It's Actually Tuesday!

1. My house is a wreck! I'm sure everyone across America has a house that is a hot mess right now. New Christmas stuff is strewn everywhere. There's a pink princess bike in my kitchen and a twister game spread out on the living room floor. I hate that she can't break in her bike outside so around the around the house she goes.

2. We've broke in this sucker.

I had one when I was little too. 25 years later and the cakes STILL suck. You would think that could have been perfected over the last 25 years.

3. We love us some board games around here. Santa brought Operation and Guess Who. No matter how many times you play Operation the buzzer still gets you ever time! Guess Who gets a little intense around here!

4. Winter. Over it. I'm thinking spring glorious spring and endless summer! I have already started making spring and summer plans just so I have something to look forward too! It seems as though there are so few precious weekends during the summer months.

5. One of those plans includes a bbq/cornhole tournament at our house this spring! We haven't "officially" broken in our new patio. And I love a good theme as does Steven (NOT) so I'm thinking extra points to the teams who dress alike/crazy. Why to I foresee me as being the only person dressing up?!

6. I now own a scanner. Oh boy! People are in for it! I have tons of pictures of people like this:

Yeah, that's me! What the heck is up with my hair?? Bangs anyone? Why do I have two giant rolls on my shoulders? Why oh why? If you graduated high school in the year 1996 and you are reading this blog, you just might make an appearance! As well as members of the Chi Omega sorority between the years of 1996-2000. Don't worry, I won't post any pictures of anyone doing keg stands. I wouldn't want any one's parents to have a heart attack when they thought they were spending thousands of dollars on a college education!

7. We have been pricing plane tickets to Puerto Rico every single night. At the time we booked our condo we didn't realize that we would be traveling back on Easter Sunday which makes traveling more expensive. It's a tragedy what in order to save hundreds of dollars on airfare we are going to have to stay in Puerto Rico an extra day. I guess the Easter bunny is going to have to go all tropical this year!

8. I'm going back on the wagon with the rest of the world next week. I've been living it large over the past few months and I've gained a lot of the weight that I lost over the summer back. Such a crappy cycle! But in the meantime, I bought a Cheesecake Factory red velvet cheese cake from Sams Club this afternoon. I have a few more days to eat every.single.bit of it!

9. T-Minus less than 3 months til our girl turns 5! No party this year. She says that since her birthday is St. Patrick's eve she wants to spend her birthday making a leprechaun trap and go swimming. So we'll do our best to make the traps of all traps then that Saturday we are grabbing some friends and heading to the Great Wolf Lodge complete with the sweet room with bunk beds!

10. I'm off to watch the mountaineers send Wolfpack packing! Here's hoping that if we lose, we don't wake up with one of those NC State spot lights shining our house courtesy of our neighbors!

On Christmas Eve

Dear Sophia

It's only two o'clock on Christmas Eve. Just looking at you it is seems as though the air around you is vibrating with excitement. I think you woke up this morning with your eyes a little bigger and brighter.

You looked for Chewy the elf for the last time this morning. You asked us if he would hitched a ride back to the North Pole with Santa tonight since he was headed that way anyway. You played all morning with a Little People nativity set. Sheep, camels, shepherds, and dogs were lined up neatly in a perfectly straight line. Each to take a turn to see baby Jesus.

You have fretted over what to feed the reindeer. How can Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner and Blitzen eat when they have to stand BEHIND Rudolph!? They aren't going to be able to put their heads down!? And do we get a ladder and leave the food on the roof or is the porch a okay? Is Santa Claus allergic to nuts? We can't possibly leave him milk because milk can't be left out or it will spoil and the last thing we want is for Santa to be sick when he has to travel the world. You placed a baby doll into a pink graco pack-n-play, draped a blanket over your head and kneeled in front to sing the sweetest version of Away In a Manger that our ears have ever had the pleasure of hearing.

Thank you for bringing the magic of Christmas back into our lives. Thank you for giving us the opportunity to be the creator of traditions. The people behind the scenes bringing it all to life for you. What will you remember from these days? What will you pass on to your own children? Only time will tell. In the meantime, we will continue to do everything we can to give you the most amazing magical childhood imaginable. And we will try not to cuss and scream as we are putting your toys together tonight.

Merry Christmas Little Bit

Love,

your mama and daddy

10 on Tuesday Christmas Edition

I swear I'm lucky if I even take the time to do a post on Tuesdays. It's not like I'm really doinganything that takes up my extra time.

1. So maybe I have mentioned before but I can't remember, anyway, we have NO internets at work. -- Side note, I like using the words internets. It's like people who use the word "walmarts." Some of these people are members of my extended family.

Side note over, back to the lack 0 internet. This sucks more than life itself. In fact, life almost ain't worth living anymore. I will probably go blind and/0r need bifocals within 6 months because I'm reduced to cruising the internet on an iphone. What's that? I could work? Shut yo mouth and leave this website now. So i've been listening to more and more Pandora Radio. Just this week I've realized how much I missed listening to Boyz II Men. Today my obsession became the "Straight No Chaser" station. You know those guys who sing the coolest version of the 12 Days of Christmas. On that same station they play the group Rockapella. Oh you know who they are! "Where in the world is Carmen San Diego!"

2. This past Sunday we had brunch with Santa. So nice! And a big thank you to Katie and her family for inviting us. I couldn't believe that our girl got a little shy when she first saw the big guy in red. But she knew it was do or die and she had one shot to request that PINK bike and a popo stick. Poor kids mean, "pogo stick."

3. Christmas caroling was a huge hit in the neighborhood! Thirteen little kids had a blast freezing their rumps off and running down the street ringing doorbells. One little 2 year old didn't really understand the ringing of doorbells but not going inside to hang out for awhile. Next year we are going to have to practice a little before hand. Rudolph went fairly well. Frosty the Snowman was on the sad side. After singing at 8 or 9 houses we headed to a neighbor's house for hot chocolate and cookies.

4. I'm currently reading "A Prayer for Owen Meany." Has anyone read this book? LOVE it. I have literally laughed out loud.

5. We are dog sitting for the next 10 days for our neighbors. Jett is a four year old border collie. He's so smart. And more importantly, he's not ours! The other people in my house can get their doggy fix and then he can be shipped back home. We definitely aren't in the market for a dog of our own any time soon.

6. "That's what I'm-talkin-about!" Favorite phrase of a certain four year old right now.

7. I didn't get around to sending Christmas cards this year. I had great intentions. I was planning on sending out this:

Actually, that should say "La Familia Carr." But I never got around to printing cards. I didn't get very many Christmas cards this year either. So either we've been blacklisted b/c I haven't sent cards in a few years or others are skipping cards this year too!

8. Bad self timer picture:

Friday we got all dressed up for Steven's work Christmas party. It's the one night of the year that I eat more shrimp than swims in the ocean.

9. I've been itching to go skiing! This is crazy talk. And I know that Steven knows better to believe me when I say that I want to go skiing. I hate skiing and complain the ENTIRE time. Maybe it's just the idea of skiing that I like. Deep down I think I want to stay at a ski lodge and send Soph and Steven out skiing. I'll have soup waiting for them when them come back.

10. Merry Christmas!

Almost 10!

A day late but I say that one day a week is better than nothing!

1. We are having so much fun with Chewy the Elf this year! I wouldn't say that he is in any way shape for form helping with behavior around here but he is fun to look for every morning. The fact that she actually believes that he leaves every night and comes back is proof of just how much fun Christmas is with a kid!

And Chewy is a wild man! Stealing Barbie's jeep and making a mess around the house.

2. On Friday we had our 2nd annual ugly Christmas sweater party! Oh my. I think i had a little too much fun on the karaoke machine that I rented. I'm not one to jump on a karaoke machine at a bar but at my own house, it.was.on. And props to my friend Andrea who sung her heart out equally. We started with 9 to 5 and ended with Summer Nights from Grease. At one point in between I remember rapping to Regulators. I hope everyone had a good time despite having to listen to us sing!

3. Klassy!

Mike is tall and I am short but seriously, he's not that tall and I'm not that short! I guess it's just the rockin' out stance that I've got going on!

4. My plan to round up some neighborhood kids to go Christmas caroling is coming to fruition! We'll be singing door to door next Thursday. Sophie can't wait and is beyond excited to sing to "all of the poor families without any children at home." I call those families lucky!

5. My father in-law underwent a laminectomy and a fusion yesterday. He has a rough road ahead but HOPEFULLY by spring he will be feeling a thousand times better.

6. Did I mention our big trip? The day after tax season and the day before my birthday, the Carr clan is heading to Puerto Rico for 8 glorious days! We rented a condo right near the resort where we were married. That way we have a full kitchen and we can kind of do what we want rather than be stuck at a resort. There is so much we want to do. But the thing I'm most excited about is a day of sailing and snorkeling on the Erin Go Bragh.

7. So we got a real Christmas tree this year. Not digging it! First of all, I hate that you can't put ornaments anywhere you want! Some branches just aren't strong enough to hold heavy ornaments. Then 3 days having our tree up, the trunk started splitting! I'm talking big giant gouge right through the trunk of the tree. If it makes it to the 25th I'll be shocked!

8. New neighbors = huge NC State Fans. We are thinking they might need a WVU flag in their yard!