Another early day! Alli was up at 5:20 this morning - and I hadn't gotten my shower yet! Bummer! Alli got her shower first, and then managed to 'play nice' while I was in the shower. As far as I can tell, she stayed in her chair the whole time - nothing was disturbed! (meaning - no mess to clean up!) She is definitely sleeping less these days - I think part of it is weaning her off her anti-seizure medication. Part of it could just be her growing up as well. It's hard to believe she is 11 now.

After a very productive Saturday (cleaning house, grocery shopping, etc.) Sunday was kind of a bust. I didn't get a lot done around the house - laundry, but that was about it. I did get Alli to walk about 20 minutes combined on the treadmill! (No, I didn't get any time on it myself - I've been bad!) I couldn't even settle down to any hand work until close to dinner time. I seem to have spent quite a bit of time looking at this website: http://icanhascheezburger.com/. I am sure I could have found something more productive to do, but it is a fun site. (That is where the 'munsters under mai bed' photo came from.)

The Christmas season has begun - we had Christmas pictures taken Friday night at Wal-mart. I think that is my official 'beginning' to the season! The fact that I have been working on snowflakes all year makes it hard to pin point a beginning otherwise. The pictures turned out pretty nice. We even got Ralph to come with us this year - so we have an actual family portrait! Alli was on her best behavior (well, OK, she was on pretty good behavior!) and took some good pictures. This year, she was actually smiling in the pictures!

I did sit down and make a list of needed snowflakes, and I have 55 made, and need about 75. I know the number I need will go up, so I am planning on making extras. One problem - the 55 are crocheted, but not stiffened! I will have to start stiffening a bunch every night here pretty soon (yes, I am still procrastinating!) I still haven't made my list of 'things to get done' before Christmas.

I don't know if we will have a 'cookie decorating party' this year or not. I haven't checked with AJ lately, and it doesn't look like the Derby's will be able to make it up. I don't know that AJ really wants to do it with his 'guy friends'. I am sure he would love to have them come over, but I don't think they want to interrupt their video games to decorate cookies! As the kids got older, it was easy to see the gender differences (at least for the kids that usually come!). I have to force Dallas to make an ornament and decorate cookies to take to his mom. (Now, if the cookies all made it home, I would be very surprised, and it is a very short walk!) The girls, on the other hand, spent a lot of time making the ornaments look just right, and decorated a lot more cookies that AJ and Dallas do.

I think it is going to be a long day! Alli was up bright and cheerful at 5:00! Needless to say, I was up too, but not necessarily cheerful! I usually get up around then anyway, but I get a shower and a cup of coffee (and some 'me' time!) before she gets up. Oh well, she is happy this morning, anyway. She will probably zone out at school this afternoon now.

AJ is home sick (again). He called Ralph on Wednesday to come pick him up at school, and the school nurse told him not to come back. It's just a cold, but he feels pretty miserable. He is out of school (both kids are) all next week anyway. He does have wrestling practise during the week, but I don't know that he will make it in for them. Not just because he is sick, but because of the time and energy required to come pick him up, take him in, and then reverse the process a couple of hours later. He is really enjoying wrestling though. His latest request for Christmas - a wrestling mat so he can practise at home! Now - where he puts the mat is a good question. I told him to do some research about the mat - how big, where to get it, where to store it, etc. and we would talk. I don't think a lot of research has has happened yet.

Finally - I have time to update the blog! It's been a bit busy around here, but that isn't the best excuse, I guess. Alex's wrestling practise is taking a big chunk out of my 'free time' lately. Three days a week, he practises until 6:00 after school - no big deal, but it puts me behind when I get home, and two days a week, he practises from 5:30 to 7:30, so I get to go back into town to pick him up after practise. Just enough of a disruption to my routine to make me feel like I am behind!

This weekend is going to be a 'catch up' weekend. I hereby vow to make a list of all the things I need to do or want to do, between now and Christmas. (See how much leeway I gave myself - I have between now and Christmas to come up with a list! Not quite what I meant.) I know I have a ton of things I want to do, but I don't seem to focus on the important projects. (I would rather sit down and read a book.) I work better with a list, so it is there in black and white. I also feel better when I can cross an item off my list.

For things that have to happen this weekend, major housecleaning is tops on the list. I also need to get the leaves off the front lawn - just to make room for the other leaves! My trees can't loose all their leaves at once! Alex is supposed to help me, and I might even get some help from Dallas - we'll see.

I actually finished a doily! This is a fairly simple, quick doily, and it felt like it took me forever to finish it! I only had to frog it once, and then just one row, but it seems my crochet time has been cut lately! This is about 20 inches across, and done in Christmas Green - it is part of Christmas exchange from one of my Yahoo! lists. I don't think the photo does it justice - I didn't want to wait until I had good light to take the picture, so made do with flash and a black background. I was just excited to finally finish it!

From here on out - I think I need to focus on my snowflakes. I think I have close to 40 done. I am thinking I need at least 80 - so I need to get cranking on them! I also have a ton of gloves to add crochet edging to for gifts this year. Christmas is coming! Soon!

I think my crochet time has been replaced with sleeping time! I fell asleep on the couch last night at 9:00! Allison let me sleep in a bit this morning. The schools and the bank are closed for Veteran's Day, so we slept in to 6:30! A whole extra hour for me! (Of course, I was awake at my normal 5:30, I just didn't get up!) So far, it is just Alli and I awake at home. Ralph got up around 7:00 and left for work (poor baby) and Alex and Dallas are still snoozing. I'm making waffles this morning, so I think they will be waking up pretty soon!

Okay - I got the haircut and grocery shopping done yesterday that was on my list, and some housework, but that was about it! When I took Alex in for his Boy Scout function (Cake Auction for the Cub Scout Pack his troop sponsors) I stopped by the bank and got some work done on a project that needs to be finished by tomorrow (and we are short-handed at work). The biggest accomplishments were in cleaning!

AJ decided to 'clean out the garage' for me. After consultation, we decided that all he could really do was get rid of the empty boxes out there. (Ralph would skin us alive if we threw away any of his stuff!) Even just doing that cleared up a whole lot of room! I also went through and found all the boxes of clothes that need to go to Salvation Army and put them in one area. It was already too late in the day to take them over this weekend, so I am going to try for next weekend!

Since Alex was cleaning out the garage, I decided to tackle the coat closet! Last weekend, Ralph went through and got all of his 'extra' coats out. He did find two to donate to S.A., the rest just went out to the guest house for storage. At least I have more room in here now! I boxed up two more boxes of jackets for S.A. - mainly jackets the kids have out grown. I also 'found' a bunch of scarves that I had made and had forgotten about (out of sight, out of mind?) Since I had so much more room, I put them all on hangers, so I can see them now! Anyone need a scarf?

Ah - Saturday! The day of many options! (Like I ever do anything different!) At least I start out the day (usually) thinking that I have a lot of options of things to do! On my list today - haircut, grocery shopping, house cleaning, yard work (if it doesn't rain) and a Boy Scout function this afternoon. Such FUN plans! If I get all of them done, maybe tomorrow with be a day of fun options?

I added a new 'task' to my routine the last couple of weeks. I have been trying to walk on the treadmill twice a week during the week. (I would like to do three, but so far have just been able to do twice), and both days on the weekend (unless I take the dogs for a walk!). So far, so good! It is hard to find the time. I'm not a good exerciser early in the morning, so getting up early doesn't work well (I find a good excuse to not get up or I want a few minutes to wake up before I get started, and then don't have enough time) and I don't like to exercise after dinner, so....that leaves right after work. Dinner has been a few minutes late around here (and Alli is quick to let me know!), so I can fit the time in - and I have just been walking for 30 minutes! I don't know what I am going to do when I start with more time - later dinner? (I know, heaven forbid that anyone else actually fixed dinner while I am walking!) I'm working on getting dinners that I can start and leave alone (soups, chili, etc) to give me some time, since it is colder now. So far, so good! My ultimate plan is to add some strengthening work on the 'off days', but I haven't gotten that far yet!

Alex has a new sport! He starts wrestling practice next week. I never thought of him as the wrestling type, but it will be good for him. He has been working out a couple of times a week lately as well, at the YMCA after school. The boy has muscles! (He is very proud of those muscles!) Since he is around 6' 3", and 150 pounds, he still looks like skin and bones! I keep hoping he is done growing, but...he still looks a little taller every time I see him. Since his great uncles were 6'6" +, he may still have some growing in him! I keep hoping he will do his growing in the summer, when he is wearing shorts, not jeans!

The other night, Alli was quietly sitting in her chair, and AJ decided to mess with her! He sat down in her lap. She thought that was pretty funny! He sat with her for a while, and when he

started to get up, she grabbed his hand and pulled him back down - Pretty sweet!

Is the drought over? It looks like Mother Nature is trying to catch up in one storm! It is pouring!

A nice, quiet rainy morning! It is almost 8:00, and I'm not even dressed yet - unheard of! Alli didn't go to bed last night until after 9:00 (when we turned off the light for trick-or-treaters) and so didn't get up until almost 7:00. I should have gone to bed then too - I was wiped, but no - I stayed up and watched "the scariest scenes in films" until 11:00! (Jaws was #1!) I could have slept more, but it could be the rain! I just want to curl up on the couch with a book. Instead, I will go get dressed, feed Alli and go do our shopping, and come back and clean house! The house is due for a major cleaning, so I probably will curl up on the couch after that is done!

Here are the pumpkins AJ carved for me for Halloween! I took the first two pictures at night - the third is a (possibly) better picture of the Goblin pumpkin. I entered the 'Goblin Goodies - Dusk to Dawn' in the Bank's competition, but we didn't win. There are too many creative people at the Bank! One person brought in a small watermelon in a pumpkin costume - too cute! The Unknown Pumpkin came in second. I didn't get a picture on the winning pumpkin - it came in late! I like to think we would have come in 3rd, if they had done a 3rd place winner! (Probably not - I didn't ask, so I can continue thinking what I think :) All in all, it is a fun time. The customers actually vote on the winning pumpkin, and many of the customers come in just for that!

I have a sicky child (again) today. I'm thinking that AJ picked up a touch of the stomach problem I had last week. Not fun! So much for improving his grades this semester! He is already grounded from playing video games at home until his grades come up, so I think the next step is grounding him from playing video games at Dallas' too! He isn't failing, just pulling C's in most of his 'hard' classes. His 'easy' classes are all A's! Since his 'hard' classes are all AP or Honors classes, that isn't too bad, but - he can do better!

Alli walked for 20 minutes on the treadmill on Sunday! She was a bouncy, happy kid most of the day. She didn't watch as much TV - she played in her room on her bed, played in AJ's room on his bed, played in the living room on the couch, etc. Then I put her on the treadmill, and she bounced around on it for a while! I turned it off after 20 minutes. She could still have gone on, but I didn't want to wear her out on it. She was just so happy!

Allison's school pictured came home today - look at the curls!

For a slow day, yesterday I was busy with the camera! I don't think I did a lot during the day, but I did take some pictures! Ralph finally got tired of "my" dog eating the cat's food, so he brought in a table that his dad made for the very same reason - keep the cat food away from the dogs. The cats are still not real keen on this idea. The food has always been in the right place, so put it back! So far as I know, neither of the cats have actually jumped up to eat. They wait for one of us to pick them up and put them on the table.

Willey decided that the table was a good place for the king. He ate, and they lay down and wouldn't let Lucy eat. He may have been a bit more amicable, but while he was sleeping, Lucy snuck up on him and bapped his nose a few times. He really didn't leave after that! Poor Lucy just hung around the 'old' food area until he decided to leave, and then 'requested' her personal elevator. (Lucy may be a small cat, but her voice is the loudest I have ever heard!)

I even took the dogs for a walk! I've been good (so far) about walking on the treadmill, but yesterday was so nice I took the dogs out (I know - I should do that every day instead of the treadmill!) Since we got rain a couple of weeks ago, there was actually still some water in the creek bed. Needless to say, the Labrador and the Kelpie (who thinks she is a Labrador) both went for a wade.

I even took a couple of 'artistic' pictures! This time of year, there isn't a lot 'pretty' about the back filed, so I showcased some of the dried vegetation against the autumn sky. Still not real pretty, but better that the original view!

I even sat down and crocheted something start to finish yesterday! I am so frustrated with the doily I am working on that I put it down for a while. Nothing hard about it - just not paying attention and had to frog a couple of hours work on it. Frustrating! This is a little motif for one of my groups - supposed to be done in Christmas colors, and the last row in white.