to contribute to a conversation when it's clear that EVERYONE involved is already aware of what they are about to say.

"Wow. He's really tall." is pretty much an irrelevant statement when the person in question ascends 6'8" straight up.

"These gas prices are ridiculous!" Of course they are. When gas in the USA approaches $5/gallon, the only happy people are the oil executives.

"It's SO hot outside!" Uhm...yeah. It's July. It's SUPPOSED to be hot.

Well, today I claim the title of Captain Obvious. But I feel justified. Because, blogland, this is what I saw on the electronic sign coming onto the campus of Diva U. this morning:

8:27 AM

0 degrees

Here it is.

Wait for it.

It's COLD. And for you Canadians, that would be Fahrenheit. Now I realize that may be a heat wave for some of you. But for us Third Coast residents in December? It's just not supposed to be that cold.

And snow. We have it. And frankly, from the looks of the thermometers, it's not going anywhere. We are, barring any sort of immediate global warming situation, going to have a white Christmas.

But back to stating the obvious.

It's cold. I may have to look for jobs further south. Like Jamaica. Or at least Texas! :)

Trying desperately to warm up my blue-tinged fingers...

Girls Night Out

I'm beginning to think I might have to go buy a lottery ticket or something, because apparently, I'm having a very lucky go-round with some of the bloggy giveaways that have been happening! :)

The other day I wrote about winning the Chocolate Package from Debi at YaYa Chique. I was so excited and can't wait to get it!

Then last night, I found out that I won Denise's Fourth Day of Christmas Giveaway! She'll be sending me a lovely Girls Night Out basket with a "Sex and the City" theme. Since I haven't seen the movie and I love a good Cosmo, I can't wait to get it!

Denise's description is as follows: "The basket includes the Sex in the City wide screen DVD, a bottle of non alcoholic Cosmo mix. Its strictly BYOV (vodka) here. Orange is not my color! Also included are 2 heavy polycarbonate martini glasses so you can watch and drink with your BFF. (Polycarbonate sounds much sturdier than plastic) While you're watching and sipping you can also nibble on--chocolate that is! Get your mind out of the gutter! Six Ghirardelli chocolate squares are included. And let's not forget the basket!"

Girly things are so much fun for me because, well, I'm a girl, yes, but have I mentioned lately how OUTNUMBERED I am in my home? That's why we got a girly dog, remember!

So many bloggers are doing fun giveaways and I wanted to give a little plug for my bloggy friend Jenners. Remember, she of the Starbucks-winning "Life With a Little One and More"? Well, her Hubby is sort of getting the gist of the bloggy world, and Jenners is giving away a $20 Target Gift Card. Who doesn't love Target?! You can just comment and get an entry, but you absolutely MUST try her children's books quiz, as you have the chance for even more entries!

Have fun, and celebrate this season of giving (and remember the Greatest Gift of All!)

Hard As Nails

I was so inspired by Sasha and Katee that I decided to document my attempt to grow my nails. I haven't figured out how to get decent pictures of my hands, so it's safe to say that I won't be getting any hand modeling contracts anytime soon!

Here are my nails yesterday. The color is something Revlon. I liked it in the bottle and a LOT better on my nails. The topcoat is my fave Seche Vite product, of course! I really just wanted to show my "before" pictures!

With any luck, in about four months, I'll have nails like Katee's (her amazing nails are all-natural, btw)! Nail polish all the time and "jewels, not tools!" Woo-hoo!

A Mile a Minute

OK, kids, seat belts buckled? Helmets on? This is gonna be one wild and crazy ride. Hang on tight, 'cause here.we.go!

Manicures...

I've recently re-discovered how much I like to give myself manicures and paint my nails. Part of it is thanks to Sasha. If you've never visited her, go now and check her out. Well, maybe not now, but at the end of this post!

Sasha is mom to The Politician and Wild Child (who I'm pretty sure would give The Manimal a run for his money--please Sasha, bring her to the Diva House and let them have a go!) and has a thing for bargain shopping and beautiful fingernails (among other interests!). She introduced me e-polish blog ("Jewels, not tools!") and this, my single most favorite nail product in the universe.


This is Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat. It is amazing. If you paint your own nails, go buy it NOW!

I've used other fast dry products before, but this one is in.cre.di.ble.

Which brings us to:

Paint...

Not for nails this time, but plain old acrylic water-based craft paint. And this sweet, innocent face.

I really should've taken pictures, but seeing as how it was past 10 pm and I was in bed when I discovered it, I didn't.

Last week, I had to work late, so Diva Husband picked the boys up from day care. They had a grand old time, playing with the trains and such. On my way home, DH called to ask where I'd been storing the craft paint. Now, while DH is super handy around the house, he's not exactly crafty, so I just knew this conversation could lead nowhere good.

Diva Husband: "Where did you keep the craft paint?"

Me: "It was on the back of the counter behind the phone. Why?"

DH: "Wellll...The Manimal found it."

M: "How long did you leave him alone for?"

When I got home, the paint was cleaned up from the kitchen table, chairs and floor, so I (mistakenly) assumed all was well. When I got upstairs, I saw Princess sporting the latest in toddler-applied fashion makeup--yellow smears along her back, a la Pepe La Pew.

The boy? Sound asleep, hands covered in paint and hairline/forehead area just caked with dry paint.

They both took a bath the next morning. He went willingly. She? Notsomuch.

No fun segues here, but on to:

Giveaways...

Debi from YaYa Chique is doing a YaYa Christmas Giveaway and guess what?

Yeppers! I won Day 6! That's me, ElleBee with my other blog.


Here are the goodies headed my way:

Debi describes my prize this way: "This time the yaya is going "retro"! A cookbook with over 101 recipes for chocolate, coasters designed from vintage 45 records, Redneck vintage magnets and your very own "Trailer Trash" bling koozie! what more could a lady want :)"

Y'all need to go and visit her site and check out her beautiful decorating style as well as her fun giveaway!

I wish someone would do a giveaway for grading papers.

Yes, papers...

This semester, I taught a class. It wasn't my first time teaching college kids, but it was my first time teaching freshmen. Sigh. I won't go into great detail, but I have 19 final papers on the book Persepolis 2 (amazing book, btw) to grade and final grades due tomorrow.

I must not have been paying attention when we covered procrastination...

Well, the ride is ending. Please remain seated with your seatbelts fastened until the ride comes to a complete stop. The Working Diva knows that you have many blogs when it comes to your reading enjoyment and appreciates you choosing Musings for your current entertainment.

Hope to see you back soon!

Merry Christmas from SS#1 and The Manimal!

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Your Name Is...

This is the first year that The Manimal has been really excited about Christmas. He loves the tree and Christmas lights, and sort of gets the whole Santa concept. In the Diva home, Santa gives each child one toy for Christmas, usually something he REALLY wants. The rest of the gifts come from family.

Sweet Son #1 was easy. He's 8 and old hat at this Santa stuff. We figured The Manimal would be easy too, since EVERY.SINGLE.TOY.COMMERCIAL ends with him saying "I need dat!". Notice the "need" instead of "want"? We have some serious work to do with this kid on priorities...

He's really big into Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Thomas the Tank Engine, so we felt certain that his Christmas list would include something from those toy lines. We even did some early Santa intervention and suggested that he might bring the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Raceway.

So when I asked The Manimal what he wanted Santa to bring him for Christmas, you can imagine my surprise at his response. The conversation went something like this...

Mom: "Manimal, what do you want for Christmas this year?"

The Manimal: "Uhhmmm....I tink I want...MUD!"

M: "Manimal, mud is not a toy."

TM: "Yes! I tink mud!"

M: "Santa will not bring you mud."

TM: "Yes! I want MUD!"

M: "Mud is dirty. You can't play with it in the house. What else do you want for Christmas?"

TM: "Uhhmmm...I tink...mud annnddd....MUD!"

I rapidly deduced that any further conversation about Christmas gifts or the illogicity of mud as one of them would get me nowhere.

I tried a different tack.

M: "Manimal, you have to be a good boy. Santa doesn't bring presents to naughty boys."

TM: "Yes. Santa bring MUD."

Sigh.

I do have a few options. All of them include getting Santa's elves one of a dozen recipes for "clean mud" (most of which, oddly enough, seem to include large amounts of toilet paper) and making sure the big guy throws in a few large plastic tablecloths and a Tupperware container, because there is no.freakin.way that I'm letting the boy play with real mud in the house.

Not after the paint incident...

Nice List

Well, I survived the big weekend at Diva U. I've been there for almost 10 years, and this is my 19th Commencement Weekend. My feet are killing me...

But I must've really been good this year, because when I got home yesterday, my Secret Santa had dropped off an early Christmas package! I participated in Georgie and Amy's Secret Santa Soiree this year, and had a blast putting together my package to send off.

While I'm not positive who had my name, I've got a sneaky suspicion because of the return address. :) Whoever was my Secret Santa did a great job!

When I opened the box, I found these fabulous gift bags...

And when I opened the gift bags, I found these cool metal star ornaments, soy candle and beautiful handmade scarf...

and these fun fuzzy pink socks, Lindor Truffles and tasty (if you're a dog) Heart Treats (see below)...

And if those weren't sweet enough, Secret Santa included gifts for The Manimal and Sweet Son #1...and Princess Poopy Puppy received a gift from the Pug Princes!

I'd've taken a picture of Princess and her Heart Shaped Liver treats, but she devours them so quickly, there was no point! :)

There were a few other wonderful little gifts, like Burt's Bees Lip Balm, fun snowman tissues, Starbuck's Gift Cards (woo-hoo!), and some tasty Buckeye candies, which, sadly, Diva Husband enjoyed all too well. My Secret Santa even thought to get me candy from my home state! :) How cool is that?!

So, Secret Santa, whomever you are, thank you SO much! And Georgie and Amy, count me in for next year! For the rest of you, make sure YOU'RE on the nice list so Santa's good to you too! :)

Stay tuned tomorrow for The Manimal's Christmas Wish. It's gonna be some good clean (well, maybe not clean) fun!

Going Nuts

I'm still here, but we have big goings on at the U. this weekend, so I'm super busy and working both today and tomorrow. :(

Since I'm going nuts, you should be too! Check out my bloggy buddy C.Beth and her nutty giveaway.

Also, I'll be back soon with some pleas for help. The Manimal has come up with a, well, rather unusual Christmas request.

And in a last homage to Beth's giveaway...

Sometimes you feel like a nut--sometimes you don't!

Them's Fightin' Words

Let It Snow. Seems like such an innocuous phrase. I mean, who doesn't love a good snowstorm?

I remember praying REALLY hard for snow days as a kid.

I remember the thrill of snow days when I was a teacher.

Now I'm the parent of a school age child, and I pray for the snow to STAY AWAY. Unfortunately, we live outside of Chicago, which has a history of, well, snow. I dread January and February each year, because we typically have AT LEAST one whopper of a storm.

This year, we've already had a bit of snow. Not a ton, but enough to cover the ground. It did all melt, but then we got more today. Sweet Son #1 and The Manimal, being typical kids, are so doggone excited to see snow that they can somehow manage to make snow fun with even the smallest dusting.

Last week, SS#1 asked if he could put a snowball in the freezer. I laughed to myself, because what kid doesn't dream of having a snowball in July?

Apparently though, they're either making plans for a major ambush or planning on building an igloo, because the snowballs have multiplied.

Run, Run As Fast As You Can!

After much pleading from Sweet Son #1, I purchased one of those pre-baked Gingerbread House Kits. We'd done one a couple of years ago and I felt since he was older, it would be easier.

I suppose it could be because I'm older too. Or maybe it's just the stress of the holiday season, but somewhere along the way, I apparently forgot that I have a second son. One who is at the age where he must participate in EVERYTHING that his big brother does.

I do, however, have photographic evidence (albeit with the wrong dates on the pics...a situation I've FINALLY figured out how to remedy) that they BOTH contributed to this project.

And further evidence that at least one of them (who shall remain nameless) ate more than his share of royal icing.
But when all was said and done, we had a Gingerbread House that would've made Hansel drool.

And one very happy big brother.

And one less bottle of Riesling in my fridge...

42

Douglas Adams fans will recognize the title of my post as Deep Thought's answer to the question of life, the universe and everything.

I know YOU never asked the questions, but sometimes I need to get caught up with myself!

1. The shopping? Is nowhere near being done. I'm making some Christmas gifts, but not all. I have part of The Manimal's done, and that, my friends is IT.

2. The baking? After a very successful Christmas Cookie Exchange with our Women's Group at church, I've decided never to bake or eat Christmas Cookies again. Ever. Until I go home for Christmas.

3. The baking part 2? Finnish Coffee Bread. I absolutely have to get some of that made. Six loaves, I think.

4. The Tree? Is up and has lights, thanks to Diva Husband. Ornaments to come later. We couldn't find the center pole to our big tree, so we've got the 6' tree on an end table (The ceiling in our family room is 19'. Small trees? Notsogood.). Which, as it turns out, will likely be the best option considering the possibilities with my soon-to-be three year-old and his canine sidekick.

Oh, and the missing center pole for the big tree? Neither of us can remember throwing it away, so I'm pretty sure it must be living a secret life as a Festivus Pole.

Other Fun Giveaways!

Seems like many bloggers are getting into the spirit of the season with giveaways!

If you are a tea fan, like I am, check out April's giveaway!

Jen at Buried With Children is doing a three-part giveaway. How apropos, seeing as how she's got triplets!

Stay tuned for more! :)

Wii Fit Giveaway!

Sadly, it's not me who's giving it away! But go here, to La Petite Chic and enter hers. But hurry! The entries close at midnight tonight!

Oh What Joy and What Surprise!

No, I didn't get my hippopotamus for Christmas, but I did get a surprise in the mail yesterday!

I participated in a bit of holiday cheer this year with Abbily Ever After's Secret Ornament Swap and yesterday when I got home there was a package for me! Barbara from Panhandle Sue's Quilting Spot sent me a lovely angel ornament.

And she didn't even know that I used to collect angels! But that wasn't all! She included a bunch of little goodies, including a lovely cross necklace, some pretty smelling soaps, and sweet little Mary Engelbreit (another of my favorite things!) notecards.
I'm so impressed that she knew exactly what I liked! Thank you so much to Julie for organizing the Swap and to Barbara for my gift package!

Ho, Ho, Ho!

Silly Little Birdies

I really enjoy blogging, that's no secret. I love to write, so it only seems natural.

I'm pretty particular about my writing, though. Don't usually just write (or speak, for that matter) "off the cuff", as it were.

So this whole "Twitter" thing is kind of a wonder to me. I mean, it's one thing to put your thoughts out there once (or maybe twice) a day or so for everyone's amusement/enjoyment/edification, but a brief little snippet? Often? Multiple times a day?

And following others? We are becoming quite the virtually voyeuristic culture, I think.

And apparently, I fall right in line with the rest of culture. Because, my friends, I now tweet. Of course, I can't completely figure the darn thing out. For example, the process of actually adding people to "follow" is somewhat of a mystery to me. And I have yet to figure out how to put it on my blog.

What about you? Are you joining the avian craze and twittering? Because I'd love to talk to someone other than myself in this craziness.

Going Green

Hey, Sandra and Suburban Prep, if you're reading, please check this post. I need some info from you.

We now return to our regularly scheduled blog programming...

In the spirit of Kermit the Frog ("It's Not That Easy Being Green"), we're recycling a few of my holiday faves. In a post last year, I told you about a woman who was tired of retailers capitalizing on Christmas (which is, just to remind everyone, a CHRISTIAN holiday, celebrating the birth of JESUS CHRIST) and yet not uttering the words "Merry Christmas", for fear of offending some non-believers. It's a great story which bears checking out again. Or for the first time if you've never seen it! Go here. But then come back.

Otherwise you'll miss one of my favorite Christmas traditions. The hippopotamus. Be sure your speakers are turned up and get ready to laugh.

Merry Christmas! Oh, and yes, I know my background says "Happy Holidays", but it's a free background and I liked the colors. And until I take that ever-elusive class in HTML, I'll be taking all the free things I can get!

When you make salt dough ornaments...

and leave them on the rack in the kitchen to cool overnight?

Don't forget to warn your cookie-loving hubby that they--most emphatically--are NOT cookies.

This is the song that never ends...

And a great big hearty "you're welcome" for putting that song into your heads this Monday morning!

Just a few things that never seem to end...

This nasty cold. Thanks to The Manimal, we're now on Round 2!

Turkey. Nuff said.

The 300th Post! Who knew that a 300th post extravaganza held over Thanksgiving would be such craziness?! That being said, let's recap the winners of our Fabulous 300th Post Giveaways!

Original Lava Lamp Party Kit Monday: Miss Cindy Fig--still haven't received your addy, girlfriend, so zip me an email!

Sandra Lee-d Ornament Tuesday: A big Woo-Hoo to Tommie--another addy missing, btw!

Starbucks Love Wednesday: Yay for Jenners--headed your way today, lady!

Thanksgiving Thursday: Georgie is getting this one--headed out today too!

And...drum roll please! For Fabulous 300th Post Friday (which didn't happen until Saturday, but oh well): Sweet Sandra from Add Humor & Faith! Send me your addy, Miss Sandra and I'll send you that $25 Target Gift Card.

I've mentioned before that I love to give presents, and it seems so appropriate to add a bonus to this week of giveaways. Soooo...I took the names of all of my wonderful readers who entered but didn't win, assigned numbers to them, and let my randomizer go to work!

Congrats to Suburban Prep! Send me your addy and I'll send off your special Fabulous 300th Post Gift!

Thanks to all who participated in my week of giveaways! Hard to believe that I've hit that magic number of 300. As Jenners commented, if I were a TV show, I'd be in syndication by now! :)