It Finally Looks Like Christmas!

Yesterday afternoon and last night we FINALLY got the first big snowfall of the season. Normally I'm not a huge snow fan. In fact, I hate driving in the stuff, and worse yet, it's COLD! But, it is pretty to look at from the inside out a window, and nothing says Christmas better than a white blanket of snow. I remember one year being outside in a T-shirt and jeans, with no snow on the ground at Christmastime, and that just didn't feel right. Plus, decorations put up on dead grass and scattered leaves just doesn't have the same ambiance that snow gives off.

I love how everyone is putting out their decorations...everything looks so festive! We, of course, haven't gotten that far yet. Matter of fact, the Halloween bin is still sitting waiting to be put away! Oh well...it'll get there. Probably Monday night I'll haul that bin downstairs and the tree and decorations upstairs, and have the kids help me and Bub decorate the place. Wonder if the cats will climb the tree...hmmm.... It's always interesting to have the kids help decorate though, because there's three of them using both hands to grab things to put up, and two of us using both hands to decorate with the last item one of them had handed us! Six things out, two things used! It's fun though, and they have a good time with it :o)

Now, to get that confounded Christmas shopping done! I'm seriously, SERIOUSLY considering just ordering everything off of LTD Commodities. Anyone else do that? I just don't have the time, money, energy or desire to go out to store after store and look for ideal things for everyone, just to wonder what I'll find at the next place. Forget it. This way I can glance through everything WITHIN OUR BUDGET and have it delivered straight to our door. Presto Cheapo...DONE!

Trey is still just loving being on the swim team, and he does such a good job most of the time. Except last week he lost one of his swim suits. Again. I've done everything I know to do to help that kid remember to put everything in his bag after swim practice, and he still loses things!! He has a list in his bag of the things he needs in there, we've talked about ideas to help him keep his things organized, and he was doing really good for awhile. Ugh.

In the "Interesting Things Kids Say" category, Talin took the cake this week. I was talking to Bub about how the car is making a funny noise when it's idling. As I was describing it, Talin pipes up from the back seat, "It's probably my foot." Completely serious, as if his foot seriously had something to do with the strange noise the car was making while he was nowhere near it! I had to laugh...it was too funny!

Derrick started going to his new daycare full time on November 26, and he LOVES it!! I'm so happy things turned out the way they did, but I knew they would! I'm a firm believer that the Lord has helped us along that path. He misses his former daycare provider, who moved to a different town, but is always happy to go to his new daycare. What a relief and huge pressure off of us! He's also starting to see and recognize more things around him, and with his ever-expanding vocabulary, it's adorable to hear him say "Look! Pretties!" when he sees lit-up decorations, or "Pretty House!" when a home is really decked out. It's worth the "scenic route" home just to hear him!!

Otherwise things have been pretty normal. Bub is doing a good job adjusting back and forth between working his night shifts and then coming back to daytime during the week. Soon he'll be able to work daytime weekends, and that'll be nicer still. I just can't believe it's December already. Somehow it doesn't seem like an entire year has almost gone by already. Wow...amazing!

Murphy's Week

Yes, this was one of those weeks where if I could have just slept through it, I probably would have. Oh. My. GOSH!! It started out with my mom, last Sunday, asking me what we were doing for Thanksgiving. I told her I wasn't sure yet as I STILL hadn't heard from Trey & Talin's father, who lives in North Carolina and is court-ordered to have visitation with them for the holiday this year, and I'd called him 3-1/2 weeks prior to my mom asking. So I told her I imagined we'd probably be in Oshkosh if we were traveling for my kids to see their father, otherwise I wasn't sure. She informed me then that her parents, my grandparents, had really aged a lot in the last six months, and that it wasn't that they didn't want us (my family) there, but maybe it would be best if the little kids weren't there to upset the older folks. Okay, I understand the logic, but you can't tell me that anyone with half a heart wouldn't be just a little bit offended. So fine, I'm uninvited to one Thanksgiving...makes my decision much, MUCH easier...either go to my mother-in-law's house or have a meal here. The way things are going, it's looking like my ex isn't going to call, and at this point he can't realistically expect me to throw together a trip like this in less than 48 hours...I mean traveling from NW Wisconsin to NW Indiana takes time to put together, organize, make arrangements for, especially with a little guy here at home and the man of the house works nights and so will likely be catching up on sleep. Try finding daycare mid-week last minute during a holiday week. Not so easy!! Again, anyone with half a brain would have that one figured out by now, but I guess that just points out the obvious now, doesn't it?

Speaking of daycare, the person we've had watching our kids for 6-1/2 years decided early this week to take a day job out of her home, where she's had her daycare at, and so we've been spending our evenings this week interviewing other daycare providers in the area. We found a girl probably close to my age that also does in-home daycare with an opening, and Derrick took to her like a fish to water, so we've been very pleased with his easy adjustment to this change thus far. Our former sitter has practically become a member of our family, so it'll be hard to let her go, but easier in that we're happy she'll be using her double major college degrees to further herself and do something she enjoys. Best wishes to her!!

Yesterday, Saturday, was Trey's first swim meet. It was SO exciting to be a swim parent!! It was always fun and exciting and nerve-racking to be a swimmer...but what a dynamic shift to be on the dry side!! Trey was in four events; the medley relay in which he swam back stroke, 50 free, 50 back and in the 200 free relay, where he was the third swimmer in a relay of 4. If any of you are lost on this, lemme know and I'll post a blog explaining more. His best event was his 50 back, where he won his heat and received a ribbon. I don't know who was prouder, him or me!! Probably him LOL ;) He did a great job with sportsmanship and conducted himself very well. My ex's mom, her husband and her mom also showed up and stayed for his first two events (his last two were quite a ways later, and they had another commitment), and he was thrilled that they came, and I was happy that they were there to support him. He loves swimming so far though...I can truly see him going far with this if he sticks with it!

Today was the last day of our Sunday School Service Project, the food drive we've had for the last few weeks. The top team received a $5 gift certificate to McDonald's...I mean, who doesn't love a Happy Meal, right? LOL Our pastor recognized our efforts by having us wheel a cart up the aisle during the offering and giving a prayer of thanksgiving for us, which was really awesome and I hope the kids enjoyed it as much as I did. They all did such a great job, and I made sure today to help them realize that though they were in separate teams during this, none of this would have been possible if we all hadn't worked together as a group, the end result wouldn't have been as fruitful. Now this week sometime I need to bring our donations to the local food pantries and I'm going to ask that a small thank-you note be sent to the Sunday School if possible, because I really think that would be something they'd enjoy...some positive feedback from the places we all hope they never need to visit.

Then at home Derrick decided that he was going to take a nap, so Trey, Talin and I took advantage of his nap time and played a few hands of Uno. It was a lot of fun spending time with them that wasn't interrupted by Derrick. I love that little monster...but sometimes he makes "big kid games" impossible! He wants so much to do everything Trey & Talin are doing, but isn't quite there yet. Soon enough....soon enough.

I'm off to bed. Today was a nice ending to a hectic week. Thank goodness for a short week next week! Happy Thanksgiving, safe travels and even safer hunting to all of you!!