Ignore this thread!

[Susan in TN]

I think Matt just doesn't feel the simple genius behind your poems.

[KrissiK]

We have snow. ðŸ˜. It’s going to be a white Christmas. Everything looks like a Christmas card. I’m so happy. I don’t even like to play in it, but just having it there makes Christmas 100% funner. I love looking at it all snuggled up in a blanket with my cuppa.

I wish we had snow. It looks wintery here with all the leaves off the trees, but.... no snow.

[Jean in Newcastle]

I'm always flitting from one task to another because more than one thing needs to be done either at once or in quick succession.  The result of this is that I tend to not have time to totally finish things up - filing or putting everything away.  Thus a constant state of mess from everything because before I can get back to doing the last minute details, other time sensitive things (like dinner prep) are begging for my attention. 

[Another Lynn]

I did something tonight I have never done before.  I started wrapping presents before Christmas Eve!   :w00t:   

 

Tomorrow, I need to grab a couple Christmas plates, slice some cheese, grab my store bought brownie bites, help my Mom cut up fruit for fruit salad and wrap presents for my FOO and be ready for a family picture at 2:00.  I should probably make myself wrap their presents tonight, but I'm thinking about reading and going to bed.  

 

Jean, LOVE the new siggy!   :001_tt1:   

[JoJosMom]

I did something tonight I have never done before.  I started wrapping presents before Christmas Eve!   :w00t:   

 

Tomorrow, I need to grab a couple Christmas plates, slice some cheese, grab my store bought brownie bites, help my Mom cut up fruit for fruit salad and wrap presents for my FOO and be ready for a family picture at 2:00.  I should probably make myself wrap their presents tonight, but I'm thinking about reading and going to bed.  

 

Jean, LOVE the new siggy!   :001_tt1:   

 

Oh, my gosh! Me, too! Twinsies! :001_wub:

 

(I'll not mention my new favorite trick of using Christmas-themed gift boxes that I got at the dollar store...)

 

[Junie]

:crying:

 

I just found out that a dear lady in our church died earlier this week.  It's going to be hard to tell the kids.  She was an AWANA leader for many years and adored especially the two youngest.  Dd9 calls her The Grandma Smith*.  Always with the The.  :)   We are going to miss her.

 

*name changed for privacy

[Critterfixer]

:grouphug: Junie. That will be hard.

[KrissiK]

((Junie)).

[KrissiK]

Another Family Movie Night. We’re going to watch White Christmas.🎄🎄🎄🎄â„ï¸â„ï¸â„ï¸â„ï¸

[Paige]

:grouphug: Junie and kids

[lanalouwho]

We survived the celebration at my brother's house. It was fun. I am tired.

 

Tomorrow we get to do the IL's house. It will also be fun. I will still be tired.

 

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[Junie]

So far there has been very little reaction from the kids.  The older ones have experienced the death of a grandparent.  The younger ones have never really known anyone who has died.  I think that they just haven't really comprehended it yet.

 

It helps that they were not in as much contact with her recently.  The Grandma Smith was not able to help with AWANA this year because of her health.  She has been in a slow decline for a while, so while it was unexpected, it was not a complete shock.

 

[Paige]

I can't believe DS is getting so old. I was making hypothetical plans for this summer and realized he'd be almost 17. And then he'll be almost 18 so soon after that and then he'll be gone. It makes me want to puke. Not because I don't want him to grow up but because we aren't ready! There's so much left to teach him and help him with and so little time! And then there's baby...how does it go so fast? (Sunrise/Sunset playing in the background of my mind)

[KrissiK]

Okay. I am now exhausted. Made the cookies. Wrapped more presents.

 

Where's the dude with the drinks??

Oh, Rocco!! Rocco, darling!! Angi needs your assistance.

 

 

He’ll be right over.

[KrissiK]

White Christmas is an awesome movie. The kids all liked it, too!!

[Another Lynn]

Merry Christmas Eve Morning!

 

We slept in a little bit.  I'm the first one up.  COFFEE!!!

 

(((Junie)))

 

(((Paige)))  

[Another Lynn]

Oh, my gosh! Me, too! Twinsies! :001_wub:

 

(I'll not mention my new favorite trick of using Christmas-themed gift boxes that I got at the dollar store...)

 

 

Unfortunately, one of our traditions is picking one wrapping paper per child.  They receive one thing wrapped in that paper in their stocking and that's how we identify the rest of the gifts.  In lieu of gift tags.  I have used a couple of Christmas themed boxes and written their names on it, but for the most part, things are wrapped in "their" paper.  We have very few traditions, so I feel like I need to keep this one going.  At least I don't have to do gift tags.  :hat:

[Susan in TN]

🎄 Good morning! Happy Christmas Eve! 🎄

 

Coffee! (Though dh spent 1/2 hour cleaning the coffee pot & coffee maker because :ack2: )

[Junie]

Unfortunately, one of our traditions is picking one wrapping paper per child.  They receive one thing wrapped in that paper in their stocking and that's how we identify the rest of the gifts.  In lieu of gift tags.  I have used a couple of Christmas themed boxes and written their names on it, but for the most part, things are wrapped in "their" paper.  We have very few traditions, so I feel like I need to keep this one going.  At least I don't have to do gift tags.  :hat:

 

We do a different kind of paper for each child, too.  For gift bags, each child is "assigned" a different color tissue paper.

 

When we traveled to two different states every year, we wrapped presents for my parents' house in one kind of paper and presents for dh's family in another.  We had to use gift tags on those gifts, but it helped us figure out which gifts had to be taken out of the car when.

[Junie]

Good Morning!

 

Merry Christmas Eve!

[Susan in TN]

I make gift tags out of wrapping paper and sometimes use the Spudz Ultra Classy Sharpie Method. :D I do like those dollar store gift boxes, though! I could probably buy a few as gifts for the girls and they'd be all set. :)

[Critterfixer]

Aherm herm... I write directly on the wrapping paper with a sharpie. Classy, I know.

That's how I do it if I have boxes. 

[Critterfixer]

Good morning. DH got out of the house without me checking the grocery list twice. Hopefully that won't hurt me. Got some baking to do and some writing to write.

[ikslo]

:crying:

 

I just found out that a dear lady in our church died earlier this week. It's going to be hard to tell the kids. She was an AWANA leader for many years and adored especially the two youngest. Dd9 calls her The Grandma Smith*. Always with the The. :) We are going to miss her.

 

*name changed for privacy

:grouphug:

[Susan in TN]

Also, my beautiful East Coast hair is back! <hair flip>

 

It's an East Coast Hair Booyah!

 

We wish you a Merry Booya(h)!

We wish you a Merry Booya(h)!

We wish you a Merry Booya(h) and a Happy Booya(h)!

 

(Sumitted by Tex)

Edited December 24, 2017 by Susan in TN

[Critterfixer]

I think I may be getting the hang of painting petals. They are kind of tricky.

[Critterfixer]

I wrapped nothing this year. Just stuffed them in gift bags and put some tissue over them. And the gift bags were half-off yesterday, as was the tissue paper. 

I've always been terrible at wrapping gifts. Enough to get noticed.

[Critterfixer]

I get to attempt that cherry pie again. I think I've got it figured out.

[AMJ]

Sorry to still be away.  Friday I got Dad's apartment at the local facility all lined up, lease signed.  Friday DD16 was also worn out and just a tad under the weather, so DH and DD13 went over to ILs' house to visit with the plethora of extended family.  Yesterday I was the one worn out and under the weather, so DH and both girls went over and I did a few things around the house (including making dashi and some beef and egg donburi for myself) and vegged on the sofa much of the day.  I felt better by the end of the day, so I guess I needed that "day off".

 

Now I'm eating leftover donburi and rice with some eggs freshly poached in the donburi broth for breakfast  :drool5: .  In a little while we will be off a-visiting, so I'll do a little more catching up while I eat.

 

 

Oh, and I received a jury summons for our local traffic court, dated for the same day I'm supposed to get back to Colorado to help Dad finish clearing out and packing up.  I guess I get to call them Tuesday to try to get that rescheduled.  I wonder if they can get me in BEFORE I go?

[KrissiK]

Good Morning!!!

 

COFFEE!!☕ï¸â˜•ï¸â˜•ï¸â˜•ï¸â˜•ï¸

 

Sunday!!ðŸ‘ðŸ‘ðŸ‘

 

Church!!⛪ï¸â›ªï¸â›ªï¸ðŸ’•ðŸ’•

 

Christmas Eve!!🎄🎄🎄💕ðŸ‘

[KrissiK]

I wrap presents. I just do a basic job with $0.97 wrapping paper from The Afsa and plunk a bow on top from the $1.97 bag of bows from The Afsa. I usually buy a tablet of those sticker “To:/From:†tags. DH and I traditionally wrap presents on Christmas Eve while watching the Christmas music on Public Television. I do a fairly neat job. Nothing to write home about in terms of beauty or sloppiness.

.

[AMJ]

Good Monday Morning!

 

COFFEE!!!!  

 

Took awhile to fall asleep last night due to excessive afternoon caffeine (EAC) syndrome.  

 

Violin lesson today. But no school.  Except 16yo ds finishing up chemistry and pre-calc.    

 

I staged oatmeal in the rice cooker last night.  Yummy.

 

It was so nice to be away for a few days.  The hotel was clean, and I wasn't responsible for it or much of anything.  So nice.  Now, back to reality!  Biology lab later this week, 14yo dd's last humanties discussion group, 5 dental appointments!, and tickets to Star Wars Friday afternoon!  And then 16yo ds's play this weekend.  Busy.  

 

 

What setting did you use on your rice cooker for your oatmeal?  Which kind of oatmeal did you use?

[KrissiK]

I think I may be getting the hang of painting petals. They are kind of tricky.

My oldest DS said something yesterday that remind me of you and all you artistic types. He was bored and I told him he should do some sketching of pieces he wanted to make in metal shop next semester. He said, no, he didn’t do it that way. He said he just looks at a piece of metal and can see what he needs to make out of it when he looks at it. He doesn’t plan.

[KrissiK]

I lost my book of Advent Readings. 😩 It’s not for our family, it’s for me personally. I wasn’t finished with it and now I can’t find it.😡😩

[AMJ]

Yum!! When I had my jaws broken and mouth wired shut, it was wired AFTER they placed a wax divider between my top and bottom front teeth. So I couldn't use a straw or slip anything through the front of my mouth. Andes mints were the PERFECT thing! They would slip inside the side of my cheek and just melt. Too, too yummy!

 

 

This sounds weird.  How were you supposed to eat anything?  When my brother had his mouth wired shut (upper jaw reconstruction) he was allowed to use a straw because that was the only way he'd get anything to eat at all.  His mouth was wired shut for two months.  (This was decades ago.)

 

Our cousin would cook him mouth-watering dinners, and then liquefy them in the blender for him.  It was both good and sad for my brother at the same time.

[JoJosMom]

My oldest DS said something yesterday that remind me of you and all you artistic types. He was bored and I told him he should do some sketching of pieces he wanted to make in metal shop next semester. He said, no, he didn’t do it that way. He said he just looks at a piece of metal and can see what he needs to make out of it when he looks at it. He doesn’t plan.

 

:001_wub:

[Another Lynn]

What setting did you use on your rice cooker for your oatmeal?  Which kind of oatmeal did you use?

 

I used the Porridge setting (takes about an hour) and I used Quaker 100% Old Fashioned Oats (not quick).  

[Another Lynn]

I started making bread.  Which is a pretty foolish thing to do because if it's not done before our family Christmas I'll have to leave it rising longer or something or other.  I usually never make bread if I have to go somewhere because I don't have the timing down to a science or anything.  But it was now or never.  

 

 

[Critterfixer]

I flooded the kitchen this morning. I take this as a sign that I have not had enough caffeine to be using the food processor or the oven yet.

[Critterfixer]

Also, I'm going to let Angi do Christmas for me next year. She's got it together!

[Critterfixer]

My oldest DS said something yesterday that remind me of you and all you artistic types. He was bored and I told him he should do some sketching of pieces he wanted to make in metal shop next semester. He said, no, he didn’t do it that way. He said he just looks at a piece of metal and can see what he needs to make out of it when he looks at it. He doesn’t plan.

I don't always plan what I'm doing with my art or my writing, but I'm learning to plan practice. So I might pick out something to paint that I know will force me to work on something I need to practice. Like petals. Or I might pick out an exercise in a writing book to force me to work on an element of writing that has been giving me trouble. Like tight description.

So there's a line between no planning of the creative bit, but plenty of planning of the practice.

[Jean in Newcastle]

I’m starting off Christmas Eve in bed. Ds woke me up at 1 am (I doubt that he’s even aware) but my stupid body wouldn’t let me go back to sleep until 4am. So I am skipping church.

 

 

 

 

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[Slache]

Merry Christmas Eve!

 

(((Junie)))

 

Two dreams. 1) I wrote a book and broke out of prison to submit it. 2) I was on a farm and there were cows on swings really high that were going to fall.

 

Aherm herm... I write directly on the wrapping paper with a sharpie. Classy, I know.

They make silver Sharpe.

 

  

That's how I do it if I have boxes.

 

I don't do bags or boxes. We are so limited on space I bring our good bags to church after our birthdays and Christmas and give them away.

 

I have 13/100 books logged, but I also have a niggling suspicion I missed one or five. Can't remember, though, so the official number remains 13. Just finished Outlander by Diana Gabaldon. That really ought to count as 2 books, though, due to sheer size!

4/100 but I'm partially through like 6 more because spaz.

[Critterfixer]

You know what I want? Crepes with a cream cheese filling and cherry sauce. I need to learn how to make GF crepes.

[AMJ]

I am home from hobnobbing with my fellow wizards.

I liked the doctor. I'm scheduled for my biopsy/surgery in January. Apparently I get to spend some part of the morning tired, cranky, hungry, caffeine-deprived with a needle stuck you know where. However, I was told there will be drugs. :D I'm not too worried. We just need to get the thing out and find out if it's a nasty creature or a benign one.

 

 

:grouphug:  :grouphug:

[Another Lynn]

I’m starting off Christmas Eve in bed. Ds woke me up at 1 am (I doubt that he’s even aware) but my stupid body wouldn’t let me go back to sleep until 4am. So I am skipping church.

 

 

 

 

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(((Jean))). Hope you get more sleep.

[AMJ]

Veni, fleri, recedi

 

I came, I cried in the bathroom, I came home early.

 

I can’t take me anywhere, apparently.

 

:grouphug:  :grouphug:

[KrissiK]

I don't always plan what I'm doing with my art or my writing, but I'm learning to plan practice. So I might pick out something to paint that I know will force me to work on something I need to practice. Like petals. Or I might pick out an exercise in a writing book to force me to work on an element of writing that has been giving me trouble. Like tight description.

So there's a line between no planning of the creative bit, but plenty of planning of the practice.

I’m thinking/hoping this will come to him with maturity and practice. It just amazes me how artists “see†things.

[KrissiK]

I have 13/100 books logged, but I also have a niggling suspicion I missed one or five. Can't remember, though, so the official number remains 13. Just finished Outlander by Diana Gabaldon. That really ought to count as 2 books, though, due to sheer size!

I remember reading “Outlanderâ€. Sitting in a chair for hours and then feeling disoriented when I finally came up for breath. I think I liked the second book in that series, but after that.... meh!

[AMJ]

:grouphug: Spuds. I don't do parties.

I'm up. Caffeine. I woke up at three as usual, but managed to get back to sleep. I dreamed somebody abandoned thirty kittens at my house. I ran out of kitten food trying to feed them. They ranged from 5 weeks of age to about 12 weeks to go by their size. They were mostly stripey kittens, or black kittens, but I had a few orange ones and some calicoes. 

In another dream I went to a craft fair that was beyond crowded. I decided those people needed cats so they would go home. Slipped back to the other dream, loaded up the kittens, and managed to give them all away before I woke up. :hurray:

 

ETA: I really wanted to keep the calico that had one blue eye and one green eye. So pretty!

 

 

Applause applause applause!    :hurray:  :hurray:  :hurray:  :hurray:

 

DH says, "THAT is the mind of a problem-solver!"