The Christmas Book

WOW, it feels like forever since I have had a chance to have a real post. Not just type something as I am running out the door or falling asleep. I love Christmas but wow am I glad when it's over! I feel like I can breathe again :)

My daughter got an early Christmas present. On Christmas Eve we found out that she was cast in Peter Pan!!!!! YIPEE!!!!!! She is a Lost Boy. Her response, "I am going to be a BOY?!?!" LOL Quite cute. She dances March 9th. I am very proud of her.

Last Saturday I spent the day shopping in a blizzard. It was F.U.N.!! Thankfully my husband drove me around :) I do love him, I really do! We got almost everything done that day. I went to the grocery store Sunday morning and the store wasn't that packed. I couldn't believe it.

Sunday night, Christmas with my family. We had such a great time!!!!!! The guys sat and talked and had a few beers, my sisters (I have 2 sisters, no brothers), my mom and myself spent all night catching up, chit chatting, and just had such a great time. I wasn't really looking forward to going, to be honest, sometimes my sisters can be bitchy and my mom can be all crabby and well, sometimes it's just not fun. But this year, wow, even the guys all had a great time. It was really the highlight of my Christmas, I have to say. PLUS, my mom got all of us adults scratch off Lottery tickets (It's kind of a tradition in our stockings, not that we are big gamblers cuz we are not) and I won the MOST (I mean, not that I was keeping track or anything, because I totally wasn't), I won $6!!!!!!!! My one sister won $1 and the other $3. So clearly, I was the WINNER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! woo hoo.

Monday, I had to work until noon. I was the only one in my entire family that had to. Again, not that I was keeping track or anything, because I am so not like that! So, since it was Christmas eve and I didn't have much for stocking stuffers, I had to go shopping at the LAST minute! I went to Target and the only people in the store were men... in the women's section, in the pajama section, in the women's shoe section. I was chuckling to myself. But then again, I was there at the last minute, too. HA! I bought each of the boys a few more gifts, as looking at my daughters pile compared to the boys' pile... well it was sad. So, I bought even more stuff. My poor husband ended up with socks, underwear and coffee for Christmas. Is it any wonder why he loves me so much?!?!?!?

Oh, and of note: My daughter, who is almost 10, and totally knows the truth about Santa has digressed into acting like she believes again. She came up to me and wanted to know if we could call Santa? I was like, "What?!?" Seriously, her cousin, who is her best friend and the same age, totally knows the scoop. I have gone shopping with my daughter this season and have bought things for the boys that I have told her are from Santa and don't tell. SHE KNOWS, she has told ME she knows. But now she wants to believe again, so I let her and played along. We emailed Santa from this website I had, she played on that website all afternoon on Monday. We decorated Sugar Cookies for Santa, she wrote him a letter and left it on the table for him, by the sugar cookies. We left carrots out for the reindeer... all this being her idea. I figure, what's one more year and if it makes it more special for her to believe, then so be it!

Monday night, I spent all night wrapping.... until 2 AM to be exact. Again, another direct reflection of being a procrastinator. I have my Master's in Procrastination! It's a gift, really.... My oldest son and step-son spent the night entertaining me while I wrapped. I have never laughed so much in my life. Seriously, they should take their act on the road, it is FUNNY stuff. I was so delirious by the end of the night though, I can't remember half of what they said, I just know it was hysterical. The kids also plotted against my husband and myself, about what time they were to get up and celebrate Christmas. They wanted 4 AM. I said I would KILL THEM if they did that. So then they wanted to go with 5:30 AM, again, I vetoed that with as much power as I could muster up. So they ended up going with 7 AM. (The two older boys had a pretty good idea we were getting Rock Band... or should I say, hoping A LOT that they were and wanted to get an early start playing it Christmas morning.) I set out all the Santa gifts (or if you are my son, Satna... he misspelled Santa on my daughter's paper she left for him... seriously funny stuff). Then I went and collapsed in bed. I left the two oldest ones up.... first mistake right there.

The kids woke us up at 7 AM, like planned. I was SO TIRED but we all got up. I went out to the living room and in the place of my 14 y.o.'s presents... was the cat tower I had gotten the cat for Christmas. It had a sign taped to it that said, "Dear {son's name}, You have been a very bad boy this year. P.S. Too bad for even coal. From, Santa". Those boys HID all of his presents and his stocking and put that there in it's place. We were all laughing so hard. They are something else. So, we got the presents out of hiding and went to town. I hadn't put out Rock Band, as I wanted to make them think we hadn't gotten it. We opened up everything and then my husband made coffee and we were all talking and then.... my husband came out carrying the big box all wrapped up. The 4 kids DOVE ON IT and frantically ripped off all the paper and were more excited than I have ever seen them. Then that was the end of the day... they have been playing it ever since. I told my husband, that game is worth every single penny (18,000 pennies to be exact) it entertained FIVE teenage boys and ONE 10 year old girl (of course, our boys had to have their friends come over last night to enjoy it even more) for HOURS AND HOURS on end and not hear a peep out of them (except the tap, tap, tapping on the drums and the singing...but that's minimal), that game is priceless in my book! Of course, I have played it some too (um about 4 hours worth... time seems to stand still when playing that game) and OMG... IS. IT. FUN!!!! If anyone is even considering this game and contemplating if it is worth it or not, it SO is.... especially if you have older kids and they like video games.

Christmas afternoon we went to my husband's family. It sucked. I don't mean to sound mean, as we usually enjoy ourselves, but after riding high from my family's GREAT get together and then ROCK BAND, it was just a downer. But we are survivors, and we stayed, opened presents (I got a new crock pot that I LOVED!!!!!!!), ate a little (the food wasn't that great, PLUS they were smoking in the house - we don't smoke but most of my husband's family does and well... it was just gross no offense to the smokers out there.) We left as soon as we possibly could, came home and I collapsed. But the kids played... well you know already.

Now today, back to reality. Up early - back to work. I hope everyone had a great Christmas and after I get my pictures downloaded off my camera, I will post pictures :)