Christmas Decorations

The good news is that I truly outdid myself this year with my Christmas decorations.  The bad news is that I had to take them down after two days.  I had more people come screaming up to my house than ever.  Great stories, but two things made me take it down.

First, the cops advised me that it would cause traffic accidents, as they almost wrecked when they drove by.

Second, a 55 year old lady grabbed the 75 pound ladder and almost killed herself putting it against my house and didn't realize it was fake until she climbed to the top (she was not happy).  By the way, she was one of the many people who attempted to do that.  My yard couldn't take it either.  I have more than a few tire tracks where people literally drove up into my yard.

**Disclaimer -- I received this as an e-mail.  This is not my house.

Ketchup

How about the weather in the Midwest this week?  We didn't get much snow, but it is cold.  When I went to pick the dogs up this morning, the thermometer in the 'bu* said 8F.  It was eight whole degrees above 0F.  Unfortunately, there was also wind, so the windchill was -8F. 

I just want to say that I like cold weather.  I was born in the middle of winter (8 1/2 weeks from now... not that I'm counting or anything).  I'd be fine with the temperature were 8F, but only if there weren't any wind.  Wind is evil.  Unless you're sailing.  Or wind surfing.

Since it's finally cold outside, the Mr. and I decided to use our fireplace.  Having a fire in your living room is work.  We were constantly poking at the logs.  It was nice and toasty, though, and I'm really glad we have one.  If we have ice storms and lose power we will really appreciate it.

So toasty!

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The puppies are home!  Re-Pete was happy to see me.  Wally was still a little nervous.  And Penelope?  Well... she looked a little mad.  When I walked up to the cage she was in, she gave me this look like she was saying 'It's about time you showed up.' 

The girl has an attitude.

But that's not important.  The important thing is that they're home where they belong.  The vet smell that has permeated their skin is another story.

We've been doing a lot of snuggling on the sofa today.  The boys are fine.  Penelope is taking things a little slower, but she's good, too.

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The Mr. and I had a nice dinner out tonight.  We had a fancy supper at Buffalo Wild Wings.  Have you ever eaten there?  No?  Go.  Now.  Leave a comment and go eat wings.  Their honey bbq sauce is delicious.

They have these silly computer games on the walls, which the Mr. likes to play.

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*The 'bu is our car -- the Malibu.

Dog News

After the last litter of puppies, the Mr. and I decided that we didn't want any more.

Ever.

Of course, we kept putting off getting Penelope spayed and the boys neutered.  Around Thanksgiving, we noticed she was going into heat and realized our lives were about to become unpleasant.  We scrambled to call every vet in the county and found that prices ranged from $200-$350 to have our six pound chihuahua spayed.

Seriously?  I don't think so.

I asked a few friends and co-workers about it and was referred to a facility in a town 45 minutes away.  I gave them a call on Monday to ask about prices.  How much is it?  It's only $55 per dog.  Why are the veterinarians here so expensive?  Shouldn't controlling the pet popularion be an affordable priority?

I guess not.

So anyway... I dropped the puppies off this morning.  It was actually pretty sad.  They didn't want to go.  When I got home, I kept looking around for them when I lounged on the sofa or walked to the kitchen.  It's too quiet without them.

Penelope seemed pretty suspicious this morning and gave me the squinty evil eye.  I feel sorry for the vet and the vet techs who had to deal with this diva all day.

But yes, so we miss our babies and I can't wait to pick them up in the morning!

Ugh...

I'm somewhere in the middle of this mess.

Happy Birthday, Grandma!

Happy 75th birthday to my favorite grandma!

For her 7th birthday, she received WWII (FDR made his famous 'Day of Infamy' speech that day).

This year, she received Cameron Gene, her brand new great-grandson, who was born last Friday.

Happy birthday!

My Blog

As previously mentioned, I'm thinking about making some changes to my blog.  During the last couple of months, I was having trouble finding things to write about, mostly due to my demanding schedule that didn't allow me to do anything interesting.

So... yeah... I've been thinking.  I really like the idea of talking about certain things on certain days of the week.  I am considering doing that four days a week and then writing whatever the other three days.  How does that sound?

Here are the topics I'm considering:

Home improvements

Recipes

Fitness & Health (I need a lot of help in this category)

Flashbacks

Do you like them?  Are they crummy?  Stupendous?  I wanted to put crafting on there, but don't devote enough time to it.  I do want to write about my unfinished projects and projects I want to do, though, so it may pop up on one of my free days.

Anyway, that's what I'm thinking right now.  I'd love to hear more ideas from you!

What Is She Wearing?

Dear Miley Cyrus,

Would you mind explaining this?

{Photo from People.com}

What are you wearing? I see the skin under your bra. 

I don't have any children, but my cousin's 4 year old loves Hannah Montana.  I am 100% certain that booty shorts and a shiny bra (partially covered by a t-shirt or not) are not appropriate apparel for someone who is seen as a role model for young girls.

You and your stylist should be ashamed of yourselves.

Presents for Kids

The Mr. and I have two nephews -- Adrian and Mason.  Adrian just turned four and Mason is two.  With Christmas coming up, we're racking our brains for gift ideas for them. 

Two years ago, we bought Adrian the coolest gift ever.  This.

Check out that awesome motorcycle?  It's from Step2.  Adrian loved it.  The Mr. woke up on Christmas morning and Adrian was riding it around the kitchen in his diaper.  Best gift ever.  I was auntie of the year.

He was two at the time.  Last year, we bought him a fleece blanket (he loves soft things) and a Nerf gun.

Ugh, the nerf gun.

Affectionately known as a 'blaster gun,' I was not happy about this purchase.  He was three.  What three year old needs a Nerf gun?  Apparently this one did.  It's what he asked for.  We bought him one that shot tennis ball-sized foam balls.  What's the first thing he did when we loaded it for him?  He tried to shoot me in the head.  Uh-huh.  Guess who encouraged him to aim at me?  Men!

So this year, I wasn't sure what to get him.  I am so removed from the realm of little kids and have no idea what they like and what's appropriate.  So what did we get him?  This.  Again.

For the record...

I did not pick this out.  

I did not pay for it.  

I don't know that I want to be there when he opens it. 

I bought him clothes.

OH!  And while I have your attention... what do two year olds like?  We're at a loss for Mason.  We only see him at important family functions.  We've seen him so few times that we've never even heard him speak.  I'm certain that he can, I've just never heard it.

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Bargain of the Day!

Sephora is offering free shipping on many of their products and gift sets through December 14th.  All of the gifts are under $50.  Just use the promo code HOLIDAYSHIP.

Flashback Friday

Pictures From Home

We made it home to Missouri over Thanksgiving.  It was nice to be home.  All of the familiar sights and sounds of my youth.

The click-clack of Amish buggies as they cruise down Main Street.

COWS!!!

There is a serious lack of cows in central Illinois.  Lots of corn?  Yes.  Lots of soybeans?  Yes.  Lots of cows?  No.  In fact, I've seen maybe four cows since moving here 18 months ago.  Not exactly a large herd.

Have any of you made any big moves in your lives?  Are there things that you miss from the place you used to live?