Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Snow Day




Today was a snow day! The kids were off of school, we were not surprised. The weather was nasty.

I have a great kids. They helped their dad shovel the driveway this morning, which was so nice. Especially because our snow blower died this morning. Yes, that's right. Time to dip into the emergency fund again. For those who do not live in the Midwest, I need to emphasize that a snow blower is a necessity around here. I would love to say that a simple shovel will do the job, but it will not.

After helping their father they spent the morning building snow forts, snowmen, having a snowball fight and playing with their dogs in the snow. They had so much fun, I did not hear any fighting while they were playing. Maybe we need snow everyday.

I took advantage of the day and baked, baked, baked!! We have fudge, 5 types of cookies, pumpkin bread and cranberry bread. My youngest daughter was a great help today. Her siblings spent their day off with friends. No surprise I guess. At ages 11 and 12, I guess the company of friends trumps the company of parents any day. I am trying very had to accept that fact.

After several hours of baking, Maeghan and I played a 2 match of Monopoly. She beat me! I can't believe it. She is 7 years old and she has a very real concept of money management and real estate. She gets it. She did not just beat me, she kicked my ass!

Dinner tonight was a batch of Butternut Squash Soup and homemade bread. I made the soup, my husband made the bread. It was a delicious meal that was perfect on such a cold, snowy day. Dessert, cookies from this afternoon's baking marathon.

Our upcoming weekend is packed. My daughters have Christmas parties and my son is having his birthday party. Sunday we are going to see The Nutcracker in downtown Milwaukee. After the show we plan on walking around the downtown to look at the lights and enjoy a winter day by Lake Michigan. It should be a perfect day.

Monday, December 7, 2009

December

This month is proving to be busier than I imagined it would be. I guess I should not be surprised. The holidays are quickly approaching. I work in retail, for a candle store, during the busiest shopping month of the year. I have 3 kids who understandably want Christmas and all the pleasures it has to offer. We have been invited to parties and we are throwing a couple parties of our own. Throw on top of that the tickets I bought for The Nutcracker, A Christmas Carol, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever and Annie, and we have a busy month!

This time of year always creeps up on me. I always plan on baking, making homemade Christmas cards, wrapping the gifts like Martha Stewart and making a grand Christmas meal. But, time is always an issue. The cookies are often times made from premade Pillsbury dough, I order picture cards from Walgreens, throw on some wrapping paper at the last minute only to go out for Christmas Eve dinner. Remarkably, what I end up doing works for us, and I am happy in the end.

So, this year, I am going to do what I can with the time I have. If I have to use premade dough, I will do that without guilt. I will enjoy the holidays this year and worry about perfection next year.