Many Happy Returns

We were so spoiled this Christmas. Here's a rundown on some of our gifts:

MOST CREATIVE
Jeffrey made Nigel a hammerhead shark made completely out of empty toilet paper rolls and packing tape.

I CAN'T BELIEVE HOW WELL THIS WORKS
Alice-Grace got the Lil Luvables Fluffy Factory (it's a mini Build-A-Bear Workshop). It works amazingly well and takes NO batteries. A definite thumbs up on this one.

I CAN'T BELIEVE HOW LOUSY THIS IS
Frances got the Totally Me! Sewing Machine which did not work at all. We returned it today (behind another family holding the same toy and it was put on a pile of other sewing machines). She was really looking forward to learning how to sew, so this was very disappointing (though we were happy to see that it wasn't just us that couldn't get it to work).

CHRISTMAS MIRACLES
Jeffrey must've gotten 10 Lego sets and not a single duplicate in the bunch. Plus, all the clothes given to the children fit!

LAZY CHILDREN
Frances got the Snoopy Sno-Cone Machine and realized that she can just go outside and get a cup of snow rather than shaving ice-cubes for 20 minutes. Yeah, just try that in July!

GIFT FROM THE HEART
Our Secret Santa gave Frances and Alice-Grace beautiful Alexander Girlz dolls, complete with extra clothes that they sewed themselves! Now that's going the extra mile!!!

Of course, there were many more gifts and a big thank you to everyone, especially our Secret Santas.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Last night the doorbell rang at midnight. We were Secret Santa'd AGAIN! We had so many presents, it was amazing. Here I was talking about my kids getting overwhelmed with just three presents, now they each had about 10! I told the kids that Santa had to leave the presents on the porch because our fireplace was blocked by one of my nativity sets (I collect them).

My kids woke me up at 4:30 AM to open presents. I got them to wait until 5:30 AM. I then let them just look into their stockings until about 6:45 AM when Nigel got up.

We then had a great time opening presents. Frances opened all of hers first. Alice-Grace unwrapped some of hers, but didn't open all of the packages until later. Jeffrey, on the other hand, didn't finish opening his presents until 5:00 PM!!! It took him almost 12 hours to open his presents! He had to make each Lego creation and play with each Hot Wheel set before he would open the next gift. After a while, we all took naps and would wake to see him still opening presents! It was the never ending Christmas morning.

Then we went to Lorna's house and visited her family.

All in all, it was a great Christmas -- over the top -- but a great Christmas and one that we'll remember for years to come.

Oh, did I mention that I didn't have to go to work?

Secret Santa

It's official. We're pathetic.

I came home from work and there were TONS of presents under the tree. We were ding-dong-ditched, obviously someone's service project. The worst part is that the presents appear to be from a GROUP of people (different handwriting, my kid's name spelled three different ways, etc.). I can just imagine that meeting:

"We need to do a charity project for a needy family in the neighborhood. Does anyone have any ideas?"

"Hey, what about Lois' family? I hear she has her nine-year-old daughter cut her hair."

"I've also heard that she's never been to Wal-Mart."

"Yeah, her husband doesn't even have a job. He just sits around all day drawing pictures."

"And they only paid $1.00 for their car."

"What? They're definitely deprived. Yes, we must help out Lois' family."

I'm sure that's how it went.

Seriously, I'm very thankful for the plenty that's under our tree that has made my kids' eyes wide with Christmas joy. I'm especially thankful because these are people who KNOW us and LOVE us. Santa came early this year and we thank you, Santa (and your many elves).

After all, this is the season of giving -- and receiving -- joyfully.

Paying It Forward -- Some More

My sister, Myrna, gave me a phone call on my birthday. This is a new tradition she started a few years ago after our Aunt Darlene's death.

See, Aunt Darlene and Myrna have the same birthday and Darlene would call Myrna on their birthday every year.

After Darlene passed away, Myrna started calling me on my birthday every year (they're in the same month).

Isn't it great the way one person's kindness inspires us to pass it on? Thank you, Aunt Darlene.

Ladies Who Lunch

Sometimes my husband surprises me.

Like the time I commented briefly about how much I liked so-and-so's hair. For my birthday, he had called so-and-so, got the name of her hairdresser, made an appointment for a cut and color (back in the days when I did cut and color -- now I go gray and let Frances do the cutting), and paid for it.

I always complain that my favorite Mexican restaurant with the mango salsa no longer exists. He researched on the Internet and found another Mexican restaurant that served mango salsa. Then for my birthday, he arranged for my dearest friends and family to be at that restaurant for all of us to have a special lunch together.

There I was with my sister, Lorna, my nieces Babs and Ginger, and old friends, co-workers, and neighbors. What a great time we had. From the owner who refused to take our order ("No, you don't want that. You want this. No, this is much better. Don't order that.") to my friend talking about wanting a Prozac lick in her kitchen, to Lorna knowing a little TOO much about poison -- we laughed until our sides ached.

Thank you, Nigel, for making my birthday so special and for knowing that I needed that. Sometimes you just need a good lunch with your best girlfriends to realize how lucky you are.

In the Company of Women

I feel energized, rejuvenated, inspired. Why? Because of the company of women.

The other morning I went to a delicious breakfast celebrating the birthday of a woman we all love and adore (and seems to always weave her way in and out of my life). How wonderful that someone who has never met me would allow me into her home, cook breakfast for me, and then read a book aloud to the woman of honor that left us all in tears.

So many other women were there. Some I know very well, some I know as acquaintances, some I know through blogging, and some I only know because they know my sister, Lorna. It's a good thing that Lorna is totally awesome and loved by all who meet her, because it made them welcome me into their fold with open arms and open hearts.

What a fun time we had eating, talking, sharing, hitting a boot pinata with symbolic rolls of Christmas wrapping paper, invading a neighbor's home to see her Christmas decorations (which has since inspired me), and just being there to listen to each other's triumphs and foibles.

Sometimes in the madness of going to work, taking care of my children, avoiding cleaning the house, and supporting my husband in his endeavors, I lose sight of who I am. Thank you, women, for bringing that back to me.

Small Joys III: The Last Crusade

This is the last post in my month of gratitude. What a joy it has been to sit back and reflect on all the things I'm thankful for. It's been surprising how many simple things bring a smile to my face. One of my favorites are the small phrases that become part of my every day vocabulary because of people I've met or situations I've experienced. Here are a few:

ALL MY MAKEUP FELL IN THE TOILET THIS MORNING -- code for "I'm going to change the subject." This comes from a friend of a friend who could never keep up with the topic of conversation and would just say the strangest out of the blue things. This is especially comical because Nigel says it all the time (much to the shock of people who don't know what it means).

PLEASE PASS THE RIPLEY and WHAT DO YOU MEAN DID YOU WIN THOSE CLOTHES? -- code for "I misunderstood what you said." "Please pass the Ripley" comes from my brother, Spence, who misunderstood when his son said "Please pass the syrup, please" (we also now refer to syrup as "Ripley"). The other phrase comes from when I misunderstood my father asking "Are the windows closed" to my mother and I thought he said, "Did you win those clothes?"

SPACKY HAND -- referring to when your hand suddenly spazzes out and you drop something or accidentally hit something. This comes from Sister Spackman who had an unfortunate arm-to-industrial scone mixer encounter and would occasionally lose control of her hand (which was great because she was the ward organist and we would wait in anticipation for a "Spacky Hand" moment).

DO YOU THINK I CAN TOUCH MY KNEE TO THE CEILING? -- said before doing something very stupid that's sure to result in bodily harm. This comes from my sister, Rena, who was jumping on the bed and touching various body parts to the ceiling -- her head, her ear, her tongue, etc. Then she had the bright idea of touching her knee to the ceiling. She jumped as hard as she could and unfortunately didn't realize that her head would impact the ceiling way before her knee would.

HAPPY NEW YORK -- code for any English phrase horribly mangled on a consumer product because it was made overseas. This includes "Spoopy" book bags and "Winnie The Puff" stuffed animals.

Elder Nigel

Here's another reason why I love and am grateful for my husband, Nigel.

When Nigel was a missionary and an investigator agreed to be baptized, he would have a member of the local area baptize the person so that they would always have a connection to that ward or branch. He knew that he would be transferred to a new location or eventually go back home, so he wanted the new member to have a special bond with someone that would always be close by.

I also love him because I never knew this about him until years later at my own daughter's baptism and one of his old college roommates related this to us in a talk.

I love you, Nigel!

Thanks for the "Meme"-ories

So Geo tagged me with a meme. Since I'm not sure exactly what "meme" means and there's no way I can compete with Geo's and Compulsive Writer's very creative and witty memes on the same subject, I'm going to stick with my theme of gratitude:

TOP 5 REASONS WHY I'M THANKFUL FOR GEO

1. When I was sick in bed and bored out of my mind, she brought over her prized Martha Stewart Living magazines for me to look at (as well as her fabulous collection of Esther Williams videotapes).
2. When I lent her my car, she returned it with a full tank of gas AND she vacuumed out the interior!
3. She didn't get mad at me when Nigel gave her husband a pet snake and the feeder mouse escaped and nibbled through her food storage.
4. She's an awesome example of being a caregiver as she's taken in her in-laws, grandmother, friends, relatives and various animals (dog, cat, chicken, etc.).
   
5. She drove me to the hospital when I was in labor with my babies (at crazy hours in the wee morning) AND she drove me back home with my new bundles of joy.
   

Pay It Forward

I'm grateful for those people who go in and out of my life quietly, yet profoundly. They inspire me to follow in their footsteps and be a better person.

When I was a young "Sunbeam" in church, my Primary teacher and I shared the same birthday. That year she came by my house to bring me a card to celebrate "our" birthday.

But it didn't stop there. Every year on my birthday she came by my house to bring me a card. She did this for many, many years, and then the cards and visits stopped (I still don't know if she moved away or passed away and now I'm sad to say that I can't even remember her name).

A few years ago I found a girl who shares my birthdate. Now every year I go into her classroom at school and surprise her with a bag of candy or balloons or some special treat to celebrate "our" birthday.

I realize that she doesn't know my name or why I do this, and that's OK. What's important is that she knows that she's special and remembered -- just like I was.

"We are Virginia Tech"

I'm grateful that Nikki Giovanni didn't take the easy road and decided to become a poet (because you know her parents were like, "You want to do what? Why don't you do something useful like study accounting?").

After seeing her read this poem, I so wanted my own poet to follow me around and inspire me when I feel down or discouraged. Thank you, Nikki Giovanni and thank you to all those who follow your hearts and in so doing, lift the spirits of others.

“We are Virginia Tech.

We are sad today and we will be sad for quite awhile. WE are not moving on, we are embracing our mourning.

We are Virginia Tech.

We are strong enough to know when to cry and sad enough to know we must laugh again.

We are Virginia Tech.

We do not understand this tragedy. We know we did not deserve it but neither does a child in Africa dying of AIDS, but neither do the invisible children walking the night to avoid being captured by a rogue army. Neither does the baby elephant watching his community be devastated for ivory; neither does the Appalachian infant killed in the middle of the night in his crib in the home his father built with his own hands being run over by a boulder because the land was destabilized. No one deserves a tragedy.

We are Virginia Tech.

The Hokier Nation embraces our own with open heart and hands to those who offer their hearts and minds. We are strong and brave and innocent and unafraid. We are better than we think, not quite what we want to be. We are alive to the imagination and the possibility we will continue to invent the future through our blood and tears, through all this sadness.

We are the Hokies.

We will prevail, we will prevail.

We are Virginia Tech. "

Small Joys II: Attack of the Clones

I'm grateful for people who aren't homogenized Americans (you know, we all talk the same, look the same, dress the same, etc.) and still use local phrases and pronunciations.

I love that Nigel says ta-BLOID when referring to those trashy newspapers.

I love those that still say "fark" for fork.

I love people who say EYE-talian (you know, the ones with the yummy pasta).

I love that my mother-in-law talks like a character in the movie "Fargo" (don't you know).

I love that my father says "rut" beer.

Thanks, Nigel!

TOP 10 REASONS WHY I LOVE MY HUSBAND

1. He can watch the VH-1 "Hip Hop Honors" and sing along to every rap song.
2. He goes along with all of my crazy schemes ("Yeah, Lois, covering the living room with tin foil and and pretending we live in a submarine is a great idea!").
3. He cooks -- very well.
4. He lets me take naps in the afternoon.
5. He understands Yiddish.
6. He never gets mad when I use up all the hot water (which is often).
7. He always has a new conspiracy theory (I always thought those "Smoking Gun" guys where hot).
8. He would go out and buy me club sandwiches when my pregnant body was craving them (usually at 3 AM).
9. He cooks Thanksgiving dinner every year.
10. He loves me.
    

Huge Blessings

Words cannot describe how very grateful I am that my nephew and niece survived this.

Musing on Gratitude

Rabbi Irwin Kula said this on the "Today" show on Thanksgiving Day:

"You can be disappointed with your life and still be grateful."

Simple Pleasures IV: The Fourth in the Trilogy

Happiness is a new toothbrush (especially when the bristles in the old one start shedding and cause you to gag every time you brush your teeth -- or is that just me?).

Run, Lois, Run!

I am grateful for experiences like this:

When I was in high school, my best friend and I thought it would be fun to join the track team (everyone was allowed on and that way we could avoid regular PE).

The coach noticed my lack of ability and decided that I would run the JV two-mile event. Since there were no girls in our area that ran the JV two-mile, I would automatically win as long as I finished the race and our team would get the points.

I felt I was suffering enough just by running eight times around the track during meets, so I never did anything during practice. I would goof off all week and on competition day just walk/skip/amble around the track, finish, and win.

Well, obviously my coach and I weren't thinking ahead because since I was "undefeated," I had made it to the regionals/area/state competition (I'm so non-athletic, I'm not even sure which one it was -- I just know that for the first time I was actually competing against people and these were girls that lived, ate and breathed running).

Mine was the first race of the meet, so at least I could get it over with quick. We started the race and I soon got lapped. No big deal. Then I got lapped again! OK, this is bad. Then, all the other girls finished the race and I still had two laps to go! As if that wasn't humiliating enough, the officials decided that I was taking too long, so they made me run on the inside of the track (the grass of the football field) so that they could set up the hurdles for the next race.

By this time I figured that everyone had forgotten about me and hoped they thought that I was just warming up by running on the grass. I was also seriously debating faking an appendicitis attack, but I couldn't remember which side my appendix was on.

When it came time for my last 100 meters, they let me run on the track again and I finally crossed the finish line. I was hoping to fade away quietly, but the crowd in the stands was always aware of me and they all stood up and cheered when I finally finished (but I'm convinced they were cheering more for the school that let "that special girl" join their track team).

Well, many years later, I've realized that I am "special." I may not be the most prepared, I may not do all the things that I should be doing, but I do finish the race. I don't give up, no matter how tempting it may be. I may not have the most triumphant end, but I'm sure there will be a crowd of people cheering when I do.

Simple Pleasures III: The Search for Spock

We have a little three-year-old neighbor girl who looks like a complete angel. She has blond hair and always wears the cutest clothes (unlike my children who look like something the cat batted out from underneath the refrigerator).

Anyway, she has a not-so-hidden evil streak that brings me such joy when it comes out.

The other day she was trying to get her one-year-old brother in the house and said to him in her squeaky tiny toddler voice, "Come on, numb-nuts!"

Her father turned around surprised and asked, "What did you say?"

She batted her baby blues at him and replied, "Nothing."

Oh, I'm so thankful for three-year-olds. Rena always called that the "magic" age (though I think she meant that she no longer had to cut up their hot-dogs and they could play with regular toys), but I think everything they do is adorable.

Aging Gratefully

TOP 5 REASONS WHY I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO GROWING OLD

1. Get to be the crazy old lady on the block wearing a housecoat with curlers in my hair holding a shotgun yelling, "Get the hell off my lawn!" to the neighborhood kids.
2. Get to make nonsensical comments in church every week (something along the lines of "My name is Cleo, but everyone calls me Honey because I'm so sweet" or "In 1953, President David O. McKay gave me a special assignment to help save the devil's soul").*
3. Get to wear crazy clothes and hats (because everything looks adorable when you're under 5 or over 85).
4. Get to give people odd gifts like nails attached to empty thread spools or bags of hair.**
   
5. Get to fulfill my dream of being one of those Super Bowl streakers (because who's going to tackle a naked old lady limping across the field with her walker?).

*Actual phrases oft repeated in sacrament meetings.
**Lorna got the empty thread spools -- I must admit it was my Jeffrey who gave our neighbor a bag of hair as a gift.

Simple Pleasures II: Electric Boogaloo

Driving around at night to see the Christmas lights in a car whose heater works.

(Oh, and not running over a dog while doing it -- remember that, Rena?)