It's the day after Christmas and I'm sitting here at the table looking out to the beautiful white snowdrifts that cover our backyard. I confess that I like the whole idea of a white Christmas and yes, I like the song and movie of the same name too. When I was younger I would always get mad if we had a brown Christmas. One especially cruel year we received several inches of snow the week before the holiday and then it promptly warmed up and was all melted by the big day.
This year we were promised not only a white Christmas, but a huge snowstorm burying the whole state white Christmas. I know several of my friends were none too pleased with this forecast since it would prove difficult for travel both for family members or for themselves in the effort to spend this day with loved ones. Sad to say, I was actually looking forward to a big storm with lots of snow. I'll admit the timing sucked a bit but I did get my white Christmas.
So what did we actually do??? Well, I spent the last few days before the storm watching the weather reports to make sure this was for real and not just meteorologists using up air time. Thankfully I had finished all my gift shopping so I did not have to worry about the last minute panic shopping some poor folks had to do. I also made sure that the teacher gifts went to school on Monday or Tuesday. I decided to do the grocery shopping with the thought of having Christmas dinner at home instead of in Yankton. I called it the back-up food. Hubby did decide we should do turkey instead of the pork roast I bought so the roast is in the freezer. By Wednesday we were prepared so all we had to do was sit and wait.
Christmas Eve day dawned cold and grey with a small amount of white stuff having fallen the night before but this was truly the calm before the storm. I took the kids outside to burn off extra energy and was very thankful my neighbor has a snow blower so I didn't have to spend 30 minutes shoveling the end of my driveway. The loving husband had to work but got off early enough to run into Sioux Falls for a few last minute things and to pick up our pizza. We decided to go to the 6 pm Mass since that was the Children's Mass. By then things were pretty icky out and they were soon going to be closing the interstates. Our church is only a few miles from our house and in town so we were OK. The kids did really well sitting through the service. We decided to sit right down in front so everyone could see what was going on. Andrew loved singing the songs and he sat there with his book on his lap "reading" along. When it came time for the sermon, the priest decided to call all the children up front and sit and talk to them about the Nativity scene and the meaning of Christmas. He was asking the children questions and they were giving answers. My moment of pride was when Matthew said he learns about Jesus from his mom and dad and I'm not sure why but Carolyn said she learns about Jesus in school---maybe she's confusing the religion lessons we do with Matthew at home. My moment of wanting to slide under the pew came when Matthew decided to tell the priest he had a song about baby Jesus and then proceeded to sing it to him. I don't know what he sang but the priest seemed impressed and the congregation gave him applause. When I asked Matthew where he learned this song he told me the words were in his brain. After the service was over we stopped and looked at the dancing lights. There is a house that is decked out with 100,000 lights and choreographed to music a few blocks from our house so we make a point to visit several times during the month. After we got home it was then time to get the kids settled down and into bed. That took a while. Carolyn was too excited to sleep and kept asking when Santa Claus was going to get to our house. Andrew decided to be a huge turkey and not go to bed until hubby finally took him upstairs around 10:30. I then made a mad dash for the stash of gifts and "Santa" stuff in the spare bedroom.
When it comes to buying Christmas gifts, I'm on top of it and I'm usually done a few weeks before Christmas. When it comes to wrapping said gifts...well that's usually done as last minute as possible. I hate wrapping gifts. If I could stuff everything into gift bags I would but small children love ripping open gifts so wrap I must. I did buy decorated gift boxes so I compromised and wrapped the toys and then put the clothing into the boxes and gift bags. I also wrapped the loving husband's gifts too since I know he wrapped all mine. I find that doing the wrapping and filling the stockings late Christmas Eve while watching some sort of Christmas concert or church service is quite enjoyable. Hubby came down later in the evening and we finished watching the Pope do Mass from Vatican City. We then spent another hour or so flipping channels watching bits and pieces from the various 24 hour marathon showings of different movies. It was close to 3 am when we finally decided to go to bed.
Matthew was the first to wake up Christmas morning and that was a little before 7. Carolyn was up about a half hour later. They both wanted to wake Andrew up but thankfully hubby convinced them to not do that. Andrew woke up about an hour later on his own and was quite cheerful. After he got up then the opening of the presents commenced. I tried not to go too overboard with the toys for the kids. Andrew got a total of 2 toys and Matthew and Carolyn got 3. I got one item for all the kids to share..it is called a wobble board. It is a balance board somewhat like a Wii board but it has colors on top and you have to tip the colored part to the floor in order to play the game. Hubby got himself a gun safe earlier this month and called it his gift from me. I suck at getting him gifts so I was more than happy to let him do that. I did get him a few small items from the kids so he had something to open.
During the chaos that was gift opening, the kids handed me three gifts of various sizes. The first one was long and flat. The loving husband had framed the shooting target I had shot back in September. How sweet. The second was an average size box. I opened it and the USPS bag inside and found the t-shirt I wanted. OK, not the exact one but even better. After I got my black belt I told the loving husband I wanted a t-shirt that said "black belt mom" on it. He decided that the shirts from the online stores implied that my kid was the black belt so he found a different site and created a shirt that said "This mommy's a black belt". How cute. Both of those gifts were kind of expected since I did tell the husband I wanted to frame my target and I wanted to get a t-shirt. It was the third gift that totally blew me away.
The box said peanut butter granola bars and had an odd rattle to it like a gift card was inside. My brain was thinking i tunes or JC Penny's. What came out when I opened it was white ticket that said Minnesota Vikings in purple along the side. It took a moment to comprehend exactly what it was I was holding in my hand and then it hit me. A GAME TICKET!!!!!! At that point all I could say was "oh my" and "I'm gonna cry". The wonderful amazing incredibly loving husband had bought me a ticket to see the Vikings play the New York Giants at home in the Metrodome. The game is next Sunday so I'll have a whole weekend of no husband and kids while I head over to Minnesota. I have friends in the area so I have a place to stay and things to do. I'm sooooooo excited.
After the gifts we fed the kids cinnamon rolls and then dressed up and headed outside to dig ourselves out. I got some nice shots of the kids playing in the big snow mounds. We have wonderful neighbors who own snow blowers so some of the big plowing was done for us. No travel was advised and the interstates were closed so we were snowed in. Good thing I bought back up Christmas dinner. The turkey was great. The kids spent the afternoon playing with their new toys and watching Christmas specials on TV. Later that evening hubby went back outside to shovel more snow since it was snowing and blowing most of the day. We had waffles for supper and the kids ate way too much candy. All in all it was a great day.
Well Christmas has come and gone. Carolyn wants Santa Claus to visit tonight but I reminded her he only visits on Christmas Eve. We still have to do Christmas with Jim's family since we were not able to do it on Thursday or even today. We also have to go to Chamberlain on Monday to meet my folks. I'm hoping the roads are cleared by then and we can travel safely. Now that I got my white Christmas I'm good for this year. We got dumped on and have about 18-19 inches of the white stuff. More, if you measure the snow drifts. I'm hoping that's the last snow storm we get this winter. I also want good traveling weather this week and next, especially next Saturday.
Saturday, December 26, 2009
Thursday, December 24, 2009
The Christmas story
It's Christmas Eve and soon we will celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. We will go to church and hear the story of His birth and celebrate this miracle.
Now we all know the Christmas story, it's pretty familiar...Mary and Joseph go to Bethlehem and she gives birth to Jesus. Shepards follow the star to the stable and tell everyone the good news. Three wise men show up and give gifts... I happen to like the version in the Gospel of Luke the best but they all are pretty good.
Now of course these events were written down hundreds of years after the actual event and they are a composit of the oral stories that were told. In the spirit of Christmas I have decided to give my take on this wonderful story. Please know that I mean no disrespect to the original authors or to this story.
First we have Mary. She's just sitting there minding her own business when out of nowhere the angel Gabriel appears and tells her that God has chosen her to be the mother of His child. I'm sure Mary is asking herself what herbs were in the tea she was drinking. She listens to what Gabriel tells her and agrees to God's plan even though it means becoming an unwed single mother--not a very popular career choice in those days.
Fast forward to the dinner table that night. I'm thinking the conversation went something like this. "Mom and Dad, you're not gonna believe this but an angel named Gabriel visited me this afternoon and you know those prophesies we read about in the Torah, the ones about God sending a Messiah? Well not only has God chosen me to fulfill them but in 9 months you're gonna be grandparents." Yeah, that's a real conversation starter.
Next, we move on to poor Joseph the fiancee. He hears this news and I'm sure he's thinking that his wife to be has been listening to a few too many Roman storytellers. It's either that or craziness runs in the family and they conveniently forgot to mention it to him when they were drawing up that marriage contract. He's going "I'm outta here" and starts making plans to quietly break the contract and look elsewhere for a new wife. Is it any wonder God has to tell him in a dream that no, Mary is not crazy and no, you can't get out of your marriage, and yes, she really is pregnant by the Holy Spirit. He wakes up and does the right thing and takes a wife and gets ready to be a father.
Now here is where things get really fun. Thanks to Julius Cesar, Joseph and Mary have to make a long journey via donkey just to be counted. I'm so glad that all we have to do is fill out a form and mail it in. I'm sure the last thing Mary wanted to do was spend hours at a time sitting on a donkey for days on end. I really feel for these two people. They finally arrive tired and hungry only to find no place to stay. This was before telephones and the Internet so advance reservations were unheard of back then. They go from place to place begging for a room. Not even the plight of a very pregnant mama to be will soften the hearts of these innkeepers. Thankfully there is one guy who at least lets them bunk down in the stable. I'm sure he probably charged them for the "privilege" too.
Well at this point Mary has the baby. Now I wonder if she had to go through labor like the rest of us women do. If God cursed us with painful childbirth because of Original Sin and Mary was born without Original Sin (according to the Catholic Church) would she be exempt from the long and painful labor? I'd like to think that when the time came God commanded Jesus be born and He appeared instead of poor Mary all alone and in pain with only her husband (and hopefully a midwife) present. At any rate the new baby had to have been cold since it does get quite chilly at night. The only items he got to wear were whatever rags and blankets Mary packed to take with her. But at least he was loved and had a place to sleep even if he had to share it with animals.
The last part of this story involves a group of shepards out doing their job. Suddenly a group of angels appears and tells them that the really neat star they have been admiring is actually a marker and if they follow it they will be amongst the first to see the new king. After the angels leave I'm betting those guys looked at each other and said "you saw that didn't you?" Perhaps they asked themselves if maybe it was the wine they had drunk for supper that caused them to see things. In any case, they decided that what the heck why not go and check out this child the angels spoke about. I'm sure Mary was happy to have guests, even if they were strangers. I'd like to imagine her showing off this little baby, eyes full of pride to these simple shepards telling them yes, he is the Messiah and yes, you can hold him.
Twelve days later when the Wise Men arrived, the gifts got much better. Hopefully, the couple sold those gifts to pay for the trip to Egypt they had to take due to the very real and very mean king who wanted to see the baby dead.
This story is possible because of three very important things. They are belief, acceptance, and obedience. The first and most important is belief. Mary believed that the angel was from God and she was chosen to fulfill the scriptures. Joseph believed that what was told to him in a dream was in fact God speaking to him telling him not to abandon Mary in her time of need. The Shepard's also believed. They made the choice to listen to those angles and leave their sheep and follow a star in search of a baby.
The second thing is acceptance. Mary accepted the will of God and accepted the challenge of motherhood. She had to know how difficult this task was going to be and she did it without complaint. Joseph had to accept the fact God chose him to fulfill His role as the earthly father Jesus needed. I'm not sure if he is the patron saint of adoption but he should be. Imagine how he had to feel knowing the child his wife was carrying wasn't his and yet he was expected to raise and love this child as if he was his own. The shepards were willing to accept the news of the birth but I'm sure they spent time questioning whether or not they would be believed.
The last thing is the most important and that is obedience. Mary obeyed God's command and put her faith in Him. She was his faithful servant and even though she was given a very unreal set of circumstances, she obeyed and fulfilled the role God had designed for her. Joseph was put in a very unfavorable situation but he still obeyed. It would have been very embarrassing for him to admit that his intended was pregnant before they were married and I'm not sure how many people would believe him if he said that not only was the child not his, it was conceived by the Holy Spirit and was God's son. He had every right to walk away and not look back but when God told him that he was needed, Joseph obeyed. The shepards listened to the message given to them by the angles and they obeyed and did as they were told which was to spread the word that the Messiah was here.
Well there you have it, my version of the Christmas story. I hope you have enjoyed it. I want to wish all of you a very merry and Blessed Christmas.
Now we all know the Christmas story, it's pretty familiar...Mary and Joseph go to Bethlehem and she gives birth to Jesus. Shepards follow the star to the stable and tell everyone the good news. Three wise men show up and give gifts... I happen to like the version in the Gospel of Luke the best but they all are pretty good.
Now of course these events were written down hundreds of years after the actual event and they are a composit of the oral stories that were told. In the spirit of Christmas I have decided to give my take on this wonderful story. Please know that I mean no disrespect to the original authors or to this story.
First we have Mary. She's just sitting there minding her own business when out of nowhere the angel Gabriel appears and tells her that God has chosen her to be the mother of His child. I'm sure Mary is asking herself what herbs were in the tea she was drinking. She listens to what Gabriel tells her and agrees to God's plan even though it means becoming an unwed single mother--not a very popular career choice in those days.
Fast forward to the dinner table that night. I'm thinking the conversation went something like this. "Mom and Dad, you're not gonna believe this but an angel named Gabriel visited me this afternoon and you know those prophesies we read about in the Torah, the ones about God sending a Messiah? Well not only has God chosen me to fulfill them but in 9 months you're gonna be grandparents." Yeah, that's a real conversation starter.
Next, we move on to poor Joseph the fiancee. He hears this news and I'm sure he's thinking that his wife to be has been listening to a few too many Roman storytellers. It's either that or craziness runs in the family and they conveniently forgot to mention it to him when they were drawing up that marriage contract. He's going "I'm outta here" and starts making plans to quietly break the contract and look elsewhere for a new wife. Is it any wonder God has to tell him in a dream that no, Mary is not crazy and no, you can't get out of your marriage, and yes, she really is pregnant by the Holy Spirit. He wakes up and does the right thing and takes a wife and gets ready to be a father.
Now here is where things get really fun. Thanks to Julius Cesar, Joseph and Mary have to make a long journey via donkey just to be counted. I'm so glad that all we have to do is fill out a form and mail it in. I'm sure the last thing Mary wanted to do was spend hours at a time sitting on a donkey for days on end. I really feel for these two people. They finally arrive tired and hungry only to find no place to stay. This was before telephones and the Internet so advance reservations were unheard of back then. They go from place to place begging for a room. Not even the plight of a very pregnant mama to be will soften the hearts of these innkeepers. Thankfully there is one guy who at least lets them bunk down in the stable. I'm sure he probably charged them for the "privilege" too.
Well at this point Mary has the baby. Now I wonder if she had to go through labor like the rest of us women do. If God cursed us with painful childbirth because of Original Sin and Mary was born without Original Sin (according to the Catholic Church) would she be exempt from the long and painful labor? I'd like to think that when the time came God commanded Jesus be born and He appeared instead of poor Mary all alone and in pain with only her husband (and hopefully a midwife) present. At any rate the new baby had to have been cold since it does get quite chilly at night. The only items he got to wear were whatever rags and blankets Mary packed to take with her. But at least he was loved and had a place to sleep even if he had to share it with animals.
The last part of this story involves a group of shepards out doing their job. Suddenly a group of angels appears and tells them that the really neat star they have been admiring is actually a marker and if they follow it they will be amongst the first to see the new king. After the angels leave I'm betting those guys looked at each other and said "you saw that didn't you?" Perhaps they asked themselves if maybe it was the wine they had drunk for supper that caused them to see things. In any case, they decided that what the heck why not go and check out this child the angels spoke about. I'm sure Mary was happy to have guests, even if they were strangers. I'd like to imagine her showing off this little baby, eyes full of pride to these simple shepards telling them yes, he is the Messiah and yes, you can hold him.
Twelve days later when the Wise Men arrived, the gifts got much better. Hopefully, the couple sold those gifts to pay for the trip to Egypt they had to take due to the very real and very mean king who wanted to see the baby dead.
This story is possible because of three very important things. They are belief, acceptance, and obedience. The first and most important is belief. Mary believed that the angel was from God and she was chosen to fulfill the scriptures. Joseph believed that what was told to him in a dream was in fact God speaking to him telling him not to abandon Mary in her time of need. The Shepard's also believed. They made the choice to listen to those angles and leave their sheep and follow a star in search of a baby.
The second thing is acceptance. Mary accepted the will of God and accepted the challenge of motherhood. She had to know how difficult this task was going to be and she did it without complaint. Joseph had to accept the fact God chose him to fulfill His role as the earthly father Jesus needed. I'm not sure if he is the patron saint of adoption but he should be. Imagine how he had to feel knowing the child his wife was carrying wasn't his and yet he was expected to raise and love this child as if he was his own. The shepards were willing to accept the news of the birth but I'm sure they spent time questioning whether or not they would be believed.
The last thing is the most important and that is obedience. Mary obeyed God's command and put her faith in Him. She was his faithful servant and even though she was given a very unreal set of circumstances, she obeyed and fulfilled the role God had designed for her. Joseph was put in a very unfavorable situation but he still obeyed. It would have been very embarrassing for him to admit that his intended was pregnant before they were married and I'm not sure how many people would believe him if he said that not only was the child not his, it was conceived by the Holy Spirit and was God's son. He had every right to walk away and not look back but when God told him that he was needed, Joseph obeyed. The shepards listened to the message given to them by the angles and they obeyed and did as they were told which was to spread the word that the Messiah was here.
Well there you have it, my version of the Christmas story. I hope you have enjoyed it. I want to wish all of you a very merry and Blessed Christmas.
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Christmas yummies
My friend Jackie posted a blog about 7 foods she totally loves during the Christmas season. She challenged all of us fellow bloggers to make a list of our 7 faves and post for all to see. So here is my list of 7 (or so) Christmas yummy foods.
1. Cookies I totally love cookies and I seem to go through a lot more this time of the year. My personal favorite is oatmeal chocolate chip. I have a great recipe that I got from a cookbook my mother in law gave me some years ago. I have also found through trial and error that going half butter and half Crisco seems to produce the best results. When I'm not doing oatmeal chocolate chip I do peanut butter, chocolate chip, snickerdoodle, or sugar.
2. Green bean casserole Is there any more perfect food than this?? I prefer the french sliced in my casserole but the regular cut works ok too. My version has me using extra mushrooms, less milk for the cream soup (makes it richer and creamier) and those lovely crunchy onions in the middle and on top. I actually had the chef prepare this version for the buffet at my wedding.
3. Mashed potatoes I'm a spud lover. I love just about anything that comes from a potato, lefse (for those that are not of the Scandinavian heritage it is a flat bread made from potatoes), potato chips, french fries, potato oles, buttered new potatoes..and the list goes on and on. Over the years I have been able to cut down on the need for gravy. Of course, the more butter the better. Yes, I can tell the difference between box and real but if the box version is flavored that's ok. However, if you wanna do Christmas dinner right then boil and mash and don't forget the milk and butter.
4. People puppy chow I used to not really like this when I was younger. However, once I came upon a recipe that worked for me and with a few tweaks, well lets just say I have changed my ways. I usually make this for hubby's co-workers and the bowl always comes back empty. I also like to give it as a gift to others and it seems to be well received. My puppy chow involves using the Hy-Vee brand of Crispix cereal and milk chocolate chips instead of semi-sweet and I use extra powdered sugar to coat everything. Don't forget to use creamy peanut butter since it melts so much smoother that chunky.
5. Chocolate Well actually, I could do a 7 list of just chocolate things but I'll just lump them all in this entry. Hersey's Kisses top my list of seasonal chocolate. They taste the same in December as they do in October or March but it's the pretty red and green wrapping foil that does it. Same for the red an green M&M's. Also on the list are those wonderful Advent Calenders they sell that have 24 or 25 little windows that you open up each day in order to count the days till Christmas. Chocolate every day, now that's what I'm talking about.
6. Pizza Yes, this is one of my stranger items but it does have a nice story to it. For quite a few years my family would go out for pizza on Christmas Eve after church. Great tradition, except for the year almost everyone got sick from the pizza but even that is a special (tragic but still special) memory. I still like to do pizza on Christmas Eve whenever I can, even if the loving husband likes to do the traditional oyster stew.
7. Candy canes Oh wonder of all wonders the candy cane. I look forward to these lovely sweet happy treats. I know they are the same thing as those little round peppermint candies you can buy but it's just not the same. There is something about hanging them on a tree or putting one on a package as a decoration or even wrapping a brown pipe cleaner on it and gluing eyes and a nose to make Rudolph that brings out the kid in me. I don't put them on my tree since they would be gone in a matter of minutes, eaten by the kids. They also serve a very useful purpose...you use it as a stir stick for the hot cocoa.
Honorable mentions
My oatmeal scotchie bars A few years ago I accidentally bought a package of butterscotch chips. Hubby is not all that fond of butterscotch and neither am I but I was not about to waste a perfectly good package of chips so I just made the bar recipe on the back of the bag. It turns out that the rest of my extended family are HUGE butterscotch lovers and these bars disappear whenever I make them
Coca Cola Cold I do a post without mentioning this wonderful drink? Now admit it, you were singing "I'd like to teach the world to sing... I'd like to buy the world the Coke and keep it company..." in your head weren't you? If that one is a little too old then think polar bears or the Santa trucks. Either way, nothing says Merry Christmas like a nice cold Coca Cola.
There you have it, my list of 7 or so foods that I love this time of the year. If you have any questions or want a recipe then let me know. I love sharing.
1. Cookies I totally love cookies and I seem to go through a lot more this time of the year. My personal favorite is oatmeal chocolate chip. I have a great recipe that I got from a cookbook my mother in law gave me some years ago. I have also found through trial and error that going half butter and half Crisco seems to produce the best results. When I'm not doing oatmeal chocolate chip I do peanut butter, chocolate chip, snickerdoodle, or sugar.
2. Green bean casserole Is there any more perfect food than this?? I prefer the french sliced in my casserole but the regular cut works ok too. My version has me using extra mushrooms, less milk for the cream soup (makes it richer and creamier) and those lovely crunchy onions in the middle and on top. I actually had the chef prepare this version for the buffet at my wedding.
3. Mashed potatoes I'm a spud lover. I love just about anything that comes from a potato, lefse (for those that are not of the Scandinavian heritage it is a flat bread made from potatoes), potato chips, french fries, potato oles, buttered new potatoes..and the list goes on and on. Over the years I have been able to cut down on the need for gravy. Of course, the more butter the better. Yes, I can tell the difference between box and real but if the box version is flavored that's ok. However, if you wanna do Christmas dinner right then boil and mash and don't forget the milk and butter.
4. People puppy chow I used to not really like this when I was younger. However, once I came upon a recipe that worked for me and with a few tweaks, well lets just say I have changed my ways. I usually make this for hubby's co-workers and the bowl always comes back empty. I also like to give it as a gift to others and it seems to be well received. My puppy chow involves using the Hy-Vee brand of Crispix cereal and milk chocolate chips instead of semi-sweet and I use extra powdered sugar to coat everything. Don't forget to use creamy peanut butter since it melts so much smoother that chunky.
5. Chocolate Well actually, I could do a 7 list of just chocolate things but I'll just lump them all in this entry. Hersey's Kisses top my list of seasonal chocolate. They taste the same in December as they do in October or March but it's the pretty red and green wrapping foil that does it. Same for the red an green M&M's. Also on the list are those wonderful Advent Calenders they sell that have 24 or 25 little windows that you open up each day in order to count the days till Christmas. Chocolate every day, now that's what I'm talking about.
6. Pizza Yes, this is one of my stranger items but it does have a nice story to it. For quite a few years my family would go out for pizza on Christmas Eve after church. Great tradition, except for the year almost everyone got sick from the pizza but even that is a special (tragic but still special) memory. I still like to do pizza on Christmas Eve whenever I can, even if the loving husband likes to do the traditional oyster stew.
7. Candy canes Oh wonder of all wonders the candy cane. I look forward to these lovely sweet happy treats. I know they are the same thing as those little round peppermint candies you can buy but it's just not the same. There is something about hanging them on a tree or putting one on a package as a decoration or even wrapping a brown pipe cleaner on it and gluing eyes and a nose to make Rudolph that brings out the kid in me. I don't put them on my tree since they would be gone in a matter of minutes, eaten by the kids. They also serve a very useful purpose...you use it as a stir stick for the hot cocoa.
Honorable mentions
My oatmeal scotchie bars A few years ago I accidentally bought a package of butterscotch chips. Hubby is not all that fond of butterscotch and neither am I but I was not about to waste a perfectly good package of chips so I just made the bar recipe on the back of the bag. It turns out that the rest of my extended family are HUGE butterscotch lovers and these bars disappear whenever I make them
Coca Cola Cold I do a post without mentioning this wonderful drink? Now admit it, you were singing "I'd like to teach the world to sing... I'd like to buy the world the Coke and keep it company..." in your head weren't you? If that one is a little too old then think polar bears or the Santa trucks. Either way, nothing says Merry Christmas like a nice cold Coca Cola.
There you have it, my list of 7 or so foods that I love this time of the year. If you have any questions or want a recipe then let me know. I love sharing.
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Sour cream sugar cookies
I have a secret to confess..I like cookies. I like to make them, I like to bake them and I like to eat them. This time of the year finds me in the kitchen making holiday treats for friends and family. Usually I do my oatmeal chocolate chip or peanut butter or even a snickerdoodle since they seem to go over pretty well. As for the much beloved sugar cookie?? I have to confess, I am not a fan of the roll out the dough and use cookie cutter kind. For some strange reason I have never really liked those oh so cute frosted and decorated staples of every holiday dessert platter. I don't know if it is the texture or taste but they just don't do it for me. No, it's not the work needed to do the cookie, but I will admit there is a lot more preparation and time needed than any of the other cookies. I just think it comes down to taste and over the years I have found very few frosted and decorated cookies that actually tasted good. They are either too heavy or too dry or too hard (my most common complaint) or too cakey for my liking. However....give me a soft warm drop sugar cookie and I'm in cookie heaven. Yes, there is a difference between the two. The rolled out version is a firmer dough that must be chilled and rolled out onto a flat surface so the individual cookies can be cut out of the dough with some form of cookie cutter. The drop version is a softer dough that can be "dropped" from a spoon onto the cookie sheet and pressed flat with the bottom of a glass. It is this type of cookie that I like to make and eat. Courtesy of Betty Crocker is this wonderful delicious recipe. For the record, I use regular sour cream and I would advise against trying the fat free version.
Sour Cream Sugar Cookies
Ingredients:
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter or margarine softened
1/2 cup sour cream
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1 egg
2 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking POWDER
1/2 tsp baking SODA
1/2 tsp salt
Extra sugar in a bowl
To make:
Set oven to 350
Mix 1 cup sugar, butter, sour cream, vanilla, and egg.
Stir in remaining ingredients except bowl of sugar.
Drop dough by rounded teaspoonfuls into bowl of sugar, roll gently, until completely coated.
Place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet.
Flatten to about 1/2 inch with bottom of a glass.
Bake 7-8 minutes or just until set.
Cool slightly and remove from cookie sheet.
Makes about 3 1/2 to 4 dozen cookies.
Sour Cream Sugar Cookies
Ingredients:
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter or margarine softened
1/2 cup sour cream
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1 egg
2 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking POWDER
1/2 tsp baking SODA
1/2 tsp salt
Extra sugar in a bowl
To make:
Set oven to 350
Mix 1 cup sugar, butter, sour cream, vanilla, and egg.
Stir in remaining ingredients except bowl of sugar.
Drop dough by rounded teaspoonfuls into bowl of sugar, roll gently, until completely coated.
Place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet.
Flatten to about 1/2 inch with bottom of a glass.
Bake 7-8 minutes or just until set.
Cool slightly and remove from cookie sheet.
Makes about 3 1/2 to 4 dozen cookies.
Sunday, December 6, 2009
Undeserved gift
Saturday was a busy busy day. Well all Saturdays are but this one was start to finish full of things to do and places to be. Of course if Mom had been able to get this weekend off we would have met up in Chamberlain for our gift exchange and holiday time together but that has been rescheduled to the Monday after Christmas. Instead it was off to Yankton for a birthday party for my niece Raelynn.
The birthday party was not scheduled to start until 2 and it was ok if we could show up a little late since we did have to travel a distance to get there. The loving husband takes Hapkido classes twice a month and this Saturday was one of those days. He needed to be in Brookings by 10 for the two hour class. Brookings is one hour north of Sioux Falls so even if he left a few minutes early he would not get to Sioux Falls til 1 and Yankton is an hour and a half south of us. Complicating matters was the loving husband's Christmas gift I (he) got him. It was a very large and heavy gun safe. It was at Sam's Club and needed to be picked up. Jim's mom has a pick-up so he planned on driving the truck back, picking the safe up and dropping it off at our house and then taking the truck back the next day. After much debate and deliberating we came up with a plan of action for the day.
The plan was for him to do class and meet up with me and the kids at the Wellness Center and we would take both vehicles down so I would not have to drive back to Yankton the next day and pick him up after he gave the truck back to his mom. While he was at class I would get the kids ready and go to the Wellness Center and do the cardio box class at 10:15. We also offer our help to any of our fellow Tae Kwan Do students on Saturdays after the cardio class is over so if our usual 2 takers showed up I would do a short help session and then take the kids and feed them and be back by 1 or so and hopefully be ready to take off for the party.
As we all know, the best laid plans never play out as we want them to. When the loving husband left all children were awake....and that was about it. Weekends usually mean pancakes and eggs for breakfast but I really did not have time to make pancakes so I just did 2 minute microwave scrambled eggs and cinnamon toast instead. I wanted to have the kids dressed and fed and out to the car by 9:30ish or no later than 9:45 because it is a 20 minute drive to get there and another 5-10 minutes parking and getting 3 kids signed into the nursery. I quickly realized the kids did not share my time frame of events. They were stuck in slow mode with zero sense of urgency. Repeated attempts to persuade child A,B,or C to sit at the table and eat the food and please put on the clothing I have set out for you fell upon deaf ears. Did I mention this was a pool party so I also had to make sure I had every one's swim suits, towels, and swim diapers packed along with my gym bag and the birthday gift too. Yeah, it was one of those mornings.
During the time I was attempting to heard cats (wrangle children) my stress level started to climb. The closer I came to realize there was no way I was going make my timeline and would miss the class the crabbier I got. All I wanted to do was leave and no matter what I did or did not do I could not get things going in the manner I wanted them to. I began to do what all stressed out crabby people do, blame someone else. As I was going from task to task and back to task A and back over to task C and so on and so forth I started to mumble and grumble to myself under my breath. They were not nice mumbles and grumbles either. I was on the "poor me" road and having my very own pity party. Poor me has to do all this work and poor me has to get the kids ready and poor me has to pack things and poor me etc. and etc. Of course while "poor me" was getting elevated to martyrdom the not so loving husband was being demoted to the doghouse. It's HIS fault that..... and why didn't HE...... and doesn't HE realize that I.... and you get the picture. Don't worry, I never once picked up the phone and communicated my feelings to him, I know sometimes it's better to leave some things unsaid. I'd also like to say that the loving husband was the only target of my irritation but of course that would not be telling the truth. Sad to say my tone was quite sharp with the kids as I tried in vain to get everyone dressed and loaded. Poor Matthew, he seems to sense when I'm stressed or in a bad mood and he acts out. He was picking fights with Carolyn and of course she was playing right into it and Andrew decided to protest wearing clothes. I think I lost count of how many times I snapped at the kids and elevated the yell level up to playground level. It was not pretty.
At some point in all of this I realized I was indeed acting like a selfish spoiled brat with my whining and complaining. Unfortunately for me even though I realize what I'm doing I don't always make myself stop. It's like watching a train wreck, you know it's gonna be messy but you just can't look away. Knowing I was behaving horridly, I offered apologies to God for my thoughts and actions. Nothing fancy or formal, just basically your "I'm so sorry God, I know I should not be doing this I really am sorry." Just so you all know, I don't do the formal prayer thing very often. I usually just do the look up and talk to God method of communicating. I find that if I just start speaking to Him like I would to a person in the room with me I convey my thoughts and feeling so much better than if I try to kneel down and bow my head. I knew I was stressed and taking it out on others and all I could hope for was to make it through the day without causing further distress on others and ruining every one's day.
Well I made it to the Wellness Center too late for my class so I instead did a quick work out. That did make me feel better and the half hour I spent with the 2 red belts was very productive. I was still a little on the crabby side and not looking forward to the long drive with the kids but compared to the morning I was much much better. Due to the time and lunch efforts we decided to meet at a nearby Burger King and the loving husband agreed to stop by Taco John's to get us something tasty. We both are not huge fans of either McDonald's or Burger King so if possible we do TJ's and the kids do burgers.
After eating it was time to make travel arraignments. I have the DVD player in my van but the loving husband has the "daddy's car" factor. I don't know why the kids like to ride in the Malibu but they do. I expected Matthew and Carolyn would opt for the car but Andrew has now decided that he needs to do what the older kids do and made it a point to open up the door and sit in Jim's car sans car seat. That meant 3 votes for daddy's car. I happily helped load the booster and car seats into the Malibu. I kissed the loving husband bye and off he went.
I got back into my now empty van, looked up and said 'Thank you for the incredible gift you just gave me Lord". Alone, by myself, solo, oh the wonder, oh the joy, oh the indescribable feeling of happiness. I had a whole hour and a half of just me and whatever radio station I wanted to listen to. No breaking up fights, no listening to whatever annoying DVD the kids picked (and fought over) to watch, no having to answer strange questions or remind someone that "poop" or any form of the word is not appropriate conversation. This was exactly what I needed.
As I was driving to Yankton, I wondered in amazement at how I had been so blessed to get this precious alone time. I really did not deserve to be rewarded for my morning behavior. If one of my children had acted the way I did they would have received some sort of punishment or consequence. By all rights I should have been in the van with all children enduring the trip and all the misery I would have assigned it. Yes, I needed the break, and yes I could have asked the loving husband to take all children but no, I would never have done that. Crabby as I was I would never in a million years suggested to the loving husband that I wanted to drive solo just to get a break. I'm not sure why I don't always ask for the help, maybe it's my pride or the guilt I would feel "dumping" the kids on daddy. Either way, God knew what I needed and even though I acted horridly and reverted to a child's level in my petty (and unfounded) complaints, he still gave it to me. I took that time and de-stressed. I recharged the batteries that had been so worn down and adjusted my attitude. I had been shown mercy and compassion when I deserved reprimand and punishment so I let gratitude take hold of my heart. As a parent I hate it when my children whine and complain endlessly and go on and on and expect me to fix things for them. Actually, it drives me nuts when they do that and all I want to do is get rid of them ASAP. It still boggles my mind that I can do the same things the kids do and instead of driving God crazy and making Him want to brush me off at the first opportunity He listens to my complaints, looks into my heart and does what He can to fix it. My parenting skills suck compared to His, but I also strive harder to be more like Him when it comes to parenting. I can parent my children the way He parents me. I know it's hard and I'm going to make mistakes but at least I know He has my back.
ps. In case you were wondering about the rest of the day, it went great. The party was loud and chaotic with lots of crazy kids running around and then we got to go swimming and we had a blast. I even went down the HUGE water slide but that's a different post.
The birthday party was not scheduled to start until 2 and it was ok if we could show up a little late since we did have to travel a distance to get there. The loving husband takes Hapkido classes twice a month and this Saturday was one of those days. He needed to be in Brookings by 10 for the two hour class. Brookings is one hour north of Sioux Falls so even if he left a few minutes early he would not get to Sioux Falls til 1 and Yankton is an hour and a half south of us. Complicating matters was the loving husband's Christmas gift I (he) got him. It was a very large and heavy gun safe. It was at Sam's Club and needed to be picked up. Jim's mom has a pick-up so he planned on driving the truck back, picking the safe up and dropping it off at our house and then taking the truck back the next day. After much debate and deliberating we came up with a plan of action for the day.
The plan was for him to do class and meet up with me and the kids at the Wellness Center and we would take both vehicles down so I would not have to drive back to Yankton the next day and pick him up after he gave the truck back to his mom. While he was at class I would get the kids ready and go to the Wellness Center and do the cardio box class at 10:15. We also offer our help to any of our fellow Tae Kwan Do students on Saturdays after the cardio class is over so if our usual 2 takers showed up I would do a short help session and then take the kids and feed them and be back by 1 or so and hopefully be ready to take off for the party.
As we all know, the best laid plans never play out as we want them to. When the loving husband left all children were awake....and that was about it. Weekends usually mean pancakes and eggs for breakfast but I really did not have time to make pancakes so I just did 2 minute microwave scrambled eggs and cinnamon toast instead. I wanted to have the kids dressed and fed and out to the car by 9:30ish or no later than 9:45 because it is a 20 minute drive to get there and another 5-10 minutes parking and getting 3 kids signed into the nursery. I quickly realized the kids did not share my time frame of events. They were stuck in slow mode with zero sense of urgency. Repeated attempts to persuade child A,B,or C to sit at the table and eat the food and please put on the clothing I have set out for you fell upon deaf ears. Did I mention this was a pool party so I also had to make sure I had every one's swim suits, towels, and swim diapers packed along with my gym bag and the birthday gift too. Yeah, it was one of those mornings.
During the time I was attempting to heard cats (wrangle children) my stress level started to climb. The closer I came to realize there was no way I was going make my timeline and would miss the class the crabbier I got. All I wanted to do was leave and no matter what I did or did not do I could not get things going in the manner I wanted them to. I began to do what all stressed out crabby people do, blame someone else. As I was going from task to task and back to task A and back over to task C and so on and so forth I started to mumble and grumble to myself under my breath. They were not nice mumbles and grumbles either. I was on the "poor me" road and having my very own pity party. Poor me has to do all this work and poor me has to get the kids ready and poor me has to pack things and poor me etc. and etc. Of course while "poor me" was getting elevated to martyrdom the not so loving husband was being demoted to the doghouse. It's HIS fault that..... and why didn't HE...... and doesn't HE realize that I.... and you get the picture. Don't worry, I never once picked up the phone and communicated my feelings to him, I know sometimes it's better to leave some things unsaid. I'd also like to say that the loving husband was the only target of my irritation but of course that would not be telling the truth. Sad to say my tone was quite sharp with the kids as I tried in vain to get everyone dressed and loaded. Poor Matthew, he seems to sense when I'm stressed or in a bad mood and he acts out. He was picking fights with Carolyn and of course she was playing right into it and Andrew decided to protest wearing clothes. I think I lost count of how many times I snapped at the kids and elevated the yell level up to playground level. It was not pretty.
At some point in all of this I realized I was indeed acting like a selfish spoiled brat with my whining and complaining. Unfortunately for me even though I realize what I'm doing I don't always make myself stop. It's like watching a train wreck, you know it's gonna be messy but you just can't look away. Knowing I was behaving horridly, I offered apologies to God for my thoughts and actions. Nothing fancy or formal, just basically your "I'm so sorry God, I know I should not be doing this I really am sorry." Just so you all know, I don't do the formal prayer thing very often. I usually just do the look up and talk to God method of communicating. I find that if I just start speaking to Him like I would to a person in the room with me I convey my thoughts and feeling so much better than if I try to kneel down and bow my head. I knew I was stressed and taking it out on others and all I could hope for was to make it through the day without causing further distress on others and ruining every one's day.
Well I made it to the Wellness Center too late for my class so I instead did a quick work out. That did make me feel better and the half hour I spent with the 2 red belts was very productive. I was still a little on the crabby side and not looking forward to the long drive with the kids but compared to the morning I was much much better. Due to the time and lunch efforts we decided to meet at a nearby Burger King and the loving husband agreed to stop by Taco John's to get us something tasty. We both are not huge fans of either McDonald's or Burger King so if possible we do TJ's and the kids do burgers.
After eating it was time to make travel arraignments. I have the DVD player in my van but the loving husband has the "daddy's car" factor. I don't know why the kids like to ride in the Malibu but they do. I expected Matthew and Carolyn would opt for the car but Andrew has now decided that he needs to do what the older kids do and made it a point to open up the door and sit in Jim's car sans car seat. That meant 3 votes for daddy's car. I happily helped load the booster and car seats into the Malibu. I kissed the loving husband bye and off he went.
I got back into my now empty van, looked up and said 'Thank you for the incredible gift you just gave me Lord". Alone, by myself, solo, oh the wonder, oh the joy, oh the indescribable feeling of happiness. I had a whole hour and a half of just me and whatever radio station I wanted to listen to. No breaking up fights, no listening to whatever annoying DVD the kids picked (and fought over) to watch, no having to answer strange questions or remind someone that "poop" or any form of the word is not appropriate conversation. This was exactly what I needed.
As I was driving to Yankton, I wondered in amazement at how I had been so blessed to get this precious alone time. I really did not deserve to be rewarded for my morning behavior. If one of my children had acted the way I did they would have received some sort of punishment or consequence. By all rights I should have been in the van with all children enduring the trip and all the misery I would have assigned it. Yes, I needed the break, and yes I could have asked the loving husband to take all children but no, I would never have done that. Crabby as I was I would never in a million years suggested to the loving husband that I wanted to drive solo just to get a break. I'm not sure why I don't always ask for the help, maybe it's my pride or the guilt I would feel "dumping" the kids on daddy. Either way, God knew what I needed and even though I acted horridly and reverted to a child's level in my petty (and unfounded) complaints, he still gave it to me. I took that time and de-stressed. I recharged the batteries that had been so worn down and adjusted my attitude. I had been shown mercy and compassion when I deserved reprimand and punishment so I let gratitude take hold of my heart. As a parent I hate it when my children whine and complain endlessly and go on and on and expect me to fix things for them. Actually, it drives me nuts when they do that and all I want to do is get rid of them ASAP. It still boggles my mind that I can do the same things the kids do and instead of driving God crazy and making Him want to brush me off at the first opportunity He listens to my complaints, looks into my heart and does what He can to fix it. My parenting skills suck compared to His, but I also strive harder to be more like Him when it comes to parenting. I can parent my children the way He parents me. I know it's hard and I'm going to make mistakes but at least I know He has my back.
ps. In case you were wondering about the rest of the day, it went great. The party was loud and chaotic with lots of crazy kids running around and then we got to go swimming and we had a blast. I even went down the HUGE water slide but that's a different post.
Monday, November 30, 2009
Shop til you drop
Thanksgiving is now a fond memory. Oh what a fun day. The total number of people was just over 100 and there were very few leftovers. I was actually planning on posting photos both on this post and my Facebook page but my main computer has been acting up lately and frankly, I didn't trust it to actually download the photos without locking up so sorry to say to those who participated in the crazy Schwarz family photofest...maybe at a later date. By crazy I mean my niece and nephew were striking all sorts of unique poses and when it came time to take actual pictures of my mother in law with her children and grandchildren well let's just say we got a few strange looks from others as we tried (I mean we really tried) to assemble a sensible and typical pose. I have a great shot of two of my nephews with their elbows resting on top of my head, a couple of "holding a big fish" poses with the same enterprising individuals and there now exists a great cleavage shot of me thanks to someones offhand comment about where my wonderful 16 year old nephew was actually aiming when he was taking pictures of the grown-ups ( it is amazing how fast a camera can snap a picture when the subject is joking around). Not to be outdone I have a great photo of the loving husband and myself. If you look real closely you can see we each posses a pair of rabbit ears courtesy of my sister in law who miraculously did not appear in said photo. We did get a few keepers but oddly enough I never managed to get one of our family, just one of me and the loving husband.
In addition to eating and playing photographer I did manage to get gift ideas from those on my Christmas list. The Sioux Falls paper is full of Black Friday ads and all it takes is for people to page though and make comments. A few carefully placed sheets of paper later and those who needed the lists went home happy. The ads were carefully packed up and transported back home with us so I could come up with my shopping strategy.
At the gathering, I am one of a very few who actually participate in the Black Friday shopping madness. I get the looks and comments from those who wonder why on earth I get up so doggone early and go forth into the shopping madness. Years ago, both before kids and before moving to an area close to major shopping, I too was one of those who questioned the sanity of anyone wanting to do Black Friday. Not anymore.
When we lived in Michigan we were about 2 hours (including traffic) from the mall so I was forced to do any Christmas shopping on weekends which I HATED so I was always trying to buy gifts in October or November but no one had any idea what they wanted for Christmas so I was always guessing or trying to find it locally. A real pain in the butt if you ask me. When we first moved back to South Dakota we were about 3 hours north and west of Sioux Falls but we did have a small mall in Aberdeen along with a few big box stores so I could at least shop during the off-peak hours or in the evenings when it wasn't so busy. Yankton is about an hour and a half south and west of Sioux Falls so it wasn't practical to do early shopping when we were down visiting for Thanksgiving.
All that changed when we moved to Brandon 5 years ago. Brandon is about 20-30 minutes drive from the mall depending on traffic. Sioux Falls also has a lot more shopping choices than just about any other town in a 200 mile radius ( 350 if you go west) so I can actually look at the Black Friday ads and realistically visit those stores unlike years past when I could look but only shop at about 5 stores max. The first year was more of a curiosity thing than anything else. The loving husband had taken the day off as vacation so I decided that what the heck I could get my fat butt out of bed and take care of a few gifts while the kids slept. I decided that hitting JC Penny by 5 was doable so I set the alarm and off I went.
The store was not as busy as I had imagined and the racks were still full of items. I have since found out that the kids clothing gets picked over quite quickly so the earlier the better but on that first shopping trip I still managed to get clothes for the kids that fit. I also found gifts for others on my list too. I kept finding things that were on doorbuster sales so they were 50-70% off . Items that I would never even consider because of cost suddenly became affordable. This was fun. I approached check out and although I still had to wait in line, it was not nearly as long as it would have been several hours later. I got my purchases rang up and then looked at my receipt...and the thrill hit. I had saved over $200. Not only did I save a big chunk of change but I had wiped out over half of my list in less than an hour and didn't have to chase after two small children. This was better than fun....THIS WAS AWESOME!!!! I collected my free snow globe and free donut hole and off I went to do more shopping. By the time I got home, Jim and the kids were finishing breakfast and it was just after 9 and I was done. Thus began the love of Black Friday.
I'm not sure if it is the fact I like to shop or the high I get when I find that great deal but Black Friday is more fun than hassle. Now to be fair I do have to put in some work beforehand but that is totally worth it. To do Black Friday right requires planning and strategy. First is to know when the stores open so you can pick a start point. Second is to decide what it is that you really really want. Third is to find out where else they sell it in case your first choice is out. Fourth is to map out a general time frame of where it is you plan on going and what it is you are going to buy. There are things that are out of your control like traffic, parking, and line waiting but if you know what it is you want when you enter the store then you spend a whole lot less time in there which give you more time to get to the next destination. I confess that I'm not a total die hard stand in line for hours freezing my butt off kind of person. I did do Toys R Us once and decided never again. It just wasn't worth the wait for the items I did buy. One year the loving husband got up at 3 and stood in line to get a great deal on our flat screen TV. He first started at Best Buy but quickly realized that he was not going to get one of the magic coupons so (because he did his homework) he jumped in the car and headed over to Lowes where he was one of the lucky 8. I willingly stayed home and ventured out late (6am) so he could get it. I will laugh because after he got the TV he was asking if I needed him to go anywhere else for gifts. He got the shopper's high.
This year my sister in law Julie decided to try the shopping. We got to JC Penny's at 4:15 and people were already walking out with bags. We spent about an hour or so shopping and I have to laugh because when she saw how much she saved she got the shopper's high. Our longest stop was Old Navy which in years past has been one of my shorter stops. We (I) made a shopping mistake by standing in line together for close to an hour. What we should have done was split up and one of us gone out to another store while the other stood in line. Yes, that's what people do on Black Friday. We could have been done shopping a hour earlier if we had done that...oh well.
All told we spent about 7 hours shopping and went to 9 different stores. Julie finished all her shopping and I got about 95% done. Some of the items on my gift list either needed to be purchased from certain web sites or did not need to be bought right away (gift cards). Next year I'll be on my own again since my wonderful sister in law only gets that day off every other year but she has told me that she'll be back again. As for me...I can't wait until next year.
In addition to eating and playing photographer I did manage to get gift ideas from those on my Christmas list. The Sioux Falls paper is full of Black Friday ads and all it takes is for people to page though and make comments. A few carefully placed sheets of paper later and those who needed the lists went home happy. The ads were carefully packed up and transported back home with us so I could come up with my shopping strategy.
At the gathering, I am one of a very few who actually participate in the Black Friday shopping madness. I get the looks and comments from those who wonder why on earth I get up so doggone early and go forth into the shopping madness. Years ago, both before kids and before moving to an area close to major shopping, I too was one of those who questioned the sanity of anyone wanting to do Black Friday. Not anymore.
When we lived in Michigan we were about 2 hours (including traffic) from the mall so I was forced to do any Christmas shopping on weekends which I HATED so I was always trying to buy gifts in October or November but no one had any idea what they wanted for Christmas so I was always guessing or trying to find it locally. A real pain in the butt if you ask me. When we first moved back to South Dakota we were about 3 hours north and west of Sioux Falls but we did have a small mall in Aberdeen along with a few big box stores so I could at least shop during the off-peak hours or in the evenings when it wasn't so busy. Yankton is about an hour and a half south and west of Sioux Falls so it wasn't practical to do early shopping when we were down visiting for Thanksgiving.
All that changed when we moved to Brandon 5 years ago. Brandon is about 20-30 minutes drive from the mall depending on traffic. Sioux Falls also has a lot more shopping choices than just about any other town in a 200 mile radius ( 350 if you go west) so I can actually look at the Black Friday ads and realistically visit those stores unlike years past when I could look but only shop at about 5 stores max. The first year was more of a curiosity thing than anything else. The loving husband had taken the day off as vacation so I decided that what the heck I could get my fat butt out of bed and take care of a few gifts while the kids slept. I decided that hitting JC Penny by 5 was doable so I set the alarm and off I went.
The store was not as busy as I had imagined and the racks were still full of items. I have since found out that the kids clothing gets picked over quite quickly so the earlier the better but on that first shopping trip I still managed to get clothes for the kids that fit. I also found gifts for others on my list too. I kept finding things that were on doorbuster sales so they were 50-70% off . Items that I would never even consider because of cost suddenly became affordable. This was fun. I approached check out and although I still had to wait in line, it was not nearly as long as it would have been several hours later. I got my purchases rang up and then looked at my receipt...and the thrill hit. I had saved over $200. Not only did I save a big chunk of change but I had wiped out over half of my list in less than an hour and didn't have to chase after two small children. This was better than fun....THIS WAS AWESOME!!!! I collected my free snow globe and free donut hole and off I went to do more shopping. By the time I got home, Jim and the kids were finishing breakfast and it was just after 9 and I was done. Thus began the love of Black Friday.
I'm not sure if it is the fact I like to shop or the high I get when I find that great deal but Black Friday is more fun than hassle. Now to be fair I do have to put in some work beforehand but that is totally worth it. To do Black Friday right requires planning and strategy. First is to know when the stores open so you can pick a start point. Second is to decide what it is that you really really want. Third is to find out where else they sell it in case your first choice is out. Fourth is to map out a general time frame of where it is you plan on going and what it is you are going to buy. There are things that are out of your control like traffic, parking, and line waiting but if you know what it is you want when you enter the store then you spend a whole lot less time in there which give you more time to get to the next destination. I confess that I'm not a total die hard stand in line for hours freezing my butt off kind of person. I did do Toys R Us once and decided never again. It just wasn't worth the wait for the items I did buy. One year the loving husband got up at 3 and stood in line to get a great deal on our flat screen TV. He first started at Best Buy but quickly realized that he was not going to get one of the magic coupons so (because he did his homework) he jumped in the car and headed over to Lowes where he was one of the lucky 8. I willingly stayed home and ventured out late (6am) so he could get it. I will laugh because after he got the TV he was asking if I needed him to go anywhere else for gifts. He got the shopper's high.
This year my sister in law Julie decided to try the shopping. We got to JC Penny's at 4:15 and people were already walking out with bags. We spent about an hour or so shopping and I have to laugh because when she saw how much she saved she got the shopper's high. Our longest stop was Old Navy which in years past has been one of my shorter stops. We (I) made a shopping mistake by standing in line together for close to an hour. What we should have done was split up and one of us gone out to another store while the other stood in line. Yes, that's what people do on Black Friday. We could have been done shopping a hour earlier if we had done that...oh well.
All told we spent about 7 hours shopping and went to 9 different stores. Julie finished all her shopping and I got about 95% done. Some of the items on my gift list either needed to be purchased from certain web sites or did not need to be bought right away (gift cards). Next year I'll be on my own again since my wonderful sister in law only gets that day off every other year but she has told me that she'll be back again. As for me...I can't wait until next year.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
I'm thankful for....
Yesterday I blogged about the actual Thanksgiving day feast and activities and today I'd like to actually write about what I'm thankful for. I know that the next few days will be busy busy so I doubt I'll find time to look at e-mail much less sit down and actually compose thoughts. OK, for those who know me the thinking thing is a little of a stretch but at least I try.
I'm thankful for.....
Waking up each morning
in a bed
located in my own bedroom
situated in my house
that has heat,
electricity,
running water both hot and cold,
and indoor bathroom facilities
along with a kitchen that has working appliances
including a refrigerator that has food in it
and a pantry stuffed with items that are not always the most healthy .
I'm thankful for.....
A loving husband
who is and always will be
the love of my life.
And the most awesome
wonderful,
caring and faithful
father any 3 children will know
Who has a job in this tough economy
that earns enough
to provide for the basic
and not so basic
necessities of a happy home.
I'm thankful for...
Motherhood
so challenging and stressful
yet so wonderful and rewarding
all at the same time.
Three unique and special beings
with love in their hearts
and laughter in their lives
each one different than the other
yet similar in so many ways.
My love knows no boundaries
my heart has no limits
and each is as special to me
as any priceless artifact or buried treasure.
I'm thankful for....
Friends
both old and new
Some have been there for years
others a few months.
They listen to me
they give advice to me,
laugh with me
cry with me,
and pray for me.
I would not be
the person
I am
without
their love
and support.
I'm thankful for...
God
and his son
Jesus.
It is though Him
that I
find the strength
and the energy
and the wisdom
to make it through
even the toughest of days.
I'm thankful for...
The men and women
who choose
to honor the rest of us
and fight for the
freedoms
we take so much for granted.
Because of them,
I can worship
God
in any way I want.
I can write a letter
to the editor
and not worry
about living to see it printed.
I have the right
to express my political opinions
by going to the polls
and voting.
I even have the right
to protest
and denounce
what my government
has decided to do
if I don't agree with a law
or policy.
I'm thankful for...
The air I breathe,
the water I drink,
the warm sunshine
and cloudy days
that makes
rain and snow possible
and the promise that
tomorrow's generations are working
to fix the problems
today's generation
and the ones before
have created
both locally
and globally
I'm thankful for...
The end of a day
and the promise of tomorrow
falling asleep
safe and secure
with a full tummy
and warm clothing
and the knowledge
that
I
am
loved.
I'm thankful for.....
Waking up each morning
in a bed
located in my own bedroom
situated in my house
that has heat,
electricity,
running water both hot and cold,
and indoor bathroom facilities
along with a kitchen that has working appliances
including a refrigerator that has food in it
and a pantry stuffed with items that are not always the most healthy .
I'm thankful for.....
A loving husband
who is and always will be
the love of my life.
And the most awesome
wonderful,
caring and faithful
father any 3 children will know
Who has a job in this tough economy
that earns enough
to provide for the basic
and not so basic
necessities of a happy home.
I'm thankful for...
Motherhood
so challenging and stressful
yet so wonderful and rewarding
all at the same time.
Three unique and special beings
with love in their hearts
and laughter in their lives
each one different than the other
yet similar in so many ways.
My love knows no boundaries
my heart has no limits
and each is as special to me
as any priceless artifact or buried treasure.
I'm thankful for....
Friends
both old and new
Some have been there for years
others a few months.
They listen to me
they give advice to me,
laugh with me
cry with me,
and pray for me.
I would not be
the person
I am
without
their love
and support.
I'm thankful for...
God
and his son
Jesus.
It is though Him
that I
find the strength
and the energy
and the wisdom
to make it through
even the toughest of days.
I'm thankful for...
The men and women
who choose
to honor the rest of us
and fight for the
freedoms
we take so much for granted.
Because of them,
I can worship
God
in any way I want.
I can write a letter
to the editor
and not worry
about living to see it printed.
I have the right
to express my political opinions
by going to the polls
and voting.
I even have the right
to protest
and denounce
what my government
has decided to do
if I don't agree with a law
or policy.
I'm thankful for...
The air I breathe,
the water I drink,
the warm sunshine
and cloudy days
that makes
rain and snow possible
and the promise that
tomorrow's generations are working
to fix the problems
today's generation
and the ones before
have created
both locally
and globally
I'm thankful for...
The end of a day
and the promise of tomorrow
falling asleep
safe and secure
with a full tummy
and warm clothing
and the knowledge
that
I
am
loved.
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