My Tale of the Three Trees...

not to be confused with the story that always makes me cry about the three trees that were cut down and used for the savior. My story isn't that deep, and doesn't have too much meaning to it, but I did feel like crying by the end of the third tree. My story goes something like this:

Up by 5 and wide awake,

decided to shop for the childrens sake.

I hustled and bustled and stood in long lines

with car loaded down I was back home by nine.

A little tired I laid down in bed,

but visions of sugarplums kept filling my head.

So jumped to my feet, to my team gave a whistle

and we found all the boxes, trees and toe-mistle.

In the living room went tree number 1,

from Chelsea's wedding, it sure was fun.

Thanks to friend Mindy a new wreath on the wall

a new look for this room made decorating a ball.

In the kitchen went tree number 2,

a cute little thing that looks good in there too. it brightens my corner, adds just the right touch,

it's not very big so it isn't too much.

At last in the basement came tree number 3,

it has the most stuff on as you can well see.

By now I'm just dragging and thinking, "what the heck!

With all this crap no wonder I'm a wreck!"

I spend all year just making more stuff

to hang on my walls, and it's never enough.

Why put myself through this year after year

and drive myself crazy till I'm almost in tears?

What do decorations have to do with the reason

why we celebrate Christ's birth this holiday season?

The answer to that, though I'm not sure you'll agree

has something to do with the gifts he's given me.

With all he's blessed me with, I feel it a pleasure

to make my home a place my children will treasure.

And with these gifts I try to give back to Him,

a place where love resides and his spirit will never dim.

kids say the darndest things...

If you have a child between 8-10 years old, you'll know what i'm talking about. Trey loves to talk. and talk. and talk. I try to absorb it all, and pay attention, and really listen, but sometimes it's all I can do to get in the "oh yeah" and "uh-huh" and "really?" in just the right places, while my mind is wandering to 'what am I going to make for dinner tonight', and 'what kind of pie should I make for Thanksgiving', while of course folding a load of laundry and watching Dr. Oz on Oprah talk about PMS and ways to avoid it. I admit I don't listen as well as I should sometimes, and I should, cuz he usually makes me laugh when I really stop and listen. He's a funny kid. The other day we were going to Kohl's, just for one thing, really, just a rug to put in my entry way. But, if you've ever been shopping at Kohl's with me, you know it's never going to be just one thing. I started looking at the clearance racks, I didn't need anything, I just can't help myself, and Trey said "Mom, do I need to get you those things they put on the horses so you only see what's in front of you and you can't look around!" Yes Trey, I think a pair of blinders would come in handy, not only for Kohl's, but for looking at you when you talk to me so I don't get distracted with the mundane things that control a mother's life. In a few more years when your a teenager, will you want to follow me around the house and tell me about your day, will you keep talking even when the bathroom door is shut, will you still give me hugs and kisses and climb into my lap and sing the Barney song "I love you, you love me". Can I give you a pair of blinders too, so when other boys are trying to act cool and tough, and swearing up a storm, you won't see that, so you'll always stay sweet and kind and loving, and you'll always be my Trey-babe. Yes Trey, I do need a pair of blinders. And now we know what to give each other for Christmas!

Organized Chaos

So I like to watch Oprah while I'm on the treadmill cuz it helps me exercise longer, AND I don't feel so guilty taking an hour to watch TV, it's a win-win situation. Today her show was, 'Oprah's Clean up your messy house tour' which has really inspired me, and help light the flame the kinda sizzled out since I last tried to clean my storage area. Actually, the storage area looks much better, do you have to ask where all the stuff went? I don't think I cleaned it as much as I shifted it from room to the other. So here are pictures of my craft/sewing/scrapbook room, and pretty much my "don't know where to put it, i'll find a home for it later, for now put it in my craft room". Anyway, my personal organizer Peter (the clean-up guy with the nice english accent on Oprah) will be e-mailing me everyday my daily to-do chore that should take no longer than 10 minutes, and at the end of 6 months, EVERY room in my house should be clutter free! How cool is that! The only thing that would be better is if their cleaning crew stopped at my house and did it for me. Oprah, if your looking, come on by, my door is always open (that's because I have to much stuff in front of it and it won't close)!

Kayla's 15 seconds of fame...

well, maybe not fame, I mean her name didn't even appear in the credits. And you'd have to add up all the glimpses of her to get 15 seconds, but heh, she's there, I saw her! Sat through the whole 90 minutes of the movie to get to the last 5 minutes to see her, but it was so exciting once I did! My daughters in the no. 1 movie right now, "High School Musical 3". She was an extra, cast in the graduation scene at the end of the movie. She's wearing a man's shirt and tie, and a skirt. Why she's dressed like a guy, we're still not sure, but it makes her stand out better so we could see her, for a second, then again, for a second, oh look, there she is again, there she goes. It's a pretty fast paced movie, so you'll be sure I'll be buying the movie when it comes out on DVD so I can push the pause button, (if I'm fast enough) and say, 'Look! That's my daughter! She's a movie Star!"
Did she get to meet Zach Efron? well no, they weren't allowed to approach the actors, but she did get to look at him for 3 days, and get paid for it too, lucky girl. So did I like the movie? Yes, I did enjoy it, if you can get past the cheesiness of it all, the music's catchy, the dancing amazing, Zach and Corbin are pretty cute (if I was 30 years younger I'd totally have a crush) and the last 5 minutes of the show is particularly awesome!

It's beginning to look alot like Christmas...

I love the first snowfall of the year, unless it falls on Halloween. This year we have been blessed with an indian summer, which has been wonderful, but once Halloween was over, I was ready for the white stuff to fall, and fall it did! I love to cozy up on the couch with a blanket and a good book and a cup of hot chocolate nearby and watch the snow fall out the window. But the best part of the snow, is that now I don't feel so silly listening to christmas music when it's 70 degrees and still green outside.
Hi, my name's Linda, and I'm a Christmas musicolic. I've been addicted for about 10 years now, ever since Amy Grant came out with her Breath of Heaven CD. Sometimes I sneak in a listen as early as July as I'm getting a jump start on my christmas crafts or quilts. Sometimes when I'm grouchy or in a bad mood, like when I'm paying bills, my children turn on christmas music to give me a fix, they know I don't stay in a bad mood when Amy singing 'It's the most wonderful time of the year'. It works everytime too. I love christmas music. It always puts a smile on my face. I know I'm not the only addict out there, why else would cozy 106.5 and FM100 start playing it nonstop the day after Halloween. So if your an addict too, I would love to hear from you, I need all the support I can get. My family and co-workers think I'm crazy and don't support my habit. I think they're embarrassed by my addiction, and my actions of dancing around the kitchen to jingle-bell rock certainly doesn't help my case. I have tried to break free from my addiction, I've even gone so far to store my christmas music along with the decorations, but unfortunately it just made the situation worse knowing I couldn't get to it, I craved it more and gave in soon after the kids started back to school. So I don't fight it anymore, I embrace it. I love Christmas music, and I don't care who knows!

My new living room..

So, for those of you who haven't seen my new living room...

ta-da! The colors were inspired by the quilt that's hanging on my wall. When Tary started putting that gold paint on my walls I thought, 'oh boy, what have I done', but of course you can't say that out loud, especially in front of your husband who said 'you want to paint the living room what color?' So I was second guessing myself, but once the second coat of paint went on it looked much better. And once we got rid of the mauve carpet (not a good look with yellow) I felt much better. Notice the teal couches are gone too. Out with the pastels, in with the bold! Faun made the beautiful clock above the piano and took all the pictures, including the bridal picture of Chelsea in the corner. She's so talented, Thanks Faun!

Surprise Faces!

So I had to wonder how a camera disk that can store 500 pictures doesn't have enough space for little ol' me to take just a few, until I started looking at her camera to see just what she's filling it up with. Oh, there's a few good pictures of california and yellowstone that we should probably develop, but the majority of her pictures are what she calls, "Surprise Faces". It's a game they play when they make all sorts of funny faces, not knowing when when the camera will take their picture. Unbelievable! I don't think there's a single picture of her and her friends just smiling! When I was her age I would have been mortified if someone had a picture of me looking so ridiculously uncomposed, not so anymore. The crazier the better! Mouths gaping open, tongues drooling out, eyes crossed, noses scrunched, well, you get the picture. I should get a few of them developed to use for blackmail purposes later in life when she's come to her senses. I can hear her children now as they're looking through her scrapbook, 'Grandma, what was wrong with my mom when she was girl, didn't she know how to smile?' And I'll just tell them it was temporary insanity, and let's hope it skips a generation!

The best Halloween by FAR!

I usually dread halloween. Every year it's the same routine. Get home from work, try to make a nutritious meal before the kids load up on candy,
clean up dinner, apply scary makeup, find candles

for pumpkins, try to light candles in pumpkins

without burning myself, try to find burn oinment,

try to talk kids into wearing coats under costume

because mom knows best, and yes it's too cold to

go out without a coat. Find camera for pictures,

answer doorbell for children who's mother has her act together, try to remember where I hid the halloween candy . I'm exhausted before I even get out the door. Then for the next 2 hours, walking up and down the streets, freezing my toes and nose and trying hard not to act like a witch, even though I might look like one.

But this halloween was different. This year we joined in the festivities at my sister Wendy's house! It's my other sisters Cindy's birthday on Halloween, and since all my family lives up north, they all get together on this night. We all gathered for pizza dinner, then the cousins had a great time, (especially Trey who usually just has me tagging along) trick-or-treating together while the adults casually strolled behind, eating fresh home-made donuts and pop-corn balls. The weather was so warm, we carried our coats. Then after their bags were filled, we went back to Wendy's for yummy birthday cake and brownies! It was wonderful! I think for now on I'm going to look forward to halloween!

Too bad I don't have my own digital camera (hint hint) or I would have taken pictures of our fun night and posted them. I have to rely on using my daughter Kayla's camera, and she doesn't have many pictures left on her memory, but that's another blog in itself. Stay tuned...

I wasn't sure we would carve pumpkins this year since we wouldn't be here halloween night, but Trey wouldn't let me break tradition. This year he cut, cleaned out, and carved his pumpkin all by himself, I thought he did a great job! Kayla did a good job too!