Ah . . . the nativity. I show it to 2 1/2 year old Owen & begin to tell him a little of the Christmas story. Although we look at the baby Jesus, Mary, Joseph, he is mainly interested in the little lamb.
I tell him about the star & show him the shepherds & wise men who came to see the baby. A little later I see a plastic star has been placed by Owen atop the stable. He comes to get me as he is now providing his own visitors to the manger . . . a white rabbit with one orange ear, a puppy with sunglasses, & Kermit the frog! In addition he has added police protection as a squad car is patrolling the entire scene. So I think he gets a little of it & has put his own spin on it . . . with an unwitting humor & imagination!
Saturday, December 31, 2005
Monday, December 05, 2005
Merry Christmas to . . . . me & Owen
For 11 1/2 months of the year I am frugal . . . financially responsible. I do without & make do. But for a 2-3 week window in December I am in a spending frenzy. The easiest shopping is for Owen, my grandson, for whom I have a list from his parents.
However, last week I inadvertently began Christmas shopping when I was at a gift shop picking up a baby gift. The store manager then called my attention to a soft snowman pillow that has velcro parts so that a toddler can make his own snowman. Owen would love this I thought. Wrap it up! While waiting to check out I found the softest, cutest polar bears . . . ok, one for Owen & one for me.
The planned shopping began this weekend. First a trip to Starbucks to fortify myself with caffine. Then to the WVU bookstore for a gift for my dad . . . couldn't resist an adorable WVU fleece tobbogan for Owen & a long sleeve t-shirt for me as well.
Then to Target to get a gift . . . oh, no, they have sports bras on sale . . . in the cart! Wow, a relaxation Christmas CD . . . just what I need! A Baby Einstien Christmas CD . . . Owen loves music--this will be a great pre-Christmas gift. A quilted mattress pad for the Pack & Play . . . gotta have that . . . much softer for him to sleep on when he visits, and I do have a new grandbaby due in May who will need a soft place to sleep.
On to Bed, Bath, & Beyond . . . a gift for my parents & a flexible bundt pan for me.
Moving on to Old Navy I buy 3 stocking stuffer items & some new socks for me.
At TJ Maxx I buy books for my little niece & nephew and 2 for Owen as well.
On to Walmart where I find the gift item I'm looking for but also find it too confusing to know exactly what to buy. I need to do more research . . . before I leave the store I purchase a new set of sheets for my guest bed . . . and 2 more books for Owen.
Finally, I stop at Hallmark to buy Christmas cards. I purchase the cards along with a Sarris chocolate covered pretzel to eat on the way home.
Sunday after church I go to buy 3 pairs of shoes for our "Shoes for Kids" project. A beautiful pair of suede boots catch my eye upon entering the store . . . oh my gosh, they're on sale! I purchase 3 pairs of shoes & 1 pair of boots.
This morning I'm online ordering a gift. Wait a minute . . . buy one sweater, get a second at 50% off . . . I add two sweaters to my cart. . . mine is practically free.
I might add that I have now also purchased all the items on Owen's list.
Hold me back . . . I leave the tags on most of the things I thought I just had to have for myself. I delete the second sweater from my online cart. This is why I avoid shopping . . . I always fall victim to displays & bargains & suddenly find innumerable things that I just can't live without. Common sense is begining to overwhelm me. I will spend a day soon returning most of my items. . . except for the extras I have purchased for Owen . . . I don't need to give him everthing at Christmas . . . & he's just soooooooo cute!
However, last week I inadvertently began Christmas shopping when I was at a gift shop picking up a baby gift. The store manager then called my attention to a soft snowman pillow that has velcro parts so that a toddler can make his own snowman. Owen would love this I thought. Wrap it up! While waiting to check out I found the softest, cutest polar bears . . . ok, one for Owen & one for me.
The planned shopping began this weekend. First a trip to Starbucks to fortify myself with caffine. Then to the WVU bookstore for a gift for my dad . . . couldn't resist an adorable WVU fleece tobbogan for Owen & a long sleeve t-shirt for me as well.
Then to Target to get a gift . . . oh, no, they have sports bras on sale . . . in the cart! Wow, a relaxation Christmas CD . . . just what I need! A Baby Einstien Christmas CD . . . Owen loves music--this will be a great pre-Christmas gift. A quilted mattress pad for the Pack & Play . . . gotta have that . . . much softer for him to sleep on when he visits, and I do have a new grandbaby due in May who will need a soft place to sleep.
On to Bed, Bath, & Beyond . . . a gift for my parents & a flexible bundt pan for me.
Moving on to Old Navy I buy 3 stocking stuffer items & some new socks for me.
At TJ Maxx I buy books for my little niece & nephew and 2 for Owen as well.
On to Walmart where I find the gift item I'm looking for but also find it too confusing to know exactly what to buy. I need to do more research . . . before I leave the store I purchase a new set of sheets for my guest bed . . . and 2 more books for Owen.
Finally, I stop at Hallmark to buy Christmas cards. I purchase the cards along with a Sarris chocolate covered pretzel to eat on the way home.
Sunday after church I go to buy 3 pairs of shoes for our "Shoes for Kids" project. A beautiful pair of suede boots catch my eye upon entering the store . . . oh my gosh, they're on sale! I purchase 3 pairs of shoes & 1 pair of boots.
This morning I'm online ordering a gift. Wait a minute . . . buy one sweater, get a second at 50% off . . . I add two sweaters to my cart. . . mine is practically free.
I might add that I have now also purchased all the items on Owen's list.
Hold me back . . . I leave the tags on most of the things I thought I just had to have for myself. I delete the second sweater from my online cart. This is why I avoid shopping . . . I always fall victim to displays & bargains & suddenly find innumerable things that I just can't live without. Common sense is begining to overwhelm me. I will spend a day soon returning most of my items. . . except for the extras I have purchased for Owen . . . I don't need to give him everthing at Christmas . . . & he's just soooooooo cute!
Friday, December 02, 2005
Internet Lingo from the Hall of Batgirl
My internet lingo became a topic of conversation over Thanksgiving & now is a part of one of my son's blogs. Well, I do find that the fewest words/letters needed the better when IMing--especially when i'm at work. My son, Trent, wonders why I do it (it's quicker) & my daughter-in-law, Kelly, wonders where I picked it up (I think from my niece & nephews or from the WVU sports message boards).
Anyway I think I only know the basics . . . ty--thank you, yw--you're welcome, brb--be right back, imo--in my opinion, wtg--way to go, etc. Then, of course there are variations of the above, i.e. yvw--you're very welcome or imho--in my humble opinion. Also there are letter or numbers for words, such as k for o.k., r for are, u for you, 4 for for, etc. So I think that anyone for whom "blog" is both a noun & a verb should become savvy with these abbreviations.
So if u r confused, then u should brush up on your Internet lingo. IMHO it is quicker & easier. Try it. K?
Anyway I think I only know the basics . . . ty--thank you, yw--you're welcome, brb--be right back, imo--in my opinion, wtg--way to go, etc. Then, of course there are variations of the above, i.e. yvw--you're very welcome or imho--in my humble opinion. Also there are letter or numbers for words, such as k for o.k., r for are, u for you, 4 for for, etc. So I think that anyone for whom "blog" is both a noun & a verb should become savvy with these abbreviations.
So if u r confused, then u should brush up on your Internet lingo. IMHO it is quicker & easier. Try it. K?
Deer in Headlights
I've been wanting to blog for some time now, & over Thanksgiving my sons set me up. They took about 5 seconds to come up with a somewhat unflattering title for me. Since that time I have been wondering what I should write about. Yesterday I received an IM from one of my sons asking if I was ever going to blog, & I realized that I have been (ahem) a deer in headlights.
So here goes . . .
My kittens Tigger & Trevor never cease to amaze & perplex me. Last year I spent several hours putting up a Christmas tree only to come home & find it toppled on the floor with ornaments everywhere. Even after I got the tree back up the kittens would remove several ornaments everyday & take them to various locations in the house. It became a kitty version of hide & seek. This year I approached this task with trepidation & hung all the breakable ornaments near the top. Trevor chased the strings of lights as I was winding them around the tree. Tigger hopped in and out of the storage box to bat the ornaments about. Finally the tree is perfect, but I have a sinking feeling that this perfection will be very short lived. Oddly enough it's been three days, & the tree is still intact. Not a single ornament has been removed. Tigger spends most of his time sleeping beneath the tree as if he were in the great outdoors. However, I was beginning to think that Trevor may have the kitty flu or something since it is very out of character for him to leave anything alone. Last night the mystery was solved as I watched a quivering tree. Trevor has approached the tree by climbing up through the inside & batting at the ornaments making the dismantling of the tree a bit more challenging. So the kittens have me right where they want me . . . watching & waiting for the first ornament to drop!
So here goes . . .
My kittens Tigger & Trevor never cease to amaze & perplex me. Last year I spent several hours putting up a Christmas tree only to come home & find it toppled on the floor with ornaments everywhere. Even after I got the tree back up the kittens would remove several ornaments everyday & take them to various locations in the house. It became a kitty version of hide & seek. This year I approached this task with trepidation & hung all the breakable ornaments near the top. Trevor chased the strings of lights as I was winding them around the tree. Tigger hopped in and out of the storage box to bat the ornaments about. Finally the tree is perfect, but I have a sinking feeling that this perfection will be very short lived. Oddly enough it's been three days, & the tree is still intact. Not a single ornament has been removed. Tigger spends most of his time sleeping beneath the tree as if he were in the great outdoors. However, I was beginning to think that Trevor may have the kitty flu or something since it is very out of character for him to leave anything alone. Last night the mystery was solved as I watched a quivering tree. Trevor has approached the tree by climbing up through the inside & batting at the ornaments making the dismantling of the tree a bit more challenging. So the kittens have me right where they want me . . . watching & waiting for the first ornament to drop!
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