hello monday

hello children who need more outside time... my kids have turned into maniacs.  they are soooo stir crazy and that in turn makes me crazy and tired.  i may have turned to mike yesterday and said, "don't worry, it won't be like this forever, someday at least Dottie and Charlie will move out" bwhahhahahahahahaha. 

hello state champs!  in a follow up to my previous post, the Notre Dame Tritons are state champs!!  Luke and i went to the game saturday night and I am soooo proud of the beautiful miss katherine!  I got a little teary even. 

hello big things...  there is an interesting opportunity heading my way, not quite sure what to make of it or if this is the one I have been waiting for... only time will tell.

hello emerald green... I am not much of a green girl usually (I leave that to the lovely Miss Stephanie) but I bought this emerald green cardigan and am LOVING it and wearing it with everything. 

hello to finding a way and powering through...  moms of the world - you are doing a great job and YOU are ENOUGH (no matter what FB or Pinterest says). 

Winter Wonderfuls: Ventage Tuesday

You may have come to the realization that I am a freak.  If you haven't, this post may be the one that seals the deal for you.  

I.
Love.
Winter.

Yep.  Love it.  It may be the Norwegian Viking blood in my veins.  It may be a Sconnie girl thing.  May just be that I hate being hot.  Whatever the reason - I love December through March.  

Living in the land of the frozen tundra, snow can come as early as October and stay around as late as April.  Good times.  Here are my top five things about winter:

1)  Stocking Hats.  Love them.  We own about 10 million stocking caps - these may have been my favorite ever in the collection though.  

Packer hats, Brewer hats, pink hats that sparkle, Skull and cross bones hats, camouflage hats, Bucky hats, cute black hipster hats, got them.  love them.  Ask Barb, I am always scouting for new hats.  

2) Kids bundled up in snow gear.

This picture is old but I love it.  We always put the kids to work shoveling and although getting them all in the gear is annoying, they look so cute bundled up.  Always makes me smile to see kids going nuts in the snow.

3)  Birthdays.  December and January are big birthday months in my life, Barb, Dorothy, my dad, Mike, my mom and Katrina all celebrate birthdays.  Never let an opportunity to celebrate go to waste!  

4)  Ice Skating.  I grew up in a hockey town.  I have been skating since I was about 4.  Unfortunately, I have not yet been able to teach my own kids... must remedy that pronto.

5)  hot drinks - Some people love hot chocolate.  I love Tom and Jerrys.  :)  What is not to love, booze and creamy goodness.  Yum.  

Whats not to love people?

Not Quite Hallmark Christmas...

Today was a snow day so I was home with all three kids.  It had its ups and downs.  Many downs, to be sure - everyone seemed very cranky and unsettled.  Of course, that means that nap time was a no go and so tonight, droopy eyelids were easy to spot.  

Luke fell asleep in the living room at about 6:20.  Dottie and I watched The Grinch and then were sitting on the couch.  I was singing Christmas songs to her and it had that "this could be in a commercial" feeling to it. 

Then I starting singing "Silent Night"  I was about 8 bars in and Dottie busts out -

YOU BETTER WATCH OUT.

YOU BETTER NOT CRY.

(She is very accusing - maybe she will be in the FBI)

YOU BETTER NOT POUT

ILL TELL YOU WHY.  

SANTA IS COMING TO TOOOOWWWWN.  

So much for my idyllic Christmas moment of peace and twinkly lights.

I SPY...

When I was little, I loved the game I Spy.  I Spy with my own little eye... and then try and get the other person to guess what you have identified as your target. 

I also love Seek and Find books, Wheres Waldo, etc.  You get the drift.  I love the challenge of looking for hidden gems. 

Good thing.  Socks?  In my house? bhwahhahahaah.  Hidden gems. 

I am not just talking about baby socks (the devils curse), but girly toddler socks, boy athletic socks, daddy work socks and any two freaking socks that will make a pair for mom.

I have been seeking to find those socks every day for the last 4.5 years.

This morning?  The socks defeated me. I present to you my foot on December 13, 2012.

 No Sock.  Just red shoes.  Reminding you that I live in Wisconsin and its December.  Remind me of this when I have a cold in 1.4 weeks.

Christmas Confession. Ventage Tuesday

Today's plan was to talk Christmas traditions. Everyone else had lots of love for the holidays so let me apologize in advance. 

I am not a Christmas person. I love twinkly lights as much as the next gal but I could do without the fuss. Work is always very tense in December for me.  I get too worried about the logistics of who when and where. I'm tired. 

I Will not wax poetic about the season. Here are my favorite things (cue Julie Andrews)

1.  I love midnight mass.  I love the candles, the singing, the worry about children who should be home snug in their beds.  I love our parish and the people and the bursting at the seams with joy of Christmas eve service. 

2. Adults playing returns with kids and their new toys.  This is my dad circa 2010 with the kids new play kitchen

3.  Our imperfect tree decorating. Well, sorta. This one is kinda tough because I would really live to have a Martha esque tree and I hate decorating with the kids because I feel like the tree is going to crash down, I refuse to put up my good ornaments, it always looks like a disaster.  I do love the look on the kids faces though, so I just supress my hatred of the Charlie Brown tree. 

4.  Crazy Christmas photo shoots.  Every year, we have some goofy shoots to capture the wackiness.  I love winter hats and the kids usually get some hats for Christmas, this is one of my favorite pictures of the kids ever (photo by Barb).

5.  The one thing I super love about Christmas?  Christmas Cards.  I REALLY REALLY love getting them and seeing everyone's families and displaying them and feeling that close to home feeling.  We sent over 150 cards this year and I hope we receive a million.  If you would like to send me a card and don't have my address, just ask. :)  I will be posting my Christmas Card in a few days.  Stay tuned.


So I am sorry for my grinchiness and I hope you can check out the other gals to see what the real meaning of Christmas is. :)