previous - next

December 25, 2005 - 1:50 a.m.

I slept in today and took it easy. I headed out about noon and picked up some groceries for L & T. Then I headed over to Village Inn to pick up a pie for Christmas Eve dinner at L & T�s. After dropping off everything at their house I headed over and picked up my niece, Megan, and then up to Castle Rock to my sister�s. Megan and I took our time and stopped at a couple stores on the way.

Shortly after we arrived there, my other sister, Megan�s Mom, and my brother-in-law showed up. Camille had brought a kit for making a gingerbread house and she and I and Jasmine frosted it and put it together. Shortly after that, Camille, Lynn and I played Scrabble. It was fun, a really nice afternoon. My mother, who suddenly in the last five years became a huge football fan, was down stairs watching the Bronco Game with my Dad. It�s very strange. Neither of my parents watched football when I was a kid, but it is fun to see how much my mom enjoys it.

Lynn�s husband made prime rib for dinner and it was very tasty. I didn�t eat a lot as I knew I�d be eating dinner at L & T�s as well. I left there at about 7 pm and headed back to the Springs. We ate dinner shortly after I arrived there and G could hardly contain herself. She was SOOOoo ready to open gifts. :o) We opened gifts a little after we�d eaten. G loved everything I got for her, and I liked my gifts as well. G had specifically picked out something for me at the school gift sale. L didn�t even know what it was. She was so excited; she couldn�t wait for me to open it up. It was a little stuffed snowman, it was so cute. She was so animated. �I KNEW she�d love it.� And I did. It�ll sit on the shelf in my room with my other stuffed animals.

What is it about women (or at least me) that suddenly in my late thirties I started to like stuffed animals again? I have a number of those beanie baby things. I�m not terribly attached to them or anything, but I buy the ones I like, and often they are carried about by any one of my nieces (or grand-niece) when they come over to visit. I don�t have any desire to keep them in mint condition. And pretty much any time I see a stuffed animal that I like I buy it. It isn�t a lot of them, just a small collection. But kids really do like that I have them around.

My grand-niece, Maleah, has come by a number of times. She always ends up in my room, usually laying on the bed watching some cartoon, eating. Her mother asks, �Is it okay if she eats on the bed?� I say, �Sure. I do.� :o) I am pretty laid back I guess. It�s fun that all the kids are so comfortable here. I am not sure what it is that attracts them, but they always want to stay over night. We lie on the bed and watch cartoons. Sometimes we play games or put together puzzles. I can�t put my finger on what it is exactly. Is it that everyone stays up late here? Is it that I do some things with them? I don�t know, and I guess I don�t try to analyze it much, I just enjoy it.

My grand plan for tomorrow is to sleep in until I want to get up. We are having a get together at my Mom and Dad�s tomorrow night. I think my mother is going to make a turkey. She loves turkey dinner. I�m not sure if I�ll go up or just enjoy a quiet day to myself. It�s nice to have the option. My hope is that by the time I head back to work Wednesday morning that I�ve found time to get my house in order. It�s been bad for a while now.

Right now there are computer parts literally all over the place in my living room. Curt and Philip have taken apart at least one computer (I think it�s two), and there are hard drives, memory sticks, video cards and various and assort pieces and screws littered on every table and couch in there. It�s making me crazy. By the late afternoon tomorrow it�ll be all cleaned up. I need a �shop� or something with tables and such for the boys to take things apart and mess with stuff. One of these days I�ll get something set up in the basement for this sort of thing, but probably NOT tomorrow. :o)

I need to go to sleep.

Sweet dreams, and until tomorrow� M.