Spirit of Great-Grandpa

Update for 12/16 - 12/22

Getting into the New Year, by catching up on the Old Year.   Before I left for New York, my Seattle Fam got together to celebrate Christmas.  Jordan made fondue and we devoured it along with Mariana, Diana, Jason and Diana's mom, Brenda.  Nater had been home since Thanksgiving.  While it was wonderful having him home, I think he could have done without the three weeks of Jury Duty that ended right before he had to get on a plane back to Chicago. 

Dinner was delish, followed by presents!

Jordan: To Dad, Love Lugus.

Lucas: I wrote LuGas for real, but I left it because I know that you would think it was cute.

Zach got new sneakers, was disappointed because they were new and different.  (Was later mollified when he saw that his mother had bought them on sale.)

Zach got new versions of the same sneakers he was wearing, was disappointed because the ones he had on (holes and all) had finally been worked in to a point of comfort.

Zach got new socks, was okay with this gift as it was practical, though I'm not sure how he felt about them being black instead of white. (Was later furious, when Lucas opened the package and wore a pair.  Was even less amused when Lucas offered them back, immediately and without washing saying, "If you want them back, you have to take them now.")

Zach got electric blanket called "comfy toes" to keep his feet warm, was ecstatic and wanted to put it on his bed immediately.

Zach: I guess you're right, I am exactly like a great grandpa.

Me: I mean, I haven't seen an electric blanket since my grandparents - so that's about right. 

I think I mentioned before that I got the lightest spinner suit cases recently, but that I had to get them in orange because they didn't come in pink.   Dawne decided that I needed a new orange Dooney and Bourke purse to match my suitcase when I'm traveling, and then Lucas got me smaller travel bags that were also orange.  Naturally, when Luke opened his orange coat I thought it was perfect for when he's carrying my new suitcases!  I realized I was pretty sad that I had to give up my signature color for travel, but Dawne knew just what kind of ridiculous I needed to get me excited again.  :)

When we were all done opening presents, we simultaneously looked at Diana and said, "Okay, Diana, we're ready for the last present!"  We waited 30 seconds before we gave up on the idea that we could get Diana to go into labor on command.  

Thursday was a mixture of packing, keeping Percy from sleeping, and working before heading to the airport.  I had gotten Percy bathed before we left, and the chick at PetCo told me that he would smell like Christmas Cookies for Nana.  I'm not sure if he appreciated smelling like Christmas Cookies, but sure did throughout the trip.  Every time I travel with that munchkin I am amazed at how good he is, and I think the moms and dads around me with their fidgeting children we're equally as impressed. 

On Friday, I opened all of my amazon boxes & wrapped presents.  Watched some "Light Fight" or whatever that show is called.  One of the winners was from Queens, and I knew that Kevin had wanted to see it in person.  I asked him if he wanted to go with me, but he wanted to finish up shopping for his mommy instead.  I then contacted my nieces to see if they wanted to see "Saving Mr. Banks."  I went down and picked up Bailey and Morgan, and on the way to the theater, Bailey was basically testing her knowledge of the family tree.  Not just names but relationships, location and activities.  Pretty impressive.  When she couldn't remember my Uncle Bill and Cousin Billy, I told her not to beat herself up over it because actually there are two Uncle Bills and two Cousin Billy's so remembering 50% of them was pretty good.  (PS: I loved Saving Mr. Banks, even if Morgan thought it was sad.)

On Saturday, Mo and I ran a bunch of errands together, deciding definitively that the A&P across from my high school is like trying to shop at a convenience store for all of the selection they have.   Later, my parents and went to mass down in Ossining and then met Sean and Stacey for dinner at the boat house.  It was sooo yummy, and the company was real nice too!  Sunday morning, Briana picked me up to go to brunch after her yoga class.  Apparently, she was the only one who showed up and the instructor asked if she still wanted to do it. "Um, yeah, I didn't wake up early just to go home!" is what I image she said in response.  After breakfast, we went to HomeGoods and looked at ridiculously cute things that we totally didn't need, but had a hard time resisting despite the impracticality.  As always, it was super fun. :)  Meanwhile, Percy took a hike with his Aunt Mo and cousin Bella.  The little girls with them took turns fighting over who got to carry him, so I'm not entirely sure how much he exercise he got - but I think it was way better than staying at home. 

Sunday evening, Stacey invited us over to celebrate Sean's birthday.  Right before we left, I took Percy outside.  He was playing around with Bella, who was on the lead.  I tried to take her inside, but half way to the front door, she took off after Percy.  With the lead wrapped around my foot, I went down hard, twisting my ankle.  Later, when I told Maureen and Morgan, there was very little sympathy - Morgan even showed me her own Bella/Zipline injury.  Jackie was telling us about another injury and (I hope I'm getting this quote correct) then she turned to her mom and said, "love hurts though, right mom?" and Stacey confirmed, what appeared to be a family mantra that I hope child protective services never get wind of.  :)

Patrick II arrived at the party with colorful Hawaiian shirt, with a differently colorful pair of shorts.  Maureen told Stacey that he came out wearing two different socks and that when Maureen said, "That's it.  I draw the line.  You need to go back and get a pair of socks."  Stacey remarked that she always wanted to know where Maureen's "line" was.  

Frita seeing Patrick with mismatched socks: You got another pair like that at home?

Patrick: Yeah.

The kids were playing down stairs when Maureen's youngest yelled up the stairs.

Kyle: Mom! They are saying that pussy is a bad word!

I'm not sure she ever answered because she and everyone around her erupted in laughter. 

We played some Pictionary, Sean opened presents (I think he liked the Pocket Projector we got him, even though it was missing a cord) and then we had cupcakes.  Over all, a good birthday, I thought. 

More to come...

Switchmas

I hope you’re having a lovely December and that no matter what stage you are in your preparation craziness, you are taking time to enjoy the special magic that comes with the holiday season.  I am feeling so happy, and blessed this year to have some many amazing people who love and support me.  I was talking to Lucas last night about how much he adores his grandfathers.  Really, truly, loves and respects them with all his heart and soul.  I was reminded of so many things in this conversation.  I reflected on my own grandfather, and how Lucas would have enjoyed him so much, and it’s a shame that he never got to really know him.  I thought about my own relationships, and like so many people during these days of Christmas and family, I am missing so many people who aren’t here, or who I’ve just simply lost touch with (some of you even get an email from me every week!)  And mostly, Lucas reminded me that you truly do get what you put into a relationship.  And it’s hard to be best friends with everyone, to have meaningful relationships with a multitude, but the ones you do make special, truly are.  So no matter how you are spending your December, please know, that you are truly special to so many people and take time hug those who you so have the good fortune to see. 

I’m not really sure where I left off last week.  Monday, I got to have lunch with Fred and Jay, which a total delight.  And it was a company celebration day, so we had donuts and lattes in the morning.  That same evening, I went to Diana’s made fudge.   On Tuesday, it did NOT snow.   Wednesday was the launch of the new comic book I’ve been working on, so we had a launch party at a local Comic Book store for a signing and what not.   Pretty sure I caught one of my co-workers doodling inside one of the comics, but that’s what I get for giving artists a marker and asking them to sit still for two hours. 

We’ve been trying to get me “educated” enough to watch the 50^th anniversary episode of Doctor Who, so on Wednesday, we were final ready.  Only, by the time I got home, Zach was hanging out with friends.  Lucas also wanted to watch it, but didn’t think he could stay up long enough for Zach & Co. to finish their game. 

Lucas: Zach….. You know how you like mornings?

Zach: Uh… not especially.

Me: and Doctor Who?

Zach: What?

Lucas: We’re gonna watch the 50^th episode at 6:30 AM tomorrow. Good night!

And we did.  Despite all reason.  J 

On Friday, I was invited to go to the Harebrained Schemes Holiday party at K1 Go Karting place.  I had high hopes, but was very disappointed to find that as soon as I put the mask and helmet on, I got hella claustrophobic. I was able crack a small space to enable easier breathing, but overall, I didn’t have any need to win the race.  Some other guests got much more into the competitive nature of the race – including Nate and Zach who got *too* competitive to the point where everyone watching looked at Dawne and said, “I wouldn’t want to go home with those two.”  Lucky us!  After the KI portion of the evening, we all went to see the 2^nd Hobbit movie.  Dawne and I hadn’t seen the first Hobbit, but Jordan did a synapsis of the three hour move in two sentences and we were good to go.  

The next morning, the plan had been for half the fam to go up to Steven’s Pass to go skiing, and then I was going to meet everyone on Sunday at Leavenworth with the pups.  However, the fam woke up beaten and bruised from the “fun” they had the night before on the track and couldn’t even consider a day at the slopes.  Instead, we all piled into the car and went straight to Leavenworth.  Oh wait! Before we did that, we sold the mini-quarter pipe that had been sitting in the garage.  Thanks Craigslist!

On our way up, we stopped at Safeway.

Dawne: We better pick up a magazine for the long trip.

Clerk: Oh! Where are you going?

Dawne: Leavenworth.

Clerk (calculating that it was only about a two hour drive from that point.): Where are you from?

Dawne: Bellevue.

Me: For us, that’s a serious road trip.  We’ve packed snacks and juice boxes to go to Renton (a 20 min drive.)

We stopped on our way to let the pups run around in the snow which was nice.  Now, last year, when the fam went to Leavenworth, they met up accidentally with Rach and Anders, who got engaged on that same day.  Naturally, when we saw them again this year, we all presented them cards to celebrate “Our” anniversary. :P  We tried to run into them, but Leavenworth was packed, like could hardly walk, packed.  Some people thought it was because of the Christmas Tree Lighting ceremony, but we all know the real reason, “Switchmas.”  I movie currently available on Netflix about a little Jewish boy that ends up in Christmas Town, AKA, Leavenworth.  I don’t want to ruin the soon to be classic for you, so I’ll leave it at that. Unless you do want it ruined, in which case here’s the trailer:

http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi2165810201//

And… on Sunday, I finished Christmas shopping, did laundry, packed, and wrapped to a point where I was feeling gosh darn good with myself by the time Monday morning rolled around.  J

I hope are feeling great about your upcoming holidays! 

Mailing Stuff is Hard

Update 12/2 - 12/8

I put my Christmas cards in the mail Monday morning, and only made a couple of mess ups.  I am always weirdly excited about sending holiday cards.  Part of this is because I get to take pictures of Percy, partly because I get to watch Love Actually, and partly because I think sending things in the mail is just super fun.  Let me rephrase.  The idea of people receiving things in the mail is super fun, the part where we write addresses, stamp things, and then go to the post office, not as much fun.  There have been years where I made the cards. And there were years that I made the cards and then never put them in the mail.  This year, I bought cards, and then they arrived in two different sizes.  One size was perfect, the other was too small to hold my pictures.  Also, I couldn't decide on which picture, so I sent three which meant no matter what there was going to be extra postage.  Anyway, I ended up having to put the little cards into big envelopes, and it totally looked ghetto, and I'm sorry for the batch of you that got those cards.  Know that I could have just sent the little card alone, but then you'd be denied the cuteness that is my pup, and I can't do that to you during the holiday season.   As I said, mail is not my forte so not only did Pam get two cards, Julie and Kathi might never get theirs because sending anything to Germany is hard.  While writing out the cards, I asked Becky what her address was, and she started looking for her address labels to tell me.  I did the only logical thing. 

First, Laina has an 8ft tall glittery painting of Gene Simmons.  We received this text from her last week. Finally hanging Gene. We have a mattress on the stairs and I told Mo I have already dialed 911 and just need to hit send. I asked Mo if he would have to go back to Afghanistan if he broke his arm. Sort of made me want to remove the mattress from the stairs....

How did this get in there?

On Wednesday, I went to see Jimmy Fallon.  I was supposed to go with Laina, but she and Mo weren't willing to leave their love nest, so Becky joined.  When we got there, I though, "I'm not sure I can handle two hours of Jimmy Fallon."  I was so very pleasantly surprised to find that he was just hosting the evening and we got to listen to some seriously amusing comedians including Julian McCullough, Nate Bargatze, Nick Thune & Seth Herzog.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VcY28eKMM3I

Zach tried to find us something to watch on TV. 

Zach: I thought this said unpopular shows and I thought they made a category for us!!

Sad but true.  We ended up watching Doctor Who. Zach told me I couldn't watch this particular show from the beginning because I didn't have time to catch up on 50 years.  I conceded, and just told him I had to at least get a feel for it so that my first watching wasn't the anniversary season.   We came to an agreement.   We have cherry picked the episodes (all Matt Smith) so that I would be prepared for the 50th anniversary episode... which I think we'll be watching tonight!

On Friday evening, I went down to the brown house to take a shower and get ready for bed.  It felt a little chilly, so I checked if the heat was on, and was surprised to see that the temperature was 45 degrees in the house.  I figured I could tough it out though, and climbed into bed.  After about an hour of shivering, whilst I tried to convince my body to get up and go up to the yellow house, I finally fell asleep.  Turns out, three large windows were taken out to make space for sliding glass windows.  That would explain the temperature drop, I guess. 

Lucas: You know what is a great song?

Me: Fast Car by Tracy Chapman

Lucas: No, three blind mice by classical.

On Saturday, I went over to Pam’s and took pictures of the adorable snuggle bug that is Lucy.  Percy also got to play for a bit, which he super enjoyed.  Although, I don’t think Pam appreciated all of the fun “tricks” that he taught Lucy, like walking along the top of the couch or running behind the TV and other furniture.  We just love to help!

Later the same day, I met up with Elan, Kelly, D, J & L for the Urban Craft Uprising, followed by a coffee chat.  And on Sunday, I went over to Raymond’s for bit, and did some other stuff I can’t remember… and a little bit of Doctor Who and then the week was all done!

Turkey for 44 to Go, Please.

Nala and Percy got groomed on Tuesday.  Percy looked awesome, but Nala, who has naturally curly hair, was kind of a poof ball.  Dawne usually blow dries her hair straight, but I guess we forgot to tell the guys at PetCo about that.  Days later, people were asking us if Nala was pregnant again.  Good thing Nala (at least) isn't vain.  Although, she didn’t seem too happy about the impromptu photo shoot that I included her in.

Text convo with my co-worker.

Tyler: Somebody stole your car and was driving like an old lady outta crossroads.

Me: I think that was me. I just got back from getting T-Day craft supplies.  We have to entertain 45 people.

Tyler: And clearly puzzles and Popsicle turkeys are the best route.  Imagine how epic Popsicle stick Indians would be!

Me: Maybe next year.

Tyler: But Michaels is still open!

Me: Oh, I have the popcicle sticks.  What kind of house do you think I live in!?  It's just not on the itinerary.

Tyler: YET!

Wednesday evening, Nater came home from Chicago, and we headed to Red Robin for dinner.

Nate: Good to see nothing has changed in the kitchen.

Lucas: What are you talking about? The glasses are bigger and now the menu looks like the Cheesecake Factory. 

When we got home, the power was out at the brown house, which meant we still had power in the yellow house so that tables could be set and I could get mac and cheese and sweet potatoes made.  Unfortunately, after we went to bed, the yellow house power went out as well.   Jordan tried moving foods to other locations to keep them cold.  When we awoke, the power was restored, but the turkey was all rotted out.  Jordan ran over to get two frozen turkeys, and we worked to get those defrosted and cooked in time. 

Jordan (after putting the Turkey's in the oven): You need to call Becky's husband Jared.

Me (worried about the turkey): Sure, why?

Jordan: He need to come change the clocks in here.

For lunch we ran over to McDonalds where Jordan asked the clerk if he could get turkey for 44 to go.  She was not amused.

At one point, Percy jumped up on the kitchen chair so that he could be a part of the action and also take a little snoozer.  Lucas, however, wanted to sit in this seat, so he began to spin the chair as fast as possible, until finally, Percy decided to vacate the seat.

Lucas: See, it was his own choice.

We had 44 people for Thanksgiving, and it was lovely.  I thought it was the easiest and most enjoyable one yet.  I got to sit at an awesome table with dear people, and I had zero stress.  We must be getting better at this. :)

Me: I don't know if anyone has mentioned, but we have a tradition in this house that the newbie has to say grace.

Newbie (AKA Sarah, girlfriend of guest.): There is nothing I would want to do less, than to say grace.

Jordan: Oh that's okay, you can sing it instead!

Newbie did NOT say grace, breaking the long standing tradition of putting our guests on the spot.  What a disappoint.

We played games over dessert, and got a surprise appearance from Diana and Jason.

Jason (referring to his pregnant wife): Did you see the Turkey that's ready to pop over there?

Jeff: I'm terribly uncomfortable right now. 

Jason: We're totally ready for game day!

Jeff: You know that there won't be a little button that pops out when it's fully cooked right?

Diana: I can't wait to have this kid so I can put my feet up and relax.

Me: Um... I'm not sure if that's how babies work.

Diana: I take that back.  She can stay in this neat packaging for as long as she needs.

After showing folks this adorable gallery of pictures of puppy and baby naps:

http://www.buzzfeed.com/chelseamarshall/this-puppy-and-baby-are-the-most-adorable-nap-time-pals

Nater: Shame the baby is so ugly.

The next morning, we were listening to some Christmas music, when a Peter, Paul and Mary song came on.

Dawne: This sounds depressing.

Me: You hold your tongue! This is Peter, Paul and Mary! Besides, they're talking about the birth of Christ.

Lucas: Was whatshisface the mid-wife in that situation?

Me: Do you mean, Joseph?

Lucas: Yeah! That guy.  But seriously, he was the only one around right?

Over breakfast at IHop, we were talking about movies.

Lucas: You know what movie was a ride?

Me: Mama Mia?

Lucas: Yes! That was as intense as Alien. 

I think Nate is still shaking his head over this comment.

Last week, after the Ugly Sweater Run, my co-worker Ryan, sympathized with Lucas' knee injury telling him that he too did the same thing to his knees, and they never really recovered.  He did offer some suggestions to ease the pain, but said he hadn't found a solution yet.  A week later...

Lucas: Have you ever feared that you might never to run again?

Me: Not really, though, I was a little worried when I hurt my ankle.

Lucas: Me neither, until I met your friend Ryan.

Nater: Actually, for me, that's a hope, not a fear.

Friday, I made homemade split pea soup, watched some terrible Netflix movies, and then celebrated the Sabbath with the fam followed by some Spades? With D, J & N.  On Saturday, Becky and Diana came over to write out Christmas cards.  It was just a coincidence that while the fam went to celebrate Hanukkah, I was sending cards with Jesus on the front of them.   This year, I couldn't decide on just one picture of Percy, so I sent three.  This required additional postage, but it was totally worth it.  Here's a couple of ones that I didn't send:

On Sunday, we went to our monthly brunch which was being held at Laina and Mo's house.  Laina had just received a shiny new engagement ring, and was showing it off to everyone.

Nate: I've never been so tempted to lift something off someone's finger.

Laina: You've just received an automatic invite to every event we ever have here.

Laina was purposely picking up things just so that you could see the ring.  Including this text

"Watching Mo play soccer."

Later that evening, we went to see Frozen with the whole fam, as Zach finally got some time off of work. 

Nate: I want to see a Disney ad budget.

Zach: In quarters. On my front porch.

The movie was a delight, though, I've been told that I am partial to the Disney Princess movies.  Just a lil bit.  :P

5K of Cheer!

Okay, so this actually happened this morning, but I’m sharing anyway.  J

My parents sent Dawne and the fam two cards, one for Thanksgiving and one for Hanukkah.

Dawne: They are so good to me.

Me: Aww, that’s so sweet of them to send you those… I didn’t get one.

The last couple of weeks, I’ve been super negative and depressed.  I finally decided that it must be the medication that I started taking a couple of weeks ago.  When I told my co-worker, he looked up the medication.

Ryan: The side effects include depression but it doesn’t say anything about negativity or being a b*tch, so I think that might just be you.

Either way, I’m feeling a lot better. J

Let’s see, on Thursday, I did NOT going to the Xbox One launch party, b/c I was still on that medication, and didn’t want to be a Debbie Downer. On Friday, we celebrated the Sabbath, and then played Ticket to Ride for the first time.   I lost, and I had fun.  Weird.   Although, people have been telling me that Tsuro is like Ticket to Ride, and b/c I had never played I would just nod politely.  Now, I realize, that they were all on crack. 

On Saturday, I got some shopping done, watched some films, edited some college essays, all before heading over to a party at my boss’s house.   I didn’t stay out too late though, because I had to get up and do something awesome on Sunday. 

The Ugly Sweater Run

My Co-worker bought a shirt on the site that the Ugly Sweater Run recommended.  He thought it was a festive reindeer sweater, despite the “Threesome” title.  When he realized what he had planned on wearing (for photos to be sent to his grandmother), he was thoroughly embarrassed – especially because he got a matching sweater for his pup.   He wore it anyway. 

This run was for Toys for Tots, and was the main reason that I signed up.  The other reasons were that it was not a timed run, walking/jogging was encouraged, instead of Gatorade at the stops, there was hot cocoa, and you got free beer at the end of the race.  Pretty awesome.  Never-the-less, I almost completely forgot about the Toys for Tots part of the day and made Jordan turn the car around at the last minute.  We managed to pull out two huge bags of brand new games and toys out of our house in under 5 minutes.  Go Team!

Lucas: That Bellevue Academy looks more like a Costco than a school.  Like they are selling the kids wholesale.

Dawne: I can’t think of anything worse than keeping kids in big cardboard boxes.

Me: What are you talking about? Kids love hanging out in cardboard boxes!

Me: Oh man! I just looked right into the sun.

Lucas: Ouch! I had to do it after you.

We came home, hot tubbed, showered and then headed back out to Laina and Mo’s open house. Laina and Mo bought a house and then, the very next day after signing the paperwork, Mo was shipped out to Afghanistan.  He’s on a two week leave now, and upon entering his house for the first time (he’s been gone since June), he started leaving his stuff all over to annoy Laina.  I asked him how much he had packed for the trip and he told me, “I have a small bag that contains two pairs of underwear, two shirts, and a pair of pants, my iPad and The Thursday War (a Halo Novel).”  All the essentials!

When I came home, this little guy was on the dining room table waiting for me.  Such a little Stich. 

I hope you have a wonderful holiday tomorrow!