The Greatest Of Gifts

Quite a few years back, I gave my dad A FATHER'S LEGACY, a book that he was to fill in, and give back to me. It was a book like of like a Baby Book (remember when those were all the rage?), about his hopes, dreams, how he met Mom, best and worst subjects in school, etc. I would catch him writing in it every once in awhile, but I to be honest, I didn't think that he would ever finish it. I TOTALLY forgot that he had it/was working on it, and so it was a TOTAL surprise when I opened it up to find it! I LOVE it, and it is so awesome! And yes, pre-Internet, which you can tell (the book, not his writing), but that kind of cool, too. Anyway...that was DEFINITELY my favourite gift this year! I love gifts like that....gifts that are meaningful, and thoughtful. Gifts that have heart and soul in them. It is a special gift...one that I am sure I will look through time and again. I also have given one of those same books to my mom and grandma...neither which have finished them! I hope they give them to me in this century...lol.

I haven't really talked too much this Christmas about..well, the meaning of Christmas. I am SO glad that God sent His Son in the form of a tiny baby, 2,000 years ago. Without His gift, our world would be in such a terrible state (much more than it is in right now..lol). I am thankful that God loved me enough to send Jesus take bring peace, to redeem us all, and to take away our sin. Sometimes, in all the hustle and bustle, the decking the halls, the baking, the rushing around to get the perfect gift, we forget what it is REALLY about. I don't even think I read the Christmas Story this season! I did do Chris Tomlin's ADORE (he has a new album of/by the same name, which I SO want to get next year), devotion on YV, but that was about all. I think I only went to church once during Advent. Ugh. I feel a bit out of touch about the real meaning of Christmas this year. I have listened to Christian Christmas music, which is awesome, and doing some devotions, but that is pretty much it. I am SO glad that God (kind of) looks over/above and beyond that, and loves me anyway!! Thank You, God, for sending Your Son. Thank you Jesus, for coming!!!
(FYI: I think the Elf on the Shelf deal is creepy! LOL )

Isaiah 9:6

⁶ For to us a child is born,
    to us a son is given,
    and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
    Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
    Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Luke 2:13-14

¹³ Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

¹⁴ “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
    and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

The book that I gave Dad, and that I got for Xmas:

 

Merry Christmas 2015

This is post is A couple of days late, I know, but I worked CD, as well as the last few days (tomorrow, too), and my laptop has been giving me problems, so I haven't really felt like doing much on it, more than necessary. I also have a few drafts that I want to write/post as well.

So...my/our Christmas started Dec 23 (Wed). (I have been going almost non stop since Dec 23... I feel like I haven't really relaxed in a week...lol.) Anyway...that day, I spent mainly getting stocking stuffers, and running around. I had gotten a few gift cards (BB&B, The Bay, M&M Meats), so I had fun using them. I also grabbed a coffee at Starbucks, and read some magazines before I set out on my shopping. Everywhere I went was a ZOO..AND a parking lot. Ugh. It was horrible. And snowing..so, that was fun. NOT! I took a few gifts to my friend J (who lost her hubby this last year), and she invited me in for a few minutes...we had tea, shortbread and chat. Her tree is gorgeous. I took I pic, but it turned out blurry.  I grabbed some supper from/at M and M Meat Shop, and hubby and I hung out and watched TV, and ate, and had a nice evening.

Thursday, I woke up around 8, and pretty much went all day..cleaning, getting things ready for the dinner, etc. We went to my brother Adam's around 2. We had a lovely evening, relaxing, visiting, and of course, eating. We opened our stocking stuffers/gifts, and we left around 7. My parents and my little brother stayed over, which was fun. They NEVER go away for Christmas, and they came and visited me, since I had to work on Christmas Day. We relaxed in the evening and watched Die Hard...which I found a bit boring...lol. It was fun to watch it, though, since I had never watched it before.

Friday, we woke up around 8, and visited, opened our gifts and stockings, and had a nice brunch. of waffles, bacon, and eggs. I took a few pictures, but they turned out horrible, so I won't post them on here...they are, however, on my IG feed :) They left at around 12:30, and I laid on the couch for a nap, then I went to work. It was an ok day, and it went fairly fast, which was awesome. We had turkey dinner (albeit a bit late..lol), and visited with friends/co-workers. The rest of the day was fairly relaxing. Came home, had some Christmas goodies, and watched the first part of CMA Country Christmas. I finished the last part on Boxing Day.

So, that was our Christmas 2015!!

I didn't take a ton of pics, but here are the few that I did take.

                                    Chillaxin' before dinner (waiting for the turkey to be done.lol).

   

                                  Dinner time :) I apologize for my family's expressions...lol.

                                                               Skyping with V.

                                                               I love their tree.

I have this ornament (from Starbucks) for a  few years now, and I usually have it on my tree, but I had it up on our entertainment unit Friday, when I put on the tree.

I bought this ornament for someone as a stocking stuffer, but when I saw this year on it (2015), I kept it for myself.

I got some fun this this year. I think we did better than last year..lol And K still has something that she forgot to give us, and Mom told us that she had something to up in our house. Yes, that is a Starbucks gift card :)

Our tree...with the final touches :) I am not a huge fan of LED lights...I think I may try to convince hubby to go back to the regular ones next year....if we can even find some.

So...that's all I have :) I am still listening to Christmas music and watching Christmas movies/specials...anyone else? Oh...and it's been (almost) constantly snowing since Wednesday. Awesome.

Friday Faves!!!

It's almost Christmas!!!! I would say I am excited, but when you don't have kids, no money, and are working, well, it's not that exciting! But hey....I will put on my happy face, and give you my fave for this week. They aren't super Christmas-y, but hey, what can you do?

1) Rear View Camera

Our work van has a rear view camera. People, I am telling you all, I am now RUINED for life! I LOVE it!!! I even did a super awesome backing in parking job, btwn a pole and a van..something that I wouldn't have been able to do if I hadn't had the camera.

2) Callie

Our kitty has become so playful lately. She is really growing on us :) We heart her.

3) Friends and Family

I have a few awesome friends, and some great family members that I can talk to when I am feeling down. I have one family member who I talk with when I am feeling sad in general, my mom for when I need advice, and my SIL when I am having issues with my infertility. And friends who make me laugh when I need it!

4) Christmas Get Togethers

Hubby and I went to the KBIA Christmas party on Tuesday. I am getting together with my girls tonight, and tomorrow night is my works Christmas party. Since I am working, I will just go for a couple of hours, stick to virgin drinks (I rarely drink when I am out...especially when I am driving..anyway), and then head to work. Hubby is being excused from this party :)

5) Free Magazines

A Facebook friend of mine messaged me and said that she had a bunch of magazines to give me. I think I got 60 magazines. No lie. I had read a lot of them, but a lot of them I haven't yet, and I am so excited! Most of those ones are US and People :) The ones that I have already read I am giving away/selling on the Bidding sites.

So, that's all for this week! Merry Christmas!

That Thing I Did

This was a post that I had promised (or at least I had thought of) doing a few weeks back. So, here it is...again, it's not to brag, but I was so moved, and I do things like this so rarely, that I just feel that I should share it...

A few weeks back, I went to the local laundromat to wash one of our comforters. I had been there before, to check it out, and I had seen a gentlemen there who seemed to a know a little about the cash machine (that I had was wanting to get some cash from bills). He was oddly dressed, and definitely looked either homeless or on the down and out. So, I went there to do my comforter, and he was there. I found out that he was all but managing the place, and it seemed like he lived there. He seemed to know a lot about the place, the operation of it, etc. He was very kind, and chatty. Sadly, it smelled bad, so I couldn't stay, and I checked out a new coffee shop next door. At any rate, I would go and check on the comforter and have a chat with him, then go back and to my magazines. Towards the end, I ended up visiting him, and asking a bit about him. What really got me, though, was that he had no shoes on. He had made "shoes" out of....well, I don't even know what they were....but they were put together with string. That got me.

I decided I HAD to do something!!! I would have bought him a pair of shoes, but I didn't know his shoe size, so I went to our local thrift store, and I bought a $10 GC. I went back that evening, and since he wasn't there, I put it in a place where I had hoped he would see it. I was worried that he wouldn't find it, and that someone else would, so I went back a couple of days later, to make sure that he had gotten it, and he had. He was very thankful for it, and I hope that he used to to buy something that he needed. I am rarely moved to a point where I feel like (and can afford) I had to do something. In this day and age, where so few people help others, I felt like I had to spread a little cheer to someone that really needed it. This world is so full of hate and negativity, it was nice to do something for someone. I hope that I made his day a little brighter. It sure made mine.

Struggling

I have had this (or something like it) post mulling around in my head for awhile. I will probably put this into drafts at least once (especially since it is after 1 am, and I am getting sleepy!!), before it even (if ever) hits blog-land!! I don't really know on how or where to begin, or on how I can eloquently even put into words on what I am thinking/feeling. I am sure I will digress a few times, so I hope you will bare with me.

The blog-isphere is filled with bright, shiny, happy, and perfect people, getting ready for Christmas; decorating, baking, going to their kids' concerts, having parties, and it is awesome...it is. I love Christmas. I do. But I also hate it. First off, it is so commercialized. And you have to have money to do anything. Then, there is the pressure to be just like the person (or blogger) next to you. I find that exhausting. I actually wrote a post about this last year about this very topic. But again, I digress...moving on (for now; I may get back to this).

To be honest, we haven't been happy in awhile. Or least, I haven't, and I think if hubby were honest, he would realize that he wasn't happy, either. Oh, I (I will say "I" throughout this, since I am mainly talking about me, unless I specifically say us/we), happy in the day-to-day sense. I mean, I love my time running errands, relaxing with hubby, hanging with friends and family, etc, but as far are happy/content? No. Yes, I DO need to be better at being content. I get it. I am trying to work on it, truly, I am. And yes, compared to all the horror that is going on the world, I am happy. I am content. I am. But, I live in a first world country, and as my mom says "it's all relative". So, I will continue to complain (at least in this blog post...lol). We have been dealing with A's Disability, and in short, he will not getting another chq until Feb or Mar 2016. And, until today, he didn't even have free (which he should have) medication. Yes, he could be on mine, but, if he's not working, and not even getting money, why should I continue to pay for his meds (besides, there is only a 10% anyway)? But that got sorted out 10 days ago, which is great. But it is still stressful that we are only living on my income, and yes, we do try to be careful, but you HAVE to live, and now it's Christmas, and we have my family coming over, so that means having a little extra food in the house, and getting stocking stuffers (which is what we are doing), and gifts for hubs and I. And of course, it means cleaning :)

Trying to be an advocate for my hubby is exhausting. Paper work, phone calls, appointments....it's never ending sometimes (or at least, it feels like it). I am constantly having to remind him to take his meds, shower, change his clothes (I am not kidding), and I am now the sole driver, especially at night, which is sad, b/c I am a horrible night driver. I pretty much do everything regarding our house, finances, etc. Which I don't mind..most of the time...but when you have the type of job that I do, and you have to do that all over again at your work, well, it can get super-exhausting super quick. Hubby also doesn't tend to come out with me a lot. Though we did get out together three times two wknds ago. So, I tend to do (or go to) things on my own. Yes, even to parties (which, granted, I "release" him to not go to some of them, this wknds works Xmas party included), and even some family events. It gets exhausting.

But again, I digress...:) To put it bluntly, we are struggling. I am struggling with hurt and anger over infertility; and I am sure that hubby feels the same way...hubby is struggling with hurt and anger over his disabilities, which makes us fall into a deeper depression. It's not cool, dude (in the voice and words of RAJ, from TBBT).

I try to be a good wife and person, but it gets hard. I tend to retreat, and hang out at home, or I go out and about, but I will do things on my own. I will go days without calling people. I sometimes won't even answer the phone. I will even retreat to our own room, or worse, the guest room, and watch movies on my laptop, or hang out on my laptop in there. I won't clean (much), much less cook. It is tough. I am aware enough to get myself out of it once in awhile. It is a good thing that I have a job :)

So, that is where things are with us right now. We try to put on a happy face, but deep down, it's tough. It's not easy. It's not super hard, but it's not easy, either.

Show and Tell Tuesday (On Sunday/Monday): Christmas Decor/Deck Them (Our!) Halls!

I am almost a week late, but I wanted to do a blog post about our Christmas decorations anyway, so when Andrea @ Momfessionals did a SATT this past Tuesday about Christmas decor, well, I knew that I had to link up :)

Please note, that I am NO Martha Stewart, and I wasn't even going put up a tree/decorate this year, but I thought it would be kind of fun, since we are in a new place.

Our place is all decorated, and it only took a couple of weeks. I would have loved to have found a Nativity set, but I only found one for $30, so I will have to buy one on Boxing Day (or sometime around there), or else start looking for one next November. I would also like to have a few more boughs..but since I worked all wknd, I didn't get around to getting any more. Hopefully this week.

Friday Five!!!

Happy Friday!!

It's my work wknd, so I will be incognito :) Here are my five for this past wk.

1) Decorations

Our house is finally all decorated! I would still like to add a a few more items (another bough, and maybe a Nativity set), but other than that, it's one! I hope to try to share it this wknd (btwn my work schedule).

2) Time with Hubby

Hubby went out three times last wknd; twice in one day! We had such a fun time. We went to a craft fair, had supper out, and on Sunday, we to A and K's for lunch. We also went out last night with my aunt and uncle. So fun! Earlier in the day, we went and grabbed a few groceries with our Visa Gift Card from A's sister. We got lots of fun Christmas treats :)

3) TV Movies

I love me a TV movie...I especially love me a fun/cute TV movie...even better if it is a Christmas movie. I watched a few, and one of them was A Gift Wrapped Christmas. I loved it. It was a 2015 movie, so that was awesome. I also watched "Guess Who's Coming for Christmas" a few weeks ago, which I had seen before, but I enjoyed watching it again. I haven't watched a ton of Christmas movies (TV or otherwise) yet. I am too busy catching up on our other tv shows/movies. LOL. I have watched a few Christmas specials (Great Light Fight, and a few baking specials), which have been kind of fun.

4) 12 Bonus Stars of Christmas

Starbucks is having their 12 Stars of Christmas from Dec 2-13. I didn't even know a thing about it, until a few days ago, but I have participated in one (and hopefully todays), and I got my bonus stars. Each day, you get bonus stars for buying certain items. The other day it was a Peppermint Mocha Frap...today's it's the Caramel Macchiato.

5) No Snow

I love snow. At Christmas. For 24 hours. Then, it can go away. Ha! I am SO happy that our snow has melted, and I can wear shoes again!!! We were supposed to have snow yesterday, but it never did, which is kind of nice. I hate driving in it. Walking in it. I don't like it. Well, I do, but not when I have to drive/work in it.

That's my five for this week!

Linking up with (Sorry, I just use their buttons, which isn't a direct link, but from the buttons, you can see the link up).