Happy Hot New Years!

While the rest of the US is under like three feet of snow, we are in a heat wave here in the mountains of West Virginia. Today I had all the windows and doors open. It's nuts! I took the baby and dog for a walk on base and we played fetch at the baseball field and I let Hunter swing on the toddler play ground. Then we came home and I opened mail on the front porch and flipped through a magazine. Meanwhile family in Idaho and Washington continue to live under an assault of snow. They keep reporting numbers like 16 inches in a day, 4 inches in an hour, cars completely covered... not here, no here we are sitting on our front porch, watching kids run around on the playground and sunbathing.

FYI - If you are still waiting for your Christmas cards guess what... I'M STILL WORKING ON THEM! I know, I'm so slow! I blame my poor wrists, they are acting up and are very painful these days. I will get the cards out, eventually. Please be patient with me!

It's Official, I'm Old.

So the 28th is my 30th birthday. I am old. Not scary old but just old. I think The Husband and I will go into town and see and movie and go out to dinner at Red Lobster. Hunter is going to get babysat by our neighbors. It should be a nice break. I'm hoping that in January before my wrist surgery we can go into DC for a night and hang out but it depends. I guess the inauguration is going be a zoo around the capitol. We don't want to go down there then... it would be neat to go to but we've heard that they are not allowing strollers on the mall... which is just plain crazy! We don't leave the house without a well stocked stroller! So, we will watch the festivities on TV.
Anyhow, that's the latest update from West Virginia where it was 70 degrees today... I know, it's like Christmas in Hawaii.

Packages? Anyone?

It seems the US Postal Service is having a tough season. I sent out my packages to family and friends on the West Coast from the East Coast on December 15th. All were shipping Priority, which meant all would arrive in time for Christmas. Whatever. A couple did but the big ones to my parents did not arrive until today (the 26th) and my husband's family is still waiting for theirs.
I understand that 90% of the country is covered in snow. That will definately slow down some packages but priority packages usually arrive within 3 days... it's been like 2 weeks! Come on! I'm shocked that the news hasn't picked up on this story. I've seen stories about FedEx having some issues but not much on the USPS. My aunt sent me a package from the west coast around the same time... I still haven't seen that either!
A news organization in Arizona has this little article about the troubles.
Enough of my whining. I'm cool. I'll chill.
I was surfing through my daily news sites and came across this little story out of the pacific northwest -

BOZEMAN - A researcher at Montana State University says Jell-O, ultrasound, microwaves and electroshocking are among the possible solutions to eliminate lake trout in Yellowstone National Park.
Lake trout were introduced illegally into the park and threaten native cutthroat trout in Yellowstone Lake. To find the best way to destroy lake trout eggs, Al Zale received a grant from the National Park Service. Zale heads the Montana Cooperative Fishery Research Unit at MSU.
He and his collaborators will analyze several potential solutions and recommend the best.
If Jell-O is chosen, Zale says it would probably be unflavored. He says workers could spread it over the fish eggs to smother them.
Zale adds that it would seem efficient to get rid of the eggs during spawning season, which occurs primarily during late fall.

So if you know anything about Idaho and Utah and Mormons and Jello then you know the punch line to this story!
That's it for now... The husband has cooked me dinner. I must eat!

Christmas Videos

And another late addition...

Cookies and Cards

Seems like these are the only two items I can never get done one time. Most of my cards are done and will be out by tomorrow. The cookie thing has been a month long project. I keep making a batch here or there and then eating half and then making more. I wanted to have some cookie plates to give to neighbors for Christmas but at this point who knows. I've got two batches of sugar cookie dough chillin' in the fridge... now that it's time to bake them I'd rather go back to bed. Grrrr. Must... get... cookies... done.
The Cheat doesn't make cookies nor does she get to consume them but that doesn't stop her from smelling like vanilla. We took her to Petco on Friday and she got the Christmas Spa package. This included the shampoo, cut, dry and teeth cleaning. They used special soap to make her smell festive. She also got lots of treats and a Christmas bandanna to wear around her neck. She's been prancing around the house and base all weekend long showing off her new look. I haven't even gotten my hair cut since July! The Cheat is one spoiled little lady.

Recycle, Reuse, and Keep it Cheap

About a year ago I talked to some girlfriends about starting up a joint blog about how to save money, organize and reuse items. We are all new mothers and all touched by the economy in one way or another. Talking to one another we found that we all had some nifty ideas and wanted to share them. We also wanted a record of the ideas to fall back to in case we forget. So I started to construct a blog here on Blogger. I never got too far because of life events. Now that things have calmed I am feeling it is time to restart this venture. I will keep you all updated as to when the site is ready and get my lady friends to sign up as co-bloggers. I want it to be a joint venture. If you are still interested then drop me an email or comment here.

Almost Success!

I almost got all my Christmas cards done... almost. Now all I have are like 20 overseas ones. Since I'm paying a buck to send each one I feel the need to write a little more in these ones. So I think I should have them all out on Monday.
This morning we had a little miricle - Hunter slept in until 7:30! I was floored! Then he was ready for his morning nap at 8:30... and it's almost 11:30 and he's still asleep! Thank God for growing spurts!
As soon as he wakes up I am going to feed him a bottle and drag him over the mountains to Harrisonburg. We have a little last minute shopping for The Husband to do. Hopefully this perfect baby groove keeps. Until he wakes up I don't know what to do with myself. I've showered, started a load of laundry, cleaning the kitchen and packed his bag for the afternoon. Maybe I'll go nap a little longer too.

Cards

Dang! I'm still working on those pesky cards! So what is the hold up? Try my wrists. The carpal tunnel has taken a nasty turn for the worst the past couple weeks. I have to wear my braces at night now and during parts of the day. Seems all I can do are like 10 cards a day... and I have 100 or so to do total. So some of you might see a card by Christmas and others will have a longer wait. Be assured that there are PLENTLY of Hunter photos coming your way with the cards, so the wait is worth it.
As for everything else here it is all normal. Andy is gone a lot this week at night going to base functions and bowling - he's on a league. I am busy staring at cards, mailing out packages and picking up packages from the nearby town. Infact, as soon as I get off this computer that's what I am going to go do.

More Hunter Video!

You asked for it... more Hunter video!


And another for your viewing pleasure...

New Hunter Video!

I've finally uploaded some video of Hunter! I now have a YouTube account and will upload video to it on a semi regular basis for family and friends to see. Look forward to lots of Hunter stuff, some animal hijinks and more!

Just Like Sand in an Hourglass...

Holy crapola! Where has all the time gone! Christmas is just sneaking up on me. I finally got my Amazon.com gift box but I still have so many more presents to buy/make and to send off! We are also behind in sending out the Christmas cards! I'm starting to freak out. Hopefully I can get the rest of my gifts this weekend and get those cards finished by Monday. Ugh, I just want to get this all done!
Anyhow, on a totally different note - my wrist surgery is scheduled for mid-January. I've opted to get both wrists done at once. My mother in law is coming out to help with Hunter. I'm looking forward to getting this over with as well... the surgery not the mother in law visiting. My hands have reminded very numb this month. I had planned on doing more knitting for christmas presents but the pain and numbness in my hands is just too much.
Finally, I have major laundry to do today. The Husband was out of town overnight so The Cheat got to sleep in bed with me. Of course The Husband is allergic to the dog so I have to wash all the bedding before he comes home this afternoon. The Cheat is still upstairs all curled up on his side of the bed. What a big baby.

Totally Cryptic Post

I've had a strange night. The past merges with the present and the emotions are strange to deal with. Ghosts appear. Should I acknowledge or simply ignore? Shall I engage or run? I engaged the dialogue. It wasn't the earth shattering information I thought it would be. It was bland. It was unsatisfying. So, do I keep company with the ghost or do I let it fade back into the haunted past from where it came?
I feel no intense connection to this memory. I feel disappointment and loss. I feel that having it around will never make up for the damage it has done. I am no longer the child that played there with those toys and those people.
Adulthood is hitting me again.
I can never go back - and why would I want to?
Quit being a masochist SerineKat.

Too Productive

Yes, I am too productive. I don't know what to do with myself now that I am ahead of my weekly schedule... I am tempted to do all tomorrow and Wednesday's chores. I think the cause is my new Animal Dyson. Yea, you heard me - DC17 Animal Dyson in all it's purple beauty. It arrived this afternoon, it is a gift from my parents for Christmas. As you know we have our little short hair calico cat and a long hair golden retriever. I just finished with the staircase and the bin is already full. Now I just want to vacumm the whole house!
Tonight The Husband is on baby duty while I try to catch up with some office work and get Christmas presents ready. I'm still waiting on Amazon to deliver most of the gift goods. I'm also being a total loser with Christmas cards. I need to get some photos done tonight of Hunter to send out.
That's it here... just doing too much.

SerineKat

Amsterdam

Oh sweet Amsterdam. The Husband and I visited there two years ago. Such potential and such a disappointment. The legalization of drugs and sex there have really trashed the old city center. We were approached often with offers for stronger harder drugs like crack and cocaine. The hash and maryjane were sold openly in coffee shops and even had their own menus. The sex district was dirty (literally and otherwise) and full of drug dealers.
The museums, canals, bikes, and architecture were awesome. It was just such a disappointment to see so much vandalism and so many vagrants obviously drugged out on the streets. It's definately not a family friendly city... more like spring break gone terribly wrong.
Today on CNN.com was this article. It's about the government of the Netherlands clamping down on the sex shops and drugs. I think it's finally gotten back to the economy that drugged out tourists don't spend as much money as families on vacation. I hope the government and city succeed in cleaning up Amsterdam and it's image. There's so much more to the city than drugs and ugly hookers. There's the Anne Frank House, Van Gogh Museum, and the Cat Museum (I know, it's a hidden gem). The Anne Frank House is so powerful... you get to see where a family hid out for years in close quarters. Van Gogh I could care less about but I went to see the artwork anyhow... it blew me away. I have a whole new appriciation for his work now that I've seen the originals in person. I also went to a coffee house... come on.... when in Amsterdam... but it wasn't the highlight the city. As for the sex district, it's a good reminder as to what happens when you are hooking in your 40s after having 6 kids.... scary.