CHOCOLATE, One of My Many Addictions: Orchids and Onions

Tuesday, January 1, 2013

Orchids and Onions

Christmas is past YAY!!! The shopping, stress, decorating, cleaning, parties, baking, people....it's all over. It's New Years Day as I sit here in the quiet dark listening only to the tic toc of the clock, next to my Christmas tree (glowing in the dark) writing. Hubby is asleep and I have been up since shortly after 4AM...... I am quite enjoying it!!! I've had grand kids for the weekend and my house is trashed. Oh well, when my out of town grand kids come I let them be 'creative'. I want them to have FUN here...they did! I had a great Christmas too!

Christmas eve we had hubby's first wife's extended family over. Christmas Day his kids come over and we do the family thing.

orchids to hubby for cooking breakfast and wearing the Santa had, as requested by his granddaughter

What fun would it be if the kids didn't make a total mess of the living room???

orchids to Chuck for voluntarily picking up all of the wrapping paper

The Friday following Christmas I met my daughter at a mall that is the 1/2 way point for each of us and I brought Ava back to stay with us for a few days. On Saturday night Jalen spend the night (as usual). She is 2 years older than he is but they get along great and have so much fun. My SIL had a room at a local hotel and she invited the kids to go swimming with her son. They really enjoyed the pool, hot tub, and sauna.

orchids to Michele for inviting us to go swimming
onions to hubby for getting cranky when they are making a mess
onions to hubby for not helping me pack the trunk
onions to hubby for snapping at me as I said to him "ya gotta grab a couple of sodas"
orchids to hubby for telling his boss he couldn't work on Sunday b/c he had plans to go with me

Sunday I packed up the trunk full of goodies to take to my mom's to celebrate Christmas with my side of the family.

orchids to my oldest grandson, Cole, for bringing the game Operation and playing with the younger kids

my beautiful daughter and her oldest girl

orchids to my daughter for being so organized and setting things up in the sun room at mom's assisted living residence

Orchids to Amy for raising up 2 children who LOVE to read

orchids to my cousin Mike and his wife for coming to see my mom
orchids to Tim and Connie for being there
orchids to Mark for talking to Tim and making him feel welcome
orchids to everyone who came for my mother

My mom said it was the best party she ever had. She doesn't expect a thing, but LOVES everything she is given....especially the new toothbrush she gets as a gift from Amy.

Here are 7 of our 9 grandchildren. I am SO HAPPY that they were around me!!!

orchids to Jack for coming to his first family event with my sister

Good food, my family.............what more could I want?

our 2 youngest granddaughters....gotta love 'em

orchids to these 2 children who used their imaginations and put on a show for me "Nerd Wipe Out"

Nerd Wipe Out is why our tiny guest room is trashed............I let them play and do what they want....(good or bad?)

orchids to hubby who "allows" these activities to happen.....and for 'letting' me do whatever I want

orchids to Ava who is so diplomatic when she encounters conflict and so patient with the younger children
orchids to Ava for helping Jalen make his 'best cousins' necklace and for making something for his brother so he wouldn't feel left out

Sunday night Skylar stayed overnight too. Monday morning I found enough snow-pants boots, and gloves to go around and sent them outside to play at the school across the street. It didn't last long tho.......