Two More Days...

Left in this sh*tty year. 

I think I already said that I don't believe anything magical is going to happen at the start of 2021. We are still going to be dealing with this crap. Who knows for how long? 

I'll get to the year in review probably next week...

We had an awesome Christmas! Believe it or not, we were up before 6am Christmas morning. So was K4. In fact, we only got up because we heard her get up. We gathered, did coffee, presents, breakfast, Mimosas. Then birthday... 

I think she was happy with everything. We had stuffed shells for dinner. An ice cream cake, and adult beverages. We watched super stupid movies, laughed, and talked. 

I've been off work since last Wednesday. I go back tomorrow. For a day and a half. I had to use some vacation time or lose it (and That Man and I still have some we didn't use, but we haven't lost anything by not using it). Yesterday That Man was off with me. Today, it was just me. (Well, Kas is off until Sunday, but she is doing her own thing.) I slept in. Goofed off. Went to the grocery store and then goofed off some more. 

Made our last Hello Fresh box from last week. It was really good and it was the one I had kind of dreaded. (We get our new box tomorrow and we'll definitely not try to keep the stuff for too many days again. All of the produce was at the end of its life. Not Hello Fresh's fault, but ours for not cancelling the box for the week like we should have)

I have my second round edits to get done. And I'd like to write a few more thousand words before the end of the year. I don't know if the few more thousand will happen, but the edits will. I have no idea of my writing goals for next year, but I'll think of something.

Other than that... we're marching into the boring time of year... Cold, dreary, and not much going on. My Jeep is going to get some frame work done at the end January. I do have a retreat coming up at the end of January which I am very much looking forward to. Other than that... 

That's all I have...

Behave! 

Merry Christmas!

Wishing you and yours and wonderful holiday!!

We're there! 

From here on out, it's crazy for me! And I probably won't post again for a few days. (Actually it's been crazy, which is why I haven't posted)

The wrapping is done. 

I'm cooking like a mad woman. Despite the fact that our Christmas Eve crowd is super, super small, I'm still putting out a spread. Plus, I need to make vegan options for my kid. I'm making Mom's chicken rice soup, and a vegan version with tofu. And, as typical for me, I believe I am making too much of everything! Ha!  

I made a white chocolate raspberry cheesecake last night. I didn't need to, except...I promised a lady at work before I realized I didn't need to make one for Christmas, and I needed to prove to myself that I hadn't lost my touch with it. The last one I made was awful. This one, I'm happy to say, turned out the way it's supposed to. 

Also, I'm putting together K4's birthday dinner so all I have to do is pop it in the oven on Christmas day. She requested stuffed shells again, which is fine by me. I've already made a vegan/gluten-free version. I have the filling for the shells mixed up and the sauce made. All I need to do is cook the shells and get them filled. That's later tonight. 

First we have to run to a co-workers to drop something off, and then do a porch drop for a friend. I have no idea what to make for dinner and at this point, I don't care. Last night was fend for yourself. Our Hello Fresh box came, so that's an option, but my problem is time. 

Anyway. This year is so different, but I'm excited. We are determined to make K4's 21st birthday as special as we can, so even though she can't have the party she wanted, I hope it's just as good. Also, I don't work the day job again until next Wednesday, so that's also exciting. 

The grandkids were a blast this past weekend. They had so much fun together and we had fun with them. Though we were super tired. They played in the snow, played with the gifts they got each other, and talked a mile a minute. We took them to K2's so the kids could see each other and that was really nice, too. Sunday was also our 34th anniversary. We ordered food and pretty much vegged on the couch after getting back from taking the kids home. That's okay. The day was super awesome. I got to see all of my grandkids and all of my kids, even from a distance. That did wonders for me!

Tomorrow will be cleaning and finishing up the cooking. We moved things to an earlier time due to conflicts, so a little bit of hustle is needed. That Man is off, and so is K4, so we should have no problem getting stuff done.

Be safe and well and enjoy! 

Behave!  

Snow Day!

Well, not really! 

I had to work today since I work from home. That Man worked from home, too. But we did get the snow cleared out and the vehicles jockeyed. 

We didn't get nearly as much snow as they were calling for and that makes me sad, but we did get about 11". 

We actually slept in a little this morning, too. Not over the starting work time, but within a few minutes. Ha! It was slow day for me. Except my boss emailed me to ask about an invoice I'd entered. I entered it as $20 million dollars. It was supposed to be $2 thousand. Ha! I entered the invoice number instead of the amount due. Luckily, I was able to fix it with no issues, but how stupid is that? I also signed up for a webinar on new tax laws, so that's a good thing. 

It was a good day though. Texting with the siblings all day, helping K4 hang some stuff in her room, making dinner, and making plans. It was fun to have That Man back in the home office with me. 

Our Hello Fresh box was supposed to come yesterday. It still hasn't shown up. Nor have we gotten mail. Considering the roads didn't get better until well into the afternoon, that's understandable. I think it's cold enough that our box will be fine, plus they pack it in an insulated bag with an ice pack. We'll see...

Eight days until Christmas... We have a few more things we're waiting for and have some wrapping to take care of. The menu is set. I do need to go to the grocery store, clean, and cook, but it'll get done. 

We have two of the grandkids this weekend. K5 and Mr. B. We get K5 tomorrow night and Mr. B on Saturday. We have fun plans, but the best part is that the kids get to be together. We'll make cookies, they'll do their Christmas with each other. We'll cook and do crafts and make popcorn. I am so looking forward to it! 

That is all from here!

Behave!

Week End Wrap Up...

It's Sunday. Again.

And twelve days until Christmas. 

We had to go out yesterday. Needed some supplies and wanted to grab a few things for Christmas and birthday. We did not have to go to the big box store, which is amazing and good. 

It was a madhouse. But I believe, except for waiting for a few deliveries, that we are done with the shopping. Everything is wrapped, too. I mean, everything that's here. Of course, we'll have to hit the grocery store probably once or twice before the big day. 

We got our tree up yesterday. It's far smaller than I wanted, but it's still gorgeous. We decorated last night - just the three of us, had some nog, and listened to our traditional Charlie Brown Christmas. It was very nice. 

Today was putting more lights on the front porch. It looks cute and I'm happy with how it turned out. I wrapped presents and Bob got the snow blower ready for the potential snowfall coming. I am excited for possible snow! 

We made our Blue Apron dinner. A friend of mine gave us two gift meals. It was good, too many peppers, but we're still preferring Hello Fresh. We have one more Blue Apron to make. And then we'll get our next Hello Fresh box on Wednesday. We're digging it though. We do get to pick our meals and they are easy to make. Everything is included except salt, pepper, butter, and oil. 

The writing is going well. Really well. I am digging my story and writing like a mad woman. 

And that is it...

Behave!

Tuesday... What?

It's Tuesday. I know. Really? 

17 days until Christmas...

How weird is that? I don't have any Christmas Spirit and I don't expect I will find any, but I am doing everything I can to get some spirit. I want spirit. I really do. It's just not that easy this year.

Things are going. 

I just finished writing all of the words for today. The story is going quite well. Though it's not what I was writing last week. I had an inspiration and went back to a Christmas story I had started last year. And, I know we're watching a lot of holiday movies these days, but I'm digging the new version of this story. 

And who knows? Maybe I'll finish it and submit it and see what happens... For now, it's a good thing for me to do.

The Christmas shopping is also going. We're about 95.9999% done. Unfortunately, we'll actually have to go to the big ugly store to finish. I think. But we'll put that off as long as possible, or at least until we know for sure that we have no choice.

Plans are to get our tree this weekend. We'll go to the Boy Scout stand like we always do. It's close and quick and they have nice trees that aren't that expensive. I'll start pulling up the decorations over the next few days. We need to move a couch to my office, too... Ugh. It's a sleeper sofa, so it's not going to be easy.

It's cold. I'm waiting for snow. There doesn't seem to be any on the horizon. 

That is all!

Behave!

Weekend Wrap Up...

This weekend went really fast... 

Friday night was basically relaxing, watching Harry Potter... We were in bed super early. 

Saturday... 

Got to see the siblings. That was really, really nice. We took care of business, talked, laughed, and ate some pizza. It was so very good to see everyone! 

I know I said I was probably going to cancel the big Christmas Eve shindig (and I still am), but finding out that family wasn't going to come anyways, before I made the decision kind of hit me hard. 

I mean, it is absolutely fine. And after a bit of processing, I am okay, despite the fact that I'll miss them and the fun we have. 

I tell my kids all of the time... you do what you want and you should! Do different things because you can! Life is about experiences and change. I never want them to do something because they feel obligated and I feel that way for everyone (even though it's hard on me emotionally sometimes lol). Yes, tradition has a place. But tradition can change to what fits and suits everyone's needs. I'm down with that. 

I also know that I have the best siblings anyone could ever have, and there's that. And hopefully our gathering on Saturday is the start of a new tradition for us. 

We had to cut our visit short though. Instead of hanging out well into the evening like we wanted, That Man and I had to go take care of helping with something that's hopefully the last time ever. We didn't think it was going to happen at all, but when we got the text, we had to change the plans because we were already committed to the thing. Folks were gone by like 6pm. We left shortly after, did our thing, and were back home by like 9. 

We were exhausted but we did squeeze in a viewing of the new Mulan. I totally loved it. 

Today has been pretty much chilling all day. I took care of getting some of the paperwork from yesterday ready to mail. We hung our solar lights on the porch, started laundry, made our last Hello Fresh bundle, and basically just relaxed.

The lights are cute and turned out almost exactly what we hoped. I went to order another strand for the fence, but they are out of stock. Crap. Our Hello Fresh meal was really delicious. And laundry is still in the machine. Ha! 

That is all!

Behave! 

December Two...

Today was a super weird day.

Work was weird, with unusual situations and random emails. 

The animals are weird. The boys have been fighting like mad. Today was better, but Max has taken to holing up in my office and sleeping in the dog's bed. And the dog will not make him move. She just lays against the door with a devastated look on her face. 

Also, I ordered Elsa a few new toys for Christmas. I had moved them from the box to a bag with some other stuff to make room. She found them, twice, and has been relentless about finding them again. I stashed them in the closet and she knows... she keeps sniffing at the door. When K4 was in my office, the dog kept trying to convince her to open the closet door. Weird. 

Then, I had my window open because it had gotten super hot in the office. K4 had come in to chat and this old, grizzled guy was out on the sidewalk in front of the neighbors house walking by. As we watched him, he spit on the neighbors car and said "there's something for you to eat" and kept walking by. Random. Never saw the guy before in my life and the neighbor whose car he spit on hasn't done anything to anyone. They are a nice family. So weird.  

Got my first round edits for my new release. "Look" is now a bad word. For real. I had overused it so badly. Like over two-hundred times badly. Also, "pull". But they are cleaned up and I just need to do a final read through before sending it back. My editor had nice things to say about the book and that's awesome.

We also signed up for Hello Fresh. We got our first box today, but since I was making dinner for a friend who just had surgery and had extra for us, we will have our first meal tomorrow. My sister and a bunch of people from work are also doing it, and we thought we'd give it a shot. I think it will take some of the stress of "what's for dinner" away and give us some variety. We'll see... I'll let you know how it goes. 

That's all I have. 

Behave!