[H.M. Murdock]

I said I would do it. So now I am doing it.


Jason, age 1.

I hope you feel better really soon. Throwing up is wickity-wack. And stuff.
Umm.
Yes.
*love*


Zzzzzzzz.

[Mara's Mom]

Originally Posted by Smaller

Ohdear, everybody is being sick. I am gargling salt water for my throat and it is sickening but helpful. Many hopes that you shall be feeling wonderful very soon.

Thank you for the hopes, Smaller. *hug*

What are your thoughts on gargling?

Wouldn't it be wonderful to find a cheeseball and crackers in your stocking? I think that would be grand.

I WOULD LOVE TO FIND A CHEESEBALL AND CRACKERS IN MY STOCKING!

True, but the greenish tint of their skin might give them a cute little leprechaun-y look.

Thank you for finding the positive in the situation! You are so right.

I've gone and left behind the chapstick subject again. *frustrated* My good intentions are going nowhere fast.

That's okay. If you remind me, I will remind you.

Merry Christmas Eve Eve, Mrs. D!

Thank you, sweet girl! Merries to you, too!

Originally Posted by Adri

The outfits for your daughters sound delightful, and you shall be a continued proud mom of some beautiful daughters.

For true. It's fun to dress up on Christmas Eve. We have not had special outfits for such an occasion in several years.

My mom doesn't do my hair very often..but I like it when she does. My mom is like Mara in how she doesn't like me touching her precious hair. I shall ruin it and then she shall be miserably annoyed.

I don't think Mara is going to let me do it for her. She knows that I want her curls to be all pretty and singsongy on her head.

Chapstick reminds me of liploss. I love lipgloss. Especially Vanilla and Lavender.

That sounds lovely. My dad used to advise me not to wear lipgloss because the boys would slip off. *stare* I'm glad Mr. D doesn't do that.

I pray you start feeling better.

Thank you so very much! *twinkly* I am so much better than this morning.

You better hem those pants, Mrs. D. Soon.

What pants? *whistle* [/denial]

Originally Posted by MtlMom

Truth is a good thing. I will pray that this passes quickly. One of the worst things is having the pukies and having to just push through it because people are counting on you. I've been there, my friend!

I was not going to go with my family. But I slept awhile and then felt much better so I went. I am so glad that I did. I returned to feeling yucky when we left. *smile* No, I'm not complaining. I'm reminding us that God is good. I felt relatively fine for the most important part of the day. I accomplished most of what I wanted to this evening. I'm back to feeling yuckyish, but I'm going to sleep now so I think it's okay.

Our guest room is a wreck. It is the wrapping room, and it looks like a tornado has passed through it. If someone were to drop in right now and ned to spend the night tonight it would put me over the edge. I am going to not only close the door to this room when the W's come today, I am going to lock it and declare it Santa's Satelite Workshop, where children dare not venture.

Does that happen every year to your guest room, June? Ours is the dining room. Not too terribly convenient.

I have never called them the W's. My oldest sister, Norma, is 14 years older than me. Glenda is her oldest child, and I have always been closer to Glenda than I ever was/will be to Norma. She is my niece, but she's always been more like my little sister. Her husband, Charlie, is the amazing computer guru who causes all normally awesome computer geeks to step back out of respect as he passes by. Well, maybe not, because he is a really nice guy - but you get the idea. So, they have these two amazingly wonderful kids, Alex (9) and Laurie (7). They are coming this afternoon for dinner and our own private little Christmas celebration.

I remember Charlie! I hope your dinner was lovely and warm. I also hope the animals approved of the T-Rex.

Originally Posted by H.M. Murdock

I said I would do it. So now I am doing it.


Jason, age 1.

YAAAAAAAY! *clap*

I already told you this, but Mara and I are in love with you when you were one, Jason. Those socks are screaming, "FUTURE KILT!"

I hope you feel better really soon. Throwing up is wickity-wack. And stuff.

Throwing up is completely wickity-wack. It's frickity-frack, even. I have not thrown up, but I keep wanting to in the hopes that the yuck will go away. I have never been able to make myself throw up before. I have tried.

Umm.
Yes.
*love*

Thank you, Jason. *smile*

Zzzzzzzz.

Uh. Sleep tight? *turns Jason into a blanket burrito*

~*~*~*~*~*~

Tomorrow is Christmas Eve. I'm not sure if I'll be on. If not, I wish each of you a wonderful Christmas Eve. *hug*

[FTS]

Merry Christmas Mrs. D. So far, 40 minutes of Christmas have passed in kiwi-ville. I hope you and the family have a good one. Peace.

[Mara's Mom]

Thank you, Kepa! Merry Christmas to you as well! [/candycane]

~*~

I am cooking 15 pounds of chicken wings.

Mara sang I Celebrate The Day during offering today. Andrew played keyboard for her. It was great. I love that song. They are going to play it at the end of the service tonight so my family can hear her.

I am missing all of you! Even though you're not normally here! And I am so totally fine with that. I think it's perfectly normal and wonderful. *love*

[MtlMom]

Merry Christmas Eve! Oh, how I wish that we could be there to hear Mara sing tonight. That would be just perfect.

Our Candlelight Service is at 8:00 tonight. We rope off every other pew so that we don't catch the hair of the person in front of us on fire. That would be bad.

[Small]

Originally Posted by Mara's Mom

I DID NOT SEE THIS POST BEFORE. *points down*

That was the cause of my large, sad, eyes.

I really don't think I was imagining it. Just goes to show that we notice others' absence more than our own. Sometimes.

I think you're right, because when I'm not here, I shan't remark the fact that you're not here.

That's quite Christmas-y, Small. I haven't done those things. Except for the Christmas program at church.

Ah, see, I spoke too soon. I don't feel Christmas-y is nearer the point, I think. It hasn't precisely snuck up on me, but I simply haven't been able to get into the swing and the excitement thereof.

I want to go caroling on Christmas Day evening.

And I want to go with you. Here's to having one of our wishes come true.

Yeah. Me, too. *flop*

NO WONDER MARA DOESN'T WAKE UP WHEN SHE SHOULD. HER ALARM IS JUST SOME LOUD STATIC.

It can come in handy, though, sometimes. To say something I know needs to be said, and then look around as if I've obliviously said it without knowing what I was saying, and it slipped out by accident.

That's just too passive aggressive though. I strive to not be passive-aggressive.

MY ALARM CLOCK IS A LOUD BUZZ, AND I WAKE UP WHEN IT GOES OFF! I BET MARA IS JUST NOT AS MUCH OF AN EARLY MORNING PERSON AS I AM!

Well, then for the less than half the time you could call on Art to tickle you. It's just a thought. Though I do believe that life IS stern and life IS earnest and that it's not inappropriate to recognize it so.

No, no, it's not. And I normally say it in instances when something small has gone wrong.

*laugh*

Reminds me of C.S. Lewis...

If we all write what we know...

I used to be an actual acolyte with the black and white robes.

Well, I was more talking about the 'any follower or disciple" definition, but that is definitely information to be filed away for future reference.

Again, if you say so.

I don't know what it is that I said, and I don't trust myself to have said something beneficial to humanity. Aye. We leave it in your discretion.

We are on a roll, you and I.

We normally are. Our conversations often consist of one enormous roll, or so it strikes me, at times.

It was not much of a post. Rather, they were not much for posts.

But they were Mrs. D posts, and thus designated automatically, as special.

Yes, then. Okay.

This reminds me, my GTalk experience of late has been notably and deleteriously lacking in the presence of either of the moms. Life is, I think you'll agree in this case, Stern and Earnest.

What a great idea! Does your church kitchen have the official church recipe binder with recipes adjusted to feed five thousand?

No, I'm unsure how they do it, but the food committee goes downstairs during the sermon, and at the last, a bountiful meal emerges.

Ah, yes. I think this is completely acceptable. It is a rite of passage when you start bringing your own contribution to a potluck.

They didn't, though. They were unethical, poor college students.

Oh.ew. I don't think I'll be doing that. *shudder* I have considered cutting the biscuits open, laying them in a shallow pan and covering them with gravy. Then people would just lift one or two out with a spatula. It would speed up the line as well. *taps temple*

That it would, the downside being the possibility, and threat, we dare even to say, of soggy biscuits for those who don't like their biscuits soggy. I cannot understand their point, but it would be a trial on them.

That said, the righteous must sometimes suffer for the good of the greater number, and anyway, if they don't like their biscuits soggy, all indications point to their being pagan biscuit-snatchers, with nary a drop of gravy to go alongside.

What to choose? What to choose? [/Alice]

I forget which battles you were deciding between, but I recommend the one on the left. Or the one one with the least facial hair in the opposition.

I think you're right!

You know, as a younger/older brother, very little flies over my head in the way of sibling politics.

Ahhhh. You understand the mysteries of the singlet.

I know as much as I wish to about the singlet. *grin* I know more than I could ever wish to about the Speedo.

You talk as if that would be a bad thing, Small. *crickets*

And I think precisely the same way.

Kindred spirit.

Well. I like both of you, and that has to count for something, also.

Okay. *straightens tie* You sit in a circle. Each seat in the circle is assigned a specific animal with a specific action in keeping with that animal. Whatever seat you are sitting in, that is your animal/action. The "first" seat is the elephant and there is a "last" seat, but I don't remember which animal that is. The elephant starts each round by performing his action and then the action of another animal. That person then, without hesitation, must do their own action and then the action of another. It continues like that until someone messes up and then that person goes to the "last" seat and everyone moves over one to accomodate them. Their animal then changes because they are in a new seat. The goal is to unseat the elephant so you can work your way to that chair. It is great fun!

It sounds unbelievably difficult, but at the same time, as much fun as you claim it to be.

Well, it is true that some do in fact shriek. Not me, though.

No, the shriek was entirely my own, but it was also facetious. I've come into possession of a hardy disposition in such matters, as would any teenage male forced to sit at a lunch table in the presence of 7 women, ranging in age from 5 to 42.

I think I caught your point. I think I did. Did I?

You caught it like a liar catches a small fish.

Which is to say, you definitely, indubitably, and veritibly caught it.

See above. I have heard these things and before we see it today I am going to remind my children of the facts and explain our goal in seeing the movie. The actress playing Mary is rather subtle in her craft. Maybe that translated as "wooden" to him. I do wish the angels were scary, though.

What is life without scary angels?

In some ways, less intimidating, but less exciting.

That is perfect, but it's going to be some expensive neon.

I'll pay for the neon within a week of opening. *confidence*

Are you on the Every Other Day Plan? Lucky...

No, I'm on the Utterly Erratic and Unfortunately Spotty Plan.

Fun! I looked last night and I am going to have him select his own. There are too many practical decisions that go into it. Ballbearing slides? Are they worth the expense? Black, grey, blue or red? I do want to pick up some accessories for it so that he can open those. They have cool magnetic wrench holders and magnetic socket holders and built-in power strips. They're really cool.

Ohmyheavens. Even my artistic, writerly form of manliness is excited at the thought. Just like I can't walk through a Home Depot without deciding to renovate my bedroom.

It is good to have dollars and hands. Mara has no dollars really and her hands are very busy. I am almost out of dollars and my hands are about to fall off. *checks hands*

I am nearer out of dollars, and my hands have only done one thing. Unfortunately, I had dollars and hands, but not much in the way of a clever mind. *weeps *

EXACTLY! *laugh*

I bought most of my Christmas presents there, this year, and I felt odd about that for awhile, before reaching a conclusion I haven't the time to tell you about.

I know. *kicks dirt* Let me just clarify that I didn't laugh at the inappropriate parts. I laughed at the funny parts of a movie that also included a lot of inappropriate things. It makes me feel better to explain that.

Oh, okay, good.

We have 15 lbs. of chicken wings in our refrigerator.

*awe*

I need to hem some pants. And I am afraid so I am putting it off which is never wise.

Sophie is wearing her first pair of heels on Christmas Eve. They are adorable. Her whole outfit is adorable. It's this blouse with a charcoal grey, light wool, pinstriped skirt and these shoes.




Mara's outfit is really cool. I won't be able to find a picture of her blouse, but it's sheer black with black satin trim. It has an empire waist wide satin sash. There are brown and bluish circle-type things on the sheer fabric and it has butterfly sleeves. She is wearing black pinstriped dress pants with it and her black heels or her black boots. I am trying to get her to let me do her hair, but I don't think she trusts me. She knows that I like to fluff up her curls. Le sigh.

GOTTA GO WORK NOW! LATER, HOMIES!

It sounds lovely, but I need to go, so my fashion sense is regrettably lost. Tsk.

Originally Posted by Mara's Mom

Mara sang I Celebrate The Day during offering today. Andrew played keyboard for her. It was great. I love that song. They are going to play it at the end of the service tonight so my family can hear her.

I am missing all of you! Even though you're not normally here! And I am so totally fine with that. I think it's perfectly normal and wonderful. *love*

Ah.

I miss you as well, and it's normal and wonderful, but not like it would be to not miss you.

[Mara's Mom]

Merry Christmas, Friends! I am thinking of each of you often!

Small, thanks for you the huge blog post. I'll respond when Christmas is over.

Have a lovely day full of HIM!!!!! Not Small. Jesus. I'm talkin' 'bout Jesus.

[MtlMom]

MERRY CHRISTMAS, DICKENS PEOPLE!

[Mara's Mom]

Originally Posted by MtlMom

MERRY CHRISTMAS, DICKENS PEOPLE!

*clap* [/brazenly cheap]

[The wirerat]

Merry Christmas Mara's Mom

[Smaller]

Froehliche Weinachten, Mrs. D!

Christmas = hugs for you.

*hugs*

Love,
Smaller

[Ring of a bell]

Good morning Mrs. D,

Merry Christmas. *love*

Does your family eat cinnamon rolls for breakfast every Christmas? Mine does, and about 100's of other families do too. I was just curious.

[H.M. Murdock]

We have waffles or omlettes on Christmas morning. Every year.
When I have a family of my own, we are going to do beignets, fresh fruit and mulled wine or cider.

[BillSPrestonEsq]

Merry Christmas to the Dickens family!

I have no Christmas tradition for breakfast.

[Small]

Good Morning, Mrs. D!

How did Boxing Day treat you?

What does today look like, sparkling and untouched?