Cooking with the Freezer

I've had this blog post on my to do list for months but I've not had the time to just sit down and write out all my thoughts, so today, as part of my efforts to get things done, I'm doing it.

A year after I moved in with Dave, we had 3 boys (7, 11 & 15) to feed. Dave had a nice big freezer out in the garage and not much in it. As I was learning about things to cook I found a Yahoogroup about freezing. It was great. I learned you could freeze all kinds of things. Fast forward 7 years later and there is only 1 boy at home, but food prices have gone crazy and time is always limited to spend in the kitchen and shopping. So, I use my freezer for tons of stuff. I pre-make Fix, Freeze & Feast meals and I also pre-do a lot of ingredients that go into meals. Here are some of the things I freeze:

cream (1 cup batches)
homemade cream of mushroom soup (1 sandwich size bag full)
chopped onions
chopped bell peppers
cooked in the crockpot black and pinto beans
rice (brown jasmine, jasmine and long grain brown)
Spaghetti sauce (made in a 2 1/2 gallon batch)
pineapple juice
buttermilk
meat (ground beef, ground turkey, pork chops, stew meat, chicken, ham & sausage)
sliced carrots
chopped celery
butter
homemade beef broth/stock
bacon
Pre-cooked ground beef with onions
Tomato sauce & diced tomatoes (packaged in 2 cup portions from a #10 can)
Leftover soups, stews & chilli
Meatloafs - batch of 3
Mashed potatoes (make 20 lbs and flash freeze ice cream scoop portions, then bag)
Meatballs (using 8 lbs of meat)
Lasagnas (using pre-made spaghetti sauce & precooked ground beef from another day)
bread
meals made with SIL in 1 day cooking sessions (usually 20-30 meals @ <$5 each)

Having all these items handy in the freezers does a lot for me. It saves me money for sure. I'm able to buy things when they are on sale and buy larger portions (always check your prices, larger isn't always cheaper!) and re-package into smaller sizes. I only have to go to the grocery store every 2-3 weeks. This saves me time, money and stress. It also allows me a lot of flexibiltiy of what I can make at any given time. Between my freezer and pantry, I can make almost anything. If I do want to make something that requires a special item, I put it on my grocery list and get it the next time I go. I love to see how long I can last between trips to the store. I don't mind grocery shopping, but it's certainly not how I like to spend my time. I also do a lot of meal planning and recipe searching. I use MasterCook to organize all my recipes and I subscribe to quite a few cooking blogs for new ideas. I also use my crockpot at least once a week. I also keep a typed list on the front of the freezer door with the contents of each shelf listed, that way I don't forget about stuff I have in there and forget to use it before it gets freezer burned. I have a Foodsaver, but you'd be amazed how well things last in freezer zip lock bags or tupperware.

Think about what you can do to make your life easier in preparing homecooked, healthy meals for your family, it's really a lot of fun. Email me with any questions, I'd love to share recipes or tips and tricks!

Pepper and Chloe - Our Girls

When Dave and I met in 2001, I thought we might have a child together. I had Aaron, who was then 6 and he had 2 more boys, then 10 & 14. We quickly decided that the 3 boys were going to be plenty for us! So, in 2004 we got our first baby girl, Pepper. We "met" her when she was 4 weeks old at a local Havanese breeder. She was the last one available in the litter and we immediately put down a deposit on her. I went to visit her every day and she was just a joy. I had bought a stuffed dog toy a few months prior and that became her "baby" which we put in with all the puppies and her mama so she could always have a piece of her family. When she was 6 weeks old (and still nursing!) her little collar was still too big for her and I begged the breeder to let her stay a few more weeks but he insisted she would be fine. So, excited beyond description I headed there with her baby and my cool dog carrying bag. I put her in the bag and put her on the front passenger seat and she promptly cried her little head off. I then unzipped the top of bag and she stood up and snorted like a little pig. It was so sad, she was missing her family. I tried to comfort her, but she just wailed. By the time we got home, she totally sacked out and took a big nap in the middle of her blanket. The first night, I put her in her crate beside my bed and spent most of the night with my hand through the wire door. She did very good and only cried when she needed to go out. I hung a small bell by the back door and each time I took her out, I hit it with her paw. Within a week, she was hitting it herself to go out and to this day still uses that as her signal to go out. After a few nights, Dave said she should be able to sleep on the bed with us. And today, she still does.

When Pepper was 2, she was kind of apathetic and didn't really do much and I really wondered if she was lonely. She also had almost no interest in eating and only ate her kibble every 3-4 days. Around the same time, I became involved with an online Havanese Rescue Yahoo Group. I had signed up to be a rescue contact in Idaho since there were none and so did another lady that had Havanese. Soon, I did a home visit for a third woman who had signed up and then I needed my home visit done. Heather was the one assigned to do that and we quickly became friends. It turned out she had Peppers sister from a different little and another Havanese as well as a German Shephard. She was heading to Bend, Oregon the next week to get a 3rd Havanese from Hystyle Havanese and let me know there was another puppy available in the litter. She also raw fed her dogs, something I had been looking into due to Pepper's lack of luster for her kibble.

Well, Dave and I decided we had to have this little cream Havanese, then named Q-T-Pie. Heather went and got her and her own Tootsie Pop 2 weeks later. By now, Aaron was 11 and very much wanted to be friends with Pepper, but their relationship had started off a big rocky because Aaron was too rough with her when she was little. And Pepper was never really a cuddler, or lap dog. She would sit by you, but not on you and didn't enjoy being held. From the moment Chloe came, Aaron held her and carried her around like a baby, which she still enjoys today. Pepper immediately shared her toys, her bed and her Mom and Dad like the good dog she has always been. Chloe came from a breeder who raw fed, so I switched Pepper and Chloe has never had kibble. Both my dogs LOVE to eat every day and their coats and skin are wonderful and I believe they are very healthy. Each day I feed them a raw chicken wing, a 1/4 of a sirloin patty (from Costco), some rehydrated veggies and Nupro powder. I also give them organ meat and occasionally some rice.

Like all Havanese, they like to shred and play "run like hell", espeically in the snow. They go most places with us and if they can't go, they stay with Auntie Heather and their sisters. Pepper and Chloe have brought immense joy to our blended family. To them we are Mom and Dad and all the boys are their brothers. They bridge the gap of "theirs" and "ours" and love everyone the same. Yes, having dogs are a lot of work, they require time, love, attention, money, feeding, walking, grooming, brushing and a huge commitment, but they are worth every bit of effort.

The dogs also have thier own website www.PepperandChloe.com

Trip to CA

Both Dave and I are from the Bay Area and most of our family is still down there. I love to visit at least once a year so that Aaron can see his family and we can also see all the wonderful things that the beautiful state has to offer. On Friday, August 8th we set out towards Folsom, CA to attend my 20 year high school reunion. The drive was uneventful and the MDX was full of gadgets and while Dave was driving, Aaron and I had plenty of electronics to keep us busy. I mostly watched videos on my ipod touch while Aaron played the PS2 and did some web surfing on the laptop. Dave was stuck listening to music on the 80 gig video ipod.

We arrived in Folsom and got checked into the Lake Natoma Inn, showered and headed to the Happy Hour event at Yagers. There I saw classmates that I've known since the 3rd grade but most that I haven't talked to in 20 years. It was a lot of fun!

Saturday we checked out of the hotel and headed to Dave's Mom's house in Saratoga, CA. We relaxed most of the weekend outside on the patio and Aaron played in the pool. Monday, Dave's Mom and I headed to the gym and then went out shopping. She took me to Nordstrom Rack and then a wonderful shoe haven called DSW. I loved both and bought a few things for great prices.

On Tuesday, we headed to San Francisco and spent a wonderful day in the city. I had purchased CityPass tickets for all of us ahead of time so we had a bunch to do! We took the CalTrain to SF and then rode a bus to the piers. We had lunch at Fog Harbor and walked around the various shops. We then took a cruise over to Alcatraz and visited the famous "Rock". After that, we caught a bus and raced over to the Exploratorium which closed shortly after we arrived. We then headed to Ghiradelli Square and had huge sundae's and milkshakes. We then headed back towards the wharf Dave got some crab sandwiches along the seafood row. Aaron found the Musee Mecanique and we spent some time there. We missed the Boudin sourdough tour, but we had done that before. As it started to cool and then sun went down and the tourists started to leave we headed to the aquarium which was open later than any of the other places we visited and was indoors. When we finished the aquarium, we caught a bus back to the CalTrain station and then headed back south. We arrived back at 10:30p making for a long day in the city, but it sure was a lot of fun!

On Wednesday, we headed north again, but only to Belmont where my Nanney (maternal grandmother) lives. I had finally completed her digital scrapbook after 3 years of collecting photos, scanning them and then compiling a 100 page book spanning almost 100 years. It includes her and my grandfather's acestors, their 3 children (my mom), 7 grandchildren (me), 4 great grand children (Aaron) and 1 great-great grand baby born last year. It was a beautiful work of art and I was very proud to present it to her. We headed to lunch at Mimi's and then talked and visited for a few hours. That night, we met up with one of Dave's friends, his girlfriend and her son and went to a wonderful italian place on Santana Row called Maggiano's. Huge portions, great service and spectacular food!

Thursday we headed to Apple headquarters where we visited the Company store. I heard about it from Cali Lewis of GeekBrief.TV but never realized it was literally 3 miles from where I've visited my MIL many times! Aaron and I were in heaven and bought some goodies and took pics. We then headed over Highway 17 and into Santa Cruz to visit my step-sister and Dad. My sister and her boyfriend live in a beautiful home in Aptos where they have 3 doggies, wonderful decks and great food, music and conversation. My Dad happens to be working in the area so he joined us. Him and Aaron always have great conversations about gadgets and electronics. Aaron even brought his scooter charger to have Grandpa see if he could fix. If only we had brought the volt meter!

Friday we packed up and headed towards home. We stopped in Pleasanton to visit my Aunt and Uncle and visited with them a bit before they headed out to play some golf. We then drove to Reno, where we ate at the Peppermill buffet and then spent the night.

Saturday we drove home, picked up the dogs and spent the night outside on our patio since our hardwood floors had been refinished while we were gone. The smell was horrible (it even killed all my fish) and we decided not to take any chances on us or the dogs having any ill effects from breathing the fumes. Sunday we unpacked and then Monday headed back to work. I loved our vacation, but it went by SOOO fast!! It always reminds me what a beautiful place CA is and how I love to visit, but am definitely happier in Idaho.

Full album of the pictures here.

Peace in the Holidays

When we are little, all we can think about is what we're going to ask everyone for and what we will get. At some point, when you grow up you are expected to do for everyone else and think about THEIR needs. When you have a family of your own, you now have to worry about your kids, your spouse, their siblings and kids and your own extended family. As I get older I feel more and more responsibility and pressure to get gifts for everyone I know. And not just a gift, the RIGHT gift, the best gift, the most thoughtful gift. This gets harder and harder as most people get older, they have more money and are able to get the things they want themselves. Myself included. So really have a short list of things I want for Christmas (most of them needs that I would have bought myself had it not been the season) and my list for others is even shorter. Last year I bought ornaments that were actually a receipt for the purchase of a tree planted in that person's name. This year, I'm trying to find people's favorite restaurants and get everyone gift certs to eat out. Eating out has always been a luxury for me, more by choice than anything else. I know I can cook a meal for our family of 3-5 for around $10. There is no way we can eat out for anything under $50. So it just doesn't make sense. Same with going to the movies. Because of my frugalness, practicalness or just being insane - we don't eat out or go to the movies a lot. But it is fun and I am more likely to do so if given as a gift. So, that said, that's what most of the people I'm buying for this year are getting.

Aaron and I got out all the Xmas stuff 2 weeks ago and we even put lights up on the outside of the house, something I've always wanted to do. Growing up, we lived on 10 acres so it was silly (according to my Mom) to put lights on the outside of the house that we couldn't enjoy. But now that I live in a subdivision, I enjoy seeing everyone's lights and feel compelled to do my part and hang some. So we did. The tree went up that day and stood bare until last weekend when Dave put the lights on. Monday night, we each chose ornaments that were special and put them on the tree. Over the years, the kids ornaments have grown and there is quite the selection to choose from. Dave's Mom also purchases ornaments for everyone each year, so those are always fun to get out. I write on them each year so someday when the kids are ready for their own tree, they can take all their ornaments and we'll actually remember who's is who's and what year they were given.

In October, when I went to CA for my great Uncle's funeral, I was given all of my grandmother's pictures to scan for a scrapbook I am working on for her. This included pictures of her and my grandfather when they were younger and of course pictures of all 3 of their kids and the 6 grandkids and 3 great grand-kids. 3 days after I finished scanning all those pictures, my Mom sent to boxes (about 40 lbs) of all of her pictures. It was been a lot of fun going through the pictures seeing some that I never knew were even taken. Mom has always had really good intentions and has loved to take pictures, but when it came to sharing them, she sometimes fell short, but I have them all now. Along with that are pictures of my step-dad Leo who passed away in Nov of 2003. It has been very sad looking at pictures of him, always happy, always working and building something. The fact that my he and my Mom met in the Bay Area in 1973 and bought property and moved away from everything and built a house and started a farm is even more amazing to me as an adult than it was living it as a kid. I thought they were crazy then, I think they were amazing, brave, creative and strong now. I miss Leo very much and feel bad that I don't think he knew how much he impacted who I am today. We never had a very good relationship and I feel like I never gave him the credit he deserved. I never appreciated the role as a step-parent until I become one myself a few years ago. It's the toughest job I've ever had, even harder than being a single parent, alone. Leo did the best he could and I was always giving him a hard time - which he didn't deserve. He was amazing with my son and that is probably what I am saddened most by - Aaron will never learn from him and know him the way that I did. One of the pictures was of me changing my oil in my first car. Leo believed that if you were going to drive, you should know how to take care of your car. So there I am, 16 years old, hair done, makeup on wearing a "zumie" suit that he must have brought home from working at Rancho Seco and changing the oil. And there must have been Mom taking a picture. Had it not been for that picture, I wouldn't have remembered doing it, or remembered that it must have been fun. I have in fact, complained about the fact that he made me change my own oil. But how many women know how? Shoot, how many men know how? It's a life skill I will always have (if I need it!). You never know, I may move away from the city someday and start a farm. Happy Holidays and God bless.

Trip to CA

I see another month has gone by since I last posted. I've thought about it quite a few times but there never seems to be a "good" time. I guess a good time is when I expect to sit down and not be interrupted. Not too many of those opportunities at home or work.

Trip to CA photo album on Webshots

So, shortly after Aaron got back from his 7 month stay in Reno with his Dad, we headed to CA for our annual family/friends visiting vacation. We spent 12 days amongst the various places and it was definitely nicer to only stay at 4 places instead of 6 or 7. I did miss opportunities to share a meal with 2 long time friends, but with the traffic so bad between Sacramento and the Bay Area, changing towns during the day is imperative.

We headed out the day after Dave and Matt left for U of I for Matt's junior year. This year he moved out of the dorms and into an apartment so we had a truck full of stuff to send up so Dave took the truck up on Friday. Aaron and I left Saturday morning and first stopped in Reno to assess how much stuff Aaron had to bring back so I would know how much room to leave in the car. Since we were a bit ahead of schedule, we took the opportunity to sort through and pack all the crap he had in his room and closet. There was quite a bit of stuff, so we set off to our first destination which was my Mom's. We stayed there until Tuesday and spent days helping her pack and sort through items as she will be selling her place later this year and moving into a smaller place. We did get to see Dad for breakfast on Sunday and I played some dice and had a drink with him on Monday.

On Tuesday we left Mom's and went to Rayleen's. I called as I decided to travel during the day and not wait in Sacramento to have dinner with Jen as I was afraid of the traffic and very anxious to have a shower after being at Mom's for 4 days. She was able to get a hold of Thomas and he was there when we arrived. Rayleen ended up being able to take off work for our stay and it was Thomas' birthday on Thursday so we ended our stay with a great breakfast at a Crepe place in Santa Cruz.

From Rayleen's we headed to Dave's Mom's in Saratoga. This was Thursday. Dave flew down and met us early Friday morning. His truck had given him problems on the trip north, so he was interested in looking at the Acura MDX in the Bay Area since there is much more selection of nicer vehicles than here in Boise. We ate wonderful meals and sat on the covered patio day and night and just relaxed and read. Aaron spent his days in the pool. The Sunday before Dave flew and Aaron and I drove back to Idaho, we drove up to Belmont and had lunch with Nanney. Randy and Nancy met us there and it was great to see them! Because my trip was cut short because of work, I didn't get to go to their houses and stay because of the timing of Dave being in the Bay Area over the weekend.

Dave flew out of San Jose on Monday night and we headed up to Dad's. I was supposed to meet Tricia at this point in the trip for dinner, but again, if I would have left later, the traffic from the Bay Area to Sac would have been gross. So, we went straight to Dad's and spent the night. Aaron and Dad got heavy into some electronics stuff which went over my head after the first few minutes.

Early Tuesday we left Dad's and headed back to Sparks to get Aaron's things. At this point, the car was dragging ass. I had taken a bunch of stuff from Mom's as well as all the stuff we had for 12 days worth of travel. The electronics alone was staggering :) We only went to 3 Fry's during the vacation, LOL Dave brought empty suitcases so I sent him back with a bunch of stuff, but the car was still full. At Aaron's Dad's we were able to get everything but a few clothes and some things he said he didn't need or was going to leave there. We even managed to get the dreaded electric scooter. The car was packed to the roof. This pic is Aaron trying to get something from the back and he's sitting atop all the boxes and his back is parallel with the roof of the car. He was a bit upset with me for taking the pic and demonstrating his Reno behavior. It was funny.

On the trip, I gave MyMileMarker a try. Usually Dave wants to know my gas mileage and I hate figuring it out so I setup this site before I left and emailed him my info so he could check it. I don't think he has looked at it to this day, but at least I didn't have to do any math. I just wish I could figure out how to send it the fillup info from Twitter. Just not sure of the format.

So we got back from the trip to CA and had one weekend before we left for the Oregon Coast for the wedding. To be continued...

Aaron's Back!

Well, I wondered how long it had been since I had posted and alas, my last past says "Happy Father's Day" so I guess it's been a while! Well, I may work backwards here because the biggest thing that's happened lately is that Aaron came back home last Thursday the 26th. It is wonderful to have him home. He's been at his Dad's for 7 month's and since July was such a busy month, I held off on having him come back until my big project at work was done and then I had a week after. So he got home last week and we went to the dentist and then spent the afternoon at Roaring Springs, which was a lot of fun. We also got him a haircut, which he desperately needed!

Since June, we had our big garage sale which was a huge hit. We sold tons of stuff and made close to $500. The rest of the stuff we donated. As soon as Dave leaves with all the stuff I have for Matt next week and heads back up to U of I, our garage will almost be livable again!

Since the end of April when my gym closed, I've been wanting to go somewhere else and since Aaron was interested in the Y we signed up on Monday and I went for our first workout last night. I went to a Yoga class while Aaron did the machines. It was a great teacher, small class and a good workout. Next week, Aaron is signed up for a 2 hour a day training which will teach him how to safely use weights and all the gym equipment, then he'll be able to do whatever he wants there. It should be fun and I'm so glad I can bike there like I did with the old gym to even further enhance my workout.

The other big news is our upcoming wedding! Dave finally decided to set a date and I said, let's make it happen! So we are headed to the Oregon Coast where we took our first vacation together in August of 2001. We are staying in Lincoln City and getting married at the Yaquina Bay lighthouse in Newport. I've been busy shopping for a dress and getting together all the little details. It's a destination wedding, no guests or even kids and we'll be sending announcements from there. I can hardly wait!!

Mother's Day!

The last few weeks have been really hectic. This weekend was Mother's Day and on Saturday, Dave's Mom flew in from the Bay Area for a month long visit. Then she's staying into June for Kim's graduation from Eagle High School. We all got together over at Michele's & Martin's house on Sunday for Mother's Day brunch. It was a beautiful day so we were able to sit outside and visit.

The last time Myrna was in town she used my fleece blanket to cover herself while on the couch and so I had the idea to make her one to use in Idaho when she comes to visit all her kids. So, on Friday, Deanna and I went to Hancocks over the lunch hour and I found some nice orange baseball print fleece for one side and some dark colored Aztec kind of print for the other side. I washed it, sewed 2 sides together and then cut fringe at each end and tied off the other 2 sides. She liked it so much, she even said she would take it home. I also gave her that and a TSA lock that I found online that is great for frequent travelers.

Matt also arrived back in town, down from U of I for the summer. We saw him at the brunch and then he ended up coming over yesterday to stay with us. He has a new pet, a bearded dragon he calls it, I say yucky lizard. But he says it's soft and cute and friendly, but I am reluctant to find out. Matt's girlfriend Sandy is staying home for the summer because she is working. What a bummer, but I am proud of them for making work a priority when they are not in school.

After last weekends Scrapbooking Fiesta I decided I really needed to get going on Nanney's scrapbook. I printed pictures and sorted and have emailed family members to gather what I was missing and my goal is to have it finished by her birthday in October.

My friend Heather found her dream house and made an offer last week and found out on Friday it was accepted. I am thrilled for her other than the fact it's further away from me then where she lives now.

Next week is our week long vacation to AZ to spend time with Dave's Dad and his wife. I can hardly wait! I've never been to AZ and am looking forward to relaxing in the sun, getting some reading done and trying to unplug from the laptop and blackberry. I'm sure I'll have my IPOD going, but am hoping to cut down on the screen time.

I've been talking to Aaron more and more over the past few weeks and last weekend he called me and said he had made the decision that he wants to move back with us. Since then, he's talked to his Dad and I've discussed it with Dave and I am very excited at the thought of him coming home. It's still being discussed as I think his Dad wants him to stay there, but I really believe he would be happier with us. This brings up the issue with me working full time. For a while now, I've thought if Aaron came back, that I really need to reduce my work hours. This idea couldn't come at a worse time with huge conversions going on until the end of July. Plus, without Dave and I being married, I have no health insurance for myself and Aaron unless I work full time. Hopefully God will answer my prayers and something will work out and come to light as a solution.

Happy Valentines!

A good friend of mine is going through a breakup with a man she's been involved with for over 3 years. It's such a difficult thing, I think it gets harder as you get older to move on to something new and let go of the old. But sometimes it is for the best and must be done.

For new sites this week, MightyFoodBlog.com is a food blog that looks interesting and Wellsphere.com is a social networking site of the health/fitness variety with a local emphasis on SF.

A new blackberry was released yesterday, the 8800. I've got the 8100 which is the Pearl. The 8700 is nice, it's a bit bigger and what I recommend for people who want a full keyboard. The pearl is nice and small, but a lot of people don't like the tiny keyboard and SureType typing. Once you use it a while I think it's very intuitive.

I've been listening to Trucker Tom and his adventures in Vista and am considering buying a copy for the old hard drive for my laptop. It would be fun to try. When I swapped out the hard drive it took 6 hours to reinstall windows and set up everything the way I had it. Not bad considering how much stuff I have and use, but that was ideal and had lots of prep and planning behind it. So not sure I want to invest that amount of time into it at this point.

With the return of 24, we've been enjoying pretty exciting TV. It's also fun to see our Chloe's namesake back on the screen saving Jack time after time. This season's addition of her ex-husband has been interesting.

I can hardly wait for my trip to NV to get Aaron and take him to CA for half of his Spring Break. We will see my Dad and Mom and then head to Sacramento and then possibly the Bay Area. Not sure how far we will go because we only have from Friday to Wednesday. So, looking forward to that!

Yesterday at the gym, they did my 1 month measurements and weigh in. I'm down 2.6 lbs and 10.5 inches. However, my body fat increased. I don't think that's right because I've been eating salad and veggie stir fry everyday and haven't even so much as had a fry or chip since January 2nd. Oh well, maybe next month it will be even better.

Santa Was Very Good to Me!

Here it is, Christmas day afternoon. The kids have all disappeared with their goodies and Dave is watching football. I turn to electronics as I sip a Fat Tire and prepare taco meat for Dave's birthday dinner.

Santa brought me 3 GREAT gifts from my Froogle wish list. Very cool. I got the memory card for the Blackberry Pearl that I bought myself for Christmas a few weeks ago. Now I can put MP3's and more pictures and video than I can stand on there. Also, it allows me to take 200+ pictures with the built in camera, instead of the 77 the 20mg on board card allows. I can also use it like a thumb drive for moving data around as I do with my ipod. Now I just need the cool Bluetooth headphones Dan sent me on Friday that will allow the Pearl's headset jack to be stereo on nice wireless headphones that you can talk on the phone with also. No more pausing the Ipod to answer the phone if it's all in one. I also got a heating blanket that's low wattage and supposedly not bad for you. Also, the coolest bedrest with a light, heater and massager and cup holder. Sweeet! Dave's mom got me the cutest doggie purse, I can hardly wait to take it to work tomorrow, it looks so real! Bobbi got me a beautiful pink columbia jacket. I wear the dark pink vest she got me almost constantly, but sometimes a girl needs arms :) Dan got me a leatherman, so I don't have to borrow his and Dave's all the time. Aaron promptly read the directions and quizzed me on how to use it. I guess without him around I should learn to fend for myself mechanically :( My friend Heather also got me a cool Fiskar's cutting system for scrapbooking and some cool toys for the girls.

Aaron got a skateboard, some games, a cool tool set and cash. Matt got money, Jeff got all Wii and DS stuff, Dave got a lot of food and gift certs and some wine and the girls got some new toys and treats and a new toy box.

The festivities started on Friday when the girls and I exchanged gifts at work. That was fun. Then the Mad Dogs in the afternoon. Saturday I was pretty sick and just stayed in my jammies and tried to rest up for the next two days. Sunday we all went to brunch at Dave's sisters and ate and talked. Sunday night we went to Bobbi's for an excellent lamb dinner, fancy stuffing and rice and a really good salad. I topped it off with too much toffee cuz boy did I have a stomach ache after all that! Today we did the stockings, waited for Matt to get up and come over and then opened gifts. It's been a nice quiet day.

I'm dreading going back to work tomorrow. I originally had the day off as Aaron was supposed to leave for his Dad's but now that's been postponed until Saturday the 30th.

My friend Cheryl's cute little Bentley is doing much better after his scare earlier this week where he had to be rushed to the vets because of low blood sugar. Chloe is still not eating as usual, but today she is off the 2nd pain med and is definitely acting more lively and not whining nearly as much. Now it's just been she's being a baby or wants something, not for pain, LOL

To all a Happy Holiday!

Christmas 2006

This year, Christmas is going down a little differently than years past. Aaron doesn't have a list. He doesn't even want or need anything. So sad that he's so spoiled, but I guess it makes it easier to me. He's getting a plane ticket to his Dad's and some money on his pre-paid spending card for things he decides he wants later. My dogs are getting a new toy box, some toys and treats. They're easy. They love everything, even wrapping paper, ribbons and anything else that makes a nice noise when drug around the house or shredded.

This year, I've tried to focus more on giving to those who are truly less fortunate and being "green". If I have a gift in a brown box, it's getting a pretty ribbon and a name tag. No wrapping paper. The kids will enjoy tearing thru packing tape just as much as flimsy paper and scotch tape I'm quite sure. I've also sponsed a child thru Compassion.com I chose a little girl that share's Aaron's birthday but is 5 years younger. Her name is Nancy and she lives in Mexico. How fun it will be to correspond with someone from another country and I hope to be able to send her gifts in addition to my monthly contribution to her family. I also gave greener gifts. The National Wildlife Org has cool ornaments that when you buy, a tree is planted. The Greater Good Network has several different sites to which your purchases benefit different causes. My favorite is the animal rescue site because they not only have purple paws on most of the products, but they buy food for needy dogs. As I know my animals are the quite possibly the most spoiled in the world, I know they don't mind sharing some of their good life for other doggies in need.

On the personal side, Aaron is going to live with his Dad after Christmas. I've had full custody of him since he was about a year and a half old and this will be quite the change for both of us. He's had a very difficult year and despite all my efforts, his BiPolar and ADHD continue to be more of a challenge than I can handle each day. His Dad is confident he can manage him and perhaps having a male role model / authority figure in his life will be the thing that he's been missing. We've always been together and really close since I've been a single mom most of his life so I'm not quite sure how it's going to be after he goes. My family is not being supportive of my decision, but they are hundreds of miles away and don't know how rough this year has been. I know they mean the best, but it is very hurtful when people that you love and hope to hear supportive things from are only criticial. But, it is what it is.

Since moving out of Dave's house in September, this Christmas has been more of a challenge logistically. I ended up with a tree from Nevada that my friend's boyfriend intended for his daughter but she ended up not needing. It is nice to have a real tree is that is what I grew up having and it's been odd at Dave's for the past 5 years having an artificial. Getting it in the stand was challenging, but it's finally up and has some lights and ornaments on it, so I guess it's good. It will be very sad to put away all the decorations and colorful lights in my newly empier, quiet house after Aaron leaves. My mom always used to leave Christmas stuff up for months afterward and now I understand why. There is just something cheerful and nice about the lights and decorations. I have thought that I may keep the lights up in my bedroom as they work really well as a night light and keep me comforted. Dave's oldest son Matt is home from U of I and his new girlfriend Sandy flies in from her hometown on the 30th. I think they are staying at Dave's so it will be nice to spend some time with her and get to know her a bit. I do know she has dogs, so that's a plus in my book :) Jeff has been vacant since hitting teenagedom last year and hopefully he'll have the Wii out for the families entertainment. I'll take pictures, make more food than anyone can possibly eat and probably overinduldge on goodies.

My heart goes out to the Kim family who recently lost James Kim in Oregon during a drive to visit family over Thanksgiving. The technology community has had an incredible outpouring towards his family and I am saddened each time I think of the story and wonder how a young mother with two small children will get thru this first holiday season with her husband and her kid's father. When my step-dad died 3 years ago, that first holiday was very melancholy and each year around the time of his passing, I am saddened by the thought that he is no longer "there". This is also my grandmother's 2nd Christmas without my grandfather. My Papa was a wonderful man and always had a blow up Santa that he would love to play with us grandkids each year. I love to look at pictures and remember all the good times. I have tons of video tapes that I need to transfer to digital so I can share them with other family members and that is on my things to do this Winter after Aaron leaves. I also hope to take a class at George Fox University. And maybe even join the Liberty Fitness center which is nearly in my front yard. They have a cool massage table that I think might motivate me to go use :)