Christmas

The holiday season!


christmas 06 002

Originally uploaded by criscollrj.

We put up our tree Thanksgiving morning – we love this tree – a 9′ prelit we bought when we had our last Christmas in our old house in 2004. We had such a small house that after I bought it (half off, after Christmas) I was having a panic attack over where I’d put it (there would have honestly been NO ROOM in that house!) that it was a joy to put it in our living room in our new house last year. Our house was so much more bare last year as we’d just moved in!! Now I have a lot of decluttering to do to display our Christmas ornaments!

We’re still waiting to decorate it and unpack the rest of our Christmas boxes. The boxes are jokingly in another picture I took on my flickr picture list on the right of the blog. at least 20 boxes! They are still sitting there. I need to start unpacking them tonight since Ryan fell asleep easily at 9 and Chris is very calm!! Then I can take the boxes back up in the attic.

I love Christmas. It just comes so fast. I can’t believe it’s only a month away. I need to finish my Christmas web greeting site and start my Christmas cards also. I feel behind!

Happy season’s beginning to all!!!

 

Christmas, life, organizing

The list

 

  • 3 snows in 2 weeks – beautiful but cold!
  • Sent out Christmas postcards and emails – felt funny not doing regular cards, newsletters and pix but needed break!
  • Bought about half of Christmas presents?
  • Sold our old house – in-laws bought from us to sell after repairing – I hope they make good money on it!
  • Got ourselves a Christmas present/settlement check receipt celebration – 32″ flat screen (NOT HD or whatever) $500 TV with also a stereo system and beautiful cabinet and CD players yesterday! Have NEVER done that in almost 19 years of marriage!
  • Ate at a lovely delicious Chinese buffet yesterday too
  • Keeping up with dishes
  • Have unpacked all boxes in house about 3 times but then lugged more in from old house and in-laws and have to do it all again 😉
  • Haven’t seen hide or hair of our mouse (mice?) and no sign of them. 4 traps set
  • Our lovely Spice escaped last week and went downstairs and was only inches from the mousetrap. Found her when up early! She doesn’t seem very well now and we hope she’s okay 🙁

More soon, that’s the biggies.

Look for me to comment in a few weeks I HOPE! I love your comments and always read them. So I hope you have time to comment this time!

Blessed season to you all!

dori

Christmas, organizing, Weather

the mundane

A little more on little old me. Then I hope to come back soon (next week early hopefully?) and write comments to you all…

Freezing here, but it’s warm inside! I’m not going anywhere until afternoon. Last night I went to the other house and got some boots – for Rog, Chris & possibly Ryan (not sure if they fit). I couldn’t find any hats or gloves, so I’m going to have to go somewhere tonight with Doreen before or after Chiro and get some. My boots are at Gayle’s still. Tomorrow the kids have Saturday camp so I know they’ll need hats and gloves if they go outside. So no time to hunt all over.

I may go tomorrow to the other house for a while with Rog to pack up more stuff. We still need to go through everything there due to the moths and also just to sort. I’ve thrown lots of stuff away! We did take some moths here but are keeping all of our dry goods in big plastic rubbermaid bins. So far no problem with those. Then we need to do some birthday shopping for Chris.

And I’ll have to get up in the attic again at the old house to get all the rest of our Christmas decorations!

Last night after we got back, I was taking all the stuff in the house, and I turned around and saw Doreen’s vehicle as she was backing out – with the rear in the ditch and the front facing upwards a bit. Sigh. Some man came by and got someone else with a big truck and they pulled her out. But yep, some serious ditches here!!

Another surprise – I was in the basement yesterday and just happened to be looking towards Ryan’s toy box and I saw a little figure with ears and eyes – of course, I think Spice? But I looked and no, it’s GRAY and it went running off then behind Ryan’s toy boxes. MICE. Sigh.

So as usual lots of work and excitement at the household.

Better get to it – need to clean basement now and mop with bleach water and see if I see a mouse hole? And I need to clean upstairs again too….

Oh, I also fell down the outside stairs last night with my winter coat on thankfully- got a sore hipbone but no damage. I need my BOOTS for traction! We’ll be going out the garage from now on!

 

autism Ryan, chris, Christmas, Ryan, sleep

Yawn….. grrr.

I’m not very happy about the fact that Chris is up at 2:15 a.m. Just Sunday night he stayed up all night until 6 a.m. He seems to be doing this more often. Last year he started sleeping regularly July 15 with his hospitalization/med change. From july 15 until sometime at late fall he slept every night, then he had 1-2 nights he was up and he started suffering from his ear infections. All winter long if he stayed up it was usually an ear infection. It settled down again and he slept again for months and then last month (july) was up maybe 3-4 different nights – then, his swimmer’s ear. I wonder if he’s getting swimmer’s ear or ear infection again. My worst fear is that he’s losing the effect of his meds…. it’s happened before. (But not on these meds)

I am pretty tired and hope he sleeps soon – tomorrow is a very busy day and even at this point if he falls asleep right now I’m looking at about 4 1/2 hours sleep before I have to get up. We are going to Ryan’s last day family event day with an ice cream social. My mom is helping me. She is also watching kids so I can get a haircut. Then Thursday we’re going to a local waterpark (Rog will be off) for a fun day – Colleen had coupons from school. I’m not sure how much I really want to go but I know Colleen will enjoy it.

Ryan has had a lot of struggles at his summer preschool. He started hitting and even biting. They feel perhaps they didn’t have enough one-on-one attention for him. At his regular school he has a one-on-one. It will be interesting to see how his regular school year goes. His regular teacher in the school year seems to still be looking to make sure he’s not autistic, although the neurologist has ruled it out for the moment.

I really would like to run away somewhere, for just a little while….. only 1 more month (less than!) til Ryan goes back to school and I can take a BATH! or a NAP

DANG, i really wanted a shower, tonight too – was not counting on an all-night Chris party.

Ryan will be going to speech therapy 4 mornings a week in the school year. Since Colleen starts school at 8:00 instead of 9 I’ll be taking him to therapy at 8:30. It will be good to be done with that early and back home. He will get on his bus then M-Th. starting September 6 at 11:45 and if he rides bus home he’ll get home about 3. I’m hoping they let Colleen ride his bus – we’ll be in the situation where Chris gets home at 2:30-2:40, and I’m supposed to pick up Colleen at 2:30-2:45, and Ryan at 2:45. They said they’d probably have her go to Ryan’s class (they’re in the same school – preschool is at the middle school) and I hope they just let her ride his bus home. Or else I’ll have trouble being in two places at once!

Then I have to make decisions on several things – last year we did swimming on Monday, skating on Tuesday, counseling (for Colleen) on Wed., art (Colleen) on Thurs., and chiropractor (for all) on Friday. This year I would be adding on OT for Chris that is special at a center, possibly the same center for Ryan, and Colleen wants to do girl scouts and 4h Guinea pigs/small animals. Something will indeed have to give.

I am pretty sure I am not doing regular Christmas cards this year – I always do them and enjoy it SO much but this year for a little break I think I’m going to do holiday emails right at Thanksgiving, and then only send maybe 20-30 cards to family that doesn’t have email. A friend of mine and I plan to do some homemade goodies/crafts for Christmas gifts.

babbling to stay awake…….dori, not happy at 2:30 a.m.

 

Christmas, life, relocation North Carolina, sleep, work

Christmas!

 

Yes, I remember Thanksgiving is coming, and I’m ready – I LOVE Thanksgiving! But I just wanted to get my Christmas background done here before it’s almost Christmas and I have no time to do it!!!

We’re surviving okay – Chris is having a little trouble sleeping again which isn’t fun but it’s not as bad as it was. We have a problem with his ears being blocked up right now which we’re not sure how to deal with.

I’m trying to get Christmas shopping done early so I can just deal with all the school events, etc., in December! I already am starting Christmas card/newsletter prep. I hope to get them out by Dec 1!!!! We are overbooked with activities – here’s our schedule: (And remember our busy 2 3/4 year old is with -me ALL the time, doesn’t nap, and sleeps like 8-5 a.m. (I can’t go to bed at 8 because of other kids still being up until 10 or so).

Continue reading “Christmas!”