This sort of talk is rewarded with a day of dishes. :D

Who's ready for Monday? More or less! I'll probably be ready by the time it rolls around. If you are doing a special meal for Christmas,what will it be? We go to ILs, and then scrounge. But we got tasty meat gifts from DH's grandmother this year, so likely those will factor in somewhere. Plans for the weekend? Church this morning, lunch & nap, baking dozens and dozens of cookies this afternoon. Celebrate with my parents tomorrow, Christmas lights drive probably tomorrow night, chilling out Sunday until the evening service. Then Christmas! I have a gift to wrap in there somewhere, and DH hasn't wrapped anything yet, so I may end up doing those (which is fine; I like wrapping).

:grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug:

Daily. We have a Lab.

Breathing. That's probably not super helpful, sorry. :o

Having hand-processed a hen, I agree! But I'm not vegan (most of the time). :)

*solid surface counter top that didn't need upkeep but didn't break the bank. I think I'd lean toward under-mount sinks, unless there's a drawback I'm not aware of. Simple stainless steel and porcelain. And probably a farm sink; the divided deal drives me nuts. *toilets with reputations for efficiency and longevity (no crappy parts in the tank) *smooth tile for wet/messy areas. I think I'd be tempted to go for that wood grain stuff, but things get stuck in grain. *nice thick laminate everywhere else. OR real wood floors; like planks. With a really great finishing job. *splurge on whoever I'm hiring to do it, so nothing is done sloppily. *cabinets: honestly, at least in the kitchen, I'd probably stick with melamine. I like the idea of real wood, but water is monstrously bad for the finish. Unless you can get your guys to finish with spar varnish. But then it's a custom job and more $$. ETA: the wood issue with cabinets is mainly under sinks, though, fwiw. If the finish job is good, it should hold up for a long time, but wood needs periodic refinishing, and if it's veneer and isn't kept in good condition, it can sustain irreversible water damage. All you can do then is paint or replace. Because that didn't happen to me, or anything. ;)

:grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug:

I wrapped 4 tonight. I wrapped most of our stuff last week, actually. We went with big and few this year, though.

We're taking this week off, but will probably be back at it by the 27th. Mine actually complain if we take too much time off. They notice that they get rusty. :)

I actually was thinking that with your first post. Maybe he hopes you'll be moving on to bigger and better soon. :D Edited to *snip* :)

No bows here! I've never really been a bows kinda gal. :D

Coming from a spell in the the low income bracket, friends and I compare costs all the time--usually sort of a "who made out the best for the cheapest" type comparison. No rancor, or anything. Growing up middle class, it was a lot more hush hush, right up there with asking a woman how old she was. Now I just don't give a flip. I call it education. ;)

:party:

:grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug: to all affected and bereaved. :(

Consider it "liked." :D

That's exactly what came to mind when I saw the thread title. :D

Sacrifice and charity. Forgiveness. Time. Lots of all of that. How much to include your DH will depend on how helpful he is in the healing process. If it seems too much for him or you, find a mentor. Or a counselor. Or just keep a private journal, if that's helpful. Just don't bottle it up. Give him status updates, at least, though, and try not to let it crowd out other areas of your lives together. It's hard. Life is hard, and so is marriage. :grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug:

I use Google calendar to let DH know when things are due, but I try as much as possible to just pay everything on the 1st online (manually; I don't like auto pay). The one that I can't do this with is water, which is due at the end of the month and doesn't roll over until mid-month. Also, I also check our bank account several times per week and balance the ledger just as frequently. DH advised against apps, but I'm home a lot, so sticking with my laptop for fiances isn't a big deal. I use Excel for our the ledger and other tracking methods. It's probably scary if you don't enjoy Excel, though. :D

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Five_Love_Languages The book cover has the 5 languages printed on the front, but: physical touch acts of service words of affirmation receiving gifts quality time

I just got a Steam Christmas gift last night. :D

I haven't mailed mine yet; waiting on photos. I think we've only received 1 this year as well. I've been spotty about it over the years, so I wouldn't be surprised if people just gave up on me, lol.

We already have no TV. I told a cable telemarketer once that in order to even consider buying TV service, I'd need either a) a la carte channel purchasing capability or b) free service. :D I really do need to decrease my internet usage, though. My days are better the less time the laptop is open. edited for clearer...syntax, or something...

:lol: :lol: :lol:

I think I'd like all the material that has already been covered, as well.