Full

'Twas the Saturday before Christmas

and all through the house

not a creature was stirring

'til they smelled a german apple pancake.

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The bodies in this little house have increased...and so have the piles of stuff.

Everywhere.

And it all belongs to boys.

But they did find Dr Mario for wii....for me, so all is well.

And if you have a wii, we can play online together.  It is WAY fun!

We've been at a basketball tournament all week and today was the finals...lots of dads and lots of dads video cameras.

Our boys won by 6 and it was not an easy win...Alex was in foul trouble by the start of the 2nd quarter.  Not good...not good.  (Not good for the team and not good for the mama!!!)

A few highlights of my #35 (in white):

In the end, all was well....and after getting a huge trophy, my two youngest shot some hoops.

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Since we all 5 were there (in a car with only 4 seatbelts...Alex had gotten a ride there) we headed to our favortie spot...Nick's.

It was early, but worked out perfectly.

Came home and watched The Santa Claus and made homemade caramel corn...and fed all the neighbors, too.

Tomorrow morning is church as a family of 5...first time since August!

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B-I-N-G-O!

Gotta love beginning trumpet players...especially when they ooze cuteness.

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Oops

That....THAT would be a chunk of money laying in the parking lot.

Mixed with my tears.

THAT is NOT blood, but that would be a present for that guy that I like so much. An expensive aged in oak for 18 years from Portugal present for that guy that I like so much.

Or should I say that WAS a present for that guy that I like so much.

Splat.

And if he reads this before Christmas, which he probably will, then Merry Christmas and smell my left shoe, cuz it smells really good right now.  In fact, it smells like it was aged for 18 years in an oak barrel rather than smelling like a shoe.

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Today was my Meals on Wheels day and more importantly, it was my last day with my dear friend Josephine.  At the young age of 95, she is moving out of state with her grandson and his family.

I will miss her.  Lots.  Close to 3 years of weekly lunches...3 years of spending time with a woman that I have grown to cherish.

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I decided to run a few errands when I got a call from M inviting me to lunch, which I gladly accepted.  I had to wait a few minutes in the ugly winter weather for him.

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I'm telling you...nothing beats blue skies and palm trees in December!

Greek salad from Daphnes...oh my.  You know me and my greek salad...we go hand in hand.

Came home carrying a rather large gift for my littlest nephew...man I LOVE being an Aunt, to a bunch of trumpets.  Lots of trumpets.  Little house.

But I do love my son who is moving home for break.  He is beyond excited to be moving home and sharing a room with Brian...BEYOND excited.

(but I am!)

Tonight is the 1st night in 9 days that we are all home for supper.  Unbelievable.  I am actually cooking a meal that we will all sit and eat together....pork roast, roasted potatoes and green beans.

Unless I drop it.

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Waiting

So here I sit, waiting for the termite man.

He is now 2 hours late.  I called and yes, he's on his way.  Soon.

That was an hour ago.

I could've gone to my nieces school musical.  I could've run to the post office to mail one last package.  I could've run to Restoration Hardware for one last little gift I need...and that I have a 50% off coupon for.

Instead, I've been waiting.

It's actually a really good day to be waiting.  The rain is pouring down and the thermometer is reading 44 degrees.  Four-four.  I'm thinking that is pretty close to snow weather!

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So, I decided to make cookie dough...6 different kinds, and they are all wrapped up and waiting in the outside freezer.  I caught up on Lipstick Jungle (sick and wrong, but I love that show) and also planted red beets in Animal Crossing...which I now love in real life, too.  Beets...who would've thought?  Especially in a salad with goat cheese...mmmm.  I'm going to plant them this year in my garden.  Other than that, the laundry is pretty much caught up and I paid the electric bill...always a good thing when you want lights.  I am learning that new windows might make the bills go way down, but a bazillion strands of lights all over your house aren't exactly cost effective.

But it's Christmas.

Alex has a late practice and then M and the boys will head on campus for an Advent service.  I need to set up/take down the basketball snack bar (3 down, 6 to go) in the pouring rain.  Lovely.

Supper tonight for those home will be TJ's orange chicken, rice and veggie egg rolls.  I'll eat a cup of soup during my 45 minute break and a hot tea and pray for a little break in the rain during clean up time.

Shopping Day

Michael took the whole day off today and we were able to completely complete the Christmas shopping.

And eat cioppino.

Well....he ate cioppino and I had some clam chowder.

Yum.

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The cards have been mailed (all 170 of them...welcome to the life of a church worker) and the last of the packages that need to be sent will be sent tomorrow.  

Also tomorrow...the termite guy is de-termiting our little house.

Or is it un-termiting?

Whatever it is...tomorrow, the Orkin man will be treating our house with some supposedly un-harmful chemical that shouldn't make us sick, but if it does we are to go immediately to the hospital.

Sounds safe to me.

Tonight Brian had his 1st basketball game of the season at the same time that Alex had an away game at the same time that I had to set up the snack bar for the varsity game. 

 Can't be everywhere at once, even though I really wanted to.  So M was with Brian and Alex had no family members cheering for him at his game.  Sad.

I walked in the door at 8:45pm and while everyone had had some sort of dinner, they were all wilting from starvation, so I threw together a frittata with ham, gruyere and roasted yellow peppers which seemed to make everyone smile just a little bit.

No pictures because the vultures attacked it before I could finish pulling it out of the oven.  Oink, oink.

And now I can barely keep my eyes open, so off to dreamland I am going.  

Goodnight little termites.  Sleep well.

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It's Blustery Out There!

Remember me?

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It was a weekend of concerts (3 of them), parties (4 of them) and basketball games (only 2 of those)...plus a practice (just 1, thankyouverymuch).

In between there was sleep...not much, but there will always be time to sleep later.

Right?

While cleaning the backyard, a mushroom was found.  And a really big balloon.

M strung even more lights from our tiny little house while Maggie napped on our bed.  At least someone is well rested in our house.

Sunday I cooked.  And cooked.  And cooked.

Gravy...3 pots.  Pasta...7 lbs.  Meatballs...100.  Sausage...50, which I then cut in half.  Salad...6 bowls.  Garlic bread...10 loaves.

I like to have it all made early and warming in the oven before the party begins...mainly because I like to be a guest at my very own party.  And let me just say...two ovens rock.  ROCK.

The newest addition...the party board, created by my neighbor.  How I ever managed without it, I'll never know.  Sure made things easy.

Ready to eat...

...and eat they did.  This was a fun and not at all shy group....fun!

Practicing their carols...like they need to practice?

Alex scored this in the white elephant gift exchange...it goes perfectly with Matthew's shopping cart.  Hillbillies...that's what we are.

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This morning the skies opened and the rains came down...kind of like a monsoon.  We need it so badly...but it is cold and dreary outside!

Tomorrow, that guy that I like so much is taking the day off and we are finishing our shopping.  And going to lunch.  Just us.  

I can't wait.

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Running the Race

Early winter in southern California is truly beautiful...I was driving yesterday in my neighborhood and was blessed by changing leaves...

...and glorious skies.  Breathtaking.

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This is the time of year where I just need to slow down and trust completely in God to get me from place to place to place....which I should be doing at all times and not just when life gets crazy.

I'm human...and it's concert season.

Last night was concert 3 of 5, followed by a cocktail party.  Today are concerts 4 and 5, with a reception at the university presidents house (which means we have to go, but it usually ends up being pretty fun) followed by another cocktail party at our house after the final concert.  

And then we rest.

Oh wait...if I were to look ahead, I'd see the 40 something choir students who are coming to dinner tomorrow night...and I'm thinking that they are going to want themselves some food to eat.  And games to play.  And carols to sing.  

Yep.  I think they will.  It's tradition, after all.  

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So tomorrow, this little 1200 sq. ft. house in the pretty little neighborhood by the pretty little lake will be bursting at the seams...quite literally as it is supposed to rain.

Pour, actually.

Ah well...what can you do?  

Cook!  Meatballs and sausage and pasta and salad and garlic bread and cocoa and cookies.  Oh my.

I went to bed early this morning...at 3am, and my body is reminding me that I am not 20-something any longer.  I woke up early, too...Alex had practice at 7:30am and Brian at 9am, so I dropped off one, came home and fed another, dropped him off, drove a group of high school boys to Carl's for a snack, sat and watched Brian's practice in the cold, loaded everyone up and came home and made scrambled eggs with roasted asparagus, sausage, and toast with homemade raspberry jam.

Yum.

Not sure where the spurt of energy came from, but it quickly left and I went back to bed for 2 hours.

And now I feel like a truck hit me.

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