December Round Up

What books and/or magazines did I read this month?

Dean Koontz's new book "Breathless" was one of the first ones on my list for this month. I love his style, it's very down to earth, and I enjoy the fact that he makes me reach for my dictionary to look up a word every few chapters. I shop for the few hardcover books I plan on keeping in my personal collection at Costco, and when I picked up "Breathless", I also grabbed the last published novel by Michael Crichton. Did you know he passed away? I didn't until I read the book jacket on this new novel entitled "Pirate Latitudes". They supposedly found this manuscript amongst his belongings after he passed and published it post mortem. It was quite different than his usual stuff, but I enjoyed it. I also read "The Fire" by Katherine Neville and "Turning Angel" by Greg Isles. "The Fire" was a good book but according to my husband it was a book more suited to a teen, whatever that means??? The Greg Isles book was quite a heavy subject and well worth a read if you can handle big emotional issues.

What movies, television shows, plays, etc. did I watch this month?

Finally the long awaited finale of "Survivor", "The Amazing Race", and my personal favorite "The Biggest Loser". Of course they put in a hook to secure that you'll watch the new seasons, and of course, I'm pretty psyched for them to start. Other than that we watched several football games where the Seahawks had their bootie whooped, not so much fun. As for movies we rented "Four Christmases"

which surprisingly both Martin, myself & Grace enjoyed immensely. Despite Adam's stating that he didn't' think the new Terminator Salvation movie was any good I decided on a whim to grab it and the new Star Trek. Again Martin & I both enjoyed these two movies, despite what some of our friends had said to the contrary. Martin had been concerned about not having seen all the previous movies in each series, but they were both made in such a manner that you could enjoy it as a separate show and if you had seen the past episodes the better.

With Gracie we also watched the new Pixar movie "UP". I had no idea what to expect and both Maritn & I were pleasantly surprised. They did it again, managing to make a movie for kids that keeps the adult audiences entertained and riveted to the screen. Grace also enjoyed this one, a big thumbs up from the LaVergne household.

What fun things did I do with my family and/or friends?

Grace and I up kept our annual tradition and saw Santa at the mall. Even though she had already had a Santa encounter at her pre-school, she took this one quite serious and rattled off the list of items she decided to ask for this year.

The weekend before Christmas we attended the annual holiday party at the Skagit. It was a lot of fun and without the evacuation we suffered through last year, we even shut down the dance floor in style this time. It's kind of fun to go all out and dress up & have my hair done up. Grace & I went out for pedicures together. She chose purple and I went red for the Christmas party. This year I even had fake nails put on, a first for me, and I think a last. Although they look beautiful I don't think they are for me. LOL

Did you take any trips or vacations or did someone come and stay with you at your house?

As a family we decided to spend New Year's in Seattle. But first a side trip to IKEA to pick up our office furniture, and Troy & Aubree purchased their kitchen for an apartment they are building. After a yummy, but late dinner at McCormick & Schmick where Grace polished off a whole plate of Clams before dinner, we stayed in a suite at the Crown Plaza. Plans had been to go watch the fireworks at the Space Needle, but after seeing how foggy it was and that we actually had a pretty good view from our 11th storey rooms we stayed in. It was kind of cool to watch the fireworks out the window and then see the time delay on the television. We got the best of both worlds because we were warm & dry and could hear the accompanying music along with the beautiful fireworks.

What special or unusual purchases did I make?

I guess the purchase at IKEA qualifies. This time we racked up a bill for about a dozen shelves, three desks, numerous storage items, some desk protectors, door inserts for the shelves, a ginormous wall clock, a leather sofa and a mirror. I think that was it...but I could be wrong.

What illnesses or health concerns did I have?

After Grace's visit with Santa at the pre-school she came down with a fever and proceeded into the full blown flu. She had it for about a week when of course I came down with it. It was mostly a hacking cough and a sore throat, annoying, but not the end of the world. I had my annual check up at the doctor's office and they said I was fine, mid-flu. So what do I know...

During our holidays at Grandma's house I suffered through a bout of sore neck/shoulder, which was so bad I couldn't sleep. After medicating heavily, a bit of massage by Martin and lots of heat and icing it got a point where I could at least function. I personally think this was brought on by the stupid two by four that fell on my back the day before we left, which I had totally forgotten about until we came home and I saw it lying on the ground.

What gifts did I give and/or receive?

Well, Christmas presents of course. I was pretty excited that this year I was pretty much done shopping for everyone by the beginning of December. As a matter of fact I had bought a bit too much and saved some of the items for future gifting. LOL

I did pretty good this year, even if I have to say so myself. I found a purple digital camera for Grace which she absolutely loves. She even took some pretty darn great photos with it right off the bat.

I also received a camera, one of those flip video cameras that you just plug into your computer to download the movies...pretty cool.

For my dear husband I went all out and got him some brand, spanking, new work socks. Just what he's always wanted. LOL No really, I mean it. He didn't' see that one coming at all. He also received some new cologne, a bird bath (that one was revenge for the bird feeder I received from him a few years back!), (besides I really wanted that bird bath, LOL!), a burr grinder for his beloved coffee beans, (which means I can finally send the recalled one back to Starbucks, YEAH!) and some odds & ends as stocking stuffers. Oh plus the usual box of Applets & Cotlets, his favorite.

I was a little disappointed to see that he failed to get me what I had wished for this Christmas. (Well, what do you expect if you wait till two days before!), so Santa thoughtfully substituted an iPod download card in Adam Lambert's new CD's stead. No need to fret, I rectified Santa's error and purchased said CD at TARGET today. ***wink***wink***wink***

What were my accomplishments this month?

I was very proud that my Secret Santa gift went out on time, actually ahead of time. Megan's parcel did not fare so well, but the ornaments for the swap that were in that parcel were also done ahead of time. Yeah for sticking it to procrastination for the month of December. LOL

I also did manage to squeeze out almost all of my Christmas cards to get them in the mail before we left for Winthrop. Amazingly most of them made it to their destinations, even as far a Germany.

What were my disappointments this month?

Definitely being sick over the holidays was a real downer. I had waaay less energy to do stuff, so it was a good thing that most of my shopping had been done earlier in the year. This also prevented me from achieving my goals of cleaning up some stuff around the house.

Also not having a tree up this year was a real bummer for me. I love having the sparkling lights, putting up all the carefully chosen ornaments and such...but this year we were just too busy to get it done. I vow that this will be the last time as I missed having a tree way too much.

Anything else noteworthy to include?

I did managed to stick to my workout schedule for the month and am pretty proud of myself for that. I did not lose any significant weight, but I do notice that my arms are becoming more toned.

Pre-Christmas Shenanigans

The weekend before Christmas we attended the annual Christmas party one of our largest clients puts on every year. It was held at the Skagit Casino again. Some of you may recall the disaster last year where the whole hotel was evacuated at around 2 AM due to a broken/frozen pipe. Not so much fun. This year however things went off much more smoothly. The band was a bit late so dancing with the "PopOffs" did not commence till well after 8:30 PM and some grew a bit restless. The open bar helped a bit. LOL

We had a lot of fun and danced the night away.

The day after we watched the Seahawks get their butts kicked and had Troy and Ashton over for an early gift exchange since he had to go back home to his Mom's for the holidays. Grace & him played together for the afternoon and had a blast.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Just a quick post from snowy, beautiful Winthrop. We had decided to keep with my European roots and have our "official" X-mas dinner last night followed by opening our presents. Grace was pretty excited, even though she had some issues with Santa already. Last Thursday we were at the mall, all decked out in her pretty dress ready for pictures with Santa. Well, everything was going great, until she got to the part where she was supposed to sit with the big guy. Then she just plain out refused. Oh well, better luck next year, I seem to remember a certain picture of myself at that age screaming at the top of my lungs being held by Santa Claus. Guess it runs in the family.
We had a blast opening presents, well, Grace actually opened very single one of them for us. But she had so much fun and we loved watching her tear into the paper and figure otu what each box contained.

Yes, I will admit it, I drove around for two days with a headless horse in my trunk. Yes, you heard me correctly. A headless horse...but before you jump off your chair and rush to call the SPCA or whatever agency is responsible for animal cruelty/mutilation hear me out...I had to do it.

Last year I was Christmas shopping and when it came time to come up with the "WOW" factor gift I failed miserably. So this year I jumped at the chance(s). After a lengthy discussion with my hubby we "agreed" not to buy each other anything extravagant. Well, between you and me...I have no trouble buying for my hubby, as he apparently has buying for me. Although I am not sure what part about my list, that we went over in detail, he didn't understand??? Anyway, to cut to the chase I got the lucky guy a brand spanking new GPS system worth (as he informed me after looking it up on the Internet!) over $600. Well, I can't help that I am a great deal finder?

I digress...back to the horse... When I was at the mall for Santa photos, (the ones that didn't get taken, remember?) I ran through TARGET for a couple of small things. But to my dismay and delight they had in stock the infamous gift that all little girls want...Butterscotch the (almost) life sized horse. Well, imagine my delight, since it was sold out in a flash last year. So I drove my stroller with sleeping, post No-Santa-Photo fit child, into the check out lane to reserve this marvelous wonder for my darling daughter. Nothing would stop me, not the clerk who claimed that they could not help me as they could not be responsible for prepaid product, not the other shopper who crowed the store and mall in a last minute gift hunting frenzy nor the exuberant price tag on the little furry fella. I demanded that someone "hold that horse" for me so that I could go to the other end of the mall, retrieve my family sedan and return to collect my prize. After what seemed like a losing battle I found a sympathetic clerk who put my name on the box and I hustled back to my vehicle petrified of losing my hard earned chance to purchase this gift. when I got to the other side of the mall parking was of course scarcer than a drop of water in the Sahara but I decided drastic measures should be implemented as I had a sleeping toddler in the vehicle and needed to simply load Butterscotch into my car. Well, let me tell you Handicapped parking never looked so good. I ran inside handed the clerk my VISA card and told her to charge it. I then hefted the huge box, (it wasn't very heavy just bulky!) and made a run for it. Here's the clincher. The box was too big for my Honda's trunk. No amount of pushing, prodding or pulling would coax my horse into the trunk space of an Accord. After several dazed and confused minutes I capitulated and sliced open the box and lifted the headless horse, (Apparently the horse was too big for the box too!) loaded the folded box into the back seat and headed for home. So at home I faced the challenge to patch up the box and repackage the whole kit and caboodle so no one caught on to what was going on...

Needless to say Butterscotch made it to Winthrop in two pieces and after having a good laugh at my daughter's saucer sized eyes when she saw the headless horse we screwed the head on and enjoyed Grace playing with her new toy.

Grandma was clearly thrilled by the vinyl wall board Grace and I made her to display her gorgeous grandkids on. Thanks Elizabeth for the great idea.

Grandpa got a tool wagon, the boys some survival kits, carhart gear and socks, Martin his GPS, some books and a pair of dress pants, I received a birdfeeder with two colors of lights on it, a pair of gold hoop earrings and a craft book. Grace of course had the mother loot with a cash register toy, a Pooh Bear piggy bank, a slinky toy, some Lincoln Logs, Snowman Jammies, a Tic Tac Toe Game and of course Butterscotch.