Christmas Budget

HAHAHAHAHAHA!

Isn't that title the funniest!?! 

Every year I say lets do a budget...it never really happens...it kinda does but not really.  Some years it's interesting to me how different Frank and I grew up and other years it's nothing but frustrating!  He grew up so different in some ways than I did...kinda like the other side of the train tracks you know!  Every year we struggle with how much to spend on the kids, how much the Santa gift should be...and we ALL (don't care WHO you are) have our idiosyncrasies/neurosis..and for Frank that is, that the kids all have the same number of gifts under the tree.  I didn't grow up that way and I personally find it extremely exhausting...just outright exhausting.  BUT..because it's important to Frank we make it happen...which is how sometimes the budget gets blown out of the water.  Now don't get me wrong...I'm not blaming this all on Frank...I have been known to just go all out and we'll figure it out later.  Not such a good way but I've done it.  In the past we've done where they get a Santa gift, and stockings...and then 3 gifts from us...Frank hated it and I loved it...because let us not forget the gifts they get from family and possibly friends...it gets to be too much and trying to figure out just where to put all that stuff is enough to send me screaming from the room!! Frank likes to get them exactly what's on their list...and I never made a list when I was a kid...however, I do find lists helpful from the kids...but more often than not I don't buy off them.  I prefer to do event type gifts for a few reasons.  Some are that it's one less things to try and find a spot for, most of the time they can do something with their family or as a group, and like we've taken the kids to a baseball game...well that's an event and then sometimes they get to take a souvenir home...small one.  I guess when you look at it that way they are still bringing/having something brought home...I don't know.  See rambling are never good...you start seeing the flaws in your own thinking/reasoning.  Dang it!

Anyway, then you have the kid who has the champagne taste on mom and dad's beer budget...we all want to get our kids what they want...other times trying to reason with them about why I won't buy it for them is difficult too.  If they don't take care of what they have now why on God's green earth would I buy a way more expensive item of the same thing?? I don't get that thought process but I don't think I'm suppose to understand a 10 year old and why he thinks that way. 

Every year it seems to get harder and harder trying to come up with something substantial and fun and that will last  along time and not wrecked in the first 5 minutes of it being opened.  And lets face it $20 doesn't go as far as it used too...unless of course you have a baby...you can get away with a whole lot.  We did that with Eli on his first Christmas...he got a small toy from Santa...a car seat from us and maybe one other thing and that was it...he was a month old for heavens sakes...what was he gonna do??  We have Eli figured out at least Santa wise...possible Dru Santa wise...as for the other 2??? I was just asking Frank how old they are when they stop asking for toys and start asking for things like Boom boxes...I am SO tired of buying toys..toys that last for a month or so or until some older or younger person breaks the toy. I told the boys last night that believe it or not one of these years they are going to ask for a $50 pair of jeans or $100 pair of shoes...they SCOFFED at me!!  You know they really do believe I just fell off the turnip truck you know! When they start asking for those things it will be interesting to see how Frank deals with that or what he chooses to do...

We will be writing Santa letters this week...I'm so glad our Post office brought out the mailbox for the kids to mail their letters to him!! What I love about our town or whoever does this...but when you write a letter and 'mail' it...someone takes the time to sit down and respond to those letters to the kids and sends them a short note and something special like a coloring page or something...one year they got a small ornament...how cool is that.  Maybe someday I'll figure out who does that and see if I could that...but man can you imagine the sheer amount of letters you could possibly get...eesh!

Well there's my ramblings for the day...nothing astounding is it?  I am going to write my own letter to Santa I think...of course my list has the potential to be super long...something about asking him for a new computer...I swear I've been good all year long Santa!!  Scouts honor!

Time Crunch

Hey everyone!

So I have a few minutes left on the computer here at the library.  Sorry no pictures today...unless I get creative...which I may.  No holding your breath though!

So we had Thanksgiving...that was a good we stayed at home this year.  There was drama mostly on my end about that holiday but I think I've moved on.  Just rough dealing with family and the intricacies of it all and invites versus no invites and trying to figure out just what the hell is going on and what you did or just what the hell is wrong with you or your family.  REJECTIONS was the biggest issue and that's something I need to deal with.  But I think at this point I've dealt with it and am working on moving on and being OK with where things are and my part in it or the lack of my part in it.  You can only do so much before you become someones doormat and I am NOT  doormat.  And that is taking some learning...I'm 30+ and just now learning that...what a journey and I'm pretty sure I'm not even a quarter of the way through it.

On the upside I went to a Thanksgiving get together and I got to see my handsome nephew and I made sure to tell him his Auntie loved him to the moon and back and that someday when his mom and dad said he was old enough to stay with me that I would come get him.  His daddy was shaking his head yes while Samuel was emphatically saying no...that is until I said well the boys would be there.  I think he pondered this for awhile and then agreed that would be alright!  Love that boy and miss him so much!  How do people deal with family living so far away...and I get that they are only 6 hours away but it really might as well be across the pond distance wise.  I'm guessing it doesn't get easier but I just HATE the fact that he's growing up and doesn't really know him nor I know him well...I guess I just make up for it when I get that time with him.

We are now into December and I am working super hard at having a better holiday spirit this year.  Something has to change and it has to be with me...I don't see anything or anyone else changing it...it's my choice to change.  So in that vein we have started putting the tree and several Christmas decorations up BEFORE the 22nd or 23rd...and yes I have done that and then took it ALL down (except lights on the house) the day after Christmas...by that time I'm DONE!  With it all I'm just done.  I am working at finding my Christmas spirit...it's like that song that Cindy Loo Who sings (spelling?) from the movie 'How the Grinch Stole Christmas-Jim Carey version) "Where are you Christmas"  that has been my song since as long as I can remember.  I could seriously skip from Halloween and go straight to January.  Even then I could skip that and go to February...that's a generally safe month.

So with that being said I think I'm well on my way and things are going OK...still going crazy dealing with the kids and that stupid tree and between them and the dang dogs touching the tree and ornaments and the dog chewing or wrestling (that could go for boys too) under the tree.  I've only threatened at least once a day that I will take the tree down until next year...so I'm down 2 less times than normal...PROGRESS people! 

Well I have hit my time limit and need to get a few things done and head out from the library...the glamours life of being mom is screaming at me! 

Gobble Gobble!

 

This year we had Thanksgiving at our house and it was nice. The food was nice and warm and we even had a dish I'd never made before! Look at us branching out!

 

The table before the spread

 The table with the spread on it.  Spent from 7am until 3:30pm cooking and cleaning...my feet hurt! I'm sure you all can relate.

 My crew at the table...yes Eli is crying. Because what is a Thanksgiving with out family drama right? I'm sure it was over the fact that we didn't get his peanut butter and jelly sandwich on the table right away.  Yup...that kid ate a PB&J for Thanksgiving you can see the Jif on the table...what have we done!?!

We sat down and ate a wonderful dinner and the boys were mostly done by the time I got to my plate and seriously after like 20-30 minutes they were done eating....HOURS of cooking and it was all over in 30 minutes tops!  Thank God I only do this every other year...I could take up drinking if I did this every year!  However...the hang up for not doing Thanksgiving is you don't get the leftovers...and we like leftovers. 

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving, we had a good one at home even in the midst of adversity we prevailed.

Pirate Princess

 

 

 

 

 

 

Do I really need to say more?

 

 

Someone is FINALLY 4!!!

 

 

 

A good morning from Big brother Lee on Eli's birthday!

 Mighty is so excited that something is going on!! Whatever it is its worth getting up for!

 My birthday boy!  Has 4 years really gone by so quickly!?!  This year his birthday was the day before Thanksgiving...I am NOT cooking a birthday dinner tonight!  We will be going to Pizza Hut and having a party there...Eli is SO excited and is so happy that his day is finally here!!  It's been a long year of everyone else having their birthdays and not him.

 Birthday boy, Mighty and Mom...a good picture I think

 This is my favorite picture of the day!

 Birthday spankings!!  Thank goodness it is only 4 and a pinch to grow an inch!

Happy birthday Sparky! 

The Boys!!!

Hello everyone!!!

It's been so long I know!!  Updates are needed in a BAD way. It so happens that today I'm at the Great's house using their computer :)  Love those guys!  While using their computer I thought I would take the extra minute and put up a little something of what's been going on.  However this picture is a few months old but this is the first professional picture that I've liked of the boys that we've had in a long while...I think Dru was an itty bitty the last time.  Poor Eli...what is it with like the last kids where everything falls to the wayside with things like that for them??  Guess I've just given them something to talk about in therapy right??  My job is done!

No new computer for me in the future that I can see :(  It's about killing me!  Seriously I have had to find new ways to de-stress...and writing or blogging is/was my way!  Sigh...and I have months worth of things to blog about and it's just so outdated you know!  Ugh..and the drama that seems to find me when I don't want it to...man that's insane!  Save all that for another, far away blog post.  For now please enjoy this picture of my boys...handsome fellas!  Frank and I didn't do too bad if I might say so and take ALL the credit!  It does all come from me you know ;)

I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving this year!  I will be at home with my family this year working on my holiday spirit...that's my goal this year...less Bah Humb'ing!  I've got a tough road ahead!

Take care everyone!

Gobble! Gobble!

Vows

I know it's January 2013 as I'm writing this but I want to catch up...and this day is important...right up there with my birthday ;). 

 

Today at 2pm Frank and I will have been married for 12 years.  It's amazing to me what 12 years, 4 kids and married life will do to your looks!  Kidding...sorta...you guys understand right?  How did everyone get to look SO much older!?!  Seriously...that part has blown me away...we all look so much older and grey...darn kids and husband! ;)

 

Right now, at this moment my wonderful husband is snoring his little heart away...and by snoring I do mean a chainsaw is going off right next to me!  Not to mention Mighty on the other side of me snoring just as loudly as Frank...they leave me no choice sometimes!

 

I knew going into this that marriage was going to be work...a LOT of work...I've watched a few marriages being worked at and was told a lot that marriage takes constant work.  Not that I didn't think it was true, but man, when you say your vows and you really stick to them...it's down right exhausting...in every which way.  Now, you all may seem to be wondering where this thought is going and to be honest I don't really know...for now it's ramblings of thoughts that have been swirling around in my noggin...no one said it had to make sense!

 

I love my husband and we have had some really great times and some really rough times already and I only expect more...many more (what do you expect when you have 4 kids and you are just like every other married couple and dance the tango on things like money, raising your kids, etc???) on the journey ahead.

 

So 12 years it is that we've been married and I've grown a lot and starting to learn more and more about myself and I hope to learn more and be more and work harder.

 

Happy Anniversary