Who is this child?

When I took Sean in to see Santa last night, he was 5. The picture I got back was of a 10 year old that looks remarkably like Sean. Same clothes and everything. He looks so OLD!

I am not ready for Sunday. I am never ready for Christmas. If I could go on a 4-day bender, this is when I would start, so I could avoid X-mas.

What little snow we had on the ground is melting. They are expecting rain on Sunday. Ick. My mom is being a royal pain, not wanting to commit to coming on Sunday. It'll either be because of the weather, the fact that there will be too many people in our small house, or that she really isn't in the "Christmas Mood" this year. Feh. How can she say no to this face?

Wake me when it's over

There are times when I just want to crawl into a hole and stay there. Usually the feeling hits about mid-November, and lasts through at least St. Patrick's Day. I must have been a bear in a former life. The urge to hibernate is strong.

There are 4 shopping days until Christmas, and I haven't a) finished shopping, b) bought groceries, or c) cleaned house. We are expecting 16 people to be in and out of the house that day. We have a small house. We are big people. See a problem here?

So, we have decided on an "open house" format. A buffet for food, no set come and go times, and no dressing up. SIL is here helping, doing all of the Christmas baking, and pretty much taking over the kitchen.

I have finished 2 scarves to be used as "Gee, we weren't expecting you, but have a present" type of gifts. I'm seeing the light at the end of the Adamas tunnel. I figured out part of my problem: stitch markers. They were throwing me off. That, and trying to pay attention to the knitting and trying to keep the kid from tearing up the house just doesn't work. I also went up a needle size. I tend to knit firm.

I did get signed up for Secret Pal 7. I'm really jazzed about being matched up with someone. It makes you feel special to get something in the mail besides bills.

If I don't get back to this before Sunday, have a Happy Chrismahanukwanzaadan.

Who thinks of these things?

I got tagged by a friend on another board (thanks Mary Fran). Here goes nothing.

TEN random things you might not know about me:
1. I had my picture in Rolling Stone.
2. I want to learn how to luge.
3. I really hate cold weather.
4. I want to open a yarn shop.
5. I’d love to go back to school and get my masters degree.
6. My first engagement lasted a week.
7. I like VW microbuses and would like to own one.
8. I have driven an ambulance.
9. I failed high school senior English.
10. I like to drive fast.

NINE places I've visited:
1. Canada
2. Germany
3. Iceland
4. Luxembourg
5. Austria
6. Washington, DC
7. Boston
8. Philadelphia
9. Los Angles

EIGHT ways to win my heart:
1. Chocolate
2. Foot massage
3. Do something kind for a stranger
4. Love my kid
5. Tell me really good jokes.
6. Make me something.
7. Yarn
8. Give me alone time.

SEVEN things I want to do before I die
1. Watch my son get married.
2. Go to Europe and go museum hopping.
3. Write a book.
4. Get my masters degree.
5. Visit the rest of the states I haven’t been to.
6. Have a career.
7. Stand up comedy

SIX things I'm afraid of
1. Death
2. Heights
3. Falling
4. Enclosed spaces
5. Rejection
6. Losing a family member

FIVE things I don't like
1. Green Peppers
2. Bugs
3. Snakes
4. Making hamburger patties or meatloaf.
5. Getting crap up under my fingernails (see #4).

FOUR ways to turn me off:
1. Discriminating against someone because of weight
2. Smoking
3. Lying
4. Disrespecting my family

THREE things I do every day:
1. I drink a Coke.
2. Knit
3. Sleep

TWO things that make me happy:
1. My family
2. My knitting

ONE thing on my mind right now
1. Who thinks of these things???

Mannheim Steamroller

As promised, my review! Hubby and I did get to go last night, despite our little buggy haired boy. A friend was kind enough to watch him for the few hours, full knowing that she was going to have to probably do a comb-thru of the entire family. I shall offer my assistance if that happens.

Our first suprise of the evening came even before the music started. We trudged up to our reserved seats in the balcony level of Conseco Fieldhouse, only to find the section blocked off by a table. The seating arrangements had been changed, and so we were given tickets for the club level of the Fieldhouse, one section lower. WooHoo! Of course, the seats were still too narrow for our wide loads, but hey, we were closer.

There are times when I wish we were independently wealthy. The lucky stiffs with the floor seats were seated at tables with two cash bars available. They also had a quarter sized (I think) model train running around a track on the floor, guarded during the breaks by four "tin" soldiers, who would march around and wave. What do you know, dinner and a show.

The music was everything I expected from Mannheim and Chip Davis. They did not sacrifice quality for volume. It was lovely. The entire group looked like they were having a ball. They utilize video to accompany the music, so the light show was minimal. The first song was accompanied by a video of clips from their 20 years of doing Christmas music. Other songs followed, both old and new. The first hour sped by like the Enterprise at full warp.

The second half of the program contained a section that is my personal favorite. They had done a video several years ago with a medieval theme. Not completely period, but fun nonetheless. Chip and Arnie Roth, the violinist, kept picking on each other during this section. Roth would thrust with his bow, Chip would parry with his crumhorn. Chip got to laughing so hard he kept overblowing the crumhorn, which produces a sound not unlike a goose.

All in all, we had a good time. If you have not heard Mannheim, think again. They have produced some of the wonderful instrumental Christmas music you hear every year. And if you get to see them in concert, count the number of steamrollers you see in the videos.

Bugs, head gaskets, and etc.

Not Bugs Bunny. Bugs. As in head lice. Courtsey of daycare. I've now been off work 3 days to quarantine my son so that none of the other little darlings come down with the dreaded things. Our house looks like a scene from Wild Kingdom. We're all sitting around grooming each other, looking for bugs. DH is clean (of course, there isn't much hair to infest), but the kid has been full of them, and I think I've removed a couple of small ones from myself. EEEEWWWWW. We even went so far as to clip Sean's hair down to summer length in hopes it would help. He's been pretty good about the whole sordid mess, while DH and I are feeling our skin crawl with the very mention of them.

But, since I've been home, I've done a bazillion loads of lousy laundry, and have knitted a pair of mittens for Sean. I'm working on a hat for him, but he can't wear it until he's clean. The weather is freakin' cold here, and his mittens from last year are too small. Even DH didn't complain about me buying yarn for that.

We are still going to see Mannheim Steamroller tonight. A friend of ours was gracious enough to let me bring Sean over. Maybe if I stick him in a bubble he won't be a disease vector. I'll comb him out really well before we leave.

And, of course, to top off this week, DH's van has a leaky head gasket and a stuck thermostat, which means our trip to Wisconsin this weekend is off. DH is feeling rather put-upon, as he's got the major income right now, and wants me to find a new/better job. Hey, just think of the money I'm saving in daycare this week. Ugh.

And people wonder why I really don't like the holidays.