Christmas

 I have so much I want to say about yesterday that I can't decide what to write. So I'll revert to that tired adage, 'a picture's worth a thousand words' and invite you all to check out a video and slide show of Christmas morning with the Packers at Rob's blog. 

There seems to be a curse upon the Packer family. Two years ago at Christmas we were suffering from sinus infections, ear infections and laryngitis in Arizona. Last year it was a stomach bug that hit Christmas morning around 4. And now three of the four of us have coughs, sore throats and Grace may be going for croup again. For some reason we just can't be healthy at Christmas time. It is a shame because instead of using this time while Rob and Sam are out of school to have fun and memorable times together as a family, we are instead moping about the house, coughing and hacking and generally being miserable and peevish. 

The Evils of Blogging

I was just taking a break from motherhood, reading a few different blogs. On a friend of a friend's blog I found a link to a blog of a girl that I grew up with and haven't seen or heard from in years! So I was reading up on what she's been doing when Grace come over with something on her thumb. I wasn't paying attention and told her to just go wash it. She came back with even more of it on her hands and complaining that it was stuck. When I finally started paying attention my first thought was that she had gotten wax on her finger, but as we have no burning candles that didn't make sense. So I asked her to show me what she had been touching. Super Glue. Joy. All over her hands, also in the mouth. I thought in her hair but mercifully not. It was all over the glue tube as well, so when I picked it up in got on my hands. Luckily nothing was actually stuck together (fingers, lips, whatever). I had a nice chat with the poison control lady so we know Grace wont be damaged by the glue. Its just a real pain to get off. And now I had better go see what she's gotten in to while I've been taking the time to blog about why I shouldn't spend so much time blogging!

Bah! Humbug!

I woke up this morning in a Christmas slump. Today was supposed to be my goodie baking day. We were going to get all our treats made, packaged up and handed out this evening for FHE. Maybe because Sam was pretty sick yesterday and had lingering phlegm today; maybe because I spend the morning in 4 different stores fighting crowds and melancholy for not having loads of cash; maybe because we had an unfortunate caramel episode last night; but I was just not in the mood for Christmas. Even the music was getting on my nerves. And it is only one week till Christmas Eve! How pathetic.
That confessed, I am feeling a bit more jolly this evening. I'm not going to get our treats out tonight by any means, but I did get some cookie dough made up and chilling in the fridge, and if I feel very ambitious, I'll make some fudge tonight while watching one of three movies that I have waiting. Maybe the fudge will wait for tomorrow. I've never made this recipe and so I had better give it my undivided attention, and one of the movies is due back at the library tomorrow, so it has priority. Christmas music is wafting gently from the computer without my hackles rising, and Sam is well enough that he can go to school tomorrow (yeah!). Perhaps all will be well with the world.

Corrections

My mom called last night to tell me that "we used to feed Nutella to you kids all the time!" So I did not have my first experience as an almost adult at the Tippetts'. Sorry mom for imagining that you would have deprived us in any way as children. I'm glad to know that I have had years more of nutella bliss then I thought, even if I can't remember them!

famous

Prospective grad students interested in WSU may soon be receiving this brochure in the mail. And just who is that dashing man in the picture!?!

Chocolaty Hazelnutty Goodness!

The other day I had buy some tahini which is down the isle of the grocery store that I don't normally go down. And wouldn't you know it, right next to the tahini was this little beauty. My will power to stick to my list flew right out the window, and before I knew it, I had the nutella and a bag of croissants in the cart and was booking it home. I just love this stuff! I can remember the very first time I had it; at the Tippetts' when Les baked up some croissants with nutella inside. Rapture! My good friend Sarah Ward and I used to buy it in Logan. I'm a little ashamed to say we could go through a whole jar in one day. But we were both pregnant at the time.
My kids being my kids, they were both hesitant about trying it right at first, which was really ok with me since that meant more for moi. But last night we had pancakes for dinner (mmmm, breakfast for dinner... Love it!) and Rob talked them both into trying a bite. Instant converts! I would start buying in regularly, but I can't help myself when it is in the house and end up eating it on everything and anything I can think of. Yesterday I had it on melba toast and pita bread. Maybe my new years resolution should be gaining some self control.

Welcome December!!!

We got our tree up last night in time to officially welcome the Christmas season today. Here's a picture of it after the kids finished 'helping' me decorate:
Notice the plethora of ornaments in the bottom right corner, right about at Grace height. Sam did a pretty good job spreading his out, but Grace wanted all of hers on the SAME BRANCH! After they went to bed I redid the whole thing so our tree wouldn't fall over from lopsidedness. I did feel a little guilty undoing their work. They had such a nice time putting it up.
Well, I'll probably be pulling a late nighter trying to get my sharing time and other primary things done for tomorrow. Also the choir program which I have to admit is coming along dismally. I'm really having a hard time getting the writing juices flowing on that project and I'm really not sure what to do about it. Any suggestions?