Merry Grinch-mas!

I love Christmas. I love the REAL meaning of Christmas. I love finding the perfect gifts for friends and family. I love Christmas decorations and Christmas music.

Now that I've made that clear, I'm hoping that you'll indulge my inner Grinch for just a moment.


I really don't like the Christmas song "Blue Christmas". Strongly dislike. Despise. Hate. Abhor.

I mean, really. Why in the world would someone take what is arguably the most joyous time of the year and write a song about being sad? And why in the world does Sirius XM feel the need to play it so.freaking.often?

When I was seven, my dad was away for a year in Alaska. An active duty Air Force man, he was given a remote duty assignment and couldn't take us along. My mom, brother and I moved to the small town where my grandparents lived. Being 1976/77, Skype didn't exist. Nor did e-mail or cell phones. Needless to say, we missed my dad a LOT. My memories of that year are fading, but I do remember a popular Christmas song that year.

I hated it then because my Dad wouldn't be home for Christmas. I wonder how many military families feel the same way now.

On a related topic, I took The Manimal and Little Darth with me grocery shopping last week. Little Darth is pretty much attached to my...well, you get the idea, and in a moment of insanity out of the kindness of my heart I offered to take The Manimal with me so Diva Husband could fix our non-functioning toilet have a few hours of peace and quiet.

After one minor Christmas gift related meltdown in Aldi (during which I may have, for the thirty-seven-eleventh time, used the Santa threat), we headed to the Evil Empire. Among other things, I had to pick up some gift bags for teacher gifts. I was planning to avoid the t-o-y aisle altogether, not wanting to have to take the name of the Big Elf in vain again. Quick and easy, we picked up what we needed and headed to the Christmas wrap and decorations in the Seasonal section of the store. For the record, this is on an opposite end of the store from the t-o-y section.

A few fa-la-la's later, and we were there. And what to my wondering eyes should appear right next to the gift bags?! Three, count them THREE aisles of T-O-Y-S. In seasonal. Really?! I'd love to say I was able to grab the gift bags and go, but noooooo. Another meltdown discussion ensued about why we would not be buying ANY t-o-y-s before Christmas, and if he didn't behave, I would have to contact the birthday fairy (not really, but you get the idea) about a certain little boy with a January birthday...

I was seriously ready to send a nasty-gram to the President of the Evil Empire begging him to NOT put T-O-Y sections throughout the store.

I settled for a glass of wine as a reward for surviving my outing with The Manimal.

Maybe I'll boycott all brick & mortar stores and become a complete hermit, doing ALL of my shopping online. At least then I could have a glass of wine WHILE I shop.

Six Word Saturday

God says surprise, restocking baby supplies.

Overstimulation

I'm finally to the point where looking at my Christmas pictures doesn't give me the cold shakes.

You know what I'm talking about, right? I mean, I love Christmas. Love it. But frankly, it's stressful. So I take the pictures, then don't look at them again until my Christmas decorations are packed safely away until next year.

Of course, that means that half of the toys you'll see in the following pictures are probably down in the land of forgotten toys playroom already.

Just kidding.

These pics are actually some pre-Christmas celebrating with our nieces. Here is our youngest niece, Cutie Pie, with DH. She was fascinated by DH's train around our tree.


Once The Manimal realized that someone else had captured Daddy's attention, he quickly tried to capture Daddy...

...and the spotlight.

SS#1 isn't really defying gravity here. For some reason, Blogger decided to rotate my picture.

Our older niece, The Amazing B., took some time to work on a craft. Just like her Auntie, that one! :)
Thanks to my wonderful Aunt J., a lovely Diva herself, we had some TO DIE FOR, chocolate ice cream over the holidays. If you like chocolate ice cream, you absolutely MUST get your hands on the Zanzibar Chocolate from The Chocolate Shoppe. It's not in any way healthy. In fact, their nutritional information disclaimer reads as follows:

"Don't even ask. This is the best ice cream made in Wisconsin, and it tastes so good because it has gobs of rich Wisconsin cream, tons of real ingredients for boat-loads of luscious flavors. This means it's not low-fat, low-calorie, or low-anything, and that's why everyone loves it. You want nutrition, eat carrots!"

The Manimal demonstrated our collective love of this ice cream.

I got to display one of my favorite Christmas decorations this year. My Grams (mom extraordinaire to Auntie J. and Diva Nana, as well as two fabulous Uncles) made this ceramic Christmas village.

Princess the Wonder Dog even got to celebrate with her gift from "The Bacon Lady" (aka Diva Nana).

Diva Nana has a loathing dislike is not especially fond of dogs. Princess, of course, sensed this right away and took a liking to her. One day when Diva Nana was cooking breakfast, she was feeling generous and gave PTWD a piece of bacon.

The "liking" became a full-blown obsession, and Diva Nana has joked ever since that PTWD must smell bacon every time she sees my mom.

While I love to take pictures, I don't often get the "wow" shot. This is SS#1 opening our family gift, a Wii (Papa & Diva Nana got us the Wii Fit Plus to go with it).


A very intense game of "Hungry, Hungry Hippos" between The Manimal and DH.


Did you know that while you are playing H3, you must yell "HUNGRY, HUNGRY HIPPOS" at the top of your lungs?

It's a rule.

Or so I've been told by a very bossy knowledgeable nearly four year old.

Preschool board games are great for venting one's frustration. Witness our resident police officer and his Whack-a-Mole game.


Be warned, though. Venting one's frustration can also be painful.

Or maybe it was just a massive case of overstimulation.

Thank You Santa!

This is the second year that I've participated in Amy and Georgie's (aka "amyandgeorgie") Secret Santa Soiree. I received my package on Thursday and this year's Santa did just as well as last year! :)

She's apparently a crafty Miss Santa, because it had these two beautiful vinyl lettering projects. The first is a magnetic "Countdown to Christmas" board and easel stand, which Sweet Son #1 and The Manimal both love as much as I do.

It's a good thing I don't rely on them to know what day it is!


The second gift is a wooden sign which will soon find a home on one of my walls.



The final gift isn't homemade, but rather my favorite bath product scent, "Moonlight Path" from Bath & Body Works!



Now, I can't be absolutely sure who my amazing Secret Santa is, but I have to give a shout-out to the creator of the fabulous vinyl lettering projects. Just Another Cute Idea is, to my excitement, a LOCAL company! :) I'm excited to check out some great projects and may be making a few purchases myself!

Many thanks to Amyandgeorgie for arranging the Secret Santa Soiree once again!

Tuesday Top Ten

It's not Letterman's Top Ten, but welcome to Ten on Tuesday!

Ten Things I'm Loving Right Now

1. Il Moscato

A delicious, budget friendly version of my fave sparkling moscato. Trader Joe's has it for $9.99 a bottle. Yum-O! An odd little quirk with this brand, which also has Il Prosecco, if you're so inclined, is that it doesn't have a cork. Rather, it must be opened with a bottle opener, so if you're the only one enjoying a bit of the bubbly, be sure to pick up one of these vacuum stoppers to keep it fizzy for next time.

Or you could just finish off the bottle. However, then next morning, you might need this.

2. Home Depot

While I'm not usually a big fan of superstores in general, I don't mind going to Home Depot to pick up the random item for Diva Husband. Last week, Homer and the gang ran this fabulous deal for $3 off LED Christmas Lights. Since DH does light duty in our home, he sent me to pick up lights for our new tree (See below).

3. Ginormous Christmas Trees

Our family room ceiling is 18' tall. For five years, DH has lamented the fact that our Christmas Tree, in all of it's 8' glory, was lost in the height of the room. Thanks to Craigslist, we are the proud owners of an almost-new 12' tree. And our pocketbook is $50 lighter.

Not a bad deal. Pics to follow.

4. Patient (If a wee bit dumb) Dogs

If you've read my musings for any length of time, you'll be familiar with Princess (the Wonder Dog)and her archnemesis, The Manimal. I had really hoped that, with Christmas coming, we could use the age-old threat: "Santa only visits good little boys."

It's not working. Poor pup.

5. Fall Weather

I love Autumn. It's my favorite season of the year. The gorgeous fall colors, crisp air, Friday night bonfires. The whole package. I enjoy the occasional Indian Summer weekend, but I especially love Autumn.

Particularly when Mother Nature remembers that Autumn weather should occur in October/November.

6. A Nine Year-Old Boy

I love SS#1 with all my heart. He's my first, my baby, my little Squirtle. I'm not loving this "I'm always right" stage. But I do love my boy. I love my boy. I love my sweet stubborn boy.

7. Finding the Perfect Gift

I found the absolute perfect gift for my parents. Unfortunately, I can't even give you a clue, since BOTH of them read my blog. I also found the perfect gifts for The Lawyer and my Wonderful SIL, and my nephews, Tex, Sir Falls-a-Lot and Baby Bean. Well, I haven't really found the one for Baby Bean yet, but I'm hoping my luck holds out.

I can give you a leetle clue on my gift for The Lawyer and Wonderful SIL. She actually introduced me to this company. Prices are reasonable and I found a 35% discount code which made my personalization and shipping FREE! :)

And that leads me to...

8. Online Discount Codes

I'm late to the party on this one, I'm sure, but did you know that you can Google to find discount codes for online shopping? They don't always work, and sometimes they bring up expired codes, but it's SO worth trying! I just enter the business name and "discount code" or "coupon" and it brings up the results.

Saving money AND finding great gifts. Merry Christmas to me!

9. Good Books

I've recently finished reading the Mitford books, by Jan Karon. When I was 7, I received the Little House on the Prairie Boxed Set for my birthday. I read them so many times that my mom had to put them away for awhile so I'd read other books.

Last year, she gave them back to me.

I've re-read them twice since then.

I'm pretty sure Mitford is becoming my grown-up version of the Little House books.

10. Vacation

I have exactly four days of work left before I'm off for A WHOLE WEEK. Three days if you don't count today. Then I work for fourteen days and I'm off for TWO MORE WEEKS.

Vacation/PTO days are one of the few best perks of my job! :)

Music Monday

It's that time again! Hum a tune, sing a song, flip on the radio, because it's Music Monday!

A local radio station has jumped the gun a bit. While it may seem odd, seeing as how just last week I commented how I was ready for Christmas decorating, but I do have a problem with radio stations switching to their "All Christmas, All the Time" format two weeks before Thanksgiving!

While there isn't exactly a plethora of Thanksgiving music, there is a lovely old hymn that is one of gathering to give thanks. Enjoy this version by Celtic Woman.

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!)

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...

...Wii, Wii, Wii All the Way Home!

So Diva Nana and Diva Papa have entered the wonderful world of video games. Somewhat under pretense of "getting it for the boys", they have purchased a Wii console and Wii Fit system. They played on one at a friend's son's house and loved it.

Keep in mind that their last experience with a video game system was, oh, I don't know, 28 years ago when they searched for an ENTIRE DAY to find an Atari system for brother lawyer and me. And now they're fully entrenched in the latest craze once again.

I'd love to have one, but can't justify the expense, as the Diva boys (DH included) are more XBox creatures. Which is why I was so excited to come across La Petite Chic's Wii GIVEAWAY!

Wish me luck, and Diva Nana and I may just be Wii-fitting together (virtually, at least!) soon! :)

Photo Finish!

Well, I'm back in the land of the living, finally! You know how when you're sick and you really just want your mom, but then you remember that you ARE the mom?

Yeah.

Anyway, my mom called me yesterday to ask if I'd watched Oprah while I was home DYING. Well, not dying, maybe, but feeling really icky. The answer was no, since I was sleeping (for four blissful hours, uninterrupted by children, husband, or dog).

Apparently they were discussing de-cluttering. Which, as an aside, I need to do DESPERATELY, but surprisingly enough, that's not really why Mom called.

If you are like I, and LOVE to take pictures, but suffer from a severe case of digitalphotograveyarditis (where your photos reside for perpetuity on your computer or worse yet, in your camera), then this offer is for you!

Go now to Oprah's site and get your FREE (well, $6.99 shipping and handling) 20 Page Snapfish Custom Photo Book. This is a-freaking-mazing. It's a $30 value and you can create a hardcover photo album. Even if you're like my friend Heather, who claims her creativity stops at her wrist (love ya chica!), you can make a fabulous keepsake.

There is a catch. You have to be quick. You only have until tomorrow sometime (it was 48 hours from when the show ran, which was Wednesday) to claim it, and must redeem it by November 16th. You also have to create or have a Snapfish account, but that's free (and a great way to print those digital photos, btw!).

I created mine last night and will probably do a second, which isn't free, but because I already got one free, it's still a good buy at $30 plus shipping. It would make a great Christmas gift for those of you doing Christmas on a budget!

Oh, and if you're actually DOING the de-cluttering now, she's also got an offer for 20% off of your Container Store purchase HERE. It's good for in-store, online and phone purchases! I *heart* The Container Store, but they're not exactly fruGAL friendly, so this 20% coupon could be a great bonus!