Christmas Vacation

It has been a quiet vacation so far.

Puzzles:  we finished numbers 2,3,4 AND 5.

The seed catalogs began arriving on Christmas eve.

The girls enjoyed Christmas presents on Christmas morning.

My parents came over for Christmas dinner.  We decided to do a fondue this year.  It was an epic fail.

JP's sister and brother-in-law joined us for dinner on the day after Christmas.  We had a delicious tenderloin and this lovely pecan pie.

L's birthday was on the 27th.  She is now officially a teenager.

JP's family helped us make around 50 tamales.

Tomorrow is New Year's Eve.  JP is working and the girls have dentist appointments in the morning.  We plan to head to Barnes and Noble afterwards.

Christmas Confusion

For a good part of the day yesterday, I thought it was Friday.

It wasn't.

I did wear my new skirt to work yesterday.

Yes, it does light up!

One of my colleagues was almost overwhelmed.  "I have a migraine, and I thought I was seeing lights!" she said.

Today, TGIF, I spent all morning volunteering at the Middle School.  While helping 7th and 8th graders make tied fleece blankets, I overheard this conversation:

"Are cucumbers fruits or vegetables?"

"Cucumbers are fruits, but sea cucumbers are vegetables."

To save you all any more confusion:
- tomorrow is Saturday
- it is also 4 days until Christmas
- cucumbers are in the melon family, but whether that makes it fruit or vegetable, I'm not certain
- apparently Christmas unicorns are a thing, so are Christmas Spider Men.

This Week in Song

It has been a busy week for J's vocal cords.

On Monday after school, she had chorus rehearsal, with the chorus concert being Tuesday evening.

Wednesday after school were auditions for the Spring musical, "Mama Mia."

She sang at another Open Mic night tonight.

She is resting her vocal cords for the remainder of the week!

Have Yourself a Scary Little Christmas

I am sitting here, sipping my butterscotch cocoa (which I made even more extravagant with the addition of chocolate whipped cream on top), and enjoying the warm house with Christmas music playing in the background on this rainy day.  We are officially 10 days away from the big day, and this week has been anything from festive.

JP is finally nearly well from the cold which kept him up at night coughing (and me some too, being a light sleeper) for the better part of 2 weeks.  Unfortunately, I am the next one to be lucky enough to contract it.  I actually called off work on Tuesday because I couldn't stop coughing.  It was kinda nice to lie on the sofa, wrapped in blankets, watching corny Netflix Christmas movies all day.

I went to the Podiatrist on Wednesday, since my foot is STILL hurting from the Turkey Trot on Nov. 17th.  He diagnosed me with a stress fracture, and I am to follow up after the Holidays if it is not completely better. Soon after the appointment, I manage to open the car door right into my forehead, giving myself a nice goose egg there.  Now I seem to be developing an infection there, and have been periodically holding hot compresses on it.

The bank called that morning to inform me that our account was overdrawn. I was apparently half asleep when I paid the bills last time, as I wrote in a transfer that I never made, and addressed a large e-check to the insurance company, instead of the credit card company where it was due.

I've been pretty much of a hot mess for most of the week, but I've had it easy.

We heard from a dear friend, who was just diagnosed with brain cancer.  Another close friend, who is a teacher in Indiana, spent several hours hiding in her classroom with her students on Thursday, while an active shooter was in the builder.  He ended up taking his own life, at age 14, but none of the other children were injured.

In the midst of all of this pain and sadness, there has been some beauty.

J and her Chamber Choir sang carols at the bank on Friday afternoon.

The decorations are up in the house, including all of my snowmen:

We even bought a new decoration for outside of the house - a Moravian Star.  I love the lights at Christmas.

Gingerbread cupcakes:

And the moment where a patient remembered that I had these earrings made from old mason canning jars, and she gave me 2 of them, filled with green and red peppermint candies.

Here's hoping your Christmas season is more merry than scary!

Morphing

Every year it seems that we jump from activity to activity in November and December.  Things have been morphing around here so fast that I can hardly catch up!

We hadn't even been home from vacation in sunny FL for a week, when L and I ran the Turkey Trot.  The following Monday was J's 16th birthday!  We had a low key celebration at home on Wednesday evening with my parents.  J chose a white chocolate raspberry cheesecake, which was delicious.

The following day was Thanksgiving, so we morphed into feasting mode.  I tried out these pumpkin pasties (inspired by Harry Potter fare) instead of pumpkin pie.   They were pretty much of a mess to make, and weren't amazing to eat either...probably won't need to make them again.

I have morphed into the shape of a butterball myself since the Turkey Trot.  My foot is still hurting, and I haven't been able to exercise.

We have also slid right into basketball season - L had her first practice last week.

JP drove the tractor into town last week to a tractor repair place.  It was very redneck, but it saved us the $150 transport fee each way!  (The tractor has been leaking brake fluid, and working brakes are a good thing to have when we are clearing snow off our icy hill!)  Of course, as soon as he did that, the season morphed into winter, and we got 4 inches of snow and the first 2 hour delay for snow of the school year!

Now we are hurtling ever faster into the Christmas season.  Friday night was Light UP Night in town.  L sang at the Holiday Open House at our local Historical Museum today.  I am trying to get Christmas presents for all, and birthday presents for L ordered and organized.  Both girls were irritated today that we didn't put the tree up this weekend.

ACK!

On the slower side, we completed our first puzzle of the winter yesterday, while watching Christmas movies.  I think we put together about 20 puzzles last winter.  It is fun to have the puzzles sitting out so we can stop and put a piece or two in here and there as we walk by.

Hope your December is off to a good start.

We're Off to See the Wizards...and Trotting Turkeys Too

We are actually home from visiting the wizards - Harry Potter and friends down at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios in Orlando.  The girls had a lovely 5 day break last week, so we finally gave in to the begging, and made the trip.

 

We had a great trip, if you don't count flight issues and JP's swollen knee that kept him from walking around the parks.  On the way down, we flew Spirit, and the girls' suitcase got lost.  They were pretty despondent about it, and didn't even want to visit the parks on the first day.  Luckily it was found, and returned to us by about 7:30 PM that night.

A greeting from Spirit Airlines...

We had a very nice time at the Parks - visited Hogsmeade first, and sampled butterbeer and pumpkin juice.

We toured Hogwarts Castle, and rode a ride with Buckbeak the hippogriff.

Then we took the Hogwart's Express to Diagon Alley.

There we did some shopping and the girls did a bit of magic and made it rain.

We also visited Gringott Bank, on top of which was perched this fire breathing dragon:

J & L took a ride in Hagrid's motor cycle,

and stopped by No. 12 Grimauld Place (no one was home except for Kreacher.)

We returned to our hotel via the Hogwart's Express, but this time we had to board from Platform 9 3/4.

On our final day in Florida, we drove about an hour to Cocoa Beach, where L FINALLY got to jump in the waves (she has been jealous that J has been able to go to Myrtle Beach for the past 2 summers,)

The trip home was frustrating enough, with a 3 hour delay for mechanical issues, followed by the need to replace the pilot, and 2 passengers nearly getting into fisticuffs behind us.  We arrived home to cold weather, and snow the following day.  Brrr!

It remained cold today (35*) for the 1st annual 5K Turkey Trot to benefit our local Library.  One of my friends, and L ran with me today, and it didn't rain this year, so I enjoyed it much more than last year (although I am feeling stiff and an nursing a swollen foot this afternoon.)

We made it!

This was L's first ever 5 K, and she was worried that she wouldn't be able to keep up with me.  She beat me by a long shot, though, and place 2nd in her age category!

J's bday is on Monday, and since JP is working today, we are planning to go out for a movie of her choice (you guessed it:  Crimes of Grindelwald) tomorrow.

Busy Weekends

Sorry for the silence from our corner of PA recently.  There have been a LOT of activities lately.  J has had rehearsal every night for the HS theater production, and many days she stayed at school for more than 12 hours!  L has finished the soccer season, but has continued to have a hard time getting Algebra homework done.  J is doing dance, voice and guitar lessons after school as well, and L is doing voice.  In the meantime, I am staying busy at work and trying to get all of my CME finished and logged before the end of the year - even had to take CPR last week! It keeps me hopping!

J sang at another Open Mic Night several weeks ago - and did a nice job.

Last weekend, she and several of her chorus cohorts were invited to go to WVU to work with a young composer, other area HS students, and WVU students.  They sang together all day Saturday, and then had a concert in the evening.

Terrible picture - I just wanted to give an idea of

how many students were involved!

We drove straight home after the concert, picked up my Dad, and went to the annual Mystery Dinner Theater at church, which is a fund raiser for missions.  My Mom was one of the actors - she is at the front right of the photo:

This past weekend was showtime at the HS!  J had shows Friday morning for the Elementary School, as well as Friday and Saturday evenings.  We all took in the Friday night show, and the kids did a great job - as always!

Saturday morning was the annual Holiday Craft Fair at the Elementary School.  L and I like to go and look for Christmas presents.  The 2 of us left from there to drive down to Morgantown, where one of L's friends was dancing in "The Snow Queen" ballet.  We stopped on the way home at Michael's to pick up supplies for L's science project, and for pizza, then dashed home.  I was able to snarf a couple of pieces of pizza, and then dashed back to the HS to take some pictures of J's last performance of "The Emperor's New Clothes."  She played a jester and the school teacher.

Yesterday, L and I worked on her science project for most of the day.  It was assigned on Friday, and due today.  Argh!  She made an enormous mess on the dining room table, forcing us to have to eat dinner on tray tables, and we managed to kill my hot glue gun (R.I.P.), but I think she did an amazing job!

Model of an animal cell.

Model of a plant cell.

Of course, J had to go back in to school yesterday evening to strike the set.  Thank goodness that we have a short week this week, and an extra loooong weekend to make up for all the activity, thanks to 2 Teacher-In-Service days, and Veteran's Day next Monday.  Have a great week!

Which End is Up?

Things have been a bit topsy-turvy in the weather department this summer.  It was so wet that many of the things I planted in the garden rotted, but the weeds had a lovely go of it and took over.  It has been quite warm for most of the month so far, including several days in the high 80's...in October!

We FINALLY got a spell of cooler weather, even a frost advisory for tonight, and look what my plants are doing!

This cucumber came up on it's own about 3 weeks ago!

My weeping cherry started blooming again!

Tonight I have that cucumber covered against the frost, along with several pepper plants and my herbs, even though it was warm in the sun today while JP and I hauled and stacked firewood.

J informed me several weeks ago, that it was banned book week.  In honor of that, I decided to finally read One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.  I had started it several times and couldn't make it through.  I did finish this time, and was quite dismayed at the ending.  I'm sorry that I spent all that time reading it!

I don't feel like my head is on straight tonight - my schedule has been absolutely crazy this week and I'm not sure who's coming or going or when or why.  

I think it's time for bed.

They're Baaaack!

The minions have returned!  By this, I mean those thousands of stink bugs that plaster the sides of our house every fall, and somehow creep through tiny crevices to find their ways inside as well.  It is absolutely disgusting!

I might as well call these things the minions as well:

the gazillion teeny weeds growing in my garden paths.  You can also note in this picture, how much of my mulch washed away in the rains we had several weeks ago.  It isn't what I wanted to do, but I have removed all of the pull-able sized weeds from the garden, and I sprayed weed killer on all these - I don't feel that I had any other recourse!

Today I spent about 2 hours digging dandelions and thistles from the asparagus bed.  I did this about 2 months ago before I mulched it all thoroughly.

SIGH.

L's 2 caterpillars formed beautiful chrysalises.  I figure that it will be 2-4 more days before they are back as well - this time as monarch butterflies!

This evening, for the first time in 10 years, both girls had after school activities that actually started RIGHT AFTER SCHOOL.  It seems a reasonable request to have this happen, but it does not most of the time.  It meant much less driving around, dropping off and picking up this evening, for which I was very grateful.

2 more weeks of soccer, and one more month until the play.  Hooray for Fall!

I Wear My Sunglasses at Night...

Well, not exactly at night, but in the dark...I was part of the way down the driveway to take the girls to school this morning, when I realized that I wasn't wearing my glasses (which I actually need to drive.)  Instead of backing back up the driveway, turning off the car, and unlocking the house to get in to my glasses, I dug around in the glove box for my prescription sunglasses.  I wore these to drop-off at both schools, and then home again, despite sun not being fully up, and the clouds/rain that are remnants from Florence.

I was wearing my glasses when I discovered a monarch caterpillar on the milkweed that I was pulling in the chicken yard Sunday afternoon.  After careful searching, L & I found another tiny one, and I left the remaining milkweed alone. L is now raising them in her butterfly enclosure in the house.  We haven't been able to find monarch caterpillars for the past several years, so this makes me happy!

L worked as Ball Girl at the Varsity Soccer game on Saturday.  The girls wiped up with the competition.  I was (very) briefly regretful that J wasn't playing this year:  the first Fall in 10 years that she hasn't been playing soccer!  She said that last year "just wasn't as much fun as it used to be."  Likely much of that was from the fact that she had drama practice AND soccer practice or game every night for 2 months, not to mention homework.  She was pretty stressed last Fall!

We got over 8 inches of rain last week in a 3 day period - nothing to compare to the drenching that NC got over the weekend.  We anticipated 24 + hours of drenching rain from Florence today, but have only gotten a half inch or less.  We really didn't need another day where the kids had a 2 hour delay for school due to flooding, and then came home 2 hours later because the rain never stopped!

L has a home soccer game tomorrow afternoon, and J is supposed to be at the HS for play rehearsal right in the middle of it.  Sigh.  Can scheduling EVER go smoothly?

Must run...work and school tomorrow!

Please Don't Stop the Music

We have had a rather exciting long weekend for Labor Day!

On Friday afternoon, the Middle School had a Fall Festival, sponsored by the PTO.  A friend and I volunteered to help out.  We had a bunch of inflatables brought in to play on, as well as kick ball and 4 square tournaments, free hot dogs and bottled water, a DJ, and the Kona Ice Truck was there as well.  My friend and I were manning the football inflatable, which was set up next to the jousting one, so I was able to watch L joust with a buddy.

It was a super hot day, so it felt good to go out to eat that evening with my parents to celebrate our anniversaries, which were in early August.

We reserved tickets several months ago for a Pentatonix concert about an hour from home on Saturday evening.  The opening acts were Calum Scott and Echosmith, who was actually cut short after 3 songs because of a forecasted chance of lightning.  We were all instructed to take cover for about 15-20 minutes, and after the threat cleared, Pentatonix came on, and we had a great time!

Sunday and Monday were way too hot to be outside, except in the pool, so we stayed in.  Yesterday and today have been even worse, and the schools even let out at 1:00 and cancelled outdoor sports practices.  That has never happened before!  There is no AC in the Middle School, so I'm sure those kiddos got SUPER hot!

This evening, L is off to an abbreviated soccer practice, as they have their first real game tomorrow.  J heads to voice/guitar in a few minutes.  She is prepping her audition piece for the Fall Production auditions next week.

Rock on Fall!