Decorating for Christmas

I don't understand people my age who say they aren't going to decorate for Christmas.  They tell me it is too much work and no one cares or helps them.  They tell me their kids are all grown and aren't coming to visit so why bother.  I guess I don't understand their logic.  I decorate my home for me and my husband's enjoyment.  I decorate for every season of the year, for us.  If my kids decide to visit great, if not that's great too because my joy in life isn't based on whether they are here or not.  I go out of my way to make my home joyful for us, with or without anyone else visiting.  I remember being newlyweds, you know that time before kids, and we decorated and had fun doing it.  So why do kids make it so we can't have fun doing things together anymore.  I just don't understand.  This year I added a few extra decorations, like an extra tree, because I wanted to.  Christmas decorations aren't about who will see it.  It is about how it makes us feel inside, how we respond when we see it.  I know that this morning when I walked out into my winter wonderland I got a smile on my face and started to sing 'Joy to the World' very loudly if I might add.  And now I am in the mood to make my house smell like Christmas by baking.  So don't not decorate because no one is coming, decorate because you are here!

Planning a Special Brithday

On a recent trip to visit family, I, in my infinite ignorance, decided to ask my brother in law and his wife if they were planning anything special for my mother in law's 80th birthday.  Of course they said no, which I knew was going to be the answer before I asked since not one of her 4 children planned anything special for her 70th or 75th.  Seriously my mom passed away when she was 57 years old, how long do they think their mom will be around.  So I made the suggestion that we, me, my husband, his brother and his brother's wife take mom to France for vacation and to visit her brother.  She is from France and hadn't seen her brother in 20 years.  They were very excited and so were we.  So I began my research and started planning.
Now this is where my ignorance on large families began.  I was not aware that in a large family you couldn't do something nice for a parent without including all siblings.  You see my husband has two other siblings.  One of whom wanted us to change the date to fit her and her children's need.  Yeah well luckily we had already purchased airline tickets based on when my brother in law could go before he mentioned it to her.  I also was not aware that as parents of adult children my brother in law would feel the need to include his two adult children both in their twenties and his daughter's boyfriend.  What wait I am busy planning a trip for 4 adults in their 50's and 1 adult turning 80,  what do twenty year olds want to hang with us for.  And seriously it was going to be hard enough getting a table for 5 let alone 8!!! in Paris oh come on give me a break.  And this is suppose to be a trip about mom, you know going to see what she wants at her pace.  Are we in such a selfish society that by the time we decide to go we are already making it about us.  No I say No!!!  This is about my mother in law and I will fight tooth and nail to keep it that way.
So all this whining being said I now come to the main point of this blog, cost.  My husband and I are paying for 2 people and half of our mom's expenses.  My Brother in law is paying for 4 adults and 1/2 of our mom's expenses.  So now he if freaking out about the cost and the fact that we are no longer sharing a car, cause seriously who wants to be in a car with 8 people all talking and needing to stop for the restroom at different times, not this non sharing small family 50 year old!!!  I am already freaking out about having to deal with the fact that the house we are renting will be a lot noisier and crowded, I ain't sharing my car.  I am sure in the end everything will work out but in the meantime trying to get them to pay for the deposit for the house, since we paid for all their hotel rooms for three nights and that cost more than our share of the house for a week, seems a bit harder than it should be.  But I keep telling myself a true gift comes with sacrifice so if I am stressed out and bald from pulling my hair this must be an awesome gift.  But the truth is I want my mother in law to know she is loved and that this is really solely about her.  My husband and I would no way be going to France otherwise, so I hope it all works out and she feels special and loved in the end.

What!?! No Appreciation!!!

So my daughter calls and needs a little favor.  It won't take long she says.  Well, yeah, maybe if you are computer savvy and maybe hip to all these new fangled electronics.  But for me, no, what would take the average person 5 minutes took me 1 hour.  Yeah it should have taken me 5 minutes and once I figured out how to do it and what I was doing wrong it took me 5 minutes but this was my first time so it took me one hour.  That's one less hour for me to do nothing today.
Now you might think I am writing this because I am upset it took me an hour to do something which should have taken me 5 minutes but no, I say, that isn't my reason for writing this blog today.  No, I am writing this because of the lack of appreciation demonstrated by my daughter.  Yeah, yeah, I know she loves me and appreciates all I do but sometimes a little cowtowing goes a long way.  You know the gushing flow of kind words and I love you's that seems to make everything worthwhile.  But again, No, all I got was great glad you finally figured it out, love you, gots to go do yoga!!!  What! what, what was that?  Well all I can say is it left me lacking.  That's right I was left lacking appreciation, feeling loved and mostly felt a little dumb for taking so long to figure it out.  But on the bright side at least I learned a new trick, Whatever!!!

I Hate Ironing

That's right I said it "I hate ironing".  Seriously if I wasn't married I wouldn't even own an iron.  I go out of my way to purchase clothes that don't need to be ironed; silk, wool, cashmere, and yes, rayon and polyester blends.  Why you ask because I hate ironing!!!!  I thought if I went and bought my husband expensive no-iron shirts from Brooks Brothers my ironing days would end but NOOOOOO he likes heavy starch!  "There's nothing like a crisp shirt." he tells me so now here I am ironing no-iron shirts, something is wrong with this picture. 
I didn't even own an iron for the first ten years of marriage, that's right didn't have one didn't want one.  Then one Christmas morning wrapped up in trash bags( maybe I should have just put it on the curb without opening right away) a strange shaped gift was under the tree.  I knew what it was and I opened it anyways and thanked my husband for it, boy am I whipped!  And now I have been harassed to iron ever since.  So what if I own an iron and ironing board, seriously who cares that doesn't translate to 'I iron' to me.  Get over it I will iron when I get a round to it.  Isn't that the husband response to all the fix it jobs around the house!!  Well to me ironing is a fix it job, your clothes are broken unusable and I will fix them when I get around to it.
Alrighty then I guess I will stop ranting and go iron those shirts, what? yeah I am still whipped, you know happy husband happy life.  Besides he keeps me happy too!