I have put away the Christmas decorations and run my errands for the week. It is time to return to painting the small guest room. As I was looking at my painting supplies I realized you paint too much when:
1.) You have over 8 “good” brushes, 3 small rollers, 2 large rollers, etc.
2.) Your husband gives you an entire corner of the shop for painting supplies.
3.) You have three pairs of paint shoes – two pairs of flip-flops and a closed toe pair.
4.) You have multiple sets of clothes for every season – shorts, jeans, t-shirts, sweatshirts, socks, etc.
Month: December 2008
While Melissa was in town over Christmas we had a little fun with the camera. She was wishing my baby bump was bigger.
From the front and then the side:
Due to some odd circumstances (which made a not too happy Holly) my Christmas cards didn’t arrive until the evening of December 23rd. That means nobody got one before Christmas. I did manage to send most of them, but they were all late. Here is a preview:
I think Wade and I are destined to always have grand ideas for Christmas cards, but it never quite works out.
We finished up our Christmas Holidays in Memphis. We had a Christmas breakfast (Wade again got biscuits and gravy) and then had a few more presents. I think the pitch forks were the biggest hit:
We had an early supper at Jean and Jim’s with the Burch family. Wade and Marie always like to clown around:
And no Burch Christmas would be complete without a bag from Tommy Angel (Jean and Jim’s no-longer-living cat) and some random gifts inside:
And of course we had to have a group photo:
Wade and I then loaded up the car and drove to Paducah to spend the night. Tomorrow we are bound for Milwaukee!
Mom and I got ready early for a quick trip to Hancock fabrics. I am trying to find some material for the rocking chair in the nursery. We left Wade at home and he decided to tackle a project – switching out my mother’s outdoor water spouts. He ran into some problems and had to make a couple of trips to Home Depot.
I left Wade hard at work and went to Johnna’s for brunch. Johnna, Jenny, Amy, and I got together and had a nice Christmas morning.
Wade and I spent the rest of the afternoon running errands, eating one last time at El Chico, and then driving to Memphis.
Most of today is spent with Wade’s family. It is very convenient to have his family celebrate Christmas with his grandparents, who also live in Paducah. We arrived in time for Christmas breakfast – with Judy’s awesome coffee cake – and then we moved on to more presents.
Early evening we returned to my mom’s house and had our stockings:
I gave Madison a Christmas treat – a ham bone. It turns out I should have monitored her eating a little more closely. When I went to check on her there was only a small fragment of bone left. Hopefully her system can handle all of that…
Wade and I spend two full days (and sometimes more) celebrating Christmas with our three families. Over the years we have formed traditions, which makes it easier to know where to be when.
We always begin the Christmas celebration with my Dad and Laura. We spend the night before Christmas Eve at their house and then have a Christmas morning breakfast. This year Wade and Madison were driving down yesterday from Milwaukee in some of the worst weather imaginable. I think they encountered snow, ice, sleet, and rain. I was very happy to see them arrive and more shocked that they made it to Dad’s house at a reasonable hour. We all slept late and then got up for a wonderful breakfast (Wade’s Christmas wish came true with biscuits and gravy) and then opened some presents.
Next up we spend the afternoon with my mom and open presents there too. I don’t have a picture, but one of my favorite gifts was an old wood table that I can use beside my couch. Too bad Wade didn’t drive down my MDX. His car is going to be really full!
Our evening ends by celebrating Christmas with my mom’s side of the family. Wade had somehow missed that we always have country ham, another one of his favorites.
My grandmother has been living in an assisted living facility since my grandfather died a couple of years ago. She is having trouble with her short term memory, but has developed a great sense of humor. My mother often visits in the morning and this conversation took place during one of their morning visits.
My mom entered grandma’s room with a sausage biscuit for grandma and a Diet Coke for herself.
Grandma asked for a drink so mom poured her some of the Diet Coke.
Grandma comments, ‘This is some of the worst coffee I have ever had.”
Mom (assuming grandma is a little confused), “Mother, that’s Coke, not coffee.”
Grandma, “Well I know that. But it seems you should have coffee with a biscuit.”
I wonder how many times we assume someone older is confused when they are only making a joke and then how silly they think we are!
One of my mom’s good friends hosted a baby shower for me today. It was great to see everyone and presents are always fun!
As we’ve gotten older, it’s harder and harder to get uall the toadfrogs and elephants together. (Read the story of toadfrogs and elephants here.) Mary Ann hosted brunch and we all attended, but we didn’t quite make it at the same time. Melissa had to leave early and Ben and Stephanie arrived after church. Regardless it was great to see everyone – especially Ben and Stephanie’s little girls.
Melissa is spending Christmas this year in New York with Chris’s family, but she did come to Paducah for the weekend. We managed to pack a lot of activities into a single day.
We started with an early morning visit to see Grandma:
Then we drove to Benton for the Siener Twins second birthday party. I had mentioned the twins in a previous post here and here. Kip and Kase were adorable:
Next up we had Mexican with Carolyn and Jay (the twins’ grandparents) and then did a little shopping. Melissa was into hats. I love the below picture, but didn’t get a picture of the hat she actually bought:
We drove back to Paducah and had our Christmas with Melissa:
Then we had my Dad’s annual Christmas Party to attend. Melissa and I got to see all kinds of people we only see once a year. Before the guests arrived we all gathered for a family picture:
It turns out I missed a huge snowfall in Milwaukee last night. I’m not sure of the total accumulation, but Wade is guessing about 12 inches. He thoughtfully provided pictures so that I would know what I am missing.
Above is the backyard (with lawn furniture), Wade’s car in the driveway, and the impression of the garage door in the snow.
I took the train down yesterday and now I am hanging out with Mom in Paducah. We got up early and spent the day shopping. I only have one present left to buy – not counting the one of Wade’s that has suddenly become impossible to find. We played all day and then had to rush to dinner. We were eating with my Grandmother at her Assissted Living Facility for their Holiday Meal. BBQ was an excellent choice – yum!
Today was an awesome day. Wade got a promotion. It snowed. And I got to eat dinner at Moe’s. What more could I ask for on my last night in Milwaukee?
I wrote a few weeks ago about Wade helping Nate and Amy unclog a drain. They offered to buy us dinner and we told them that wasn’t necessary. Then someone brought up a trip to Racine for Chick-fil-A (the closest one to us and the only one for hours). We all agreed that sounded yummy and tonight off we went. We all had chicken, waffle fries, and a milkshake. The boys also had some sweat tea. Yum! I didn’t think to take a picture at dinner, but I got one of Wade and I and our authentic Chick-fil-A cups. Thank you Nate and Amy!!
Today we didn’t do anything overly “New York”. We took a taxi to Inwood to see Matt’s apartment and spent the afternoon with him:
We had brunch in a local restuarant and then walked through Inwood Hill Park before Matt drove us to the airport.
I think Wade and I did most everything in the tourist book for New York City today. We started off with breakfast at Maxie’s Delicatessen. It wasn’t bad, but yesterday’s at Nino’s was much better! We walked from breakfast to Radio Music City Hall to see the Rockettes in their special Christmas show.
Then we went shopping! One of our favorite stops was FAO Schwarz:
We did a lot of window shopping and did venture into Macy’s. The only purchase we made was a scarf at Gap for Wade to wear. For the most part we just enjoyed the sights.
Matt had suggested dinner at Landmarc in the Time Warner Center and we were really impressed with the service and the food. We also enjoyed the twinkling stars in the lobby of the Time Warner Center:
Next on our list was a carriage ride through Central Park. The wonderful lap blankets probably made me the warmest I have been all day!
Our last stop was Rockefeller Center to see the tree. We decided between the line, Wade’s knee, me being pregnant, and the cold that we would forgo ice skating:
Wade and I were rather lazy today. We didn’t get out until 11 am, but we still managed to find a local place that would serve us breakfast. Nino’s had a limited breakfast menu at 11 am, but the French Toast was amazing!
Next up was some shopping in Times Square. My favorite was the M&M store – chocolate is always good!
After walking for a few hours, Wade needed to ice his knee and I evidently needed a nap:
Next up on our agenda was dinner with Matt and Jason. Matt picked a great restaurant – Bocca di Bacco and I tried something new – Gnocchi. After that Matt showed us his office space – what an awesome view!
Matt delivered us to the theater doors and we made arrangements to meet up again on Sunday.
Wade and I thoroughly enjoyed the musical White Christmas – perfect for the holidays!
Wade and I decided to take a last trip – just the two of us. I have always wanted to go to New York City during the holidays so Wade planned the trip. We left Milwaukee around 7 pm and arrived in NY at about 10:30. We took a cab to our hotel and then promptly zonked out (or I did).
I also finally thought to take a picture showing my belly. Above is me at 28 weeks.
The lady selling water at the airport asked me the most ambiguous pregnancy question, “How many months have you?” She didn’t speak English well and I wasn’t sure if she meant how far along or when am I due. Oh well, we figured it out.
I woke up this morning to this:
It continued throughout the day. I did some work and then Madison joined me for a nap:
I finally got motivated to start working on my last big painting project – the small guest room. I moved the last few things out of the closet and began stripping shlack with the heat gun. I have mentioned before how well it works, but here is a picture:
I didn’t realize the walls and ceiling need as much work as they do. That part generally falls to Wade so I’m not sure exactly when I expect to complete this project. I think my goal of Christmas is a little unrealistic – especially with our travel schedule.
My car spent the night in a garage. Our last house had a two car garage, but we never once put a car in it. It was always Wade’s shop and full of tools. This house has a one car garage, but has been full of “stuff” ever since we moved in. I got rid of the last of our original windows last week so now my car gets to stay inside! It’s perfect timing too. We are supposed to get more snow tomorrow.
Wade and I took the plunge today. After church we went to Babies R Us and started a baby registry. We laughed our way through it and decided there is way too much “stuff” out there! And 99% of it is covered in cartoons or a cutesy print. We had a lot of trouble finding basic, simple designs and prints. The nice thing is there is a much bigger selection online and the registry is easy to tweak as needed. For those of you out there who are already moms – I’d love any tips on “must have” or “don’t bother” items.
We woke up to a couple of fresh inches of snow on the ground. Wade and I were a little lazy and didn’t get showered till almost 11 – when Dad and Laura arrived. Wade went outside to clean the driveway and sidewalk – and play with his new toy. The snowblower did great – until Wade ran over my rubber mat. It was buried under the snow and he didn’t know I had moved it. Ooops – he gets to start the repair work early on this one!
We went out for lunch with Dad and Laura and then gave them a driving tour of downtown and the lake. The rest of the afternoon was spent napping and watching football. Do we know how to entertain or what? For dinner we tried a restaurant Christin suggested, The Envoy. We were also pleasantly surprised to find the restaurant was in a cool hotel, the Ambassador Hotel. We asked to see a room and we were all impressed. I think Dad and Laura will stay there next time they visit.
Dad and Laura made their first trip to Milwaukee to visit. We welcomed them with very low temperatures and the promise of snow over the weekend. Their flight landed around 5 pm and they came straight to our house. We showed them around and then headed out for dinner at La Merenda – a restaurant Christin introduced us to almost a year ago. It was a big hit and provided a great atmosphere and nice pace for all of our catching up.
Wade and I spent the evening with the young couples from church – cookie decorating. There was also a gingerbread house which we attempted to decorate. Don’t look too close or you might notice the roof slipping!
We got another round of snow today – about 4 inches I think. Wade decided to tackle the shoveling when he got home from work and I cooked dinner. He came inside quite cold and decided the warmest room was the downstairs bathroom. He could turn on a space heater and really warm up. Madison decided that sounded like a good idea too. I got a kick out of them hanging out in the bathroom.
Is it really free time if you have a million projects on the board waiting to be done? Wade and I are pretty good at taking time off and doing random activities. Wade likes anything that’s a challenge or he hasn’t done before – which is great when I don’t want to figure something out or have a random house problem. Even better is when it is someone else’s problem – then he is really interested and challenged. Read here for how Wade spent last night.
Wade and I spent most of yesterday in the car (with a full trailer) hoping to get home before the snow hit. The first time we checked the weather the predictions were 1-3 inches, but they were quickly increased to 6-10. We made it to Chicago before we saw any precipitation and that was only rain. The snow started falling as we entered Milwaukee – giving us just enough time to unload the trailer and return it to U-Haul.
I woke up this morning to a winter wonderland. I can’t seem to find any reliable source telling exactly how much snow is on the ground – the range seems to be 4-10 inches. Wade was out early shoveling snow (you got it, we haven’t bought a snow blower yet), but our neighbor, Nick, offered his. Thank goodness – it still took Wade 45 minutes to get his car out!