Picking the perfect Christmas tree

We have a tradition in our family. The day after Thanksgiving we go and pick out our Christmas tree, bring it home and start the Christmas season. We love being together as a family, trudging around through clumps of grass and tree stumps looking for the perfect tree that will accent our home and be the center of attention.










This year, we were lucky. We found it within 5-10 minutes. Maybe it was because the tree was right there looking perfect, or maybe it was because it was so blasted cold out and we just wanted to get back to where it was warm! Either way, here we are looking around, pointing it out and checking to make sure it did not have to many dead needles in the center.

When we find the tree we are so overjoyed that the love must be spread. See us sharing the love, giving the tree a hug? Or maybe we are just being silly waiting for Lee to come back with the chainsaw.

















Looking cute is a requirement because I will snap your picture and blog it........eventually.

The nice man at the tree farm cuts it down and helps us load it each year. By the way, we have been getting our trees there since 2001. Spencer's first trip was when he was only 4 weeks old and maybe close to seven pounds. boy we bundled him up GOOD.
















Taking the hayride back is always fun. We like to sing Christmas carols.

Try to keep warm under the blankets.

Or if you are a crazy 5 year old, surf the hayride.












They do a great job of shaking out the dead needles.














When we bring it home, Lee sets it up, then I put all 500 million lights on it. This year we had to go with colored lights because the white ones seemed to have gotten lost in the move. Drats!








We put the "polar express" train under the tree this year. The kids loved it.

Unfortunately, I was too sick and too tired this year. So I did not put even half the bulbs on the tree, so it is not as pretty as normal. In fact I was very disappointed with it, but that is my fault not he tree's. It served us well and did look beautiful all lit up at night. Much better than this awful pictures shows.

Here are the kids Christmas eve night after they opened their one present each. We gave them the cutest plaid Disney Jammie's. I threw these in because they are just so gosh darn cute! However, you can see the tree behind with some of our special ornaments.











I love Christmas, I love the feelings I get at Christmas and giving gifts to those I love.





I have to say that I am so thankful for God and for Him giving us the best gift of all His son Jesus Christ.

One Long, Lazy Cat

Our Callie.....What can I say. Here she is on the bed being lazy, looking at me as if to say " You have disturbed my nap." We have since had to give her away because of an evil bad tempered neighbor, and I miss her terribly. I do however have lots of good memories and can go visit her out in the country. That is, if she is not out catching mice.......or napping.

And by the way, here is Callie being lazy sunning herself in the front upstairs window.

Thanksgiving 2009.....One for the books

Thanksgiving, a time when families come together and celebrate abundance and all the many things they have to be thankful for. Extra time has been put into the setting of the table so that it is just so and looks beautiful with the antique plates that came from Grandma when she got married, the turkey is roasting giving the house a delicious, mouth watering smell and life is good.

At least that is how it is supposed to be........and usually is around my house. However this year it was a little different. At 12:07 am to be exact I was awakened by my son vomiting in his bed. As I rushed in to help him I realized this was beyond my mom capacity and thankfully my wonderful husband came in and took care of the mess while I took Spencer down stairs to rock. Which then turned into a vomit fest of every 30-45 min all night long until about 8:00 in the morning. At that point my husband came down from slumber land and sent me up to bed for a few winks, called everyone who amazingly enough said that they would still come over. I know, crazy. He took care of everything, got the turkey roasting etc....... What a man!
I went through the day like a zombie on sleeping pills going from my family downstairs to checking on Spencer upstairs, but it was still nice.

As is our tradition, we went and got our Christmas tree on Friday since Spencer was better by then. Then, Friday night as I was getting the lights on the tree, I heard Jordan start in with the vomiting around 7:00. Lee started in as well. this was shaping up to be one very bad weekend. Sure enough I got sick on Saturday too. So did everyone else who was at our house of thankfulness. Interestingly enough so did my husbands family who did NOT come to our house.

Into this brewing petrie dish walked my daughter's boyfriend who is obviously insane, and took her out for the night. She and Derek are now back at Purdue and I am just waiting to hear of his porcelain worship................So if you hear of an outbreak of stomach flu at Purdue, you can blame a very pathetic little seven year old boy who we are calling patient zero, and one very ___________(insert your own word here) young man who had to see his girlfriend.

My aunt Jackie, whom I haven't seen for 15-20 years came for a visit to her old stomping grounds. I always loved Jackie and really wanted to see her, so last Saturday we packed up the kids and trekked down 52 to the local Dairy Queen for a short visit. It was so nice to see her and the pictures of my cousin's that I also haven't seen for years. I can't believe that one of my cousin's is a grandfather! Boy, time does fly.

After our visit and an ice cream cone, we went to 310 E. Main St. The house where my Mom was born there in Thorntown. Someone was there and let us in to look around. I was surprised at how much the house had shrunk since I was a little kid. It is just amazing how that happens.

It was really nice to be able to see Jackie and visit with her. She still has the bright blue eyes that I remember. I wish we had had more time, and I hope we can get together again soon.

A Massachusetts Weekend

The year...1990, the place...Purdue University. That was the year that Samantha came into my life and became my best friend. Through thick and thin, and I'm not just talking our waistlines here, we have withstood the test of time.

So..for her birthday this year, my wonderful husband flew me to Massachusetts to visit her for the weekend. Isn't he just the best!

Needless to say, we had the best time!!!!!!!!!!! I arrived on Friday the 2nd of October. We cruised over to Boston Gliders a segway tour company. After a half hour of practice time, which ended up in playing around time because it took all of 5 minutes to master a segway, we were off with our tour guide Katie. Let me just state right here that the pedestrians were lucky we had mastered them as we literally raced back and force along the sidewalk, spun in circles and generally acted like a couple of teenagers with a new toy.

Here is Samantha right after she got on for the first time. Notice the look of uncertainty on her face. With a couple of helmets that made us look utterly horrible, we were off to tour the city.





The battle of Bunker Hill spot. "Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes."

Riding along and seeing these historic spots made me wish I had paid more attention in school. I loved it, you could just feel history.

The Constitution, better known as "Old Iron Sides" A beautiful old ship. It is the oldest ship still in commission. A ship has to sail one mile per year to be in commission, so on the fourth of July each year, they take her out a half mile and bring her back in.


The old North Church.
"One if by sea, two if by land." I loved the beautiful old architecture of the whole city.

Paul Revere's house. He only lived in it a short time, then rented it out.



John Hancock's house. Wow!

The tiny little cobblestone streets are so cute, and narrow! I kept thinking that they were just alleys we were going down, but no, they are real streets that people live on. It was like we were on a movie set or something.

Boston Harbor. Where, of course, they have the fourth of July fireworks each year.


Segway's MOST FUN EVER!!!!!!!!!

After the segway tour, we looked around in some shops, then went to the cutest Italian restaurant. Run by real Italians. OK, I may impress easily but Italian to me means going to the Olive Garden, this was cool.

We had the best dinner ever! Lobster stuffed ravioli for me and chicken parmesan for Samantha. That was after having bruchetta as an appetizer. Boy do I love basil.

We then stood in line and hit up Mike's pastry for canollies. Yum yum! I have never had canollies before and these were the bomb! And yes, I know I spelled cannolies wrong, but I'm NOT Italian and my spell check does not have it in there!

Sunday, we went to Plymouth, MA so I could see the Plymouth rock. Now, like most of you I was expecting this really big thing.

It is exactly what it says it is........... A rock. They don't even know if it is "the" rock, but hey it is in the spot they obviously had to step out onto so it works for me.
It is down where you can't get to it, but I tried to get Samantha and it into the picture. If you look hard you can see it there on the left.

It does have a really big impressive canopy around it.

Some shots of the seafaring boats etc around there

This picture is just a little "dingy". Yeah, pun intended no matter how bad.
Imagine my surprise when I discovered I had my own hill in Plymouth.

Shots around Grafton where Samantha lives. It had not been cold enough to bring out a lot of color to the trees yet, but it was still beautiful.


Oh, I just love all these old buildings. I want to just soak up the atmosphere.

Thanks babe for sending me to see Samantha and reconnect with her, and thanks Samantha for taking me into your home, driving me everywhere, and being the best hostess in the world. I had one of the best times of my life.

Oh, and by the way, now every time I walk by a segway in the airport I have to really work hard at holding myself back and not climbing on and going for a joy ride. I wonder if I could ask Santa to bring me one for Christmas?