Snow Day!

I know it's been awhile, but the Holidays kept me busy!

It's a snow day for us today! Am I the only Mom that loves snow days as much as the kids?? I love to sit and watch the snow come down. It was so nice to sit by the fireplace yesterday and read a book and watch it fall. I was a little disappointed that the bulk of our snow fell overnight while we were all asleep. But it was great to wake up and discover 9 inches out there, even though we were awakened by the excited 8-year-old neighbor decked out and ready to go in his snowgear!

I really enjoy the kids playing in the snow, coming in for the hot chocolate and the feeling of being cocooned all cozy in our house. I don't enjoy them tracking it all inside much, but you have to have a little down with your ups. So, my girls, with bellies full of pancakes, headed out into the great white yonder and I haven't seen them since. There are snow forts to be built and hills to sled.

I'm busy on dog snowball patrol. Our dogs collect snowballs in their fur and bring them in undercover on their bellies. I think I have them all cleaned off and half an hour later I'll find a melting snowball in middle of the floor. Stealthy snowballs....

Enjoy the snow day. It's the opportunity to relax and do things you don't normally do. Resist the temptation to hit the floor running and instead, enjoy the childlike wonder of the snow.

Gnomes Gone Bad

Okay, so I got a little sidetracked after Thanksgiving. My middle daughter had an emergency appendectomy the day after Thanksgiving. As if that wasn't bad enough, we were about three hours from home visiting my in-laws, so she and I were camped out in the hospital for three days away from home.

ANYWAY, all is well now and I thought I'd talk a little about gnomes. I happened to find these pictures online and thought I'd share. Is this what happens when the Travelocity Gnome can't make it to the next pit stop on Amazing Race??




My first thought was, "what is he doing?" My second thought was, "where is the factory that makes these priceless gems?" I mean seriously, somewhere out there in some country, maybe New Gnomeland, there are people getting paid to make these things! Is there really a large market for this sort of thing? I think Gnomes are a little creepy anyway and I certainly don't want this one anywhere near my yard!

My Favorite Christmas Music

Here we are on the verge of Thanksgiving and ready for the downhill ride to Christmas. At the risk of sounding cliche, time just goes by so quickly! I've been pulling out all of the Holiday decor today and I'm reminded of how much I love this time of the year. It's not just Christmas, but this season in general. I love fall and winter. I love the smell of smoke in the air, fall leaves (except when I have to rake them), pumpkins, football and the Holidays. I'm one of those people who has a minor let down in January. I love the fresh feeling of clean around the house after the decorations are gone, but at the same time it feels rather empty. Then it's time for me to nest in my big chair with a cup of tea and a good book.

I pulled out all of holiday CD's and have been listening to Christmas music non-stop. My husband and children just don't appreciate a good Christmas song. I get those eye rolls. I remember as a child, my mother would start with her Johnny Mathis and Andy Williams Christmas albums around the middle of November. What great Christmas music. Johnny's version of "Silver Bells" makes me think of my childhood house, with mom in the kitchen cooking and singing, although not very well. The singing, not the cooking. My mom is a great cook!

My new favorite Christmas music is by Peter Brienholt. He truly has a pure voice. His Noel album is simply beautiful. I also love all of the Mannheim Steamroller albums as well. Their version of Silent Night brings tears to my eyes almost everytime I hear it. I once played it in my college dorm room while a few of us were studying and there wasn't a dry eye in the room when it was over. We were all thinking about moms, home and Christmas. And my last new favoite Christmas thing is the movie Elf. If you haven't seen this movie, do so immediately. I love Will Ferrell in this movie. It's just so sweet.

So, don't just sit there! Go find those Christmas CDs or put in your favorite Christmas movie and get ready for this blessed season!

Pet Peeves

I have some pet peeves that I would like to write about. We all have them. I thought you might like to hear about a few of mine. Yes, there are more than these few.

I hate it when people say "pitcher" instead of "picture". A pitcher is a water bearing vessel, okay?

It aggravates me when people spend money for personalized license plates and then put the type and/or color of car they are driving on them. I can already see that on the back of your car. RED GTO--no kidding?? I'm not sure I could have figured that out unless you spent the extra $45 to advertise it on your bumper.

It bothers me when people chew with their mouth open. Do we really need to see your food being processed for digestion?

I hate it when people do private grooming rituals in public, i.e. combing your hair, flossing, or clipping your fingernails. It's like fingernails on a chalkboard for me. I once sat through an adult Sunday School class with a "gentleman" clipping his fingernails behind me. I can only imagine where all those clippings were going. In my hair, I'm sure. If he started to take off his shoes I was going for his throat. There is a reason that a bathroom is a small room with a door. It's meant for privacy. One person. Alone.

I hate it when my husband clinks his spoon against his bowl. He does this eating ice cream or cereal. Do you really need to scrap the cereal bowl clean? Clink, clink, clink.... He's a decent guy. I love him. He takes good care of me and our children, but this little ritual makes me want to take that spoon and stick it in his nose. He knows this. That is why he has trained each of our children to do it as well.

And here are a few more to end on....

Feet. (thanks Dad) I just don't like them.
Misspelled words while typing. Spellcheck, people.
Tailgaters. Not the football game kind, but the kind that ride your butt on the highway because you are going too slow for them. Again, might be directed at my husband.


I just need to vent once in awhile. Pet Peeves. We all have them!

I'm a writer....

I enjoy writing and telling stories. Having said that, I should say that I also like to add details to make more stories more interesting. My mother would call it "embellishing" my stories. My oldest calls it "lying". She's pretty harsh. I call it "being Feliciaous" (that's my name, get it?) I was telling a story the other day when my daughter stopped me and said, "Mom, that's not exactly how it happened. She didn't say that! You're lying!" My step-daughter, bless her little heart, stepped in and said, "Lee, Mom is a writer (much emphasis on writer).. She adds details to her stories to make them more interesting." See, she gets me!

Anyway, I like to add more depth and detail to a story. It's not about me! It's all about entertaining the listener or reader, correct? I mean if I told you that I met the most interesting little Irish lady yesterday at the hospital where I volunteer, that's okay, but a little boring. But if I tell you that when I came into her room, she was sitting in her wee little chair wearing a little plaid housecoat with a cute little gray bun right on top of her head and that she just looked as fun as a little leprechaun, and then she said "Top of the morning to ya!" that's much more interesting, isn't it? Okay, she really didn't say that. I was just being "Feliciaous". But she did have a plaid housecoat and a bun, okay?

She's Toying with me...

Now I think she is just toying with me. I really am convinced that it is the job of a teenager to try and drive their parents crazy.

A Clown in My Pantry

That title will make you read this post, won't it? So, Sunday afternoon my handsome husband comes upstairs and says, "Get your camera and go look in the kitchen". Well, ya don't ask questions when he tells you to get the camera! I grabbed it and headed downstairs, camera in hand, ready to shoot... As I get closer to the kitchen I hear a child rummaging in the pantry. Not unusual. I also hear this same child singing, presumably to a song on her I-Pod that she alone can hear. Again, not unusual. As I round the corner, I see this.


Of course, I snapped the picture immediately. Now that IS unusual. Should I be alarmed? I don't know.... Is this a phase? "I want to be a clown, mom" or "I'm joining the circus" or "I'm thinking of a new hairstyle-Orphan Annie meets Jimmie Hendrix". Of course, since she is a teenager, she rolled her eyes at me, took her snack and sauntered on upstairs to her room, still singing. I guess maybe I'll get answers later. Then again, maybe not.