I do hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas.  We had a bout of sick run through, so Avery and I sat out some of the festivities.  I've managed to keep myself only to a sore throat and a dry cough, otherwise I feel fine.  The cepacol cough drops they gave me at the hospital when Avery was born have been a life saver.  Those things taste gross, but they certainly do what they're intended to.  Maybe I need to fire up another humidifier as it's down to 34% in the computer room.

It was still good to have a couple of days away from the work computers.   Further fortune shines as this is, as a result, a short week - and another long weekend is coming.

Today the dogs have the Groom and Zoom van coming for them.  Go figure it's under 10 degrees out there for said occasion.  We'll see how it goes.  It is going to cost roughly the same as the trip to the groomer did, but they come to me - so that seems like a win.

I also scheduled with a contractor to get cabinets put into the laundry room (next week)!  So yesterday we ran to Home Depot and snagged the cabinets and hanging rod.  I also bought a tree topper that I was eyeing, and four more wreaths for my windows at 50% off.  Now I need to find somewhere to store them.  Surprisingly all of this (and Avery and my Favorite Egg) all fit into the Sorento!

Let's talk about nostalgia.  Christmas has that way about it, doesn't it?  I got to chatting with my 5th grade teacher on FB today and I "wanted more" so, I hunted down and sent messages to two high school teachers on there too - ones with whom I really enjoyed their classes.

I made some cookies last night, but I'm a giant slacker as they were from a pre-packaged mix I bought from kids selling in the neighborhood.  I also intend to make a batch of no bakes, but again those don't really count.  I should be making home made chocolate chip and some pizzelles (there's the nostalgia), but it just won't happen this year.  These cookies, regardless, will cover me for something to take to two of the get togethers coming up for Christmas.  I need to make something else for the bigger meal/get together - but I might pull an old trick back out of my hat and simultaneously get my cranberry fix with some cranberry fluff.

The holidays also have a way of being depressing.  I know after all of the rushing about is done I will "come down" from it all and fight off being bummed out.  Here's where I put the PSA saying "dear friends, if you're hurting and feeling sad through the holidays, please don't allow it to get out of check.  Ask for help or talk to someone.  If you know me, you know you can call me any time."

I am pretty sure the dogs and the kid are working together against me to prevent me from sleeping.  Maybe that is my overly tired mind talking.  I believe I mentioned my desire for a nap on Sunday, or to at least return to bed in the morning that never happened.  Well Monday evening I closed my eyes while he held kiddo and she immediately started screaming.  I held her and she wiped out, but of course, you can't sleep while holding a wee one, so he took her back.

Now if I could have stayed downstairs maybe I wouldn't have noticed she was screaming again fairly soon.  But since the TV set up through the receiver is being cranky and I couldn't get the DirecTV to display I went upstairs - that was my sleep-fatal mistake.  I couldn't listen to her cry, I definitely couldn't fall asleep while it was happening - so I took her again and we rocked in the chair.  She fell asleep and there we sat for the next hour plus.

By the time I fed and changed her, and got my shower it was 11pm once again.  Since we're sleeping through the night that isn't so bad, right?  Well this is where the dogs joined in.  First there was the need to go outside around 4 something.  Then one of them needed yelled at for drinking from the toilet around 5:30am.  From there kiddo started her little noises and kicking around (as she does most days) so I didn't get back to sleep.  You'd think getting up in the middle of the night would have helped my back out too, but it didn't so I also feel a bit out of whack.

I'm truly to the point of whiny and cranky due to my desire for more sleep.  I tried to get it out of my system with a nastygram to Zulily.  Once again, they emailed on something I ordered saying "sorry, it isn't getting here as fast as we expected... and we'll cancel the order if we can't get it in 30 days".  My gripe:  You already charged me.  Your site said it would be here for Christmas.  It is for new Christmas stockings - for my child's first Christmas mind you.  I ordered more direct from that supplier that matches (tree skirt).  Don't cancel the order - fulfill it.  I had to pay for shipping, so I then shopped around more on your site and bought other stuff I prb otherwise would have talked myself out of.  If they don't send those items this will likely be my last (attempted) purchase from them.

Another weekend is gone and I didn't catch any extra sleep *sigh*  I have been able to sleep longer overnight, but that too has repercussions as I'm wiping out hard and not moving.  Then I wake up stiff with a very sore lower back.

I'm still trying to find those last few gifts and to get things (shipped gifts and cards) in the mail.  I don't feel too bad yet as I've only gotten three cards, and one of those was from a business.

Christmas photos were achieved this weekend though... and I gotta say I like them.  I look good.  It seems crazy to me, but I've never felt that way about photos of myself.  How did it take getting to this age before I could feel that way -- or do I just look that darn good now :)

This weekend was focused on Christmas, or at least the things I actually got achieved were.  Saturday afternoon we went to At Home so I could buy my tree.  I've been waiting for them to go on sale, but I simply couldn't wait any longer.  My coupon for joining their mailing list expired too - boo!  Regardless, we left there w/ the tree I liked the most and some new ornaments.  (Side note:  My mother would be in shock to see my tree.  White lights.  Not blinking.  One set of colors on the ornaments.)

While up there we also swung into Home Goods, Kirklands, and stopped to eat at the Industry Public House.  I had the most delightful fish and chips and a lovely black forest cake stout!

Sunday the wee one went down in the middle of crankiness for an extra long nap, which gave us long enough to get the tree up and the two wreaths out front on the windows.  Man, going from the old house to this one my wreaths look so insignificant - but how do you go about getting more of something you bought years ago?  You don't.  So the front of the house looks a little bare.  Ok, it looks really bare compared to much of the neighborhood.

I did not however get anything wrapped.  I still need to find a few more gifts too.  But the big thing is getting some wrapped and mailed out.

Ahhh Thanksgiving.  A little extra time off, good food, visiting, and the rush to figure out the rest of the Christmas gifts I need to purchase.  Avery met a few more of My Favorite Egg's family Thursday and today.  The weather was quite decent for the time of year.  Thank goodness as today's get together was in Bedford.

As many times as I've driven past Ed's Steak House, this was my first meal there and I have to say I'm pleasantly surprised.  My steak was delightful.

Since today was the last day any sane human being goes out in public to shop before Christmas and we wanted a Boscov's fix, we loaded up and headed north to the closest mall that has a Boscov's.  We found a few gifts, not too much and I at least got an idea for my Favorite Egg.  Avery loved the lights up high in the mall and we were sure to call out to Santa before we left.

I snagged a flyer out of curiosity.  $35 for 1 5x7, 1 3x5, and 2 wallets with Santa?  Sheesh, what a racket!  But you know it is a must, so I guess that will happen at some point, forcing me back into a mall after Thanksgiving.  We will need to book with the picture people again, who also happen to be in a mall, so I guess it's inevitable.

I know my dogs well.  I have systems and habits in place to avoid things I don't want them doing.  Really it's my own fault when I don't follow these procedures and they do what they do.  As I do each morning now, I ran to take Avery to daycare - it can be less than 10 minutes unless I stand there hugging on her or talking to one of the workers.  I returned to find things pulled from the small trash cans and throughout the living room and computer room.  *gah Danika!*

The extra grossness is that she adores tissues - pulling them out and shredding them.  It's cold season in my house, so a few cans are full of My Favorite Egg's, as my mother used to call them, snot rags.

Why was she given free reign on this occasion?  Because after I put them back in the bedroom from their trip outside she woke My Favorite Egg and he brought them back down/out and left the bedroom door hanging open.  I was too lazy to add "wrangle dogs back up the stairs and into the room" onto my pre-departure to do list while tending to kiddo.

Often people close to me will challenge this one saying, but if you're only gone for a little while you can't let them have free reign?  No, no I obviously can NOT.  She's enough of a jerk about this that just being outside mowing the lawn Danika will pull things out of the trash cans.  Thank you for the reminder that what I do I do for a reason and not just because I'm uptight and mean.

Food auctions - I fell in love with them in Jingletown, well at least the auctions that also had food.  There was one here today not too far away so we headed there after a lazy Sunday morning.  Nothing like 3 mangos, 2 caramel apples w nuts, two 1lb+ packs of flavor injected chicken legs, and two packs of 1lbish pork chops for $11.  We didn't get to stay long as it was chilly in there and we had the baby or surely our haul would have been larger.

Even though we weren't gone long we came back to a poopy mess, thanks Obama Dani.  So she needed cleaned up.  I scooped the yard too so My Favorite Egg could mow (one last time).

It was a productive long weekend, but I'm so not ready for it to end.

My day "off".  Let's see here.  I did get to lounge a little while longer in bed, but since I was up for an hour at 3am and 7am to feed the _sick_ baby and pump, lounging wasn't as awesome as sleeping would have been.  I wanted to hit the closest Ollie's which is about 20 miles away, so we packed up and headed out.  I didn't find anything amazing, but it was right next to a Giant Eagle, so I also stopped and did some grocery shopping.

I've gotten two loads of laundry washed (but not away) and the dogs brushed (that means the critters in our neighborhood have something to line their winter nests with).  The upstairs tile (bathrooms and laundry) rooms have been swept and are waiting for me to wash them.  The fur in the house on the first floor is waiting to be vacuumed and I wanted to scoop poop so I have a shot at mowing one more time.  But here it is almost 3pm, so I need to start figuring out dinner.  *sigh*  When do I get to cuddle and console the totes adorbs even though she's sick baby?

I've always posted the first day I needed to scrape my windshield.  I guess I can once again smile and be super grateful to have a usable garage.  For sure today though if my car were outside I would have needed to scrape.  Can you believe it took until well into November?  We only got what looked like a minor attempt at sleet the same day it snowed a little in Jtown.  The leaves are still clinging to the trees here too - which was not the case as we had gone up the mountain last weekend.

I know the cold must come, but I am going to celebrate every ray of sunshine I get.  Speaking of which, it's warmed back up again today, or at least into the 50's which is still pretty decent when the sun is shining enough to need sunglasses.

I ran out today to renew my concealed carry permit.  Of course the sheriff's office here is only open (like many) 9am-4pm and is closed tomorrow while I'm off.  So I got that in motion before swinging in to quickly buy more clothes for the little one.  With her being unusually small I don't have warm enough clothing for her in those sizes - go figure.  At least she is officially too big for some of her very first outfits.  She's growing, slowly, but she's growing.

It is shocking how much we rely on clean water flowing from our faucets.  I had guessed it was from the heavy rains, but it turns out it was simply a failure in filtration at one of the water pumping stations.  Either way I'm living with a boil water advisory.  So I can't use the ice from the ice maker or use the tap water for consumption without boiling it.  I'm lucky I had a couple of gallons of water downstairs for drinking purposes.

The bigger issue is cleaning bottles. So for tonight I just boiled a pot and sterilized the bottles that way.  I also boiled two other pots full to have water for the dogs tomorrow.  But this leaves open questions.  They say not to even use the water to brush your teeth... so can I shower?  I mean, I am still feeding kiddo and the water would be on me.  I guess I need to return to having an obscene stockpile of bottled water in the basement to avoid some of these issues.

The biggest surprise was I found out via text and email from the water company.  It's nice to know they don't assume everyone is glued to the nightly local news on a daily basis.  Hopefully they'll text when the issue is resolved as well, but in the mean time I'll be peeking at their website throughout the day.

The pounding rain didn't stop us this morning... and I'm glad it didn't as it stopped shortly after we left on our way to Jingletown. Of course, it had already done it's job derailing a car ahead of us on 70, so we were stuck in traffic for over an hour while we waited for the accident to be cleared.  This meant we got there way later than expected, but we still had quite a few people able to join us for a bite at El Jalisco, for which I am so grateful.  I can officially say Avery has been to Jtown and got to meet the Laws, the Rohannas, Jon and Heather, and Beff today.  More importantly we got to do some catching up.

The drive home was very uneventful.  I didn't do much but I'm bushed today.  Probably because my eyes were open at 5am, so not only did I not take advantage of the extra hour of sleep but I even got up an hour even earlier.  *sigh*  When The Walking Dead is over I'm showering and wiping out.