Here's hoping that "writing up the deal" turns into a job, Dagmar - what a Christmas gift.

I'm back from my four day weekend visit to 95 year old MIL with all the family feelings that go with that. Bodies aren't well built for that many years; life for her is spent just getting herself from bed to dressed to meals and back throughout the day. It puts any problems I have in perspective.

My plans for the day include a visit to WallyWorld.

Oh, Gee, bargoo, I feel for you! I won't voluntarily go there--and especially not this close to Christmas. My MIL shops there all the time and I don't know how she does it.

My hot water heater is still on the blink. It's under warranty (we've only had it 9 days), but the warrant stipulates that "X" company must perform the repairs--not the guy who installed it and was ready to run right over and take care of it. Instead we have to wait until "X" company has someone available--which hopefully will be today.

In the mean time, to avoid dirtying any dishes by cooking, we ordered out for pizza and ate them off of paper plates. Not a good dietary choice, but DS was happy.

I'm so close to finishing my cookbook project! I have less than 50 recipes to enter before tacking the myriad of Cooking Light magazines that I've got stored. I hope I'll be done by the time DD comes home for Christmas so I can give her a copy for her computer. DS has already downloaded the program so all we need to do is transfer the files to his computer.

I hate Wal Mart. I had to go last night and it was terrible. I always feel like it steals time from my life having to go into that place.

Dagmar - here's hoping that DH gets the job!

Allison - good luck on the water heater. That is annoying about the warranty repair being made by a different person.

Bill - does your MIL still live alone?

Megan I have three boxes of cards I bought three years ago and still haven't sent.

to everyone!

I love the idea, but I am so not good at the passive-aggressive hint-dropping technique! Also, about your pack test -- I feel the same way whenever I am walking through the airport carrying a backpack. How did I ever manage when I was so much heavier?

Allison, that is dumb that you have to have a particular company do the work. I hope you get it fixed soon!

Dagmar, I hope your DH gets (and accepts) the job!

Today is DH's birthday so we are having his family over for dinner. DH requested that MIL make him a cherry pie with the frozen cherries we brought back from our Wisconsin vacation. Meanwhile his grandma wants to make a cake because MIL's birthday was Friday, so the pie will be for DH and the cake for MIL. Really this means we'll all eat both, but whatever. I am cooking something I would cook for just the two of us -- a light mac & cheese recipe & steamed broccoli -- since I don't have time for anything elaborate on a weekday. Hopefully it will be sufficient for them.

DH did get the job at his 3rd interview. He's totally unexcited or happy about it because the starting pay is low.

In this economy, at age 50, with little actual accounting experience, he got a full-time job with benefits, training, and a 6-month salary review. At a decent mid-size company. A month ago this was job was all he dreamed about as his "starter" job in accounting.

SIGH. It seems DH has become a kind of guy.

I, on the other hand (despite my whine and cheese here ) am doing this.



Dagmar (insert smilie doing cartwheels here)

Hurray! Hurray! Dagmar, that's brilliant!

Good news, Dagmar.

Congrats to your DH for his job, Dagmar, as well as Double Congrats to Dagmar for long, patient support.

We guys don't jubilate well.

Morning all,

I got another batch of BF's presents and stocking stuffers ordered online last night. Now I just have my mom's gift, and after some research of items she'd requested online I might have to go to a store in person (the horror!). I have to run an errand in the city later this week so I'll do it then. I feel much better since there's only one person left - my list is slowly getting checked off.

Obviously Christmas shopping consumes me right now!

In the winter we are all in the office more. The week before a holiday is usually very torturous. Already at 2 weeks out this year we're going stir crazy. We keep finding things to do that involve getting out! Next week is going to be bad.

Dagmar, wonderful! I'm so excited for you and DH, even if he's not. And good job to you for all of your patience during this process!

Jessica, happy birthday to DH! I hope the family dinner goes well. Who doesn't like mac 'n cheese?

Allison, your cookbook project is really moving along. What a neat idea and how great your kids are so interested, too. How's the water heater situation coming?

The nearest WalMart is 65 miles from where I live. We get two kinds of tourists here: the ones who can live without WM and those who can't. Those who can come back loyally on their yearly vacation. Those who can't hate this place - can't see the beauty of our mostly undeveloped beach for its lack of neon W's, golden arches, and 24-hour stores - and never come back. I will occasionally visit that place when I go to the city, but I don't mind not having it.

Today is yoga day. Emma is at daycare so she will be tiiiiired! () And then I can go yoga-fy in peace and without guilt. Happy Wednesday all.

Congratulations, Dagmar, on DH's job! That is really good news--especially in this economy.

DD stayed home all day waiting for the mailman who was to deliver a package to her. Since she's in an apartment, they just have those little boxes, so this needed to be delivered to her door. No show (after the mailman "claimed" he had attempted to deliver twice before). Finally at 8 PM last night, she went online to the tracking and the postal service indicated the package had been delivered at 12:21 PM. And yet she has no package. I hope she gets it straightened out! Shipping this time of year can be a mess.

So I sprang the cookbook on the kids last night. I had them download the program and sync with my cloud and within seconds they had all the recipes! DD was incredulous--she wanted to know how long it had taken me. I admitted that I did it all day at work (instead of playing internet solitaire) to do the old recipes from the family, but the more recent ones are a copy and paste thing from different sites online, so those were easier. In any case, she said she'd add some of hers, so we can share them all. So fun! And both really like the "present."

Meanwhile I'm getting a new phone. I've been having problems with my first generation Android for a few months. It locks up from time to time and recently they did an over the air update which caused more problems. So now I'm getting the new Motorola Razr Android phone. I can't wait! DH is getting the same phone and DS is going to be getting an iPhone sometime in January (they're on back order). DD will have to wait if she needs a new one--her's is only a year old and isn't subject for an upgrade yet.

Allison, you can relate this story to your DD. I ordered some ink cartridges from Dell, ordered them online. I never recieved them so after what I thought was an appropriate amount of time to wait I called them, they said they had been delivered, even had the date, time and hour that United Parcel Delivered them. Never got them, so they sent me a duplicate order at no charge. I received the new set and they did not charge as promised. 3 months later I was talking to a neighbor on the phone and she said she could see a package in the area where we put mail to be picked up. They pick up envelopes but not packages. Strange, whatever could it be ? When I went out to check my mai I checked this package and first thing I saw was my name and the second thing I saw was Dell. The third thing I saw was a note on the package that said "not at this address, return; .Now the package was sent United Parcel, that package could sit there until doomsday and the mailman would never have picked it up.Dell was right it had been delivered and at the exact time that they told me, only it had been delivered to an address about a half a block away and apparently this person took it in and kept it for 3 months before deciding maybe it should be sent back.
Now the story gets even better, I called Dell and told them I had received them and I would keep them as I know I will be able to use them. Just charge me for them, Remember I have two sets and only paid for one.They couldn't seem to figure this out and kept telling me what procedure to follow to return them,I talked to 3 different people at Dell, saying "I will keep them , just charge me'blah , blah , blah. the last one finally said."thankk you for calling Dell, goodbye." Soooo. I never did pay for them, evidently Dell doesn't know how to deal with someone who is honest.
Tell your DD to check and see if it was left at the wrong address.

Hey everyone! Jumping into the chat here

alinnell & bargoo - shipping is a paiinnn this time of year. A couple of years back my brother and I got my parents a new computer for Christmas (he builds computers. I bought the parts, he put it together). THEY LEFT THE PARTS OUT IN THE SNOW :< I called up and ripped them a new one but luckily nothing was damaged and the computer still works fine. But still, computer parts, left in the snow? luckily my brother was home and found the package!

alinnell I love android phones, good luck with the new one. I'm actually going to choose an iPhone this time around though because I've gotten tired of Android. I went with my Droid Incredible the first time around because I was tired of iOS...I think I need to make up my mind...


Anyway right now I've got a pretty light day at work. I'm a resource room teacher and the majority of my kids are off on a trip. Unfortunately I didn't get to go

I'm searching for ebooks for my Mother's Christmas present—a brand new Kindle! I also wanted to get her a new case, but since we got the special offers Kindle I found out that there is a special offer on them that lets you get a case for 50% off! I'm going to order it when I get home then, as I'm going to open up her Kindle to put all of these Stephen King books on it anyway. I think she'll be happy to just open up her Kindle and have it already loaded with a bunch of books

On the plus side I also have a bunch of new books for MY Kindle and I can make sure they work right!

Dagmar - yay for DH's job! I see a lot of people fuss over jobs at low pay right now, and have seen some turn them down and stay unemployed. In this market, the job that you describe sounds like a fantastic opportunity for him.

Allison - I've had that happen with shipping. Hate it. We always have trouble with things that ship via the mail it seems.

Megan - enjoy your yoga!

Jessica - how did the dinner go? Happy birthday to DH!

sontaikle - we bought my MIL a Kindle the first year they came out and preloaded it with books. I'm with you - having it ready to go with a few good reads is the way to go.

DSS got in trouble at school again yesterday, has been in pretty much constant trouble for the last few months. He is disrespectful, yells, is mean to the other kids, pushes/hits/kicks/etc, tells the teacher what to do, cries a lot, has a lot of tantrums. At this point the teacher is pretty frustrated I think and wants to sit down with DH and XW after the first of the year to move him to a Tier 3 behavior plan. I don't know what that will involve, but I would figure some counseling of some type. Which really, I think he has needed for a long time.

Sontaikle-- what name should we call you?
What grades do you teach? I'm an elementary school librarian, and our resource teacher shares space with me.

Congrats Dagmar on dh getting the job! I sure hope he portrays a better attitude when he starts. When does he start?

Oh yes, Allison-- I've got many stories too. I know how your dd feels though because the UPS guy just leaves a note on her apartment that he left a package in the office. She leaves too early and comes back too late to ever get her packages so they tend to sit there for a week or two! She had some stuff mailed here because she'll be coming home soon. The UPS guy leaves anything and everything at my door so no worries there!

I'm in a funk this morning that I hope lifts soon. My dd was super cranky this morning and set off me and dh. She was going to San Francisco for a field trip and was mad that dh woke her a few minutes early. We "ruined her whole day". Really?!? She has been super cranky lately so I'm wondering if something isn't going on with friends/school/boys/something else as she doesn't open up much with us.