Christmas Lights

It comes and goes so fast. Lots of stress: driving for 2 days straight in terrible weather (cannot count how many cars we saw in the ditch including a five car + semi accident/catstrophe complete with two ambulances), being so tired that my contacts blur up every hour, last minute shopping, wrapping, baking...

But the holidays brought out lots of good: seeing old friends and distant family, eating fabulous food, and most gratifying, watching the joy of a six year old when he receives something he has drooled over for months and watching him give gifts he worked so hard on making. It was a merry time!

Six

Oh...I'm late, but who cares. I know it is technically the 22nd and I should either be in bed, packing for our trip, or wrapping Christmas presents, but I choose to draw out the birthday as long as I can. Connor is six today (or yesterday the 21st)! Wow-it is so hard to believe. So, 6 things about the 6 year old:

1) Connor LOVES football (and futbol in the summer)!

A football quilt from Nana Jeani & Papa Jayson (handmade by Nana).

A new jersey from Nana Yvonne & Papa Dave.

2) Connor's favorite foods are somewhat similar to other children in that he loves mac n' cheese, corn dogs, & chicken nuggets. However, unlike lots of others his age Connor enjoys many other types of foods, i.e. seaweed (he will eat it like a french fry), cabbage (huge coleslaw fan), and Chinese dumplings (of any sort & prepared in any fashion). I am so blessed that my son lives by the kindergarten motto of "be polite and take a bite" and that he almost always enjoys his bite.

3) Connor's best friend is Bennett.

(Bennett is not wearing "jailbird" pants. They decided to play dress up before the party, hence the pirate pants)

4) Connor's favorite colors are blue, red, black, and brown.

5) He is a doodler. As I mentioned before, I can NEVER find a clean piece of paper around here. So, he will either grow up to be an artist or an NFL football player. Although, for over a year now he has told me he wants to be a mailman. They are all quite different career paths so I suppose he is just a renaissance man.

6) Quite honestly, I think Connor is unique for his age. This may sound biased, but as a person I think he has an extrodinarily kind heart and a deep soul in that he is loving, understanding, and just plain nice. For example, it is just common law around here (by his choice) that Mommy gets at least 5 hugs before bedtime. Some say he is shy, I say he is observant. He is an intense watcher (especially of older children - of course) and he remembers finite details from years ago, yes at age six. He has never done or said anything at school to make another person feel bad. For this I am extremely proud of him and feel lucky to have such a kind and loving child!

Well, I am starting to get sappy, but it is all true. This time of year always brings back memories of six years ago when I received the best Christmas gift ever.

- HAPPY BIRTHDAY CONNOR-

Merry Christmas to Mrs. Rose!

Well, one Christmas gift I can share before giving... Connor and I made this memo holder for Mrs. Rose, his kindergarten teacher. We thought it would be fun to make something for her and even more fun if we could both participate.

So, Connor drew the picture for the outside. We used the Crayola fabric crayons and Mommy ironed it on and sewed up the rest. We included a small notepad, pen, and matching paperclip. It is backed with Timtex (which my sewing machine has come to hate) so it is nice and sturdy.

Connor says he loves it, so I have one almost completed for him as a Christmas gift. He is a doodler (I can never find a blank piece of paper around the house) so I'm thinking he will love his as well.

Tradition

OK, I know my birthday was two weeks ago (and I am not one to dote over my own birthday) but I am going to talk about my night out anyway. Justin and I have developed an annual tradition for my birthday - dinner at our favorite restaurant. I know this does not sound all that exciting but really it is. The food is spectacular as is the presentation, service... Just look at this, my own personalized birthday menu!

After good food, good wine, and a flaming dessert we head down to the little bar down the road. The first year we stumbled upon it because the temperature outside was below zero, it was about a block away, and we were not about to walk more than that. Again this year it was cold, but I think we went back for reasons other than that. I guess it may become part of our tradition.

Justin was feeling particularly generous that night. He was determined to find a homeless person to give our leftovers to. Yes, he approached people at the bus stop asking where he could find some homeless people to give his food to. I don't know if the people were offended by him or just plain shocked. Anyway, poor Justin may have had one too many cocktails with dinner, but really he does have a big heart. And, he did find someone at the end of the evening. The man was not homeless but was happy to take the food.

With that said I will talk no more about my birthday, until next year. It is time to concentrate on the next one coming this Friday. The birthday boy wants hot dogs, coleslaw, and baked beans. Sounds like a summer feast to me, but what he wants he will get. Oh, and chocolate cake of course.

That Time of Year

It has been a little hectic around here lately, as is typical of December. This one has been even more so. In addition to Christmas we have two December birthdays. This year we also have an out of town wedding sandwiched inbetween Connor's birthday (the 21st) and Christmas. And now the other night we had to rush Connor to the emergency room due to some scary nasty hives. We have found out that he is allergic to milk. So now, amongst the busy holiday season we must also readjust our eating habits. Luckily Connor likes soy milk, although lately I have heard some not so good things about it. And although I do not like this allergy, then again who would, I am glad to know where these hives have been coming from the past two months. Another positive - they rate the allergy on a scale of 1 to 6, 1 being the least allergic and 6 being the most. He is a 1! And so he does not have to completely eliminate dairy from his diet, just cut back.

So my holiday gift making has again been put on hold. Here is some of it waiting to be cut into:


And on another note, I had a wonderful birthday. Here is my favorite gift, a serving tray built and decorated by Connor.

**See the 21 on the advent calendar - the birthday boy's day is overfilling**

28

Today I turn 28 years young - those years really creep up on you. So...


*****28 Random Blurbs About Me on My Birthday*****

1) I am a cat person, really big cuddly ones to be exact.
2) Guilty pleasures- red wine, chocolate, and pizza, not usually all at the same time but on a really good day, yes.
3) Not so guilty pleasures - reading and seafood.
4) Something I wish was a pleasure - exercising.
5) Favorite movie - Sophie's Choice - makes me cry every time (it's a fabulous book too).
6) Favorite book - too hard to choose, but have recently enjoyed this one, this one, and this one.
7) Favorite children's book - also too hard to choose, but love this, this, and this...
8) I love music - all genres. Not a big country fan but some of the folky stuff that I enjoy really borders on country.
9) I majored in piano performance for one year.
10) Favorite classical composer - Rachmaninoff.
11) Favorite color - green - and
12) Green eyes
13) I'm an only child.
14) Which means I am a little spoiled!
15) My husband and I were born within a few miles of one another...
16) Our parents then up and moved to the same suburb.
17) We didn't really meet until college though. It was very romantic - nasty college basement party, the kind that reeks of spilt beer an b.o.
18) I have never been a morning person...
19) However lately I have come to favor the morning hours (after a cup of coffee).
20) I have had the same best friend for 10+ years.
21) We are very different but it works well.
22) My house is blue which would not be my first choice, but I have come to like it - it's home.
23) I have been getting my hair cut from the same person for 12 years.
24) I carpool to work...
25) With my father!
26) My life has not followed the conventional order, i.e. 1 get married 2 buy a house 3 have a baby. Well I did things in the exact reverse order.
27) I am happy with the way that turned out!
28) I was born somewhere around 2:00 in the afternoon on a Tuesday.

Last night my mother-in-law said that 28 was one of her favorite years. So I welcome 28 with open arms! - Bring it on!

Welcoming December

December 1st brought the 1st snowstorm of the season. Connor went out with Grandma and Grandpa for a bit, Justin went to work, but I stayed bundled up inside all day (except that hour I spent hanging outdoor lights)! There's something about the first snowfall that makes me immobile. Felted beads seemed appropriate, made with wool from this shop.

I wasn't sure initially what they would become. The end result - ornaments: