Tuesday, December 29, 2009

It's been a LONG day . . .

and I've spent most of it in the kitchen - cleaning and cooking.  Tomorrow, I conquer the living room and the laundry  . . . maybe.  The dogs just came inside and they are covered with snow.  It's snowing?  Again?  Roy said that it's supposed to snow all night and all day tomorrow.  Since Jenn has plans for Wednesday, I get to hang out with Baby Brooklyn.  She's such a sweet, adorable, little distraction. Maybe I'll just spend the day cuddling with her and watching the snow fall tomorrow instead?  Hmmmm . . .
Right now, I think I'll go crawl into bed. 
Goodnight.

Monday, December 28, 2009

Christmas 2009 in Kansas City




These are some photos of our Christmas snowstorm that were sent into the local Fox 4 news blog from people around the metro area.  It started snowing Christmas eve and continued until late evening on the 26th.  We've been known to have our share of snow here in the plains, but it isn't very often that we get snowfall that is so perfectly timed for the holidays.

Oh, and on the Country Club Plaza, the snow plows pushed snow into piles that were TWO STORIES high.  (which of course, means that every loon in the city feels a need to climb it and and have their photo

taken!)

I'm so confused !!!

Holidays, especially the Christmas/New Year's holiday week, throw me completely off balance. No matter what day the 25th and the 1st fall on, I spend the entire 7 days in between trying to figure out what day it is, and what I'm supposed to be doing. With the kids out of school, everyone taking long weekends, and this year, cancellations and rescheduling of events because of the weather . . . everything seems to be in a state of chaos and confusion for me. I wish I could just relax a bit and go with the flow like everyone else does. If I ask the kids what day it is they just look at me blankly, shrug, and say,
"I dunno, I'm on vacation. Who cares?"
The dogs don't care about cancellations and changed plans, all they know is that there is tons of cold, fluffy, white stuff everywhere to play in. The fact that everyone is at home to let them outside and back inside, probably qualifies as a vacation for them. And Roy? Well, he's no help at all.

So, when do I get a vacation? It would be so nice to spend a week (or two) not caring about what day it is, where I have to be, or what I have to do.

Saturday, December 26, 2009

The nightmare AFTER Christmas.


OH. MY. GOD.   My house is a Christmas Nightmare! Since my kiddos are older, teens now, (old enough to not believe in Santa, but still young enough to be excited over new loot) we've started a new tradition of opening gifts on Christmas Eve.  Thus eliminating the need for Roy and I to be dragged out of bed at 5AM on Christmas morning to participate (if you can even call it that) in the usual Christmas morning chaos of gift opening.  Instead, we can sleep in.  Of course changes in long held family tradition are always a subject for careful consideration.  So, after great and serious debate (read: much whinging and manipuation by children, followed by the inevitable caving in to their every whim by my husband) the long standing custom was changed a couple of years back.
 
At first, even I had to admit that I enjoyed the luxury of sleeping in on Christmas morn, but I have since discovered a few minor flaws in that plan - most of which are the result of my control freak,  OCD about keeping my house sane and orderly. I'm honest enough to admit that theses are MY issues; In fact, since the other five and a half people living in my home have zero regard for the concept of order and organization, I really have no choice other than to own up to it.  For years now, I've been working on "letting go" of my anal retentive control issues regarding "my house."  And truthfully, I've come a long way towards relaxing and accepting that not everyone has the same standards about "their space" that I do - In other words, I've learned to adapt. 

However, there are times (like this morning) when living in my house seems like a hostile environment for my fragile sanity.  I know that it's not intentional, and it really can't be avoided with so many people (and dogs) living in such a small space.  Add to all that,  the excitement and chaos of a holiday that includes numerous new toys, PLUS an icy cold snow storm that keeps everyone trapped inside the house . . . I was doomed before I crawled out of bed. There was a time, when a day like today  would have had me believing that my family had maliciously plotted to destroy my sanity and insult my standards. Still, in spite of all the strikes against me, I think I did pretty well.  No emotional breakdowns, no tears, or screaming fits, and as the day draws to a close, everyone is sleeping peacefully in their beds - not a single death or serious injury  among them - we all survived!  Sometimes, I amaze myself.

Oh yeah, I'm pretty much as crazy as everyone else in this asylum.  My weirdness may run the other end of the spectrum, but I'm fairly certain that most "normal" people don't struggle with physical with draws from the vacuum.   Longing to hear that satisfing woosh and clatter that comes with sucking the grit off a floor.  Pacing the house, trying with all my might to resist the urge to gather the tiny scraps if scotch tape and tattered remains of Christmas wrap confetti from under the couch and coffe table. I doubt mentally stable people go into hysterics, when the Lysol bottle is empty; gathering their pennies and loose change just to buy a refil bottle from the corner store, like a chain smoker jonesing for a smoke.  It's sad really.

So, I waited.  I found distractions for myself.  Finally, after everyone had been fed and settled into bed for the night, I crept to the top of the stairs, grabbbed the vacuum and a bottle of windex from the closet.  I told myself, 'just a quick once over of the living room to get me through.'  45 minutes later, I felt I could relax enough to settle down and read one of my new books that I got for Christmas.  Tomorrow, Nick and Jenn are taking Heather to work with them, Roy may go to work as well, and Jake will find something to do to fill his time.  It'll just be Baby Brooklyn and me for most of the day.  The two of us can putter around setting our world back into place.  (Baby Brooklyn never tells Nana's secrets.)  By the time Monday rolls around my world will be spinning smoothly - I hope - even though the kids are home until January 7th.

Thursday, December 24, 2009

Merry Christmas !

Okay.  I'm back on line and it's the night before Christmas - Christmas Eve!  And I'm feeling especially happy this year because we have finally been blessed with a WHITE CHRISTMAS !!!  We started out with sleet and rain this morning, then,  about 6 PM this evening it turned into snow, now it's more like a full blown bizzard, and I couldn't be happier - It's beautiful !!!  ( even my dogs are filled with the holiday spirit !)

I'll be honest, for a long time now, I've really struggled with the whole Christmas thing.  I LOVE the "idea" of Christmas; the traditions, the lights, the decorations, the celebration, all of that.  I've always said that it's the commercialism and the media perversion of it all that I dislike.  But you know,  I was thinking about it last night, and I think what bugs me the most is that it all happens too quickly for me.  Especially coming at the very end of the year!  It just seems like go, go, go, all year long, every month filled with birthdays, holidays, and a million special occassions;  then, at the very end of the year, almost as an after thought, they decide to throw in the biggest celebration of all . . . Christmas!  It would be SO much nicer if there was more time to prepare, plan for, and actually ENJOY it all.  After a whole year's worth of chaos and rushing around, wouldn't it be nice to take it all in, to just slow down and think about what it all means?  It just seems like it's one more thing that has to be rushed through.  But then, maybe it's just the inevitable result of the world we.ve created and the kind of lives we live ?  I've read . . . that way back, who knows when, that life used to be slower.  Holidays and celebrations had a real purpose and meaning for people.  They were important - not just another way of  ticking off the passing months in a year.  *sigh*  Maybe I was just born in the wrong time?

All I know is - I'm exhausted.  I'm going to toddle off to bed now and spend tomorrow with my family and watching the snow fall. 

Have a safe and Merry Christmas everyone !!!