A Very Good Christmasy Day

(Not an actual representation of my tree)

We finished our tree tonight! But first, since I didn't post since the wee hours of Friday morning and it's now Tuesday night I'll do some quick catch-up:

Saturday was nice. My Sweetie wheeled me out front and I sat in the sun, drank beer, listened to the radio (I was parked by my truck) and watched M.S. rake leaves. I had him put my candy cane decorations out - I have a wooden stake candy cane with a Santa on it that I put in a bush grouping, and a large electric candy cane that hangs on the house . Also before we went outside we watched the Duke game where we (the #1 team) trounced the #2 team, Texas. That was sweet. No, it was SWEEEEEEEEET!! I was afraid we were going to lose because it seems like we've been struggling so far, but we KICKED ASS!! Not only was I nervous, but the announcers were clearly expecting an upset by Texas. Then I took a nap and took a shower and we made chicken enchiladas together while we watched, "It's a Wonderful Life." Saturday was really nice. Sunday we worked on the house, which meant basically I was watching My Sweetie do stuff like clean ceiling fans and move stuff to make a space for the tree. Then Kate came over and they went to pick a tree. They did a good job. Then Kate helped me decorate the mantle over the fireplace. She stayed for dinner and we watched the whole 3 hour season finale of "Survivor." After M.S. went to bed, his sister called and we talked for almost 4 hours.

I spent most of Monday doing as much as I could to prepare for today and get organized (in my head) for what I wanted to get done today since I was going to have so much help. First my Mom came over and brought me lunch. When I had spoken with her Monday night and she told me what she was cooking, I asked for leftovers for my lunch. Oh and YUM! She brought homemade collard greens and her special Lima beans. Best lunch ever! We got a lot done. We de-junked and decorated the dining room, she took care of one of my plants which was in a corner I couldn't get to and even cleaned my bathroom sinks. She helped me start my beef for my stew/chili (I make my chili with cubed chuck roast that has simmered for HOURS). She went into the garage and dug out Christmas bowls for tonight. There's more but I can't remember every little thing. After Mom left, my friend Kim called and we talked for an hour, then My Sweetie got home. One of his vendors had given him this GIANT basket of goodies, so we used the cheese spread and crackers from that to go with our grapes that we had set out. Then my daughter Kate and my sister-in-law Lisa showed up at the same time. We were all just hanging out and watching My Sweetie put the lights on the tree. Lisa was going to show HIM how to do it, because I usually do it and then she had a severe allergic reaction to the tree. So she washed her hands and sat some ways away just to watch. After the lights were in place, and I must say I was very impressed, (In ten years, I have always done the lights, now I know My Sweetie can do it just fine -WOO HOO!) we all sat down in my nicely decorated dining room and had our Christmas bowls of chili with tiny cubes of cheese and fritos to stir in. Lisa said it was the best chili she ever had in her life. I thought she was just saying that, but she insisted she was dead serious. Wow! There's nothing like having someone wax rhapsodic over your food. After we were sated, we proceeded to decorate the tree. It went very smoothly considering 3 of us were decorating, the tree is in a corner, and I am in this wheelchair.

I did at one point, early in the evening, roll over a Christmas light (a round one about the size of a golfball) that exploded quite loudly. Everyone quickly cleaned up the mess and I found the replacement bulbs. Everyone was cool about it and in no time we had forgotten all about it, except to make jokes. It was a very good night and I had fun. And the tree looks really sweet. Tomorrow (Wednesday) I'm going to get our Christmas cards done. For dinner, we are going to The Movie Tavern to see the new Harry Potter film. I love the food there and always have trouble deciding what to order. At least we don't have to worry about seating, they have wheelchair spaces on several good rows.

I feel so much better now with my Christmas stuff out, my tree up AND, unless there is a stock or shipment problem, every gift has been ordered and is on the way. Yay! Merry Christmas to me!