Crazy Fridge, Crazy Me

Last week I woke up at 2am to the sound of what I thought was Mark snow-blowing in our kitchen. It was loud, crazy, and obnoxious. I ran into the kitchen, still asleep but standing, to find Mark wrestling with our refridgerator. Somehow it decided to make a horrible noise, like it was going to blow up, in the middle of the night. Happy the boys didn't wake up. Mark unplugged the darn thing - and sure enough, 2 days later, the fridge died.

So here I sit on my couch, waiting for the delivery men to come with our new fridge - a cheap (but nice and pretty) one to leave in a house that is for sale. I told Mark that we need to move asap because with our luck, the stove, washer, and dryer will all die too - and I really don't want to be spending any more money on this house. I would rather spend it on nice appliances for the other house.

Teddy woke up last night at 3:30 screaming and decided he wanted to watch Sesame Street. Mark had been up the whole time (he hasn't slept in days due to the 2 job offers he's received - they are both great and he doesn't know which one to take!) and he really needed to sleep so in order to get some quiet in the house, I had to give into Teddy and let him watch TV at 3:30am. He pretty much passed out sitting up eating his lunch, so he'll be taking a nice long nap. But boy am I tired!!! Up since 3:30 and no nap in my near future.

We finally found an outfit for Ricky to wear for his Christmas performance at school. I just have to remember to get the pants hemmed in time.

So things have been crazy to say the least. No Christmas photo for our cards taken yet, no presents wrapped, not done with Christmas shopping. There's only about one week left, right? I've been meaning to bake some cherry pies for over a week and never got the chance yet. I plan on baking my Christmas cookies sometime too.

I took Teddy to story time at the library yesterday. They don't read a book - so I don't know why they call it storytime but we just sing songs and finger plays and they play with a bunch of toys. Then we go upstairs to the kids' department and he plays there for a while. He really likes it. It's hard for me to watch him at story time, and not following what the librarian is doing and not really listening. The other kids are following along and participating, and he stands up and runs away from me. It's hard for me to hear the other tots say "mama" or "book" and Teddy says nothing to me and just does caveman language. It really makes me worry that there is something more than just a speech delay. We won't be able to test for anything like that til after he's 3.

I'm going to try to sign him up for Tots Gymnastics this afternoon. They can't do it over the phone so I have to go out in the frigid cold to register! Ugh. Hopefully there are still openings. For Ricky we are considering floor hockey, swimming, or karate - we have to decide soon because everything starts the first week of January. I seriously do not know how people with more than 2 kids do it with all the sports and stuff!!

Anyway, not really sure what the point of this post was. Just babble!

After Turkey Daze

I was crabby for one more day after that last posting then snapped out of it. Thank god! I hate being in a bad mood. Such a waste of time. I missed story time at the library today - just too lazy. Instead I read Teddy 6 books and he played with our toys with our own germs on them. His attention span for books is getting better.

Thanksgiving was good. Since we spent last year's Turkey day with my side, it was Mark's turn. So we stopped at my mom's for about an hour for appetizers. It was also my sister's birthday - poor thing. Than we packed the kids back in the car and headed out for my SIL's house to spend the holiday with my IL's.

I cooked 2 side dishes and baked a cake for my mom to help her out. Then we picked up eggrolls and a yummy dessert to bring to my SIL's. My MIL and SIL are awesome cooks and I tried in the past but just realized it's not worth it (they like what they like are aren't open to try other stuff) so we just bring eggrolls and a dessert. No hurt feelings - less work for me!!

The food was great - the company was great. Our oldest nephew is home from college so it was fun to hear about college life from him. I felt bad for my SIL though - because her MIL invited their entire side to their house except for my SIL and her family - just to be a beeyatch. And they live 5 houses away. And just to be jerks, they ALL came over (my BIL's 2 brothers, spouses, kid, aunt, grandma, dad, etc), except her MIL, unannounced and uninvited for dessert and coffee. My SIL and I hid the expensive dessert we brought when the doorbell rang!! So they crashed our celebration. Not the classiest people.

Mark and I offered to host Christmas (are we crazy???) but it still seems like we won't do it. Mark's grandma has bad legs and is a big lady. She can't do stairs at all. A few guys would have to carry her up the stairs and she may not come to Christmas if we host (we have 7 steps into the house). I would love it if people could decide if she would or wouldn't and then decide if we're doing it or not so I can plan. I'll start whining that I need to know when I turn the calendar to December. The nice part is that we don't have to leave. We don't have to pack all the kids stuff - especially Teddy's blankie, pack n play, etc. And since Ricky is super allergic to dogs, he won't have to deal with the cough, runny nose, and not being able to breathe.

The sad part about hosting parties is that I never seem to relax and enjoy myself. Even our fun adult dress up Halloween parties are always a pain in the ass because someone has to answer the door, fill drinks, watch the food, make sure people are having fun dammit, etc. Or maybe I'm just too much of a spaz to be a good hostess. I don't know.

I don't do Black Friday. I hate crowds. We're not gift exchanging on my side of the family. As my sister says, 'My gift to you is that you don't have to buy a gift for me." but we will probably pick names on Mark's side. "Pick names" meaning that Mark and I will probably get our BIL and Mark's grandma because my MIL and SIL rig it every year that they get each other. I used to get annoyed but now I just don't care. Can you tell I've been with Mark for 14 years?? So we're just buying for the kids on both sides.

We had our last open house for the year yesterday and spent most of the weekend cleaning and moving stuff. All for TWO people!!! Now we aren't sure if we should take the house off the market or keep it on through the holidays. So I'm pretty tired today.

Spilling the Beans on Santa - Not Cool

Last week Ricky came home from school and told me that there was a first grader at recess who told everyone that there is no Santa Claus, no Easter bunny, and no tooth fairy!!!! At Ricky's school the kindergarteners and first graders have the same lunch and recess time.

My mind scrambled to find something good to say, and I was trying to control my face - all the while internally cursing this first grader in my head!!!!

I told Ricky that the boy probably is naughty so he doesn't get any presents from Santa, the Easter bunny, or the tooth fairy. I told him that these 3 (along with God and Jesus - we are Catholic) are all buddies and know what everyone is doing. So the fact that this boy has been going around telling all the kids not to believe is SUPER naughty and that boy probably won't make it on Santa's list this year.

I then told him not to tell this boy or anyone at school what I just told him. Also, not to talk about Santa, the tooth fairy, or the Easter bunny *at all*. I figured that no discussion is better.

The first grader who spilled the beans more than likely has older siblings and found out that way. I always figured Ricky would hear the truth at school at some point - just not soooo early!! I really hope Ricky believed what I told him. He was doubtful and I tried to restore his belief. I am hoping he still believes - that's the magic of being a kid - thinking things are possible. I really want him to really believe as long as possible.

I'm curious to know how other people found out as kids. I found out when I had the chicken pox when I was 5 and had to stay in bed while my family went to midnight mass Christmas Eve. I pretended to sleep but caught my grandma loading up my stocking. I heard all kinds of excuses, but knew better. My husband found out when he was little when his grandma said to him, "You still don't believe in Santa Claus, do you????" hehehhe.

Christmas 2007

Christmas is over. All those weeks of preparation - baking and shopping marathons all come to an end. In a way, I'm sad it's over, but a part of me is kind of relieved that normalcy can return once again.

Christmas Eve was fun. From my earlier post, we headed downtown to see all the decorations and the Christkindlmarket at the Daley Center. Then we came home and I made 2 dishes - a corn casserole and mashed potatoes - to bring over to my mom's. Mark took Ricky to pick up the eggrolls at the local Filipino store and then we all went over to my mom's to celebrate Christmas Eve. Besides us, we celebrated with my sister, brother in law & his parents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. It was a nice small, intimate group.

The cookies and appetizers were so good that I didn't think I would have enough room for the main course. Then when it came time to open presents, Ricky took center stage and we all watched him open his presents. Mark and I managed to take Ricky to 10pm mass - as my parish does not have midnight mass anymore. As you can imagine, Ricky was nutts as it was waaaaayyyyy past his bedtime. He sang many carols at the top of his lungs in a quiet church - complete with the Chipmunk Christmas song. I was trying very hard to stop laughing but it was hard. I don't even think I was able to pray for more than 30 seconds, but oh well.

We got up early Christmas Day and opened presents from Santa. Ricky was so excited. Then we got ready and went over to Mark's sister's house for the entire day. Needless to say, there was lots of eating and not as much sleeping going on so we are all exhausted but happy that we had such a great holiday. Nothing better than having your family all around you - and thankful that nobody is sick or has passed away. All in all, lots to be thankful for.

Checking Out the Christmas Windows & Missing Marshall Field's

Mark and I decided to take Ricky downtown to see the windows, decorations, and stop by the Christkindlmarket at Daley Plaza. It was 25 degrees F, but we just bundled him up and went down early - the morning of Christmas Eve. It wasn't too busy down there at all - probably because it was early, cold, and the windows weren't all that exciting.

I remember going Christmas shopping downtown at Marshall Fields as a kid, and loving the windows and eating lunch at the Walnut Room. The very last Christmas that Fields was still Fields and not Macy's (2005), we took Ricky down along with my mom and ate our last Walnut Room lunch. It was good - and they had Mister and Missus Santa Bear and a big Elf came to our table for a visit.

Although the Nutcracker windows were nice, I remember the windows being more exciting in years past, with Harry Potter and other exciting themes. The inside of Macy's was decorated nicely, but I suppose I won't ever be happy with Macy's in general. In fact, my mother was missing Marshall Fields also, commenting to me that she bought ALL her gifts there - clothes, food, trinkets. It was her one-stop-shopping place. And now, this year, she really had a hard time running around to find appropriate, quality presents that matched those she used to buy from Marshall Fields each Christmas.

This time, we just walked around and looked at the windows which had the theme of The Nutcracker. I regret not planning in advance, because we ended up having lunch at McDonalds - which Ricky was just fine with - but with all the scary people at the restaurant, I would have preferred something a little nicer. Then we headed to Christkindlmarket at Daley Plaza.

This was actually my first visiting the Christkindlmarket. Even when I worked downtown, I never found the time to go take a look. They have a huge Christmas tree, and lots of little shops that have all kinds of gifts, yummy chocolate, and ornaments. I was hoping to have the spiced wine, but it was so cold I didn't feel like it anymore - I wanted to make a run for our car in the parking garage.

In all, I found it to be a fun family day. Wished my sister and brother in law could have made it with us, but they had last minute shopping to do also. Maybe next year.

Baking Myself to Death

For the last week, I have been baking baking baking! I do enjoy it though - and since I was crazy and decided to give 14 people/families baked goods for Christmas, I have been a non-stop baking machine. I have to bake right up until Christmas Eve. I am screwed.

How Big is My Stocking?

Today a Twitter friend asked "What gift that doesn't come in a package would you wish you received this holiday season?" And I thought, a baby. Of course.

I looked for a pic of a baby in a stocking and saw this cute one. If only Santa could put a baby in my stocking! If my stocking were hung by a fireplace though, that would be kind of dangerous!

My History With Santa

As a child I always had magical thoughts of Santa up until one Christmas Eve when I was 5 years old. That year I was in kindergarten and was exposed to all kinds of germs, so I ended up having chicken pox over Christmas.

My parents and sister all went to midnight mass with our other family members - leaving me at home in bed with my Grandma to care for me. I asked my older sister how the heck Santa would be able to leave us toys if we lived in a Chicago bunglalow and did not have a chimney? Who was going to open up the gate for Santa and let him in the house? Did Grandma know that she needed to do that? I couldn't sleep because I was so concerned.

Since we did not have a chimney at that house, we put our stockings around our bedroom door knobs. So my stocking was hung at my door knob. I saw my Grandma coming up to my door and I pretended to be sleeping and I saw her load up my stocking while she was standing there looking at me the entire time. My adrenaline was pumping - where was Santa? I didn't hear the doorbell ring!!

The following morning, when my sister and I were looking at what was in our stockings, I confided to my sister what I had seen. In a feat so impressive for a then fourth grader, she explained to me that Santa was so fat that he got stuck at the gate - so he had to give Grandma all our presents for our stockings. Looking back now, she was pretty smart - and did not require any prompting for lying from our parents. She came up with all that on her own on her feet. Not bad!

But I knew she was full of crap. I continued to pretend to believe in the big S man to keep getting my stockings filled every year til my parents figured out that I knew better.

She is also the one who told me about the Stork and made up my fake adoption papers in later years. But those topics are for later.

Anyway, now that Ricky is 2 and a half years old, we always warn him to be good because Santa is watching, etc. Our house is your typical Chicago-style raised ranch house with no chimney - so we keep our stockings on our door knobs. There is no other place for them. Ricky is pretty smart and I am afraid he might catch us filling his stocking. He's so little that we would like to keep the Santa thing going as long as we can.

I can't wait til we move next year - to a house that has a chimney. Then Santa will have no problems.

A Not-So-Bad Christmas Shopping List

When I was younger, I used to LOVE Christmas shopping with my mom and sister. It would be so much fun. Now that I have a toddler, it is really hard to grocery shop - let alone roam the mall looking for that perfect trinket for this person and that person.

Luckily, at Thanksgiving, my family decided that we would not buy for the adults, just the kids (2). But if you would like to buy a Christmas present for someone, you can do that - but do not exchange at Christmas Eve. This is kind of a wacky arrangement - you are allowed to show favoritism - as long as it is not viewable at the family gathering.

With Mark's family, it was decided that we would not buy for the adults, just kids (4). My sister in law and husband can buy gifts for their mom and grandma if they choose. This could be a slippery slope since my mother in law babysits for her (and has not babysat Ricky for even 5 minutes in his lifetime) so of course my sister-in-law will want to buy her something wonderful (super duper expensive).

So in all, here is my Christmas List:

Ricky, my toddler son - toys
Cousin (age 13) - money
Nephew (age 15) - money, maybe clothes
Nephew (age 12) - skateboard, skater clothes
Niece (age 9) - clothes, art supplies
Neighbor (age 3) - toys
Neighbor (age 5) - toys

My mom (major babysitter) from Ricky
My aunt (major babysitter) from Ricky
My cousin (age 26 - minor babysitter) from Ricky

My mother-in-law
My grandma-in-law

My 4 mommy friends & their families - homemade sugar cookies in xmas tin from Michaels
Ricky's toddler friend grab bag
My 9 co-workers(???)
My boss (??)

Not a bad list by any means. It's been a lot worse in the past and with the recent threats to malls by Al Qaeda, I am glad my list is so small.

I am screwed with my co-workers and boss. This is my first Christmas working here. I was told that everyone gives gifts to everyone. The knitters made scarves and trinkets for everyone. I am lost. Can't give homemade treats - that's too many people. I wouldn't be sleeping - I'd be a baking zombie. Guess I better brainstorm quickly!!!