Ho yeah

So Christmas has come and gone. It was a good one. Christmas Eve we followed the usually itinerary:

• Eating PF Changs
• Acting out the Nativity (Ava did not want to be the shepherd this year. Maybe she'll get Mary next year. It's tough when you have an all female cast and only one lead woman part.)
• Putting on the new christmas PJs and hanging their Santa ornament.
• Driving the neighborhood in search of Griswald houses. We found the ultimate house this year. We're pretty sure you could see it from space. It was like a beacon of christmas spirit. It had animatronics, a USA flag, the nativity, a carousel, the works.
• Watching Joy to the World.
• Then Aaron and I hung out till ten waiting for the older two to get to sleep. We were pretty fast this year and got to bed before 1a.

Something new we added this year to the Christmas Eve routine: we went ice skating at Southlands. They have a great outdoor rink. The girls had never been (mostly because they are squirrels on roller skates so we figured ice skating would be a disaster). Lauren and Bryn took to it really fast. They had cones for the kids to push around the rink to get use to it. Lore only needed two laps and she was off on her own. Bryn never let go of the cone but she was hauling tookis. Ava was a hot mess. She looked like the spider on roller skates from Harry Potter. She almost took Aaron out several times. Morgan didn't get to skate but she scooted around a couple of times in just her shoes and then we got hot chocolate. Good times.

Christmas day highlights:

• The girls slept in till 8a. Then Aaron tortured them for another 20 minutes getting cameras ready and such before they could come down.
• Squeals and shaky hands. Morgan was so excited opening gifts her hands wouldn't stop shaking.
• Princess overload but kept them busy all day.
• Playing Wii wipeout and indoor bocce with the girls.
• Heading over to the Cannons for friendly christmas dinner and fun.
• Curling up with aaron and watching Inception. Sweet.
• Getting a new laptop for Christmas. That's right, I'm on the couch typing this right now. Oh how I've missed this.

You want to eat food. You know, the code.

While in Tx and waiting for Aaron to get out of meetings, I had to eat lunch. So I debated my options: table for 1 or food court at some mall.

When waitressing in Texas many many years ago, lots of people came in for lunch by themselves. They would talk on their phone (if they had one) or read a book. I thought this was odd at the time. Reading and eating at a restaurant. Restaurants are for social eating. Of course I understood why they would be by themselves. I just couldn't comprehend doing it. I saw it as a complete expression of self confidence.

So I decided to do it. I had a sit down lunch at a Thai restaurant in downtown Dallas. I fought the urge to pull out my phone or grab my book from my purse. I kept telling myself: I'm secure enough with myself and my own thoughts. I can enjoy a lunch by myself...even with a couple on a date next to me. Their lunch was more awkward than mine. I felt bad for the girl.

So I did it. What did I discover:

• Lunch by yourself is weird.
• I had enough self confidence to do it.
• I don't plan on doing again...at least if I don't have to.
• Restaurants are a social place.

work is your favorite, make work your new favorite.

While Aaron slaves away at budgets, I just licked my last Christmas card. That's right, I'm sending them out tomorrow (which I consider on time). So my tongue is numb. Goal for 2011 Christmas card: a family picture. We just did the girls this year because taking pictures with this lot is excruciating. Notice, not all my kids are even looking at the camera. Suckers. So we're two days away from Christmas fun and itineraries. I still need to get snacks for stockings but other than that, I'm golden. Overall I'm feeling very over spent. Even though I've kept to the 3 gift policy...sorta.

This week has been a bit of a blur but with benefits. (We've slept in till after 8 a every morning. I feel spoiled.) Morgan and Ava are going to get their 3rd strike note from the elf tonight--I'm debating coal for Christmas. They knew the stakes.

Aaron is planning to take Lore and Bryn snowboarding tomorrow. And little Ava is getting a board for Christmas. It's an 80--crazy small, super cute.

And yeah, this concludes my random disjointed thoughts. Merry Christmas.

Car sidebar: Aaron got his Jeep. It's in the blood, really.

smiling is my favorite

I have to accept that I will not reach my blogging goal of at least one more than last year. What can I say, life has been too busy. Which is a shame really, because the blog is my only journal. And I still can't for the life of me remember Ava's first words. We just tell her it was Da. But we don't know. Awful, right?

Tomorrow I'm throwing my annual festivus with girlfriends. This year for feats of strength, I'm making them compete in a variety of Silent Library challenges (one of my favorite things of 2010). If they refuse to participate, I have a cone of shame to put on them and then will give them a teddy bear beat down. I'm giving out sweet prizes for the winners and socks for the losers. (Because it socks to lose--I know, crazy Senior Dich pun. Pithy is the best way to describe it.)

I'm officially done with everything Christmas, including teacher gifts. Boo Yeah. Except Christmas cards. I gotta suck it up and do them. I have no excuse this year.

A couple of weeks ago, Aaron totaled his truck (blowout on the tollway. He destroyed the median.) and now he has to decide if he wants another company car or buy something else. Something else = Toyota F150 or Jeep Wrangler 4 door. I'm leaning the obvious jeeply way but this is his choice.

3 days till winter break. No snow...we haven't been able to sled yet. It keeps melting before the kids get home from school. Next week is suppose to be beautiful. We went to the park today and the kids were too hot to wear their coats. Crazy.

definitely on business...monkey business

Aaron had a work party...in Texas. Spouses were invited. So we booked a babysitter and hopped on a plane to Texas yesterday morning (up at 5a for anyone who is counting). We got into Dallas early because Aaron had meetings all day. What did I do while he sat in long meetings? I grabbed a cab and went shopping, got a manicure and pedicure, worked out, and relaxed. I felt like I was living the dream of Tina Fey from Date Night. And it was everything I knew it would be. Did I call and check on the kids? Nope.

The Red Bull party started at 6:45 at the House of Blues and didn't end till 1am. (That's 6 hours in 4 inch heels. My feet were toast by the end of the night.) They had some up-and-coming country rock band and all the trimmings. We were a long way away from OGIO. Aaron works with a lot of great people and it was fun to attach faces to the names and stories.

And now were home.

yeah, that's right.

"Steven Seagal is the new Woody Allen."

And now we're back from outerspace

We just returned from a fabulous California Thanksgive-a-thon vacation. But I'm too exhausted to talk about it right now. I put Morgan in Airport Baby Jail (patent pending). Yeah. Baby jail (a tall barricade of suitcases). That awesome. More later. smooches.