2006 To Do

Now comes the point in most peoples lives where they review the year that has just swiftly passed them by. We think about all the things we did and didn't do. We resolve to make the coming year better than the last. You can probably tell I have already read many people's Resolutions. The lists were very personal, and sincere, and their resolutions were important. And so I'd like to add my own personal and sincere resolution list to the Blogosphere. Well, its more like a To-Do list, than resolutions. Whatever.

1. Take as many naps as possible.
2. Pay all my bills on time.
3. Read an entire book.
4. Clean out the garage.
5. Tame the pile of papers that invade my countertops.
6. Cook for my family at least 5 times a week.
7. Call my mom at least once a week.
8. Have as many massages as possible.
9. Paint the inside of the house.
10. Archive the family photos, scan everything, save everything.
11. Start a savings account for all the kids.
12. Start a savings account just for me and the hubby.
13. Carry my camera with me everywhere.
14. Get my nails done at least twice.
15. Go visit my grandmother.
16. Stay in touch with old friends.
17. Stop using the words %$#@!, @%&*@!, and @#$#! so much
18. Try not to kill any plants.
19. Plant flowers.
20. Jump on the trampoline with my kids.
21. Pray more often.
22. Shop less.
23. Drink less...Dr. Peppers.
24. Learn to do something new, like knitting.
25. Delegate chores to the kids and keep up with their allowances.

Christmas was great!

I didn't get a chance to stop by anybody's blog to personally wish them a Merry Christmas. In real life I only sent out 4 Christmas cards. To say I was busy is an understatement to the extreme. Between work, an ever messy house, a big shopping list, and the kids being underfoot, well...I was busy.

So to the few of you that still stop by my blog to see if I have risen out of my funk to post a few lines...I hope you had a Merry Christmas and I hope you have a Wonderful New Year! It meant so much to me to read your kind words in BWH's comments.

We really did have a merry Christmas! BWH has only one brother, who is married with 5 kids. Usually they are there for Christmas and my mom in law's house is packed! But this year it was just our kids and parents. His brother had work responsibilities and got to take his kids out later in the week after we left. I teased my mom in law that she was getting to see her grandbabies in shifts. Later, my 9 year old asked me how they were getting there in "ships?" ha!

It was good to go back to the tiny town we lived in for the first five years of our marriage. Hubby and I agree thats it is good to be a newly wed couple in that environment. We were surrounded by older couples in that church who cared about us. Instead of a wedding shower we got pounded after we were just married. If you don't know what that is, and I didn't, its a little get together where they give you a pound of sugar, a pound of flour, and various other basic household goodies. It was very sweet. We had a nice country potluck as well. Our little church had many potlucks after that too. I really miss that!

We also got to spend some time out at his grandparents' farm. Hubby's aunt and uncle were there too. I really love them. They also used to live in that small town. Now they live in another small town and we don't get to see them as much.

Christmas morning was neat because it was Sunday. We had church to be at by 10:30. I think we all were up at 8:30. The kids were ready to get into the presents! It only took about 30 minutes to get everything opened. Hubby informed me that I would have to wait until after church to get my present and that it was out at the farm. Hmmph. That was not what I wanted to hear. When it comes to Christmas shopping I am the one that does it for our kids and even for his family. I guess he figures that I am better at it so the job goes to me. I don't mind, I enjoy it. Anyway, there have been years when I have even bought my own Christmas gift and wrapped it! Last year he took my daughter with him to help pick out something for me. This year he enlisted his mother to help. So he is getting better.

So after church the kids went with their grandparents, except for Tiger. We headed out to the farm. But then hubby took a detour and started driving down a different country road. It looked familiar. On the way we saw a cloud that was shaped like a a bird with its wings spread. It was one of the few clouds in the huge sky. It almost seemed out of place just hanging there. Almost like it was put there for my own personal enjoyment. I was upset that I had forgotten my camera.

We kept driving and it finally occurred to me that I knew exactly where we were going. We were headed out to this windmill. "Our" windmill. 12 years ago on an equally bright and sunny Christmas day we drove out to this windmill. It stood only about 12 paces from the road. he pulled over and as we stood beneath it he gave me my Christmas present. It was a music box that played Edelweiss. I had joked once that if he really loved me he would bring me edelweiss, like the young men in Austria would do for their sweethearts. You had to climb a mountain for edelweiss. I was very touched that he remembered that. And as I was listening to the tune he got down on one knee. With a shaky voice he asked me to marry him, and handed me a beautiful ring.

***Now I have to interrupt this story to let you know that the ring he gave me 12 years ago is no longer in my possession. His dad has it. I gave it to him to fix a couple of years ago. (he's a Jeweler.) I haven't got it back yet.***

So as we drove down that familiar stretch of road I got a little excited that perhaps I was getting my ring back! I even got a little sentimental tear in my eye. Hubby didn't see it though. I had sunglasses on. I looked back at our son and pondered the time that had gone by since I had been here last. Then we arrived. We left Tiger in the van and walked over to the windmill. The wind was blowing and the windmill was sqealing. I looked up at it and when I looked back at Hubby he was holding a ring. It was a new ring! A beautiful 18K ring with 30 diamonds in it. Which was not my original ring, but a neat surprise to say the least!

We drove back to the farm and spent a little while outside with Tiger, just enjoying the silence. He was happy to be there too. It truly was a peaceful Christmas.

On Mark Twain

I notice that you use plain, simple language, short words and brief sentences. That is the way to write English--it is the modern way and the best way. Stick to it; don't let fluff and flowers and verbosity creep in. When you catch an adjective, kill it. No, I don't mean utterly, but kill most of them--then the rest will be valuable. They weaken when they are close together. They give strength when they are wide apart. An adjective habit, or a wordy, diffuse, flowery habit, once fastened upon a person, is as hard to get rid of as any other vice.
- Letter to D. W. Bowser, 3/20/1880

www.twainquotes.com

I love Mark Twain. I remember reading this first quote in highschool. It made me happy to hear a great writer such as Twain support the style of writing that I tried so hard to maintain. Its always bothered me to have to read through so many extra, pointless words to get to the point. Another saying I loved was "let your yes be yes and your no be no." That one was in the bible. In other words, give a definite answer. Don't be wishy washy. Say what you are going to say!

I left a snarky comment on someone else's comments section about this very thing. This person doesn't have a blog of their own, that I know of. Yet, he or she chooses to leave very long and frequent comments on other people's blogs. Its not even that this person doesn't have anything to say. Apparently they have much to say, but the forum they choose is not their own.

I kind of feel bad for leaving the comment where I did. But where was I supposed to leave it?

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