This morning The Princess wanted to watch a show ON DEMAND, so while I was cuing it up, in the upper right-hand corner of the screen Christina Aguilera was singing something.
The Princess said, “Look, it’s Barbie.”
Happy New Year, by the way. Thanks for stopping by. I will post again when the muse comes back from her winter holiday in St. Bart’s.
For myself, I have only one resolution this year, and it is kindness.
The kids are in that heightened state of anticipation that is so beautiful and yet so annoying at the same time. The house is full of noise and the pounding of their little feet on the floor boards. Lots of giggling. Lots of mess. There is so much to do in the next 48 hours.
Edison’s bumming at the moment because the other two are playing without him, even though he has no desire to play princesses. Snow White has lost her head. Ariel’s hair came off. All of them have already done like ten million things. They’ve done crafts, painted pictures, built a tower of blocks, all while leaving breakfasts to petrify in the morning air. It’s 9:20 a.m. They are whirling whirling constant motion. I’m on my second cup of coffee.
In my head, I hear the voice of my grandmother, who helped my father raise us. In Italian, she would sigh, “Pazienza.”
Patience.
There are so many blessings though. They do make me laugh.
Manfrengensen and I have had a great year. We laugh. It’s a good thing. Saturday we took the kids to a playground to try to get some of the energy out of them (which NEVER works, by the way. Yesterday I took them to the moonbounce place, when we left, the only one worn out was me.) and it was 30 degrees and windy. We were all bundled up, and I had my faux-fur-rimmed hood bundled tightly around my face. Manfrengensen told me I looked like Han Solo on Hoth.
I love that guy.
On a completely separate note:
Am I the only person who thinks it’s totally sick that Michelle Duggar has given birth to an 18th child and is considering a 19th? I don’t know too much about them, haven’t really been paying attention, but it does seem like I keep tripping over the story whatever site I visit. Are these people like the ones who collect and horde live animals? I mean, how is it much different than one of those houses where authorities find scores of cats and dogs?
I don’t mean to seem mean, but geez…
I got this kitten one time. It was born to a mother that had had too many litters. Stupidest cat I ever had. Could never get it to crap anywhere but in the sink. See what I am saying? Nature doesn’t intend such things. Just because you can do it, doesn’t make it a good idea. I don’t know. That’s just my thought. I’m not saying I’m right about anything, just that I don’t get it.
Perhaps she’s just a better woman than I. For myself, I confess that three is hard enough. You only have so much attention you can spread around, and there are only so many hours in a day.
I had this weird dream last night that Joe Biden was visiting my parents’ house. I had this great question for him — “Can you tell me why there seems to be so little pragmatism on Capitol Hill?” — but before I could ask it, I spilled something in the powder room (potpurri? not sure. I seemed to find bits of gooey mess that I had nothing to do with making, but the point is that both my father and his wife, are certifiably fastidious, so I was freaking out) and ended up spending the rest of his visit in there cleaning it up.
I could have been a contender. I could have been somebody. Instead of a clutz. Which is what I am.
I got this Christmas meme from my friend and fellow blogger BettyandBoo’sMom. Feel free to play along on your blog too.
Wrapping paper or gift bags? Depends on what is being wrapped.
Real tree or Artificial? Real, and we are getting ours today from the same place we get it every year.
When do you put up the tree? Usually the second weekend in December.
When do you take the tree down? New Year’s weekend.
Do you like eggnog? No.
Favorite gift received as a child? I had this ballerina doll that spun when you held her crown.
Hardest person to buy for? I’m actually having a hard time with many people on my list this year for some reason. That’s unusual for me. Normally though, I think it’s my father.
Easiest person to buy for? Kids, of course. Though I do find every year there’s one person — and that person changes annually — for whom I see unlimited possibilities.
Do you have a nativity scene? Yes. It’s made by Fisher Price and all the pieces are Little People.
Mail or email Christmas cards? Cards.
Worst Christmas gift you ever received? The guy I dated before I met Manfrengensen — His mom never really liked me for some reason (like she had mental problems), anyway, she gave me a battery powered screwdriver. What do you think she was trying to say?
Favorite Christmas Movie? It’s a Wonderful Life is of course a classic that I refer to often. Though of the more modern films, I love Elf.
When do you start shopping for Christmas? I usually start seeing things that might fit certain people on my list around Halloween. I might start purchasing then, but not always. I like to be more than half-finished by Thanksgiving.
Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? No, but I have given things away as non-presents.
Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? This one woman in my cookie swap makes these peanut-butter-chocolate things (in the background hear Homer Simpson gargle), other than that — everything. Both my parents and Manrengensen’s are awesome cooks.
Lights on the tree? Yes. I like colored ones, though lately Manfrengensen has been into the white ones.
Favorite Christmas song? “Jingle Bell Rock.” Also, a good version of “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” has been known to make me cry.
Travel at Christmas or stay home?
Home.
Can you name all of Santa’s reindeer?
Yes.
Angel on the tree top or a star? Star made out of yellow felt and a recycled toilet paper roll. I made it myself a few years ago.
Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? Manfrengensen and I exchange ours on Christmas Eve.
Most annoying thing about this time of the year? Traffic.
Favorite ornament theme or color? When we first got married, my mother-in-law gave me these really nice ones that have a NYC theme. I like pulling those out.
Favorite for Christmas dinner? Turkey and my mother-in-law’s twice-baked taters.
What do you want for Christmas this year? An inexpensive watch that I can wear every day. Other than that, everything I need is right here.
What is your favorite thing about the holidays?
I love being together with family. Both of our sides are fun and close. There are a lot of laughs every year, and it’s just good to have all of our siblings come home.
I also love the excitement of the kids. That magical belief in Santa Claus and all the anticipation of his visit. I love putting out the cookies and milk, how the kids check for that in the morning. I love how they climb into our bed first thing and wait for us to go down the stairs.
The Princess and I had to run to the grocery store first thing this morning. I was determined that we would have a good day today, especially on the heels of yesterday. We started with the potty training, and I just felt like we were fighting all day. She resented that I was trying to make her do this thing she has no interest in doing, and I resented the fact that she was making me mop the floor every couple of hours. But I don’t think I am being unreasonable. She’s more than three-years-old. It’s just time. Past time. I keep telling myself she will thank me later. Like when she’s in college.
Anyway, she was very into the whole baby doll thing right from the get-go today, so she got all decked for the trip with her little stroller. She has a little pink and orange purse, and that was filled with the many necessities that one needs when out and about: a compact, a phone, a blingy ring, a plastic hamburger bun, and a blob of plastic peas. We walked out the door with her wearing Clooney’s Go, Diego, Go! sunglasses…upside down on her face.
While I was waiting at the deli counter at the store, she took out the toy compact and pretended to powder her nose. She made sure her baby doll had a book to read. About half way through the trip, she lost steam and I had to fold the stroller and put her in the cart.
We finished the shopping and went out the car. As I loaded her into her seat, she sighed, closing her eyes and throwing her head back, “I not a mommy any more. It makes me tired.”
Apparently, the economy is affecting the market for recycled goods in a negative way. Plastics and cardboard are piling up in recycle yards, and too much of what could be recycled is ending up in landfills as a result.
In other news, I hadn’t mentioned this before, but it turns out that our house needs a new roof. We had a leak in the master bathroom ceiling, so I called a roofer and got the news. Have been taking bids all week, which is fun, you know, because I just love meeting new people. (Especially when those people come over and then ask me for five figures in cash.)
Then, last night, I was going to finish off some laundry and the start knob to the dryer broke off in my hand. Not a big deal, I mean, I’m part Macguyver, you already know that about me. I just reached up for the pliers in the box above the dryer and started the thing without blinking twice. Fixing that can certainly wait.
In terms of holidays, I started wrapping the extended family gifts last night. I’m kind of a remedial-speed wrapper, so at this rate, I will just get everything done by Christmas. Hey — when are you sending out your cards? Mine are ready to go, but I don’t want to send them yet for fear of seeming overly zealous.
This was kind of funny: At the kids’ school they do this “Secret Santa Shop,” and we’ve participated every year, but then, last year I was there with the kids, and I was thinking, Oh my God, what a bunch of crap. I mean, I want to support the school and all, but I don’t want my kids thinking that you just have to get any old crap for people as a Christmas gift, you know? Grandpop doesn’t really need, nor will he ever use a pinkie-sized screwdriver on a keychain just because it says “Grandpop” on it.
So, this year, I talked to the boys and told them not to feel badly when the rest of their class was shopping for that crap, that I would take them to Five Below and let them buy more personal and appropriate crap for their grandparents and siblings. I took Edison, and he did pretty well. He got acar for Clooney, a Dora thing for The Princess, something for his dad. He got lotion for one grandma and a cell phone cover for the other. Then, there wasn’t anything really for the grandpops, so I just took him over to the candy store where they sell old-fashioned candy in bulk and we got some licorice for the grandfathers. By Christmas, it will be nice and stale, just the way my father likes it. (That’s not sarcasm, by the way.)
Manfrengensen took Clooney later that day. He said Clooney was hilarious picking out the gifts. He wanted to buy my father something having to do with Hanna Montana, just because over the summer my father would repeat those words from time to time. They’d gotten stuck on his tongue while the kids were watching the Disney channel. He’d just say, “Hanna Montana” for no reason like the Rain Man. So, Manfrengensen steered our son away from the teeny bopper crap and Clooney ended up buying a pack of Chuckles for Manfrengen’s father, and a pack of Tic Tacs for mine. We thought that was pretty funny.
And it’s way better than last year’s screwdriver, which if it isn’t there already, is certainly headed for the landfill as well.
I had some time yesterday, so I took a ride over to Target to get a few things. I had had to rush out the door yesterday, so I was running around with no coffee in me, and that’s not a good thing, right?
At Target, my only option was Starbucks. In the past, I have eschewed Starbucks, feeling that it tastes like a heady brew of battery acid run through ground monkey balls, but I was desperate, and desperate times call for…you know what. Standing in line, waiting for those in front of me to get their venti lattes and grande mochachinos made by the one barista on duty, I told myself Just the House blend. Maybe it’s not as bad as I remember.
My turn finally came. I ordered and took the thing over to the mixing bar. When I took off the lid, I looked down into the black tar in the cup. This was going to be quite a chemistry project. I poured some of it out, added artificial sweetner and filled the thing with milk. It barely changed color. Not a good sign.
I tried again with more milk and more sweetner, took a sip, and chucked the whole thing in the trash. A failure of chemistry. How do people drink that stuff?
Last night Manfrengensen and I had a sitter. We went out to dinner and then…no movies out there at all. We’ve seen the James Bond. What else is worth shelling out for? We ended up doing some Christmas shopping.
It’s pretty sad out there. We drove up the main shopping corridor in our town. The first thing I noticed was this Mom&Pop hobby store that had been there since I was a kid: Out of Business. The place was dark, and the windows were empty. I can remember going in there as a kid (and as an adult) and being totally blown away by the selection of Lionel trains and other stuff they had in there.
We drove further, and I noticed that the oriental rug place that always advertised they were going out of business (and we always joked about that sales tactic — for years!), well, they actually have gone out of business now.
La-Z-Boy had two signs out front. One said: GOING OUT OF BUSINESS/DOORS CLOSING. The other one said: STORE FOR RENT.
We went to Best Buy, where there were more cashiers than people waiting in line. We went to the mall, and the place was empty. I stopped in KB Toys for a stocking stuffer, and on a Friday night, at 8 p.m. in December, I walked right up to the counter and paid. Even Target was empty. No wait in line at all. Nobody’s really buying. It’s pretty weird to see.
We’re going to see Santa later today. Even though I have kind of been shopping for gifts already, I feel like going to see Santa is really the “official start” of the holiday season. The visit will be a bit of a haul. I’m actually driving to a mall that’s 20 miles away to avoid the creepy Santa at the mall that is closest. Let’s just say I’m opting for the least creepy Santa, and leave it at that.
Anyway, I got The Princess all dressed in her red-and-white-striped play dress and came down to the kitchen for breakfast. Getting ready to make my coffee, I hit the iPod for a little morning shuffle. The first song on deck turned out to be Springsteen’s “Santa Claus is Coming to Town.” Weird? To give you an idea of how infrequently my iPod puts that song into the shuffle rotation: I didn’t recall that the song was even on my iPod.
So, you know I just finished The 19th Wife, right? Well, the word apostasy was all over that book. “Since Ann Eliza’s apostasy…Everyone knew of her apostasy…etc, etc.” It’s a word I don’t use often, so it kind of stuck in my head, and I played with it there, much like you might run your fingers over and over a smooth stone in your pocket.
Last weekend following a disasterous Notre Dame football game, and after stewing for more than an hour over the “incompetence” of the coaching, Manfrengensen said to me relatively out of the blue, “Do you know what the word apostasy means?” And it just so happened that I did.
Oh, and I just thought of another coincidental thing: Edison took a test last Saturday to sort of bench-mark his intelligence, and it was like the SATs, with verbal and math parts and a break in between. Manfrengensen drove him, and right before Edison came out, Manfrengensen was reading a story about wind power in the Wall Street Journal or The Economist that he had brought along for his wait. The piece explored the power of gales and the challenges of harnessing them. Anyway, Edison came out of the verbal part for his break, and Manfrengensen asked him how it had gone. Edison said he thought that he did okay, though there was one word he had to guess at. It was the word gale.
SANTA!
Speaking of apostasy, Edison is beginning to have his doubts. The other night he asked me if I was the one who really put all those presents under the tree. So, I looked at him skeptically and asked, “Does that really sound like something I would do?” He saw the foolishness of his inquiry then and admitted, “No, not really.”
It’s the last one for him, that’s fairly certain. I just want to enjoy his beautiful innocence for as long as it lasts.
car for Clooney, a Dora thing for The Princess, something for his dad. He got lotion for one grandma and a cell phone cover for the other. Then, there wasn’t anything really for the grandpops, so I just took him over to the candy store where they sell old-fashioned candy in bulk and we got some licorice for the grandfathers. By Christmas, it will be nice and stale, just the way my father likes it. (That’s not sarcasm, by the way.)
ground monkey balls, but I was desperate, and desperate times call for…you know what. Standing in line, waiting for those in front of me to get their venti lattes and grande mochachinos made by the one barista on duty, I told myself Just the House blend. Maybe it’s not as bad as I remember.
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