Monday, Monday

I feel like I'm starting off the week right.  I'm getting back into my groove.  It's a good way to start the week, especially on the day everyone hates.

I woke up once in the middle of the night, and prayed that God would take any unnecessary thoughts out of my head so I could go back to sleep.  It worked.  I dozed off till 6:00.  I got up at 7:00, after spending some time with the Lord, and got my day started.  My cousin was bringing the kids over today, since there's no school (Martin Luther King Jr. day).  I figured they'd be here between 8:30 and 9:00, so I had to get moving.  I had already decided what we were gonna have for lunch/dinner: spaghetti with meat sauce, breadsticks, and salad.  I needed to get the sauce in the crock pot early.  I don't care for sauce in a jar, so I make my own.  It's so simple, yet so much better (and healthier) than anything in the stores, and it takes less than 10 minutes to prepare.  A couple cans of crushed tomatoes, garlic, dried basil, dried oregano, one dried bay leaf, sofrito (made with onion, green pepper, garlic and cilantro), olive oil, salt and pepper.  Throw all the ingredients in the crock pot, and in 3 hours you have sauce.  Done.  The meat gets added later.  For breakfast, I decided to make pancakes.  I like buttermilk pancakes, again from scratch, because in my opinion they are just as easy to make as the boxed version, only they don't taste like a cardboard box.  I made a batch, along with bacon,  Oh, my kids love me, and now you know why.

As I was finishing whipping up our breakfast, the kids arrived.  They were actually late; it was after 9:00 when their dad dropped them off.  They brought bags of cereal that they had for breakfast, as we sat down to our pancakes.  Once I got the dishes in the sink the kids immediately asked to play a board game.  They brought Monopoly Jr., which they'd gotten for Christmas.  Over the summer I babysat them everyday, and we played at least 2 board games daily.  They loved coming over to my house because I took the time to play with them and teach them games.  I believe board games are so much better than video games; they're more interactive, and require more thinking.  While video games can be good for motor skills, so can card games.  The best part is, with board games you're looking at your opponent in the eye, rather than at a television screen.  I'm not opposed to video games; I just think there's better stuff out there.  So we played a game of Monopoly Jr. (totally fun), then my son R came out and started playing on his Wii U.  And they were gone.  For the next 2 hours.  Oh well, at least I was able to keep them focused for a little while.

I took advantage of those 2 hours and got some cleaning done.  Yesterday, as I was folding laundry, I tried to plug a light into the wall and accidentally knocked down my Dyson vacuum cleaner, the one that's been out of commission for the past few weeks.  I'd tried taking it apart to figure out why it wouldn't stand upright or work properly, but to no avail, so I had it in my room as I tried to decide whether to get it fixed or not.  As I picked it up to put it back where I'd had it, I realized what the problem was.  A piece, conveniently located right in front of another piece that I had taken apart and put back together, was out of place.  I moved it back to where it was supposed to go, and voila!  The vacuum cleaner was upright again.  Since it was already late at night I hadn't tested it, but I did try it out today.  It works like a dream.  To think I'd done so much to try and fix it, yet in one split second it was up and running.  All I could do was shake my head.

My daughter stayed home from work today.  Her throat is sore, her voice is gone, she had a low grade fever, and her sinuses are hurting.  Sounds just like what her brother had.  The good thing is that she's been able to nap during the day.  The bad thing is, she's gotta work tomorrow.  Hopefully she'll feel better in the morning.

After cleaning up I browned the ground beef and added it to the sauce, then made the breadsticks and spaghetti.  I like Pillsbury breadsticks; they taste good and are less messy to make.  As I was pulling the salad fixings out of the fridge, the kid's mom came and brought them pizza.  It's easy to see what their favorite food is: they went at it like piranhas.  I made the salad with a few sweet peppers from my garden, and my one lone tomato which had finally turned red.  It was a tiny little thing, but it packed a lot of sweetness!  I'm hoping it won't be the only tomato I get from that plant.

As I sat down to eat my lunch I took a look at the Bare Escentuals website to see about my order.  I hadn't gotten an email yet but I kind of hoped there would be an update about it shipping (there wasn't).  What I did see that caught my eye:  10% off everything on their website, and free shipping.  Why do they do this to me???  It's like they knew there was something I'd wanted to order but hadn't, so they enticed me with an incredible offer.  I have to admit, I debated back and forth whether to place the order or not.  I went through my makeup, reviewed my budget, and ultimately I got it.  It's a set of 5 eyeliners in different colors: bronze, green, taupe, plum, and gold.  This set normally sells for $29; one Lasting Line eyeliner on its own sells for $16.  This particular set was already on sale for $13; with the discount and tax I ended up paying just over $12.  That's about $2.50 per pencil.  I couldn't let a deal like that slip away!  Besides, I currently have 2 black eyeliners and 3 brown ones.  I also have one called Forever Brandy, which is a sort of burgundy/purple shade.  One of the brown ones is a bronze color, but that would be the only repeat.  I'm excited about having pencils in different colors because, at my age, black is harsh against my skin.  I'll still wear it, because I love black eyeliner, but it's too dramatic for anything other than special occasions.  Lighter colors are more flattering, and these colors will be a perfect fit.

As I was putting the lunch dishes in the dishwater, I asked my 8 year old niece if she'd gotten homework over the weekend.  She said that she had, and that she'd done all of it except for Reading Plus.  Reading Plus is a computer program the kids in public school use to improve their reading skills.  She knew she was supposed to do Reading Plus at my house, but she hadn't mentioned it to me.  When I asked her about it, she said, "I was going to tell you."  Uh-huh.  Like 5 minutes before her grandma picked her up?  Yeah, right kid.  I had her sit down and get to work.  She could have finished quickly, but she's so easily distracted!  Her brothers played on their tablets to keep them quietly occupied (as if it's possible to keep two little boys ages 5 and 7 quiet), and she was almost done by the time her grandma came to get them.  It was sad for me to see their grandma; she had been grandma Maria's primary caretaker for almost 30 years.  Her mother had helped her raise her daughter, and she in turn had cared for her mother in her declining years.  While she smiles and loves on her grandkids, there's definitely a sadness in her eyes, and I'm sure an empty spot in her heart.  We all know grandma Maria is with Jesus and she's no longer suffering.  It's the one comforting thought we have.

Once they were gone I fed Molly, then went to the front yard to trim some trees and bushes that were getting overgrown thanks to last week's rains.  Tomorrow is trash day, so I wanted to get as much debris inside the garbage tank as could fit.  I filled it up but good!  It took me an hour but thankfully the weather has been superb, in the low 70's with a nice breeze, so yard work was actually pleasant.  I had my dinner and rested a bit before taking my shower.  I cleaned up, picked up, and now I can try and plan tomorrow's school day.  Honestly, I have no clue what we're gonna be doing.  E has finished all his assignments; unless there's something he needs to change or correct, he's done, but he has 2 days of school this week.  I'm pretty sure his teachers won't be having any live lessons, since they have to finish grading everyone's final exams.  I'm waiting to see if I get any emails from his teachers, otherwise we're gonna have to figure something out.  Shouldn't be too hard, right?...

With that I will bid everyone a good night, sweet dreams, rest well, and remember, Jesus loves you.

The Last Sunday of the Year

Ever have a lazy day?  One where you just hang around and don't do anything but rest and get waited on the entire day?  Yeah, me neither.

I was kind of running slow this morning.  My nose was stuffy, my throat was kind of sore, and my sinuses were somewhat inflamed.  What is it about Sundays that I wake up feeling under the weather?  Speaking of which, what is up with our weather?!  Ours has been in the 80's.  I'm not even kidding.  It is winter and our temperatures get into the low 80's in the afternoon.  The humidity comes and goes, but just the other night the fog was so intense my son says he couldn't see 5 feet in front of him when he was driving home from work.  Thank The Lord he got home safe!  I think the weather has affected my allergies, because I don't feel sick like I'm getting a cold.  Whenever I cough it's because my throat feels dry or irritated, and I wake up with post nasal drip (which I HATE!).  I'm hoping we get some cooler weather in the next few days to counteract all these allergens, but gauging by the forecasts it doesn't look like that's gonna happen anytime soon.

So anyway, my morning started out sluggish.  I showered, washed my hair, then went into the kitchen to get something to eat.  Once again this week we weren't having our regular Sunday school class, instead it would be one combined class.  Again I knew I would miss it, because I wasn't feeling up to being in a large room full of people and me with my drippy nose.  I took my time getting ready, and I looked really nice if I do say so myself.  I put on my new skirt with the tank top, then went into my closet to see what I would put over it.  First off, I put on a light sweater in black that my daughter gave me because she doesn't like wearing it anymore.  I thought it looked nice, except that it's kind of long.  I asked her what she thought, and she shook her head no.  So I went back and pulled out a white sweater with green polka-dots that matched the skirt.  Again my daughter responded in the negative.  So I pulled out a short sleeved jacket that I normally wear with its matching navy blue skirt.  The blue of the jacket matched the blue of the skirt.  I figured she wouldn't like that one either but I didn't know what else to try.  The minute she saw me she said, "That's the one!"  It was my least favorite look, in my opinion, but she convinced me it looked nice so I went with it.  For makeup I did the same look I had yesterday.  I used my Pretty Wild kit from Bare Minerals which has matte eye colors in lavender and moss green, but I perked it up by using an eye primer with some shimmer to it.  It livened up the look a little without being overpowered in glitter.  I also used a new eyeliner pencil in brown, one of their Round The Clock liners.  It went on smooth as butter, and it was so velvety!  I couldn't believe how pretty it looked.  My hair also looked nice, though I knew what would happen the minute I walked out the door:  frizz city.  I put some anti-frizz serum when I styled it, and hoped for the best.

Pastor Ray continued last week's sermon on The Original Christmas based on Luke 2:10-14.  He was on fire preaching The Word today!  Whenever I hear him preach, I am challenged to give God my very best.  That's what His Word should do for all of us - give us a desire to do more and be more like Him.  Even though I didn't feel great health-wise, spiritually I felt renewed.  I had thought about staying home because I wasn't feeling my best, but I'm glad I didn't.  His Word revives me.

When I got home I felt like I wanted to eat something comforting.  I threw a frozen pizza in the oven for E and made myself a bowl of oatmeal with brown sugar and cinnamon.  That there is comfort food for me.  It warms my tummy and makes my heart smile.  Something that simple can make me feel like new.

My daughter got home early from her church.  She works at the church so she usually stays later, but the youth group didn't meet today because of the Christmas/New Year holiday, so she was able to leave earlier.  After lunch we went to Ulta to get credit for the starter kit I gave her for her birthday.  I had ordered the set online, so before leaving the house I got the packing list from the shipment and printed off the invoice so that I wouldn't have any trouble getting the credit.  Ahead of us was a lady who was trying to get credit for a cream she'd purchased, apparently she felt the price was wrong or something, but she had no receipt.  She left in a huff because they could not give her credit without the receipt.  I was kind of wondering if they'd give me a hard time too, but not at all.  When I told the lady I wanted credit because I'd ordered the wrong color and showed her my paperwork, she smiled and said, "That's everything I need."  They offered to credit my card or issue a store credit, and my daughter opted for the store credit, which was fine by me because that way she could get what she wanted and I wouldn't have to keep tabs of how much I owed her.  She quickly went through the store, but we found very little.  Turns out they were sold out on a lot of items because of Christmas, and are waiting for a stock shipment to be delivered tomorrow.  My daughter was looking for some makeup brushes but all she found was one.  Since she has the store credit I'm not concerned; she can buy something another day, or she can place an order online.

From there we went to the mall.  Her dad gave her a beautiful Michael Kors purse for her birthday, but the style isn't what she would have picked out for herself.  It's a sort of messenger bag with a drawstring at the top.  The problem is, the drawstring doesn't open completely, so it's hard to get anything inside the bag.  She wanted to see if there was any bag she could exchange it for that would work a little better.  I parked where we always park, next to Sears.  I totally forgot that Macy's is on the extreme other end of the mall :P.  That's how often I shop there (which is never).  We went to take a look at the bags to see what was available.  I was taken aback; these purses are ridiculously priced!  I mean seriously, the cheapest bag we found cost $198 ya'll!!  Her dad had some sort of coupon because he only paid $157 for the bag he got her (it has a return label that they scan and it shows the price that was paid).  Still - $157?!  It's not like the bag is gold plated!  We looked at other bags but none were in her price range, so she decided she would make this bag work.  Can't say I blame her.

Later on my kid's cousin came over with the kids, bearing gifts.  This cousin is actually my children's second cousin, and I've known her since she was 4 years old.  Now she's a mom of 3, and I got to babysit her kids over the summer.  The kids brought me a belated birthday gift, pink nail polish in a pretty set.  They also brought me electronic Yatzee, which I thought was cool since I'd taught them to play the old style Yatzee over.  We played tons of board games when I was sitting them and they learned so much, especially about good sportsmanship.  We had a nice visit, even though it went on till pretty late.

It's almost midnight now, and I'm ready to hit the sack.  Lord willing I'll post more about our visit with family.  For now, all I can say is, good night.  

Another Birthday Celebration

I think every mom remembers the day her babies were born.  God made it easy for me; He gave me 2 sweet children who share a birthday so my memories would be even more delightful.

Today my daughter A turns 25, and my son E turns 15.  I'm still having trouble wrapping my head around the fact that my baby is halfway through his teenage years, and my daughter has lived a quarter of a century.  Then again, I can't believe I've lived over half a century, but let's not focus on that.  Both of them were Christmas presents, but they are not twins.  They came 10 years apart.  I worried when my daughter was growing up that she would resent having to share her birthday with her brother, but she never did.  Her brother would tell the world the story of how he and his sister have the same birthday, so it was never an issue with him either.  I'm so glad; I didn't want my kids to be mad about having to share their birthday, and they've always been so mature and loving about it.  I really do have great kids.

I was in the dining room enjoying a cup of coffee when my son woke up.  There were birthday presents waiting for him on the kitchen counter, but he wouldn't open them until his sister and brother got up.  My daughter didn't take very long to follow.  She was a little less patient than her younger brother - she wanted to tear into her presents right away!  I had to issue a disclaimer before she opened my gift to her:  after we'd visited Ulta and I saw what makeup products she really liked, I went ahead and placed an order for them for her birthday.  I got her the Naked Eyeshadow Palette by Urban Decay and the Starter Kit by Bare Minerals in medium beige.  That was back in November.  In December, her dad took her to the mall so she could pick out her Christmas gifts because he didn't know what to get her.  He likes shopping at Macy's; she doesn't care for the clothes there, but she did know they have makeup, so she went to the Sephora section, where she asked her dad to get her the Naked 2 Basics palette.  She also got the consultant to color match her for Bare Minerals powder foundation, and asked her dad to get that for her, too.  The color the consultant matched her with was golden medium.  Her dad immediately complied, and she brought the products home for me to wrap for her.  I kept my cool and wrapped her gifts, knowing full well she would want to exchange whatever I'd gotten her that were duplicates.  The eyeshadow palette I'd bought her wasn't the same one but it was similar enough that I figured she wouldn't want it, and the Bare Minerals starter kit was definitely the wrong color so she wouldn't want to keep that either.  I thought about going to the store and exchanging it myself, but I started second guessing what she would want and if she would want to keep part of her present, so I left it alone.  I figured she could decide what she would keep and what she would exchange.  I told her as much before letting her open up her gift.  The gift bag contained several different items.  I'd gotten her some lip pencils/lip stains that came in the cutest dark purple clutch.  The colors are just what she likes, neutrals and reds.  She also found an Urban Decay eye lid primer and eye liner pencil which she loved.  Then she opened the box with the Naked palette.  Her smile went from big to gynormous.  She wanted that palette and had intended to get it for herself; now she didn't have to because Mama had gotten it for her.  Score!  Then she opened the Starter Kit.  We both agreed, there was no reason to keep it.  The products were either wrong, or she already had purchased them herself.  I told her she could take it to Ulta for an exchange, and she immediately started planning what she could get.  She also asked if we could go to the Bare Minerals store that we have locally, and I told her that we could, which made her even happier.  I felt so much better after that.

My son then opened his present from his sister:  a book with all kinds of trivia about his favorite show, Doctor Who.  He loved it!  Then he opened Mom's gift.  From the moment he knew his dad had bought him the Wii U for Christmas, all he kept asking for was the new Super Smash Brothers game.  Of course I was going to get it for him, but I also got him a Pacman game, and I wrapped both of them together, so when he picked up the package it didn't feel like a video game, it felt like a book.  He opened it and just about exploded when he saw he got the game he wanted so badly.  When R woke up he opened his gift: a set of pins based on the Pokemon video games.  What was funny, was that R put them inside a box of crackers and wrapped the box, so when E opened it he wondered why his brother was giving him crackers for his birthday!  Once he realized it couldn't be crackers, he found the pins and was absolutely surprised and excited!  His sister opened her present from R next.  It was a video game called Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box.  She likes those sorts of solving games so it was perfect.

Their dad had called the day before inviting the whole family to breakfast.  He called bright and early to wish them a happy birthday and ask where they wanted to go.  Living in the South, the answer to that is easy:  Cracker Barrel.  I don't know of any other place in our area that makes down home Southern cooking in a casual country environment.  My daughter hung up and we started getting ready.  I wasn't enthused about going, but I'll do anything for my kids, so I got dressed and was putting on my makeup when my daughter said, "Dad just called; he's already at the restaurant waiting for us, and he says it's packed."  We had to quickly get ready so we could be there and try to find parking which he said took him forever to find.  As soon as we drove up into the parking lot, two cars pulled out.  No waiting for us!  Better yet, I parked the car, we got out, and my son got a call from his dad:  they'd just seated him.  He waited 40 minutes for the table, we waited nothing.  God's gift to my children!  We sat down and their dad gave them their presents:  A got a lovely pen and a Michael Kors bag, and E got new headphones and a coin bank with over $180 in it.  They both loved their gifts!  We were so glad that the service was fast and the food delicious - we were starving!  We had a really nice, relaxing time, for which I'm very grateful.

Once we got out of the restaurant, we went to the mall for our Bare Minerals excursion.  Our Bare Minerals store is in an outlet mall that's fairly large, so the boys could go look at stuff while the girls looked at makeup.  My son E is wanting to get a longboard so his brother took him to see some.  A and I went into the Bare Minerals store and had a field day!  They were having an incredible sale!  I'm not even joking, I got stuff so cheap I'm still pinching myself to make sure I wasn't dreaming!

The first item we saw when we walked in was the Hot List.

The original price on this kit was $49, and it had been reduced to $24.50.  At half price this was a good deal.

The 5-in-1 eyeshadow primer alone costs $18.  This kit brought a bronzer, eyeshadow duo, highlighter and lipstick as well.  I was thinking about it when the sales clerk said that everything on the tables in the aisle were 50% off the last sticker price.  I was like, Excuse Me?!  That meant all these products were just $12.25!  She said yes, and I immediately grabbed one and told my daughter she needed to do the same!  I then proceeded to go kind of nuts.

The Eye Color Trio contains two high shine eyeshadows and a small eyeliner.  The eyeshadows are on sale on the website for $9.50 each.  I got this set for $9.75.

The Finishing Touches kit brings a mini mascara, mini lip gloss and mini hydrating mineral veil.  I paid $4.75.  I've been wanting a hydrating mineral veil, and the rest is just bonus.  But the best was the last item I got.

This deluxe size original foundation is twice the size of a regular jar of product.  The regular size is $27.  The deluxe is normally $39.50, but they had it for $29.50.  My main intention for going to the Bare Minerals store was to get foundation, because the one I have is getting low (it was a small trial size).  I could get the regular size for $27, or pay $2.50 more and get double the amount, which should easily last me a year.  The decision was simple - I had to have this foundation!  Everything else I got was icing on the cake, and I couldn't be happier!  I have to admit, there were more things in my basket that I eventually put back because I realized I was getting carried away.  I'm thoroughly pleased with my purchases, though.  I think I got some great items at dirt cheap prices!

From there my daughter wanted to go to Old Navy, which was right by where the boys were.  Since it was her birthday I said okay, though I'm honestly not a huge fan of Old Navy.  I've found a couple of things there but most of the clothes are, in my opinion, a bit too young for me.  That quickly changed when I saw the cutest plaid pencil skirt in hunter green and dark blue, reduced from $29 to $17.  I also found a tank top that matched the green perfectly, for $3.99.  I tried the skirt on and couldn't believe how perfectly it fit - you'd have thought I was the model they used for it!  I can't wait to wear my new outfit tomorrow for church!

We came home after that because E wanted to have some time with his best friend CS.  CS is IV's son, and the boys have been close buddies for a couple of years.  My son wanted to play Super Smash Brothers with his best friend more than anything else on his birthday, so we got home as quick as we could so they could have some time together.  They laughed so much, I couldn't help but laugh with them, even though I don't have any idea what they were laughing about!  While they had their fun, my daughter played with all her new goodies and I folded and put away laundry.  Afterwards A, R and myself played the Logo Game.  It's a funny sort of trivia game and I knew R would enjoy it.

My daughter wanted to go to Ulta today to get her starter kit exchanged, but by the time we realized it, it was almost 6:00 and we hadn't even had dinner yet.  We decided to leave it for tomorrow and went to pick up dinner, and each got to pick what they wanted:  A wanted Chipotle and E wanted KFC.  I had Chipotle as well; I like their bowls.  The meat was spicy and the food was filling.  I hadn't had anything to eat since breakfast so I was pretty hungry!

I think that's enough excitement for today.  I'm gonna get my makeup off and get my face exfoliated, then I'm gonna spend the rest of the night with my precious gifts, my kiddos.  I am so thankful to God each and every day for giving me such wonderful children.  I know I'm truly blessed.  Good night everyone.

Merry CHRISTmas!!

But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.

Galatians 4:4-5

The day is finally here, and what a lovely day it is.  Weather in the low 70's, overcast and breezy but not rainy, a tad humid but not too bad.  I love living in Florida!

Despite having gone to bed at almost 2 am, I was awake at 6:30.  Granted, I napped on and off from 11:30 till 1 am, but I think my body is on a clock that can't be adjusted.  I didn't mind, though; who can be upset about waking up early Christmas morning?!  I got washed up, then woke my little monkey up.  I laughed at the fact that it was 7 am and he was still asleep.  When I asked him why he was so different from other kids that wake up early, he shot up and said, "That's right, it's Christmas!"  His siblings were already up so we got started opening presents right away.  I definitely wanted to do this before their dad showed up.  Christmas is something I don't want to share with him, at least not right now.  Their father cares too much about the financial aspect of a gift; a present that isn't expensive is not a good present.  I'm very different.  I look for things that I know people will enjoy, regardless of the price.  If I find a nice shirt for my son and it only costs $7.00, I will still get it because it's something I know my son will like or that he needs.  His dad would be appalled at wearing something worth so little.  It takes all the fun and joy out of exchanging gifts if someone is constantly asking, "How much did that cost?" or "What did you pay for that?"  Even stores matter to him.  He won't wear something from Kohl's because his clothes have to come from Macy's or JC Penney.  I don't want my gifts to be looked down on, or my kids thinking their gifts aren't good enough.  So we opened our presents and enjoyed seeing what we all got.  My oldest son R got us all these really cute pillows that look like books.  He gave E a Treasure Island pillow, his sister got Alice In Wonderland, and I got my favorite book since I was a teenager, Sherlock Holmes.  It was such a cool gift!  He also gave me a cookbook, Ree Drummond's A Year Of Holidays, with all kinds of holiday recipes.  She is a favorite of mine, so I could not be happier!  I got 2 DVD's from my daughter, Annie Claus Is Coming To Town which is a super cute (sappy) Christmas movie that I totally love, and a collection of Disney's Herbie movies.  My youngest son gave me another movie I've been wanting for a while, Mom's Night Out on blu-ray.  It is one of the funniest movies I've seen, I highly recommend it!  Of course there was all the makeup I got from Bare Escentuals that I didn't have to pay for, which made for an even brighter Christmas!  My kids also liked their gifts, which was a combination of video games, board games and clothes.  Then I went to the kitchen to start making breakfast while they called their dad to come open presents as well.  As I made buttermilk pancakes and crispy bacon, my kids opened some very nice gifts from their father:  each of the boys got a Wii U console with games, and my daughter got clothes and makeup that she really wanted.  When it came to them giving him his gifts, it was clear what his favorite was.  R bought his dad a high-end pillow, made with Egyptian cotton, hypoallergenic, original price of $80 that he scored on Cyber Monday for $25.  A got him some Nautica perfume which he liked as well.  As for the facial products, he didn't seem impressed.  I don't think he realized what these products cost, but I didn't make a big deal about it.  It's Christmas, and I wanted to enjoy the day, not be upset by people I can't change.

After that I spent a whole lot of time getting the house back in order.  I make sure we have a couple of trash bags to throw away all the discarded wrapping paper, but I always keep the boxes, bags, gift tags and tissue paper.  Reduce-reuse-recycle!  I don't recycle the wrapping paper because it's hard to reuse once it's been cut and taped and the kids rip into it, but I keep everything else.  The tissue paper is the trickiest, making sure it's folded properly and not torn.  I filled up a bag with reusable tissue, then packed everything away in the closet.  There was plenty more to pick up and put away, too.  My son E was overwhelmed with the amount of clothes he got:  there were 2 pairs of jeans, 2 pairs of sweatpants, and 11 new shirts in different styles and colors.  You must understand, my son likes to wear the same 3 or 4 shirts ALL THE TIME.  It drives me nuts!  He has a closet full of shirts that he doesn't wear because either they don't fit him the way he likes, or don't fit him at all, or they have some kind of design he doesn't like.  His dad had bought him lots of Ecko Limited t-shirts but he doesn't like the bold designs on them.  This time all the shirts are plain round or v-neck tees, but it was so many he was sure he'd never get to wear any of them.  His older brother had a talk with him, and told him it was important that he make the effort to wear them, otherwise he would appear ungrateful.  He gave in and put on a dark grey shirt which looked really nice.  I'm hoping that once he gets used to the idea of having lots of nice clothes he won't feel like they're taking over his closet.  I did go in and pulled a bunch of shirts that he doesn't wear to take to Goodwill.  Once I'd done that the closet appeared empty, making it seem like there weren't that many new clothes after all.  I don't know if he's fully convinced; my son is a creature of habit, and new things don't fall into his habitual behavior.  As I told my daughter, he definitely isn't a girl.  Girls would love nothing more than to receive a boatload of clothes for Christmas!

I started lunch just after noon.  The turkey was done from the day before; all that was needed was some mashed potatoes and green beans.  My best friend IV stopped by as I was cooking, and brought a Christmas present for us:  tickets for Winter Jam next month, and tickets to see Chris Tomlin in February.  I know she spent way too much money on these and I told her so, but she loves going to concerts and loves for me to go too.  I've told her I can pay for my own tickets but she goes ahead and buys them before I have a chance to get them myself.  I'm gonna have to figure out a way to stop this; I don't want her to get into a financial bind because she's being too generous with her money.  I got her a simpler but much appreciated gift:  the newest Tim Hawkins DVD.  Tim Hawkins is the funniest comedian I've ever listened to, and because he's a Christian my whole family can listen and not worry about him saying anything crass, inappropriate or vulgar.  It's family friendly laughs, and I don't think anyone can resist a good laugh!  After lunch all I could hear throughout the whole house was my son E playing Wonderful 101 on his new Wii U.  His brother had set both up before going over to visit his best friend since high school.  Today is not only Christmas, it's his best friend's birthday, which makes the visit extra special.  

Another neighbor stopped by and brought us a tin of Belgian chocolate covered wafers and cookies.  Oh my word, these cookies are SOOO delicious!  I'm afraid I'm gonna put on the 5 pounds I've struggled so hard to lose!

I cleaned up the kitchen, then sat down to watch Annie Claus Comes To Town.  I love sweet, romantic movies, and if they revolve around Christmas I love them even more!  Afterwards my kids wanted to play with their board games.  Even though it was just A and E because R had gone out, we still had fun playing The Logo Board Game and Say Anything.  I always get my kids board games for Christmas because we are board game lovers.  Board games, card games, word games, you name it, we play it.  What we won't do is play for money.  We compete fairly (no cheating allowed in my house), and we challenge each other.  Most importantly, we keep it fun.  

I've showered and moisturized, and now I'm going to relax with my new cookbook, researching new recipes that I want to try.  It's been a wonderful day, a day we celebrate because Jesus came to this earth over 2,000 years ago with the purpose of restoring our relationship with God.  Yes, my kids got me some nice gifts, and they are very happy with the presents they received, but ultimately the greatest gift of all is salvation through Jesus Christ.  I can live without anything, but I cannot live without Jesus.  We worship Him and praise Him, and we celebrate this momentous occasion, His birth.  I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas as well.  Good night now.