Tag: holidays

O’ Tannenbaum

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Last Sunday, the Hubs and Co went to select a Christmas tree for our living room.  Usually, we make it a family affair.  This year, we looked at the logistics of it all and decided, since we weren’t trekking into the woods to chop it down ourselves, there was no need for all of us to get in the car, go to the AC Moor parking lot and pick a tree from the adjacent pop up lot.

The Hubs got the tree in the house, in the stand and up.  The girls were giddy with excitement as they were beyond ready to decorate.  The tree, though, had been bound up for a bit, so we had to wait for the branches to fall and we promised the girls they could decorate the tree on: 

Monday
The Hubs goes away on business and the girls go to school. I do my normal routine of carpool, gym, errands and so forth and wait for the tree to open up.  As I’m looking at it, I see that it’s kind of crooked, but that can be fixed when the Hubs comes home.  By mid afternoon, the branches have fallen and I decide to string up the lights. I pull down two under-bed storage boxes and one large tote from the attic and begin the process.  Now, I know I should have probably plugged the lights in before attempting to string up the tree, but the lights worked last year, which is why they were neatly bundled in the box when I opened it this year. I get down to work, and think that I can get it covered with two strands.  Nope.  I get the third strand strung, plug it in and they don’t work.  The top two thirds of the tree are lit, but the bottom third looks pathetic.  I try to McGyver some lights from the strand, turn the tree towards the fireplace and basically, try to fake it with the lights.  Nope. It’s not gonna happen. 

I undo the lights and reach for another set.  This set, though, is strung on white wire, whereas the first set was strung on green.  There’s a reason why I buy green wired lights.  The white wired lights work best for photo shoots and as props.  They have no place on a green Christmas tree. . .at least not in my house. It looks crazy like that glue.  What a mess.  So, I unstring the tree (again). 

I pick up the box with the green wired lights and put it in my car for my weekly run to Target, which will happen on:

Tuesday
I go to Target and try to match up lights.  The box from home says I need Phillips lights, style  D8.  I go to Target, where they kindly have the different light styles displayed.  I find Phillips lights, style D8 and they are not the lights that I have at home.  Seriously? My lights have clear bulbs, these lights have frosted bulbs.  I do an eye roll so massive,  it straightened my hair.

I look at the different styles — C3, A2, B3, D7 and none of them are what I want. Colored lights, Cool White Lights, Twinkling Warm Lights, and on and on and on.  So finally, I just say, Bah Humbug! and pick up the D8 lights with the frosted bulbs.

I get home and do the first set of lights. Not a nice as the clear bulbs, but whatever. If you step back, you can’t really tell and the tree is starting to come together. I unwind the second strand and around and around the tree I go.  I unwrap the third strand and wind it around.  I plug it all in, step back and good googly-moogly! The top two thirds of the tree are warm white lights, and the last third of the tree is swathed in cool lights.  What. the. devil.

Santa is testing me.

For those of you who don’t know the difference, the warm lights are a soft, buttery glow like bulb.  The cool lights are a bright, clear white spark of light.  They can’t mix. . .not on my tree. It looked crazy.  So, I unstring the tree.  Again.

Oh, and the tree is still crooked.  I don’t worry about that because the Hubs will be home that evening and we’ll sort that out. Only, the Hubs calls and says he won’t be home tonight after all.  The girls still want to decorate the tree.  I don’t want to let them down, so I call my neighbor to come over and help me.

She comes over and recognizes that the base that we have is the same one she has at her house. Progress!  So we push, pull, and cajole the tree into an upright position.

Then it falls over.

thwump!

 And a big ass butterfly shoots out — I’m not kidding — and alights on the wall.

I suppose I should count my blessings that it was a butterfly and not a bird or a bat, however, I like wildlife in the wild, not appropriating portions of my living room.  My neighbor and I stand around looking at this thing for a while, thinking it’s a Blue Morpho or something. I turn to my neighbor and say, “It’s just gonna have to stay there.”  It was too big to squish and while I’m not afraid of insects, I prefer them in their own space doing their own thing at a great distance from me. 

We get the tree upright, say goodnight to the butterfly, and I put the boxes of lights  back in the car for another trip to Target on:

Wednesday:
I tell the Hubs what has transpired regarding the tree, the butterfly and everything else and I’m sure that he thinks I’m just making things up.  When I get home from dropping the girls off at school, he has made it home from his trip.  I go in the house and see that the butterfly is gone and when I find the Hubs, I remark on that.

Me: Oh, you got rid of the butterfly!

Him: (blank stare) What butterfly?

*shudder* Oh, it’s loose in the house! Okay, I can’t worry about that now, so I persuade the Hubs to help me straighten the tree before he leaves for work.  The girls are going to get this tree decorated today! This is ridiculous. 

We work on the tree. We rotate the trunk, we adjust the base, and finally! We get it upright and relatively straight.  I think the tree just has a gangsta lean that no amount of prodding is going to correct.  The Hubs gives me and V a kiss goodbye and heads out the door. We’re on his heels as it is now time to get the older girls from school.  Just as I’m about to leave, I hear this weird, rhythmic buzzing sound coming from the living room.

Like a dummy, I go investigate.

The butterfly is furiously beating its wings against the window in an attempt to escape and the sound is like nothing I’ve ever heard before.  I am at the point of my day where if I dawdle any more, I will be grossly late for carpool.

So, I tip my hat to the butterfly and head to school.  I get the kids, exchange the Phillips lights for Target brand and head home.

No butterfly. But the tree is still upright! I test the lights before I unwind them and put them on the tree.  All the lights work! The girls start decorating. For every ornament M and C put on, V takes one off.  Finally, the tree is trimmed. The tree skirt is around the tree and not C’s shoulders. The butterfly is no where to be seen, which is kind of too bad.  We could really use a tree topper.

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IN: ON: December 13, 2013 TAGS: , , , BY: Hilary
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Wishin’ and Hopin’

The more the days go by, the more we are inundated with all things Christmas.  The radio stations, the decor in the stores, the commercials — ugh, the commercials!  We are trying to keep things low-key around here, but it’s been a challenge.  If the girls had their way, our house would be top to bottom holiday paraphernalia, lights and music, with fake Santa feet sticking out of the chimney top AND bottom.

I pulled out our few little holiday decor items.  We’ve got a countdown calendar, as well as a trio of snowmen and nutcrackers hanging out on the mantel.  There’s a snowman bowl on the kitchen table, a Happy Holidays cookie jar (minus the cookies, sadly), and a pair of well wishing country snowmen on the mail table. Notice a pattern here? As a newlywed,  I was all about starting a collection of snowmen decor for my future family home.  A few years went by and my enthusiasm melted along with the seasonal precipitation.  I hung onto a few pieces, but never really got back into it the way I had in the beginning.  Once the children arrived, I found myself moving things out of reach or corralling things off from grabby hands.  The idea of decorating around that lost its appeal.  I put up a wreath on the front door, individual candle lights in all of the windows, and called it good.

I do holiday cards. I made (yes, made and this is BEFORE Pintrest) a Santa countdown calendar out of grocery bags and cotton balls.  Every year, we dance around the house to “All I Want For Chirstmas Is You” by Mariah Carey and we make Christmas cookies.  Some times we decorate the tree while drinking hot chocolate and eating popcorn. Sometimes I do it all by myself. I’m consistently inconsistent with what we choose to do from one year to the next, but at least we do something.

This year, we are hosting a little get together for one of the playgroups to which the children belong.  Would you belive I found a Black Santa to come to the house and visit with the children? I know! Submit my paperwork for Mother of the Year, please.  I’m confident that this Santa is going to be head and shoulders over the 2010 Black Santa/Puppet show.

The girls have been working on their Christmas lists.  It’s funny to see the evolution of their penmanship and their desires over the course of the years.  M is direct and to the point, no messing around.

 Yes, that says a $100 iTunes giftcard.  I’m surprised about the Barbies and the Bride and Groom doll.  Last week, she was all about Monster High and My Little Pony Equestria Girls.  There’s also the extensive book wishlist she came up with the last time we were at Barnes and Noble. Funny, that’s not on the list.

As for C. . .she cracks me up.

A box of chocolates (Ok, Forest Gump.), $100 iTune gift card, a violin and a silk dress with a robe to go with it.  I’m thinking that last one is a peignoir or something. She had been in my mom’s dresser the last time we visited and came out wearing a satin dressing gown looking like Madame Butterfly.  Well, we’ll see what happens. Oh, and I almost forgot. She keeps asking for a mystery gift, but won’t say exactly what that is.  She just wants another gift that isn’t on the list.  That leaves it open to interpretation, but I’m guessing she’s thinking of something that lights up, beeps, or requires batteries as opposed to, say, new underwear or socks.

And V? She’ll get some clothes, some books, but really? I’ve forgotten what kinds of things you  buy for almost 2 year olds.  Given that she has two older sisters and access to their stuff, she really isn’t into the Leapfrog Learning Table or the Peek-A-Blocks that would be my go-to items for her. 

I don’t want to totally go overboard with toys and games and stuff whose novelty will wear off before the wrapping paper hits the garbage can.  However, I don’t want anyone to be disappointed on Christmas Day.  I’ve got that all Angel and Devil thing going on — on the one hand, let’s remember the reason for the season. On the other hand, I want to give my kids great memories of Christmas morning.  That’s not to say the two are mutually exclusive, but you know what I mean.  I feel like Kronk — and if you don’t know this movie, we’re going to have to break up until you watch it.

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I’ve got about two weeks before I toss in the towel.  I’ve already selected the gifts for our Angel Tree recipients and that liked to kill me!  I don’t know why it was so hard picking something out from a list that practically spelled out what the kids wanted.  Again, I didn’t want any disappoint on Christmas.  The Hubs and I are going to exchange gifts this year, too.  We’re keeping it small and putting a cap on the amount we can spend. He gave me a few ideas and I’m trying to cull my Amazon wishlist into something reasonable. What I need is for him to put a parental control on my computer so that I’ll stop fooling around with BuzzFeed, Twitter, Tumblr, Gawker, Jezebel, Refinery529, Celebitchy and everything else that keeps me from writing.  I’ll put that on the list, along with a nap, and a Chipotle gift card and it could be a very Merry Christmas Indeed.

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IN: ON: December 8, 2013 TAGS: , BY: Hilary
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recipes

Recipe Friday: Mother’s Day Edition

To all the mothers, grandmothers, godmothers, aunts, like-a-mothers and company, have a very happy Mother’s Day.

My kids are sticklers for giving gifts on the designated day that gifts are supposed to be given. So, I have no pictures of their Mother’s Day artwork as they are guarding it fervently until Sunday morning.  Instead, I leave you with this note from a little girl named Emma, whose card has been dubbed “The Best Mother’s Day Card Of All Time” by the Huffington Post. 

It is pretty awesome.

best mothers day card of all time
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She loves her mom more than chocolate, and even more than mustaches! If this mom ever doubted her parenting skills, she can totally rest easy!  And the use of that colorful language, hey, young Emma did preface it with an apology. Let her mother worry about where she learned it after Mother’s Day has passed.

To my own mom, if it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t know of Andreas Vollenweider,  would have never conducted a French Fry taste test between McDonald’s, Burger King and Wendy’s (McD’s was the clear winner), or would have known how to give the stanky eye-brow.  You’re gifts keep on giving and they have served me well. 

Here’s to you, Mom.  Thank you and I love you never seem like enough, but I’ll keep saying it.  I’d planned to post a recipe that you often served during my chilhood, but Lung Yan’s Chinese Restaurant doesn’t have an online menu.

Just kidding. . .they really do. 

XOXO! Happy Mother’s Day, y’all.

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IN: recipes ON: May 12, 2013 TAGS: , , , , , , , , BY: Hilary
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February 14th, 2013

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Last year, I over-achieved with Mo’s card to the exclusion of any Valentine cards for Co.  Oops! This year, I was way ahead of the game.  I had found this cute idea on Pinterest (obvi) shortly after I had wrapped up Mo’s lollipop filled Valentine.  When February rolled around, I remembered that I had pinned this cute idea and got to work.

Basically, you take a bunch of funny pictures of your little person.  Using a program like Picasa or Google +, you can collage the pictures and add text.  Print out the collages on regular paper )or get extra fancy and print them on cardstock) and affix them to Hershey Kiss filled baggies.   Ta-Da!  Done and done.  I think the most time consuming part was the picture taking and the collage making.  I have yet to get on Pinterest today and see what catches my eye for next year.  Something tells me, I might be hitting up the drugstore for a box of perforated [insert Cartoon Character of Choice] Valentines.

Yeah, right. . .we all know I’m going to be at tit again.  As a matter of fact, a friend of mine sent me the following entry from The Bloggess about Valentine’s Day Under-Achiveing, which simply re-enforced my Type A commitment to this foolishness. I’ll leave you with the link here.  Happy Love Day, y’all!

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IN: ON: February 14, 2013 TAGS: , , , BY: Hilary
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recipes

Recipe Friday

Well, that just sucks.

I had written what was arguably the best blog post to date.  I saved it, oh, did I save it. I closed the computer and when I came back to upload my pictures, guess what?

*Poof* No more post.

It’s fitting because I was going on and on about what a less than stellar week this has been.

I’m in a total “bah humbug” kind of mood.  It started when we got back from Thanksgiving. The Hubs was already battling a cold and losing, impressively.  He shared said cold with me (so much for my flu shot).  The girls were overtired and in need of a sugar detox.  By the time we were back in our own beds, Thanksgiving was in my rearview mirror and I’m all, “Wait! Was that it?”

We are fully going towards Christmas.  It’s all over the place — on the TV, in the mail, on the radio, in my spam.  It’s in my house, too.

We got our tree the Saturday after Thanksgiving.  That’s unheard of around here. We usually get our tree like the week before.  I’m start taking down the ornaments around 3:30pm Christmas Day.  So the tree is up, as are the stockings and the wreath on the front door.  The girls keep insisting that we trim the house with lights, set up an inflatable Santa on the front lawn, spray fake snow on the step, and get one of those Elf on a Shelf things.  Elf on a Shelf? Right, because I don’t have enough to do.  I got the Advent calendar up.  I got the Christmas Carol Pandora Station going.  I even made three separate trips to three separate Targets to find the right replacement bulbs for the fake candles I put in the front windows of the house.

Remember how I said that I didn’t really care that my pants didn’t snap after Thanksgiving. Yeah, well I lied.  So I’m trying to be a more responsible eater.  It’s SO hard though, because this is the season where  food and drink are part and parcel of the experience.  I mean, you can practically taste the butter, sugar and peppermint in the air. On those aforementioned trips to Target, I blew my hard earned cash trying to find a more waistline friendly coffee drink.  Here’s a PSA: I’ve eaten brussel sprouts and cauliflower that taste better than Starbucks Skinny Peppermint Mocha Lattes and Skinny Caramel Machiattos.  Either save your money or splurge on the fat content. You’ll come out ahead.

I’ve been cooking this week, but it’s been the standard fare: tacos, spaghetti, steak and potatoes.  I made another batch of sausage and andouille soup because that’s good to have on hand for the nights when you’d rather re-heat than fully invest in a meat, starch, and veg.

I even went so far as to make cookies and blondies for the girls, and I didn’t even eat any.  Hold your applause;  I’m not too grown that I didn’t lick the bowl. And the beaters. A couple of times.  Hey, it’s not like I was jamming soft, crumbly baked goods into my pie-hole.

Mmmm. . . .pie. . .

But I’m getting off track here.  I’m just feeling like a big cranky, Grrrrr monster.   If I had to draw a picture of it, it would be a giant scribble with fangs and red eyes.  Surprisingly, it has absolutely nothing to do with my leg.  I went to the doctor this week and was fully prepared for whatever he was ready to tell me.  I didn’t bother to bring my matching sneaker because I knew that boot and I were going out as we came in: together.  Sure enough, I’ve got another two weeks in the boot.  It could be worse.  It could be another two months in the boot.  Of course, two weeks from today, there’s going to be a Bye-Bye Boot Bonfire in the backyard and I’ll be dancing around it holding the boot over my head like “Lord of the Flies” before I pitch it into the flames.  Or, I may just unceremoniously dump it into the trash can.  Either way, it’s a win.

The bottom-line is, I’m in need of some comfort.

I want to eat something warm, soft, and rich.  I want to eat something so good that I close my eyes and forget my name.  I want to eat something that when I bite into it, I should feel like I could crawl deep into its center, wrap myself in its goodness and take a nap.  I want to eat something that tastes as good as a hug feels.  It should be sweet and creamy and buttery and smooth and a little salty and have bacon and sugar and chocolate and of course, be less than 100 calories per serving.  I mean, so long as I’m dreaming, right?

Where to find such a mythical creation? Why, hello, Pinterest.  I’m sure you won’t fail to disappoint me.

Oh, this is so happening. . .

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Bacon Chocolate Chip Cookie with Maple Glaze from Penguins and Cupcakes
Originally from   The baker chick
Makes about 2 dozen of cookies
Ingredients
2 cups plus 2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
12 tbsp. unsalted butter room temperature
1 cup brown sugar, packed
½ cup granulated sugar
1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 ½ cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 lb package of bacon strips- cooked until very crispy and cut into small bits.

3/4 cup powdered sugar
pure maple syrup 

Directions
Adjust oven racks to upper and lower-middle positions.  Preheat oven 325°.  Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Whisk dry ingredients together in a medium bowl; set aside.  With electric mixer, mix butter and sugars until thoroughly combined.  Beat in egg, yolk, and vanilla until combined.  Add dry ingredients and beat at low-speed just until combined.  Stir in chocolate chips and 1 cup of the bacon bits.

Roll a scant half-cup of dough into a ball.  Holding dough ball in fingertips of both hands, pull apart into two equal halves.  Rotate halves 90 degrees and, with jagged surfaces facing up, place formed dough onto cookie sheet, leaving ample room between each ball.

Bake, reversing position of cookie sheets halfway through baking, until cookies are light golden brown and outer edges start to harden yet centers are still soft and puffy (approximately 11-14 minutes).  Do not overbake.

Cool cookies on sheets until able to lift without breaking.  Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

To make glaze- in a small bowl, add 1 tablespoon of maple syrup to the powdered sugar and stir. Add more maple syrup as needed until the glaze is a good, thick drizzling consistency. Sprinkle with remaining bacon bits.

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IN: recipes ON: November 30, 2012 TAGS: , , , , , , , BY: Hilary
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Oh, hello again!

Ugh, my poor, poor blog.  I’ve been neglecting you, I know.  Thanksgiving has come and gone with a wham! bam! no more turkey ma’am!  And I’m standing here with nary a leftover!

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We traveled to Florida to visit with the Hubs’ side of the family. Fastest trip to and from Florida ever. Left on Wednesday and came back on Friday.  Thanksgiving dinner was outstanding, and I am not even worried that the button and the button hole of my pants have broken up.

I caught myself being super prepared for traveling to Florida.  Everyone had one set of pi’s, an outfit for traveling in and an outfit for Thanksgiving.  Baggage fees are ridiculous and I was trying squash as much in a carry-on as possible.  The first night away from home, I’m trying to wrangle the girls away from their cousins so that they can get ready for bed — an exercise in futility for sure, but you gotta try.

I’m pulling out a pair of lightweight pi’s for Co – it’s 75 degrees in South Florida, by the way — and she turns her nose up at them.  This little biscuit, clad in nothing but a pull-up, starts telling me she wants her other pajamas, the ones with the feet.  I don’t have any other pajamas and I for sure know that I didn’t pack any fleece, footed pajamas!  Yet, Co keeps saying that they’ve been packed.  Like a dummy, I’m digging in the bag that I packed myself, wondering if I put a second pair of pajamas in there.  Finally, I sit back on my heels and say to Co, “Look, I don’t have any other pj’s for you.  This is it.”

“Oh, I remember!,” Co says and literally slaps her palm to her forehead.  She turns to her backpack, tosses aside a Monster High Doll, two coloring books and some crayons before  fwipp! She pulls out a pair of fleece, footed pajamas.  “I packed them myself! “

And so I added “self-sufficient children” to my list of thanks.

Like I said, the trip was quick. I’m pretty sure we spent more time traveling to and fro than actually with family.  Still, the time together was great.  My nephews have grown so much and yet they weren’t too big to play Wii, hide and seek, and whatever else the girls wanted.  It was shame we didn’t have more time, but I’m hopeful we will all get together again soon.

This is the first year in a while that we didn’t watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.  The TV was permanently fixed on the series of football games that were being broadcast.  I don’t mind football, but I would have liked to have at least seen the Rockette’s in the parade this year.

Last year, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade was on television while the family was in the kitchen prepping for the main event.  The girls floated in and out of the family room, pausing in front of the screen to take in the sight of marching bands, super sized floats, and the scores of cartoon characters inflated high in the sky over the crowds.  I checked some things out when I heard the broadcasters mentioned a name or group that I was particularly interested in seeing.  Somehow, between setting the table, shuffling pots and pans, and trying to sneak off with a book for a hot minute, I caught the Rockettes the same time that Morgan and Coever did their pass by the TV.

Growing up, my grandmother used to tell me that she was the first Black Rockette.  There wasn’t any evidence to back up her claim.  There weren’t any fliers, there weren’t any photographs tucked into a worn photo album.  There wasn’t anyone who could corroborate her story.  She just repeated it every year, especially around the holidays when the Rockettes were more visible during the parade and their holiday extravaganza at Radio City.  She was almost Pavlovian in her reaction.  Rockette’s on TV? Here comes Gram, “I remember when I was Rockette, doing all those high kicks. “

For years, I believed her.  Then with the cynicism that comes with early adulthood, I jumped onto Google one year to find out who indeed the first Black Rockette truly was.  Her name is Jennifer Jones and she made her debut in 1988.  Was I depressed at learning the truth? No, I was kind of proud. Gram had been consistently bestowing a gift on me year after year.  Sure, she wasn’t the first, but that didn’t mean that I couldn’t be if I wanted to.  Whatever I wanted to be, I could.

Last year, when the girls and I caught the Rockette’s doing their performance, I thought about Gram. I thought about her maintaining her status as “the first Black Rockette”.  When those ladies lined up to do their iconic line kick, I found myself tearing up.   My throat grew thick with missing my gram, and the temptation to just whisper to the girls, “You know, your Great-Gram was a Rockette.”

I didn’t tell them, of course. What with their access to Google and all things digital, they’d quickly figure things out.  Instead, I told the story of how their Great-Gram Eleanor told me she had been a Rockette.  I told them of how she had a department store’s worth of perfumes on her dresser, how she always said, “Hey, doll!” when she answered the phone.  I told them that even though she passed away when Mo was just a baby and that Co and Vivi had never met her, she loves, loves, loves them dearly, and always will. I told them how lucky I was to have had an adult relationship with my grandparents and how lucky they are, too.
I guess I’m getting a little maudlin in my old age. 

But enough with the trips down memory lane.  To catch up on what’s been going on. . .hmmmm. . .nothing and everything.  We have been busy in the minutiae of just living.  Once we got back to VA,  we decided to get a jump on the Christmas season.  We got our tree on Saturday, if you can believe it.  I’m the type of person who waits until a week before Christmas to get the tree and I’m already undressing it on Christmas afternoon.  This is a big step for me!  I think far enough ahead to get the girls’ Christmas photo snapped and our cards ordered.  I decided that I was going to book a few jobs for holiday shoots and it would be best to get mine done early.  I’m glad I did because I had a great shoot yesterday and two in the pipeline.  

And I added “new and repeat clients” to my list of thanks.

My brother and his fiancee came by on their way home from my parents house on Saturday afternoon.  It was a quick visit but a worthwhile one. Their wedding plans are underway and they officially invited Mo and Co to be flower girls on the big day.  There’s an item Mo can check off her bucket list.

We are just moving right along, one day to the next, taking what come along with it.  Tomorrow I go to the doctor and see where I am with my recovery.  I’m hopeful that I can get out of this walking boot once and for all.  I’m running out of wide leg pants!

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IN: ON: November 26, 2012 TAGS: , , BY: Hilary
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Mother’s Day Wish List

I was hanging out with my mom the other day and she casually mentioned that Mother’s Day was coming up.  Then, she not so casually blurted out, “So what are you going to get me?”

Uh. . . .

Truth of the matter is, aside from a detour to Hallmark, because I care enough to send the very best, I hadn’t really planned on getting any additional items beyond that. I think my DH mentioned ordering some flowers, but it sounded like a project he was spearheading.  I guess we’ll all find out come Sunday.

My mom took it another step further. We were in the car, going to get the girls from school, and she picked up my sunglasses to try them on.  Flipping down the visor mirror, she started admiring her face from various angles, noting how the sunglasses complimented her bone structure and so forth.

“I think I’ll put these on my list,” she said with a note of finality.

“What list, Mom?”  I’m not a total moron; I’ll bite.

“Well, I figured I would put two or three high priced items on my Mother’s Day Wish List, then one or two reasonably priced items, and then you and your brother can buy the reasonably priced items so that in the end, I end up with what I want.”

This woman is a genius! Why haven’t I thought of this before?!

If I were to get myself a gift for Mother’s Day, I’m thinking I’ll start with a nice manicure and pedicure. And then, to showcase all that hard work that was done to my feets (yes, there is an S), I’ll need some new sandals. . .

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And maybe something shiny for my fingers, like this. . .

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I could finish up the day enjoying my new favorite ice cream. . .

while I lounge around in my comfy new pajamas (a medium, please, in orange or pink). . .

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Or  I could be using a lovely gift card to Barnes and Noble. . .
Or a coupon to have the house cleaned (*ahem* check out Living Social and Groupon for ideas *ahem*).
Or just having a lazy day where I don’t have to jump up every time some needs something wiped, like a spill, a nose, or a butt.

See what I did there? I put a couple of big ticket items on the list, balanced it with something reasonable, and stacked the odds in my favor.  Truth be told, I don’t need some big to-do for Mother’s Day. What I’d like is for all the good behavior that comes on that one day to carry over to the rest of the 364 days a year. You know, when the hubs tells the girls to make Mother’s Day special by not fighting with one another or following directions the first time and so on and so forth? That’s what I want, the gift that keeps on giving — knowing that my parenting skills are paying off. Finally.

As for my mom, aside from a pair of Ray Bans, which I’m hoping is the high priced item, she also mentioned some Pandora charms, and maybe some perfume.  I mentioned the Ray Bans to my brother and he just laughed.  I think he’s still laughing, actually.  He never did say what he planned to do for Mother’s Day, but I’m sure he’ll come through for her in the end.

There’s a Rite-Aid around the corner from his house and they’ve got a pretty decent selection of cards.

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IN: ON: May 11, 2012 TAGS: , BY: Hilary
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