Happy New Years Eve 2016

[blessedw2]

No time to cu op but wishing you all a Happy New Years!!!!

dd's getting ready for their party in Florida
dh cleaned the family room (YES!!!)

I haven't done anything... sitting sitting sitting and Im trying to climb out of the social media hole. dh loves New Years and a dislike it a lot (past loss) so I have to get myself to change my attitude for his sake.

dh is shopping and bringing things to uncle (what a blessing and a relief)
I am cooking today... later drive to uncles to drop off food so he has dinner - change that - ordered food for him and for tomorrow - dh said I am stressed and need to step back from elder care for today. Found out my d mom will be coming back to have a heart procedure soon.

listening to audible

going to release some stress today as dh takes over for me. what a good man

[helia]

Our team played better in the 2nd half, Twins. We were even ahead at one point!! The other team seemed faster and more aggressive, though. There were a couple things that happened that had us laughing or yelling incredulously, to the benefit of both your team and our team.

[CathyS]

Dh has measured where he wants to add the shelf. Now he has gone for the wood.
I did most of the dishes while he was gone. One sinkful left.

Leftover Chinese food tonight.

[LadyMaverick]

I know I have said this before but I need to say it again - What a wonderful, kind, wise and caring group this is!!! Being around ya'lll makes me want to be a better person. Thank you!

For the moment I am firmly in the acceptance phase. DS8 is still the same sweet fella he has always been. Every kid has their challenges and learning to deal with them builds character.

Tree is down and all the decorations from the living room are removed. The first tub of decorations is packed away. 5 more tubs to go.......

Taking a break then...
** Decorations removed from the kitchen. The will require going up/down the ladder to remove the garland all around the kitchen above the cabinets. It will easier to take it down than it was to put up!

[Kathryn-in-Canada]

Enjoying a moment of quiet to cuop.

HUGE snowstorm here. (Maybe I should start noting the days we aren't getting snow!)

We are enjoying having our friends here.

Dgs adores dd's godfather and he had a snuggle (!colour us jealous!) with him for quite a while as dinner was being prepared. I was not well ready since I lost 2 hours to getting dd and dsil and another 30 minutes to cleaning the kitchen up. All evening dd's godmother and kept spotting batter on cupboards and my plants!

Dinner itself was lovely. Dgs was very good and stayed at the table almost the whole time (and we lingered at the table.) I took first shift, then dsil, then dd and back to me. I have to teach ds my magic because he's not had great interactions with dgs (that's how I got him as dinner was being served!) I still get a kick out of being handed a screaming baby and calming him in under 30 seconds. Talk about an ego boost.

Ds asked for a waffle breakfast this morning so we had that. I had already bought sausage and bacon. We'll need more eggs and milk today.

I got up and made biscuits after I started coffee, then the day slowly got on the way as ds and then the other kids showed up.

Dd phoned while breakfast was being cooked since she's having a rough day of being very incompetent. I listened and empathized. She asked that I come at 5 today so she can do last minute things for the evening.

Our dinner reservations are for 6 and then we'll come back and last as long as we can at dd's place. Not sure which New Year's we'll celebrate.

Before I do that, though, I need to go pick up my storage bench and maybe get the car washed. Yes it is a raging snow storm but I don't want to miss out on my free wash this week.

[Harmony]

Kathryn, won't your car freeze? I guess they dry it well...

It's a beautiful day here in flower land. Sky is beautiful blue and no clouds. A slight breeze, high 60's by now, sweater weather. Winters here are truly beautiful.

I was going to take it easy today, but you know, once I get past the inertia, I get on a roll. Was at the grocery store about 10 and found the store calm and not so crowded at that time of day. Nice. I got something nice to make for today and tomorrow, and there will be leftovers for a few days, and I got some staples.

So far today besides the shopping:
1 LOL done and hung up
1 LOL folded up & put away (how do I get so much laundry all the time?)
Cleaned out refrigerator, wiped shelves, washed containers
Dailies done

LadyM, LOL at the tunnels. Looked at the OCD link, we have some of that in our family, though not bad and not obvious unless one knew. I have a bit of tendency about some stuff and know where the anxiety comes from. I'm doing a lot of thinking these days.

DH and I had nice conversation yesterday about 2H. Now that it's getting closer and closer I notice a huge black cloud lifting. Crossing my fingers.... We also both saw something on TV program we were watching together. Man had a bad turn of luck and wife said something really funny to him...that I forbid him ever to say to me, lol, but it was new perspective, and I have a new way to deal with the stresses and disappointments that seem to come along frequently. Now if I can only remember that thought...

I gave a haircut last evening... this one better than last months. He totally doesn't care, but I try to get it as nice as I can. I'm glad his hair is curly, hides a multitude of sins.

Back to work here.

[Twins' Mom]

I honestly didn't pay much attention to the game, helia; I was reading and surfing and I'm pretty sure FSU was ahead when I went to bed. I guess dh is glad that they squeaked it out!

I am feeling restless today - almost like I need to be doing something more productive, or getting busy for the new year or something. This week I did a big garage clean up, but there's so much more to be done around here.

I'm working on transcribing the info from the last session at the local library. DD and I were reviewing the films I ordered from FHL.

DS8 is still the same sweet fella he has always been.

Yes he is! Nothing has changed inside. You will find and adapt strategies for all of these challenges along the way, I bet.

[helia]

FSU was ahead the entire game except for maybe all of 1 minute? in the 4th quarter, Twins.

Aw, I love to picture your dh with curly hair, Harmony. I have a soft spot for men with curly hair since dh's hair is very curly. He has to keep it pretty short or else it starts to look sort of poofy.

I too love the comment about ds8 being the sweet fella he's always been, LadyM. He is his own unique person!

Maybe I should look at those links. There certainly is a strand of mental issues in dh's side of the family, which has affected dd21 in our family with her diagnosis of generalized anxiety. Dh has 3 sisters who have struggled with anxiety/depression/OCD issues. Dd21 is one of 3 grandchildren (of dh's parents) so far who have struggled as well. And dh's mother and 4? of her sisters have likewise struggled. . .

We've determined that S, R, and J have other plans tonight, which has caused some consternation with some people here. We had discussed but hadn't confirmed we'd spend this evening together before they left on their trip. However, dd21's and dh's feelings are a little bruised by the fact they're spending the evening with a different friend and didn't communicate with us first. Oh, well. It does make things a little simpler for me, less food to prepare and I don't have to fuss over J's gift this afternoon.

The kitchen is in process. Dh had ds bring in all the kitchen boxes from the pod, but we can't completely unpack until the pantry has shelves. Most of the stuff has been moved from downstairs, and I did unpack one box.

OK, I'm ready to go to the groc. store now. We're having cheese fondue -- dd21 will have her own pot with her own gluten free bread -- and chocolate fondue for dessert. This is our New Year's tradition!

[Kathryn-in-Canada]

Nap time.

The car wash was closed due to the snow storm (they decided to open on Monday instead, which is a holiday here.) So that's 2 weeks of this month we were unable to get our car wash. I left a note on FB (that's where I learned they decided to close today.)

We picked up the storage bench. The driving is awful.

I've unloaded the dishwasher and had some yogurt and fruit along with some milk to offset my pathetic high carb waffle breakfast. No lunch for me today. Just this.

[LadyMaverick]

Home from town. I needed to return a gift so I took this opportunity to push DS8 anxiety. DS8 refuses to leave my side when we are shopping and panics if he can't see me at all times. To break this anxiety a bit, I explained what we were going to do and where I would be standing (out of his sight, but I could see him). I told DS8 that he would be 100% safe. I took DS8 to the game area where he could play XBox games while I went out of his sight. It took several tries, but I didn't stop trying until he didn't panic. During this whole effort, I was less than 10' from him. Afterward, he was pleased with his success. Baby steps.

WM deli cooked dinner for us.

Next up -
** Continue taking Christmas decorations down and packing them away.