Hi! I'm alive, albeit not posting.
So much has been going on, both good and bad, that I feel like I haven't had any time to write anything down. For a while, the blog was an the pressure valve that I could let some steam out and prevent my head from exploding in real life. Lately, I've not felt the need to, so what purpose does the blog serve now?? I'm still overwhelmed with my workload, and yes I have days when I'm ready to walk out (but who doesn't?) but I'm trying to get back to my old ways of separating work from life, because the two are entirely independent of each other, I just allow the lines to be blurred too frequently. (Mike, if you're reading, that doesn't mean I won't bring work home, physically. It just means I'm trying not to allow the stress / anger rule my life. It should make me more pleasant to live with ;-p) That's my work spew for the day (or ahem, the past month)
The exciting news, although also a bit exhausting.... drum roll..... we moved into our new house the day after Thanksgiving! Many days and nights have been filled with stripping wallpaper, painting and various house tasks. With the recent ice storm, and Mike being gone nearly every day and night, I tackled the last room we wanted to get painted before my family comes for Christmas dinner. My brother (butterbones, father to the greatest almost 2 year old, ever) is being proven right daily when he remarked that as soon as one project is done, the list doubles of what needs to be done. And in true Ange style, I don't complete the tasks for one room before being bored with it and moving to the next room. Therefore our living room is painted, but I pulled all the curtains off intending to salvage the hooks and buy updated curtains, our foyer is painted but I haven't put the table that I want in, the dining room still has the carpet remnant I didn't want rolled up, and the framed pictures still sitting on the floor, the kitchen is unpacked, but I feel like things aren't in the right place so again I've jam packed everything into two cabinets and there remains two empty cabinets, and on and on the not quite finished task list goes. The house is putting a severe beating on my ability to focus, clearly I am not task oriented.
Other news, we celebrated our first wedding anniversary a couple weeks ago. It's funny, I know we've been married for a year but on so many levels it feels like many more, and yet not even a year. I'm taking that as a good thing, since I don't think we are out of the honeymoon stage, which is fine by me if we never leave it. There are small quiet moments when I'm hit with the happy sentiments. Usually when he's in bed sleeping and I'm out on the by myself with my cup of tea, (or lately eggnog and rum, what it's the holidays after all) and I just feel a surge of contentedness, like "this is where I am supposed to be". I'm slowly letting go of these preset notions I had of time lines and when I needed to be at certain points, or have achieved certain goals. It's not that I don't want 'more' in my life, or don't still have goals, but perhaps just realizing I am fortunate in the life I have.
On the craftiness front, I'm lacking. I think the house is sucking up my mojo right now. I did complete the baby blanket for Evey, I like it, but I'm not in love with the acrylic blend yarn. It'll be good as her first blanket though, so mom can throw the baby burp in the washer, but I'd like to (after the holidays of course) work on a more heirloom quality blanket for both Evey and Anna. For Anna I did up another sweater as requested from her momma, and found the cutest hat with I-cord bow to help keep it on her head. I just finished up the hat last night, the quickest knit ever (really all baby-esqu things satisfy my immediate gratification needs) and just need to do up the I-cord tonight wrap those gifts up along with the books I got them and the bambinos are done. I have both my parents left to buy for, and am trying to find something not commercial for them, but am failing miserably. My mom wants a GC to the local greenhouse, so that's easy and it's not a big box store so it makes me feel better. My father on the other hand.... not so easy. It was suggested we (as in all us kids) get him a GC to a particular box store since he's been looking at new flat screen TV's. I have a couple issues with this. First, that one store may not have the best deals, or end up being the store that carries what he wants- so then what? Secondly, all the options for where he gets his TV are big corporate box stores, and that leaves me with a little bit of guilt given my the current economic situation. The other person I have to buy for (and I do say it slightly begrudgingly) is for my parents exchange student whom I've met all of two times and only briefly. I haven't decided what to get her, and I would feel bad for her if she had nothing to open with us on Christmas day, but she's not someone I am close to, or really even know. I'm thinking if I can make the time in the next 8 days to make her a scarf, that would probably be alright.
As for 'our' actual Christmas, we have agreed to only buy each other a gift relevant to the house. Not as fun, but more practical. Really, I can picture being excited over this big heavy box, opening it up and having it be a toilet. (Don't worry we have a working toilet, but we don't have one downstairs where there is a shower and sink... odd combination, don't you think?) I'm not so sure either of us would be excited to open that baby up.
This year, for the first time, we are hosting the family Christmas at our place. I'm a little unnerved by it, cooking for 14 could be it, but also just having everyone there... if they are all at my house I can't use the normal excuses to leave, and am you know, trapped. I am stock piling my eggnog and rum, and hopefully am still able to function when dinner time comes around ;-p Actually I don't think it will be all that bad, it may actually be rewarding to have the entire family at our house. If I need a breather I may resort to "oh, I'm outta sugar, be back soon".
I have an image of having my brother's & their families in the backyard just chillaxin and chasing the two girls barefoot thru the grass. I'm not sure where it came from, but it seared into my brain.
A question for the readers ( the 3 that are left :-p)
As we near the end of the year, and approach a new year, any particular memories/goals?
And just because I'm not sure how soon I'll be back up on the ol' blog Merry Christmas happy holidays, festivus, Kwanzaa etc.
