on the first day of christmas

One of the small pleasures of owning your own home is that you can vacuum at 2 in the morning and no one but you loved ones can complain. That is exactly what I was doing last night at about that time. My loved ones all slept through it. I began the day after Thanksgiving by braving the nutties at 5am in Walmart, Target and Kohls in order procure just what my little ones are hoping St. Nick will deliver, at a steep discount. I ran errands and tried to get organized for much of the rest of the day. I have a deeply held belief that all Christmas decorations should be out on the day after Thanksgiving. By late afternoon I was finally getting things organized. Usually I am very efficient about the whole thing but this year I felt sort of sentimental and tender about all of it and I found myself taking my sweet time to make sure that everything was perfect. Usually it drives me crazy not to have it done and while I do a complete job of it, I make it quick. Not this time. I don't know what's different. I feel settled here (for the time being), my children are at a delightful age for enjoying the holidays, and I love this house (it's a very good Christmas house). Somehow all of these things have combined to make me all homemaker-y about decorations this year. So as I've said, I took my time. I hung each ornament lovingly, I strung popcorn for the kids' tree carefully, I ironed the stockings, for pete's sake. I then tackled the mess left by a busy day, a holiday week and a decorating frenzy. I dusted and vacuumed. I then wrapped every single Christmas present in the house. Only then could I even consider going to bed. I wandered into my pajamas at about 3 am. Luckily my sweet husband has seen this sort of mood before and knew to just let me go and planned on letting me sleep in. This morning I feel so calm and happy. I'm sort of flitting around the house, my heart leaping a little each time I catch a twinkle out of the corner of my eye. I love Christmas.

writers' cramp- thankful #50- the last thankful

I have loved blogging this year. Far more than I ever expected to, I am truly an addict. I love the quote,"We write to taste life twice. Once in the moment and once in retrospection." by Anais Nin. It describes how I feel perfectly, Plus, I adore hearing from all of you all the time. And reading all the lovely things you write. I never thought to be a writer and I freely admit that I am not much of one, but perhaps a little more of a writer than I hoped. A sort of delightful surprise.

boys- thankful #49

I love raising boys. People ask me all the time whether we are going to try for a girl and I can honestly say no. If we had another child and it was a girl that would be lovely I'm sure but oh, how I adore boys. I love the running and spinning and bouncing and dirt and mud and sweat and bugs and rocks and sand and sticky fingers. I love how they adore their brother, how a fire truck makes their day and how a construction site is the height of interesting. I love how my boys love their mother best of all.

(photo courtesy Sara Wiehn)

beloved- thankful #48

I am married to the great love of my life. He is always patient and funny. He is never predictable, never cruel. There is no one on Earth I would prefer to spend an hour with, no one who knows me better and loves me anyway. He thinks I'm beautiful, he thinks I am a wonderful mother, he thinks I'm smart. He never doubts that I can do anything I decide to, he never considers that I might fail. I still get butterflies when he really kisses me, every time.

I adore him.

(photo courtesy Sara Weihn)

favorite things- thankful #47

As today was a special day I wore my favorite shirt, the print is little tiny chickens (adorable) and my lucky wishbone pendant. As always both greatly improved the day.

david sedaris- thankful #46

I am a sort of a nervous wreck this week. Nothing particular, just stressed. This time of year makes me a little frantic until I get everything done, not to mention all the regular everyday stuff. I wish that I was one of those really zen, calm people. I am not so I often have trouble sleeping and I run a lot. I have a habit of listening to audiobooks all day. Frankly the things that are bouncing around in my head and not interesting enough to keep me entertained while folding laundry and doing dishes so I have a membership to Audible. Today I have been listening to David Sedaris at Carnegie Hall. I am laughing out loud, still. And I sooo needed it today. The little stress knot that lives in my tummy much of the time has relaxed quite a bit. I bet it doesn't come back until at least Friday.

babysitters- thankful #45

small town dive bar+karaoke+favorite friends= feeling like a grown-up again

(photo thanks to Julie)

salad tongs- thankful #44

Last night Tommy ate his entire dinner (including pumpkin pie) using only salad tongs. No real reason- he just thought it would be fun. I love that about him.

starlings- thankful #43

There is a flock of starlings that live in and around my neighborhood. When we first bought this house it had been empty for a year and apparently the starlings had taken over. They regularly dive bombed us (even Tommy) for the first few months we lived here. They were not our favorites. After they decided that we were here to stay (reinforced by judicious use of the broom) they backed off and haven't been a problem. I have been noticing them lately. They are beautiful. I love the way they move in perfect harmony. My children love to watch them swoop and dive all around sky in our backyard. As do I, as long as they aren't swooping directly at us.

simon- thankful #42

This is Simon, he belongs to my friend Amanda. He has a little crush on me, he blushes when I give him kisses which of course makes me want to give him more kisses. He is indescribably delectable.

grilled tomatoes (pronounced to-MAH-toes) -thankful #41

I discovered these the summer we lived in Australia. They are delightful and I have yet to find a diet that doesn't allow them. Sprinkle with a little olive oil and salt and voila- they are delicious.

social climber- part 2

Now he can get up on the kitchen table or counter all by himself-hooray for me, I have such an independent little peanut.

chocolate pudding- thankful #40

Tommy left his pudding sitting on the fireplace. Johnny found it and claimed it for his own.

vote up, girls

I just bought my first pair of skinny jeans. What do you all think, am I allowed to wear these in public? I think I like them but I have been wrong before.

persistance- thankful #39

Johnny has found a new game. You stand at the top of the stairs and throw something (any old thing will do) down the stairs. You laugh hysterically at all the bouncing and falling. Then you laboriously climb down all 19 steps to retrieve said object and carry it all the way back up. Repeat. Mommy loves this game because you will be busy for quite a while and there is a whole lot of baby laughs, which are her favorite.

forgiveness?- thankful #39

This is my sister Cassi and her husband Allan. I adore Cassi. I count her among my most beloved friends. Yesterday I called her with a brilliant idea which at the time I thought required her participation. Unfortunately she already had something else in the works and couldn't participate. I responded with"That's dumb!" (I know, eloquent, right?) and proceeded to convince her that my idea was better. Of course it wasn't and I totally hurt her feelings. She, however, stuck to her guns. Good for her, bad for me (for hurting her feelings). Who do I think I am? George Bush? I was easily able to make my idea work another way but this post is to inform my fabulous sister that I'm sorry (again) and I will try, in the future, to not be an obnoxious and stupid know-it-all.

howard the bunny- thankful #38

Howard joined our family last time mommy went to Old Navy. I handed him to Johnny to keep him occupied while I shopped. It was love at first cuddle. When it came time to check out I couldn't bear to separate what was obviously true love. Am a pushover. Paid 12.50 for a stuffed animal. But he loves him. That bunny is dragged all around the house on all sorts of adventures and is terribly useful in calming separation anxiety when mommy simply must go to the dentist all by herself.

clean slate- thankful #37

"Hmmm," you are saying to yourself, " I am looking at a photo of carpet, ok?" Last year when we bought this house we put in new carpet throughout the house. I love the carpet we chose. Then Johnny was born. He spent the next 14 months vomiting on my pretty new carpet about 8 times a day. I am the proud owner of both a carpet steamer and later in the year, a spot bot. I have tried really hard to stay ahead of the spots all over my house. Unfortunately I was not always in the room when that child left evidence of his tummy problems. The upstairs bonus room got the worst of it. No matter what I did that carpet seemed to always have spots all over it. Ewww and Ugh! I sort of gave up trying to spot treat that carpet and there were way too many spots for the spot bot. I was waiting for him to stop with constant spit-up because once I got those stains out I didn't want them to come back. Since we have re-introduced Prevacid into our lives the spit-up has finally decreased significantly. Yesterday I finally pulled out the steamer and cleaned all the carpets upstairs. They are shiny and beautiful. Am super happy.

ok-fine- here you go- Tagged

I have been"tagged" several times and I just haven't gotten around to doing it until now, plus the one Di sent wasn't too hard.

TV shows I like to watch

1. Fringe

2. CSI (all versions)

3. Gossip Girl

4. Ghost Whisperer

5. What not to wear

Things that happened to me yesterday

1. Had my teeth cleaned

2. Went to walmart- twice-ugh

3. Birthday party at Chucky Cheese

4. Went running in the dark and cold- still fun

5. Waited up way too late for Ty to come home from work-went to sleep at 1-he wasn't home yet- poor Ty

Favorite places to eat

1. Happy Sumo

2. anywhere Indian

3. Cheesecake Factory

4. Bella Luna

5. Doc Greens

Things I am looking forward to

1. Christmas with the whole Daniels family

2. piano lessons

3. Date night on Friday

4. getting all my art framed and hung

5. January bonuses

Things on my wish list...where do I even begin

1. art deco plates for my kitchen

2. new countertops

3. A play structure for the backyard

4. apothecary jars

5. vintage style aprons

People I tag

1. Carrie

2. Julie

3. Mom

4. Angie

5. Cassi

kiss it better- thankful #36

Johnny refuses to be left at the childcare center at our gym. This is not their fault. They really are very nice to him. Whenever I make the attempt I drop him off and then sprint up to the track and run as fast as I can trying to get a little distance in before they come to get me in about twenty minutes to inform me that he's simply inconsolable. Tommy regularly runs off the playing space of whatever the current team sport he is playing in tears of frustration. He just needs a snuggle and a kiss before running out to try again. We go through band-aids at an alarming rate. Tommy wears them for about 45 seconds before his injury is "all better". There is not any one in the world that can make it better for those boys quicker than I can. I get it. If you promise not to tell anyone I will admit that when I am really sick or heartbroken, my soul craves my mommy. My husband is a wonderful father and he will make things better if I am not around. But I love being the one they crave, the one they run to when life hurts, the one whose neck they snuggle into, who wipes away the tears, the one who makes it better. It's such a small space in time that I have these little ones and every minute that they spend in my arms is heaven.

oo-la-la- thankful #35

I love those little nail pens that make applying a french manicure at home, all by myself, pretty painless. Then I am chic for at least 24 hours, or until I chip them

only at christmas- thankful #34

Tommy asks for eggnog year round. We respond by telling him that said nectar is only available at Christmas time. He usually gives up come about August. Eggnog actually shows up a few days after Halloween. From then until New Years' when it goes away my little monkeys would subsist solely on eggnog if I allowed it. As it is they pacify me with a vegetable now and then and I remind my self that it's only for a limited time and that, really they are pretty scrawny kids and they probably need the fat.

the surreal life- thankful #33

So my friend Julie thinks her son is the "weird kid" due to some of his more creative ramblings. I beg to differ. This is Tommy spinning, spinning, spinning in the kitchen. With socks on his hands. For about 20 minutes (so far). He later added a basket. He likes it best when accompanied by the White Stripes version of Walking with a Ghost. While he spins he is explaining that a long time ago he saw dinosaurs in the backyard. My life will never be boring. not ever.

faux pas- thankful #32

Ok-I'm sorry, but Fug has been uproarious lately. Seriously, I am still laughing at Blake's lack-o-neck. You all really must make a visit over there. Those girls delight me.

old navy's counting deficiency- thankful #31

Thanks to the previously mentioned gummi bears, I went to Old Navy to buy a couple of pair of jeans today. I got to buy them in a crazy size because Old Navy sizes are wonky. I don't care. I am just thrilled to have three pairs of jeans in my closet with that number on them. It feeds the fantasy. Hooray!

how to get through any diet- thankful #30

Sugar-free gummi bears. Especially the minis-can't do without 'em.

baby toes- thankful #29

When we left the house this morning both feet were covered with shoes and socks. By the time we got home- this one sock was all we had left. Luckily he has really adorable tootsies.

johnny knows our names- thankful #28

Johnny spent the morning carrying Daddy's shirt around the house reciting, " Dada," knowingly. Toronto is soooo lucky I am willing to share my beloved with them. So lucky. Sigh.

enough- thankful #27

Driving home last night, listening to the BBC on satellite radio, I sobbed. They were telling a story about some of the refugees from the civil war in the Congo. They are forced to flee there homes to save their lives but there is nowhere to go. In many areas the camps are just groups of people who have gathered together. There is very little international aid (their government will not allow it) so they have very little water and often no food. The woman with whom they were speaking had lost her 2-year-old to malnutrition only the day before. She simply had no food to give him. Neither did anyone else and so he died. My little boys have never experienced war or famine or starvation. They don't know such things exist in the world. They have never gone without a need, not ever, not once. I am overwhelmed with gratitude that they were born into this nation at this time. I am so grateful to have more than enough and my heart breaks for those mothers who don't.

on a clear night- thankful #26

Last night the sky was the perfect shade of midnight blue. The moon was full. it was lovely.

brighten up even the darkest day- thankful #25

I adore that there are lots of pretty bright-colored winter coats. Every season I try to buy 2 or 3 and I am slowly building up a coat wardrobe that makes me happy to go out, even in January. My current fave is this lovely red number.

Mickey D's- thankful #24

My McDonalds has $1 large drinks all day long. That means I can pick up my 32 oz. Diet Coke on the way home from preschool drop-off for a mere $1.06. How delightful.

addiction- thankful #23

I simply refuse to buy any plant that does not flower. When we bought this house I loved the slightly wild feel of the flower beds and I was delighted with the sheer number of them. I have since removed every plant in the yard that does not flower at some time in the year. I really don't see the point. Unfortunately I live in Zone 6 which means there are several months during the year when there is not anything that will flower outside. Luckily I have the perfect kitchen window spot for Paper-whites and Chinese lilies and Amaryllis. See they are already sprouting. By Christmas this spot will be full to brimming with yellow and white and red blooms to tide me over until spring.

stick-on tattoos- thankful #22

'Cause then you can be tough, for a little while at least.

hazelnut spice- thankful #23

I adore smelly candles and these smell like my favorite hazelnut hot cocoa and pecan pie. Mmmm. My whole house smells like dessert all the time.

my favorite tree- thankful #21

My maple in the front yard is a lovely shade of cranberry, even on a dreary, rainy day. See Linn's also lovely tree here.

sara- thankful #21

Sara has been out to take pics of our family for christmas twice-that's right, twice. I only have two children and I just don't understand why they won't look at the camera at the same time. They just won't. Bless her heart she keeps trying and here are the most recent results. We may have a Christmas card after all.

so naughty- thankful #20

I have a ridiculous weakness for sugar cookies. Luckily the real ones are pretty time consuming so I can't make them all that often. Unfortunately, they make these awesome instant ones for holidays. Oh, how I love them. And since today is Sunday and my dieting day off, I can eat eleven of them if it pleases me to do so.

guess what he's doing- thankful #19

He is cleaning out MY car. You know the one he only rides in like once a week to go to church. He vacuumed and everything. Just to be nice. So romantic.

the person who drags these all over the world...-thankful #19

...is my most beloved and today he dragged them home to our house. Oh, how I love this man.

the stain-lifter- thankful #18

Thank heaven I have these...

because I also have one of these.

lol- thankful #17

Can't do without it-must text several times a day. Plus it is the best way for my beloved to find me anytime, anywhere. Even church (thank you silent mode).

order to chaos- thankful #16

My very favorite household chore. Love the perfect lines of cleanliness left behind. Love the satisfying crunch as crumbs and whatnot are removed from the space where my littlest finds things to put into his mouth. Love the hepa filter getting rid of even the dust.

lemon or milk?- thankful #15

As you all know, I am currently in the throws of the South Beach Diet. It means you can't eat anything specifically yummy except the occasional piece of cheese or spoonful of peanut butter. Sigh. My much beloved friend Julie is also participating. She mentioned that it was the sugar-free but decadently flavored creamer that she puts in her coffee that gets her through. I don't drink coffee so I spent a few days in jealous mutiny. Luckily the light bulb appeared over my head and I remembered that I am a devoted fan of herbal tea. I bought some of that yummy creamer and I am on my third cup of ginger spice tea mixed with caramel flavored creamer. Happiness.