2008

Where did the time go? Here are some of the things we did and accomplished in '08. Somethings are still a work in progress. Some are just random things that seemed like really big events at the time. 

• We finally stopped planning it and did it...put in the pool we've always wanted 
• County Cheerleading Champions....no not me, but Princess #2 and the Varsity team at school
• Princess #1 Graduated High School...was accepted into the college she wanted to go to and played her last soccer game :(
• Princess #2 started her Senior Year and applied to college(s)
• One in college, one in high school and one in middle school... not too long ago it was elementary, middle school, high school
• Princess #1 sailed around the British Virgin Islands for an entire week (spring break) with 7 friends and only packed a small over night bag. I was amazed at that.
• Started the "Big Clean Out" -  can't tell you how many bags of stuff we have taken to Goodwill
• Princess #3 got her braces off
• Princess #1 had her wisdom teeth removed
• Took #1 and #2 to New York for some mom and daughter time, remind me to tell you the Regis and Kelly story one day
• the Man of the House insisted on wearing his NC State Red to orientation at UNC Chapel Hill (don't tell him, but we think he looks better in Carolina Blue)

ONE LAST LOOK

CHRISTMAS (un)WRAPPED UP

Santa was very good to us!  He always is!  

Thanks Santa!

We spent our Christmas Eve as we usually do. We had appetizers and punch for dinner. We set the table as if we were having a party and graze the whole evening. We open one present Christmas Eve and those are our Christmas PJ's. EVERYBODY gets new PJ's for Christmas. This year we some how ended up playing a rowdy game of spoons to see which one of the princesses won the opportunity choose which package to open. I don't usually put names on the pajamas. I usually buy them the same thing but in a different a color and so every year we have to come up with some way to pass them out. Of course the one that I thought would be the least favorite was the most popular. I got a great set of pajamas from Ann Taylor. (PINK!!) The girls bought them without dad's input and did a great job! The Man  of the House looked snazzy in his new grey flannel pj pants!! 

We opened gifts Christmas morning and it was honestly a sea of boxes in the den when all things were said and done. The girls got mostly  girl necessities...shoes, boots, purses, clothes and jewelery. Princess #3 got a Wii Fit board and some games. We've been having a lot of fun with that. She also got  "MY  VERY OWN CELL PHONE!" She wanted one, but wasn't expecting it. She actually cried...and was speechless!! I can't tell you how many hugs she has given me and her dad. She is such a sweetie!

This is what Santa brought me! 

Woo Hoo!! Way to go Santa!

Before

After

Christmas afternoon we headed to my parent's house....we had to eat one more time! We somehow ended up playing games. My dad would get so excited, he would end up saying something off the wall and then he wouldn't be able to stop laughing. I thought he would explode! 

The princesses are staying at my parent's house for a few days.....the Annual After Christmas Visit To Grandma's. They have been doing this since they were toddlers. She spoils them! Who can resist going to movies and coffee shops, sleeping late and staying in their pj's all day? 

The Man of The House and I have been enjoying ourselves (minus the princesses). We've seen several movies, a few restaurants and believe it or not saw the inside of the gym today. We see the outside daily as we drive by, and we thought visiting the inside couldn't hurt! I think I'm going to be sore tomorrow.

So that is Christmas all wrapped up! Can't believe it is all gone. All that planning, prep, scheduling, cooking..... We never did get to the Gingerbread House...maybe next year. I'll start on it early and then it won't overwhelm me. We definitely don't need another family tradition around here, but maybe that is something we can start doing Thanksgiving weekend. Don't remind me next year! Those poor reindeer never did see the light of day. They are still prisoner in the attic in the other garage. Sorry Rudolph, maybe next year!

WE'RE GETTING THERE

I made everyone sit around the kitchen table and write out a "TO DO" list for the next few days before Christmas. I didn't want  the last days before Christmas to get away from us and for things to get so hectic that we completely not enjoy Christmas. We organized our schedules so that we could shop together and run errands together. The main thing on my list was to get some baking done and to wrap.....a lot of wrapping!  Princess #3 really wanted to bake too and wanted to help with everything. 

The next morning I woke Princess 3 up early and may I say, she was a very good sport about it. We baked in our PJ's and listened  to Christmas music until 12:30PM. I'm so glad the doorbell didn't ring! 

We baked and made:

Caramel Candy

(these are soooo good!)

This is where you start to wonder if you have done

something wrong.....

German Butter Cookies

#3 is using my great grandmother's sifter.The 

dough had to chill in the fridge for an hour and so we took

time to shower and dress.

Neiman Marcus Cookies

(below)

Next on the list was Caramel Corn and Oreo Truffles.  That is the means we used to destroy the kitchen that night. I guess I should also say the whole house was destroyed. I am not sure how that happens. Whenever there is some kind of project going on the whole house falls apart. 

Saturday:

We went to the mall today, just to see what we were missing out on. We wanted to leave and be there at 9:00. We got there at 10:30....that is on time for those that live on "princess time".  Gosh, talk about the sales. Can't wait to see the sales the day after Christmas. So while in The Loft, I tell the two older princesses to see if they saw something spectacular and really cheap and we'd talk about it. Two minutes later the oldest princess is overloaded and overwhelmed with all of the choices. Princess #2 still had her nose turned up at the whole store. I really had to force her to try on one shirt. I pretty much told her we would not go to the Apple store if she didn't.  (I've been trying to sell The Loft to her for about a year now.) Well, three shirts purchased later we attempted to leave but could not find the man of the house. He was spotted in the corner with his Blackberry in his hand. He was in a trance. I don't know if he was emailing those important people or playing that Brick Breaker game but we totally left him and hid outside of the store. It is so funny to see him wake up from his hypnotic state and realize he is all alone. We were good to him today. We only left him two times. (Well, okay, it was really three.)

ARE YOU KIDDING ME

I was talking with the man of the house last night...

The reindeer are still in the attic in the other garage (still decapitated). I've been gently reminding him about them. He's been annoyingly  reminding me that he's so busy and just hadn't had 15 minutes to get them out. He knows how important things like this are to me...presentation is everything. I loose sleep over these things. He told me that he will have time this weekend to get them out. Four days before Christmas!!? Are you kidding me? That's embarrassing! What would the neighbors think? You gotta love him!

OVER THE RIVER AND THROUGH THE WOODS

Okay, the weekend is over and somehow we made it to the other side. It was a good weekend but just how much stuff can you cram into 48 hours? Evidently you can cram a lot. 

 

Friday: The man of the house and I headed to Crab Tree Valley Mall because we had a craving for a new restaurant that has opened there. The mall was packed because it IS Christmas and it WAS Friday night. But somehow it is the things like no parking spaces, long lines, a sea of baby strollers and the smell of every perfume available at Belk being squirted at the same time that gets me in the Christmas spirit. It was nice to sit down for an hour and take a few deep breaths, it was like the calm before the storm. That night at home during our "Official Family Agenda Meeting" we spelled out our expectations to the princesses about our schedule for the weekend and departure times.  (Why did we bother?) 

Saturday: Princess #3 had a piano recital. Planned Departure time:  8:20. Instructions: Meet family in the kitchen 8:00, completely dressed including makeup and hair dried, have anything you need for the 6 hours you will be spending in the car (movies, books, and so on). Official Departure Time: 8:40. 

Princess #3 played beautifully, look beautiful and walked with such grace across the stage. You Go Girl!!

We had to sneak out midway through the recital because we had a 3 hour drive ahead of us. Next stop: Sunset Beach, NC. Event: Husband's Family Christmas .

Arguments and bickering in the car: minimal. Arrive in Sunset Beach: 12:30ish. We had a lot of fun there and a good lunch. Played some Wii boxing and those with a good self image  (and small rear end) tried the Wii Hula Hoop....I did not. We ended up staying until 7:30 or so, and we didn't get back home until  10:30.  I couldn't pull my clothes off fast enough and get into a pair of sweats.  

Sunset Beach

Sunday: Headed to the grocery store around 9:oo (I was showered, cleaned and presentable) I was assigned Deviled Eggs and Green Beans for my father's family Christmas gathering.  I reminded everyone to be dressed and ready at 11:30 to leave the house for the day. My plan was to get them to help me in the kitchen for an hour and then us girls would leave to go downtown to go see the Governor's Mansion and the historical district all dressed up for Christmas. My kitchen help arrived around 12:15 (no make up and grouchy). Princess #1 was having a wardrobe issue and suddenly this morning she decided that her make up no longer suited her skin tone and yes folks, there were tears over the issue.  After giving them a few dirty looks, they started moving a little faster and pitched in and made the deviled eggs. We somehow made it to downtown only 45 minutes late!! 

     The Governor's Mansion   

  

                                We loved the Governor's Mansion. It was so pretty and festive.  We then walked through the homes downtown that were open. They were okay. I just don't get the houses with little tiny  rooms and no closets that cost a fortune to buy and then a fortune to redo. It is just not my thing. So we had a good girls afternoon and when we got in the car I said: "Well, that was fun and interesting. Kind of gets in the Christmas spirit, doesn't it?" And then Princess #3 replied: "I've had better afternoons." 

The man of the house met us at his office (that was our meeting point) and we all piled in the car for one more out of town trip to Bunnlevel, NC. Had another BIG meal and another family gathering. Arrived back home at 9:00PM. Princess #3 reminded me that we had not done any of the baking I had promised her we would do and she still needed to make the gifts for her friends at school. So we did. She and I painted clay pots until 11:00. (Tiffany Blue, black rims and monogrammed them) At 11:00 I was outside on the driveway spraying them with varnish because a dull pot would just not do. And then literally I stayed up and watch the paint dry.....and dry...and dry. When all was done, I stuffed them with candy, wrapped them with cellophane (don't you love a gift wrapped in cellophane?) placed them in gift bags and called it a day. HO HO HO!

CUTE!

Not one of the Tiffany blue pots but still a cute one!

Weekend Accomplished!!

WHO ALL BOUGHT ALL OF THIS

 So the day after Thanksgiving the man of the house made the annual trip to the other garage (across the drive way) to drag out the 100 boxes of decorations we've accumulated over the years and stacked them up on the front porch.  For the next three days I worked diligently finding just the right spot for every Santa, elf and Rudolph. At the beginning of our marriage I had a thing for Santas and collected them.  So now I have some nice ones and then there are the cheesy ones.  Some of the worst ones are still chillin out in the box back in the "other garage" and aren't going to be making an appearance this year. The better looking ones are having a meeting on top of the china cabinet in the dining room. I tried to take inventory of what was in all of the boxes. Who bought all of this crap?  I have a whole storage box of nothing but ribbons and bows in an assortment of colors and sizes (depending on what the theme was the year they were purchased ). There is a box of nothing but Christmas tins and food storage containers to box up goodies for neighbors, teachers and coaches. There is at least a five year supply in there. The list goes on. The Princesses couldn't wait to get the decorating party started but 30 minutes into the whole thing their Choir ADD kicked in and away they went.  They checked in on me every hour or so out of guilt, I am sure.  

I'm tired and so I am done.  I am not putting anything else out or up.  It has been over two weeks and there are still two big storage containers still sitting on the porch waiting for the man of the house to haul them back across the driveway and up the stairs of the other garage. ("HAUL":  one of the words the man of the house uses any chance he gets) When he does, I hope he brings down the reindeer that go in the front yard. As of right now they are laying on their side still decapitated (for storage purposes) in the other garage. 

SAY CHEESE

Saturday was the annual Christmas Card Picture Taking Day. Our idea was to dress in my relatives old hats and furs and take pictures. We were trying to go for this vintage looking card. Brooke was going to photoshop it and add some effects to make it look old. We didn't really get what we were going for. I do not care how old the kids are, getting them to cooperate and listen and stand still is really hard.  We ended up with tears, arguments and attitudes. At one point we were dying from laughter at how ridiculous it all was. Someone was getting mad because somebody looked better than they did. Somebody got their feelings hurt because their hat wasn't cute. The list goes on. We thought about making a collage with some of the bad shots and saying:

 "Hope your Christmas pictures turned out better than ours.

                          Merry Christmas from the Odoms"

THESE ARE A FEW OF MY FAVORITE THINGS

These are a few of my favorite things.......

So it is December, already. So now until the 25th we all must wake up and hit the ground running. I am trying to get Christmas under control before my oldest daughter comes home from college this weekend for her Christmas break. My plan is to get the majority of their gifts bought by the end of this week so that we can do some fun Christmas things. The girls have asked me several times to make a Ginger Bread House. That is something I cannot do every year.......it takes at least two years to recover from the experience of it all! Shopping for all the right candies to make bushes, the roof, windows and so on is hard especially if you are picky like us. I'm not sure if I can get up the courage to do that this year but I am considering it. 

The Princesses 

Princess #1

Princess #1  graduated from high school in June. In August she had the nerve to pack up and head off to college. She is now conquering UNC Chapel Hill with her beauty,wit and enthusiasm. She is studying a lot more than she thought she would and "going out" a lot less than she planned. She is planning on becoming a nurse and wants to work  in the dermatology or plastic surgery area. (Free Botox for mom!!!) 

Princess #2

Princess #2 is a senior this year. She wants to go into graphic design. She is the prettiest nerd you will ever meet. She has already sent her college applications off to several colleges, but her school of choice is NC State. They have one of the best design schools in the country. We'll see how that goes in a few months!  

Princess #3

Princess #3 is just starting middle school. As of right now she has a 100 average (or better) in every class. She is full of wit and wisdom. She is the silent partner and observer of the crew and just when you have completely forgotten about her she will ask the most profound question or make a hilarious comment.  She reads (nonstop if we'd let her) and plays soccer and the piano.

HERE IT GOES!

This is something that I've wanted to do for a long time. I am not sure exactly what I am doing but will learn as I go.