Christmas Countdown - 2018

[Edge612]

Morning MMC! Yesterday was a busy one. Tis the season for that. Lots of prep work for the big day(s). Some more today with another trip to the store(s) and then off to my Uncle's for dinner. My brother will arrive some time on Saturday from San Diego like usual. It is starting to feel all too real in the best possible way. Have a great day!

 

[Martine]

HoHoHello my merry chums

On Tuesday, I get to connect with my brother from Ottawa whom I haven't seen since the celebration of life for my mom. We only exchanged birthday greetings via text on our cell phones, and ones via a message on FB.

I am so pleased that my dad has decided to decorate for Christmas. He's setting up the tree today and decorating the mantel; he wasn't sure about the outdoor lights, but knowing my other brother is coming for Christmas, he is hoping to do it all, including lighting the annual luminaries. He also realized, in chatting with my brother, that it wasn't fair to me to cancel Christmas so we are exchanging one gift each to keep things somewhat traditional.

O'Malley is already getting curious about the rattling of bags making their way in here and keeps hoping there are treats for him, but they are gifts for children of co-workers and a ton for the local Crisis Centre; items for different ages.

I am wrapping gifts today and delivering festive chocolates and cookies (next Saturday) to the various teams that keep our community safe and give up their time with family through their choice of profession as officers, paramedics, firefighters, addiction and rehab councilors, etc.

I am committed to making this an extra special Christmas and I know my mom would be pleased that I'm giving some of her jewelry away as well to a co-worker with teenage daughters who is struggling a bit financially.

Keep a merry thought in your head!

It’s wonderful to read that your father and family are keeping the Christmas spirit alive. And it’s so kind of you to bring treats to people who help make a difference in your community as well as helping out a colleague in need. Your mom would be proud indeed.

 

[xmastidings]

Good morning. It's going to be an all day, rainy day here today. Right now, it's also a little foggy and 39 degrees. I'm just sitting here on the futon, got the heating blanket turned on, draped over my legs and feet while Shiloh is up here with me keeping me company. I've been a busy guy for the past couple of day. I took off from work Friday and I spent it all day working in the garage and in the shed. The garage was the staging point for when we moved in the house here back in June, and well, it was still full of boxes, crates, bags, containers and on top of that, everything that I had in my old garages, was all still packed away along with most of my tools. And, don't even think about getting a car or anything else in there, let alone, just me; that baby was packed!

I spent all day from 7:30 am into the evening working on it, throwing things away, organizing, setting up storage shelving units and cleaning up. I am now able to get my tractor in it and by today, I will have it cleared out for my wife, for the first time since we moved in, will be able to park her car in the garage.

Oh man, You just never know how much stuff you got until its time to move it and then re-organize everything. But, it is soooooo nice, for me to be able to get to my tools once more, and also, all my power tools too!

Today, I will be organizing the basement, and carrying a ton of stuff up from there, 3 flights of stairs, to put it in the attic. Ohhhh, I foresee some Aleve being taken tonight!!!!

 

[sugar142286]

Good morning! I'm sorry I haven't been around much lately - this is the time of the year that is most exciting and it's so hard to stop in. I've been so busy doing Christmas things and spending time with family, which matters most.

Today we're baking cookies, making candy, and snack mixes. I'm really looking forward to spending the time with DH and the kids. I have a cookie exchange coming up this week at my house, so I've gotta get them done.

Hope you're all having a great weekend!

 

[xmastidings]

Gosh, it's December 16th already, less than 10 days to Christmas now. Well, at least one thing, I did my Christmas cards finally yesterday, to give my body a break from what I did Friday. They will go in the mail today. I also was able to get some more shopping in via the internet.

Well it's official, our littlest fur baby; Ariel, broke the Christmas tree by climbing up in it continuously. This was only the second year that we have ever set it up since buying it. She has completely crushed, some of the smaller branches, to the point to where they will no longer stay in place. It's probably way too late to get another one, so today, I'm going to try and McGuiver it, to try and make it look somewhat normalish?

Oh well, I will have to look and see if I can find a more better built one. One that wont break to a little 6lb kitty climbing up in it; lol!

 

[xmastidings]

Good morning Sugar! I haven't been here as much as I usually have been either, busy as a bee this time of year, but it's fun! You know, that sounds like a really good plan for this rainy, dreary day up here, the wife and I, making Christmas cookies from scratch, together. Nothing like a little Christmas music, Christmas cookies, to set the mood......for Christmas!

 

[Crown 84]

Good Morning, my Single-Digit Friends!

And miracle of miracles, we do indeed find ourselves now SINGLE DIGITS away from Christmas Day 2018!!

The count does not lie:
Days to Christmas Day: 9
Yep. Single digits at last.
Count on it!

More rain fell yesterday morning, but it cleared away by the afternoon.
Today has started out with some sun but it's still very damp.
(A poor day for leaf blowing and raking.)
Hopefully, we will now dry up and enjoy some more moderate temperatures, and have begun today at 48 degrees, here.

Have a Super Sunday, Folks.
Got my fingers crossed for the Panthers but they are getting dangerously close to being eliminated from the playoff picture.

 

[xmastidings]

Crown, why, why does it seem like the older we get, the faster that clock gets-to-a-ticking?

 

[xmastidings]

The exciting thing is that Nathan (my oldest) is coming home on Thursday morning from the Army. We have not seen him since he left for Basic Training in the end of July. He is in AIT (advanced individual training- learning his job) and they get time off for Christmas.

Well, everyone have a great day!

That's fantastic news! Thank you for you son's service! That's a blessed thing to have your children at home with you for Christmas. I am very happy for you.

 

[xmastidings]

It's going to a bitter sweet Christmas this year with my son, his Air Force unit was activated and he his going to be deployed to Afghanistan, right after Christmas day. Gone, for who knows for how long.

My mind understands these things, being ex-military myself, but my heart, my heart is aching know that he has to go, of all places. to that place.....

 

[Iteachpercussion]

It's going to a bitter sweet Christmas this year with my son, his Air Force unit was activated and he his going to be deployed to Afghanistan, right after Christmas day. Gone, for who knows for how long.

My mind understands these things, being ex-military myself, but my heart, my heart is aching know that he has to go, of all places. to that place.....

Thank you for your son's service.
I hope you get to have a wonderful Christmas before his deployment.
Hopefully the deployment is no more than 6 months.

After my son ends his AIT he has airborne school and RASP (which is the training to be in the Rangers) If he completes them he will be apart of a Ranger battalion and be stationed one of 3 possible bases. His chances of deployment go up significantly as well.

Will you get to see your son much from now until his deployment? I hope you get to spend some time with everyone together.

 

[Edge612]

Good Morning, my Single-Digit Friends!

And miracle of miracles, we do indeed find ourselves now SINGLE DIGITS away from Christmas Day 2018!!

The count does not lie:
Days to Christmas Day: 9
Yep. Single digits at last.
Count on it!

More rain fell yesterday morning, but it cleared away by the afternoon.
Today has started out with some sun but it's still very damp.
(A poor day for leaf blowing and raking.)
Hopefully, we will now dry up and enjoy some more moderate temperatures, and have begun today at 48 degrees, here.

Have a Super Sunday, Folks.
Got my fingers crossed for the Panthers but they are getting dangerously close to being eliminated from the playoff picture.

Thanks Crown! It's been 8 years in a row my Jets haven't made the playoffs!

 

[Iteachpercussion]

Good morning everyone.

It rained all day yesterday and into the evening. It was a soaking kind of rain which knocked out the GFCI outlet for my outside Christmas lights. So no lights last night.

However, last night was great... The BROWNS WON!! They beat Denver for the first time since 1990! The Browns still have a VERY small chance of making the playoffs. While I do not think they will, the fact that they are playing meaningful football games in December is wonderful!

 

[HomemakinGirl]

Good morning MMC ~
I don’t have too much planned for today which is fine with me. We had to attend parties the past two nights and I’m pretty tired. I’ll just be working on the laundry and I plan on making lasagna for dinner, I just started a pot of sauce. I hope everyone is well and has a wonderful day!
xx

 

[Minta]

Good morning .... How did we arrive to the last full week before Christmas already? Where did the time go? Got most of the wrapping done, still have a few more gifts to wrap and then I still need to do my baking. The bright side is I only have 4 more working days until my Christmas Vacation starts and wont go back to work until after the New Year. Hope everyone has a great day

 

[Crown 84]

Crown, why, why does it seem like the older we get, the faster that clock gets-to-a-ticking?

I have a theory on that.
As we get older, each year becomes a smaller and smaller percentage of our lives.
At age 5, a year is 20 percent of our entire life. At age 50, it's only 2 percent.
When we are older, a year's worth of experiences seems so few as seen against the backdrop of our past years of life, therefore it seems to pass faster.
What do you think?

 

[MerryCarey]

HoHoHello my merry chums

On Tuesday, I get to connect with my brother from Ottawa whom I haven't seen since the celebration of life for my mom. We only exchanged birthday greetings via text on our cell phones, and ones via a message on FB.

I am so pleased that my dad has decided to decorate for Christmas. He's setting up the tree today and decorating the mantel; he wasn't sure about the outdoor lights, but knowing my other brother is coming for Christmas, he is hoping to do it all, including lighting the annual luminaries. He also realized, in chatting with my brother, that it wasn't fair to me to cancel Christmas so we are exchanging one gift each to keep things somewhat traditional.

O'Malley is already getting curious about the rattling of bags making their way in here and keeps hoping there are treats for him, but they are gifts for children of co-workers and a ton for the local Crisis Centre; items for different ages.

I am wrapping gifts today and delivering festive chocolates and cookies (next Saturday) to the various teams that keep our community safe and give up their time with family through their choice of profession as officers, paramedics, firefighters, addiction and rehab councilors, etc.

I am committed to making this an extra special Christmas and I know my mom would be pleased that I'm giving some of her jewelry away as well to a co-worker with teenage daughters who is struggling a bit financially.

Keep a merry thought in your head!

Auntie, you know how to LIVE the spirit of Christmas. More power to you!

 

[MerryCarey]

Happy Sunday!

Time is still flying like a North Pole reindeer. I still have wrapping and baking to do and a gift card to buy, among other things, and I won't get to them until Friday, when I have a day off. So many movies still un-watched, so much music not heard yet! I hope next weekend I can carve out some time to just relax on the sofa and immerse myself in Christmas, although I have an appointment Saturday morning and a family event to attend next Sunday morning. How can Christmas be so close, and so much not done yet??

Today we're cleaning up the house and meeting a friend for lunch. I'm already worn out, but there's plenty of Sunday yet to come! Maybe a cup of tea will help.

 

[Martine]

David is out shopping with one of his friends and their kids while his friend's wife is at work, so I had time to shop for gifts and wrap them, all while listening to Christmas music. Since putting up the tree, it's really the first time that I'm listening to my playlist...I have two gifts coming later this week (store did not have what I wanted but ordered them for me). Now I'm doing laundry and will just let the music play as I go through my chores. When I'm done, I'll watch a couple of Christmas movies. Like you @MerryCarey I am way behind on all movies and music this Christmas.

 

[Iteachpercussion]

I have a theory on that.
As we get older, each year becomes a smaller and smaller percentage of our lives.
At age 5, a year is 20 percent of our entire life. At age 50, it's only 2 percent.
When we are older, a year's worth of experiences seems so few as seen against the backdrop of our past years of life, therefore it seems to pass faster.
What do you think?

That is quite true in every sense. I was explaining the same thing to my 9 year old the other day.