December 25, 2007

A Christmas Meme

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags?   I’m all for gift bags, trouble is, they don’t make them big enough for certain gifts!

2. Real tree or artificial?  Artificial.  I love a real tree every few years, but the needles stuck in the carpet drives me crazy and I find it difficult to enjoy that real tree scent.

3. When do you put up the tree?  Typically, the day after Thanksgiving, but this year we were a week and a half late.

4. When do you take the tree down?  New Year’s Day if I’m not hung over.  The weekend after New Year’s if I am.

5. Do you like eggnog?  Not at all.  Yuck.

6. Favorite gift receivedas a child?  The year I got a keyboard piano.  I loved that thing!

7. Do you have a nativity scene?  Yes.  Two of them actually.

8. Hardest person to buy for?  The in-laws.

9. Easiest person to buy for?  My mom.

10. Worst Christmas gift you ever received?  A sweater with jingle bells on it.  The kind that actually jingle!

11. Mail or email Christmas cards?  Mail.

12. Favorite Christmas Movie? It’s a toss up between It’s a Wonderful Life and Miracle on 34th Street.

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas?  I’m definitely a procrastinator.  If I find something halfway through the year for a reasonable price, I’ll buy it and hide it for the intended recipient.  Otherwise I wait until December 1st or later.

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present?  I’ve never re-gifted a Christmas present, but if it’s something nonreturnable, I save it and donate it to our church picnic as a prize for the Cherry Tree game.

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Chocolate covered peanut butter balls.  My aunt makes them every year.

16. Clear lights or colored on the tree? Clear lights on the tree.  Colored lights outside.

17. Favorite Christmas song? I have several favorites, but I find myself singing Jingle Bell Rock every year.

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home?  We usually go to our parents’ houses each year.  No big travel plans.

19. Can you name all of Santa’s reindeers?  Yes, but I have to sing it so that I don’t forget any.

20. Angel on the tree top or a star? We have both, so we rotate every year.

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or Christmas morning?  We open some on each day because we celebrate with different family members on each day.

22. Most annoying thing about this time of year?  When the neighbors forget to take their Christmas decorations down and they’re still up in February.

December 24, 2007

Merry Christmas!

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Christmas Eve Greetings

This morning I have to work four hours and then I’m off for seven and a half days. I can’t tell you how excited I am to not have to worry about work for awhile. I’ve been looking forward to this “vacation” (hard to call it that when there’s a shit load of white, fluffy snow on the ground), for a very long time.

Dawson is going to Renee’s house today and I’m so grateful she agreed to care for him for that short period of time. Otherwise I might have had to beg my mom or my mother-in-law for help. I would feel terrible doing that, because they are each getting their ducks in a row for the Christmas celebrations.

This evening we plan to attend the 4 p.m. mass because our church is very large. Over 2,000 families attend St. Bronislava’s Catholic Church and the masses on Christmas Day are so packed that not a pew is available. The ushers set up chairs in the lobby and gathering space before each mass and even those seats fill up!

Doug has to work from 8 a.m to 4 p.m, but he’s going to try to sneak out of work early. If that can’t be done we’ll probably hit the 10 p.m. church service. That’s the best one because of the beautiful Christmas carols the choir sings. We’ll see how the day goes.

We’re heading to my in-laws this evening to celebrate Christmas with them. Dawson is VERY, VERY!! excited about all the presents Santa Claus is bringing him.

Tomorrow we spend the holiday with my insane family. Good times, laughter and cheer will be had by all (especially because my family is full of nuts).

Here are some funny photos from last night. While I spent several hours cleaning Dawson’s messy room, he decided to dress himself in his “favowitt cwose”.

More photos here.

December 23, 2007

At Least We Can Reflect On This

The last gunslinger. (From Fox Sports)

Brett Favre took his lumps during the twilight of his tremendous career. He pondered retirement, but elected to battle on for the rebuilding Packers.Favre turned back his clock and led Green Bay to the NFC North title. His signature moment came on Oct. 29, at the start of overtime against the Denver Broncos.

He chucked an 82-yard bomb to Greg Jennings to decide the game. “I was nervous as heck,” Favre told reporters after the game. “I haven’t been in too many overtime games. We got the ball and I figured we probably had one chance. If we don’t go down and do something, this is probably it. Don’t screw it up, whatever you do.”

Favre didn’t.