TV and Spencer Updates

First of all, since so many people have asked, yes, we did finally buy a TV set. The 42" inch Vizio from Costco . And then we had a whole cable issue that took most of a week to fix. I just hate that a certain cable company has a monopoly on high speed Internet access in my neighborhood. I could seriously rant about this company for an hour. But I won't because no one would read it anyway.

I do looooove to watch the Jazz in HD. (Hence the need for cable.) What an improvement over the old way of watching the games. Last night I was exhausted (not much in the way of sleep the night before) so I went upstairs to watch the end of the game from bed on our tiny TV. So not the same experience.

And I actually picked out a new TV stand in less than a week. Not bad if I do say so myself. I don't just love it but it wasn't too expensive anyway so when I am sick of it, or we move, we can get a better one.

Second, everyone asks how Spencer is doing and how our family is adjusting. The answer is great to the first and depends on the day for the second. He's a wonderful addition to our family in so many ways. I love his little smile and how the first thing he says to me every morning is, "Will you make me some Oatmeal please?" (OK, sometimes that's the second or third thing but it is very cute the way he says it.) He can still throw a good tantrum and is easily frustrated, but he's three and that's pretty standard.

AJ, on the other hand, has not adjusted so well. He has regressed back to age three and is throwing as many tantrums as Spencer and his are a little harder to deal with because he is so big. (I can pick Spencer up and put him in time out. AJ is getting ready to try out for the Utah Jazz next year so I can't lift him anymore.)

Spencer started his therapeutic preschool program this week at the Children's Center. It's only costing us a small fortune and James' right kidney (but he still has his left one so it's OK) but we felt strongly that they had the right program to help him through this rough patch in his life. Here he is on the first day of school:


AJ will also be seeing a therapist at the Children's Center to help him sort out why his world has turned upside down. It might be a bit of over kill, but I'd rather him get all his frustration and anger out now than when he's 14.

James and I are also taking a parenting class there too because we need all the help we can get right now. The first class was Monday and covered the importance of playing with your children. Seems like such a basic concept but really, how much time do I really spend on the floor playing with my kids?

I've made a concerted effort this week to do that with both boys, one on one. And it's been fun. Of course that mean playing trucks and geo trax, but it is fun to see what "story lines" they come up with to go along with the play. AJ's was all about Krakatoa, the massive volcano that erupted in 1883 in Indonesia, (in case you missed that documentary on the Weather Channel). Spencer is always about the "bad guy."

I think the other thing I learned there this week is that mine aren't the worst kids around. There are three and four-year-olds pulling knives on their parents out there people. We are so OK here.

But there are some interesting things about becoming a parent mid stream in a child's life. Like he told me his ear hurt yesterday. If AJ told me his ear hurt, I would rush him to Insta-Care because he has never told me his ear hurts and he's had some pretty bad ear infections. I don't know what Spencer is like when he is sick. He didn't sleep well the night before but that isn't unusual when James is out of town. He also has been exceptionally cranky this week, but also, dad is gone and he started school and his life is all different, again. I took him to the doctor today and he got a clean bill of health. So now I am officially one of those crazy moms who take their children to the doctor when there is nothing wrong.

But we managed to survive Christmas (barely). Spencer was so cute on Christmas morning. Every time he opened a gift, he would say, "Thank you! Me love you!" A.J. ran around saying, "Mine. Mine." Not so cute. Maybe I should show him the video tape so he can see how it looked. I didn't take any pictures on Christmas, just video. But this one was taken the Sunday before Christmas. Aren't they handsome:


P.S. Try not to read too much into the fact that I talked about the TV before I talked about my kids. I do love them more than the TV. Really.

Can we just buy a TV already?

It's happened again.

Last time it was a new refrigerator. Back in 2005, our 6-year-old, contractor-grade refrigerator started leaking water from the freezer down to the fridge. So we did what any homeowner would do: we went to Home Depot, Lowes, RC Willey and Sears to look at fridges.

I thought I wanted one of those french door models with the freezer on the bottom. I ooed and awed over them trying to decide whether to get the white that matched our other contractor-grade appliances, or stainless which might match the appliances in the home we might move into someday. And was it worth it to play all that extra money for the french door fridge when I could get a side-by-side for a lot less. And none of them seemed to have all the features I wanted all together. I poured hours of Internet research into it on Consumer Reports, Good Housekeeping, and we asked everyone we knew what they would do.

At Sears, we met a nice young salesman named Hector. He showed us all the models and answered all our questions. We told him we needed to think about it some more. A few months later, we went back to Sears and talked to Hector again. The new models were coming out and didn't we want to buy one of the old models on clearance. Still needed to think about it and do more research. Came back in a few more months, and then again few months later, etc. Each time we left with a "let's think about it." It got to the point where Hector would see us and just start laughing because he knew we had more questions, but weren't really going to buy anything.

In May of 2007, Sears was having a great sale on appliances and we finally settled for a white side-by-side that had some of the features we wanted and was a lot less than the french door one I really wanted. We headed to Sears to finally buy that refrigerator only to find that Hector had the day off. We made a special trip back to Sears the next day so we could buy it from him. I bet Hector never had to work for 2 years to get a sale before or since.

Now, it's TV's. The main TV in our house is a 27" set we received as a hand me down from James' parents shortly after we were married. Since tomorrow is our 13th anniversary, that gives you some indication on its age. Needless to say, HDTV wasn't even a consideration back then. The tuner in the TV went out several years ago so we have to use the VCR's tuner to do anything (it's the entire reason we still have a VCR). Now the power switch doesn't always work.

About a year ago, when we started get inundated with all the HD-switch talk, we got all confused and thought we'd better go get a new TV right away. I think it was really a ploy by the electronics industry to make us believe we had to have a $2000 HDTV or we would be lepers. We learned that because we have cable, we really didn't have to do anything to be lepers. Whew.

Then we got a Wii and Mario Kart last Spring. For those of you who are Wiiophytes, when you play Mario Kart with 3 or more people, it divides the screen into four sections. On a 27" TV, you get what seems like a 2" square of screen to drive your kart down. So we have to get a bigger TV if we are going to play Mario Kart as a family. And isn't that why we bought a Wii in the first place?

So off to the Internet to do lots of research on Consumer Reports, CNet, and every other website imaginable. Do we get one that will fit in our entertainment center (very few 37" ones will) or do we go for broke and get the 47" and a new entertainment center. LCD or Plasma? 720 or 1080? What the heck is an HDMI and if our current TV has none, how many do we need? And if we get a new HDTV won't we have to get a blu-ray too?

And we harrassed lots of Hectors at lots of different stores. The HDTV guys at Costco probably think I am stalking them. Twice I have gone to buy a TV thinking I had my mind made up, only to either be talked out of by the sales guy or find it not available in the store.

I think we finally have it narrowed down to two choices: a 37" Toshiba that will fit into our entertainment center from Costco.com, or a 42" Vizio that won't fit but is available at our Costco. How we pick from the two could drive us crazy for another six months. And by then, a whole new batch of TV's will be out and we will have to start the process all over again.

I wonder if Hector sells TVs?

Days 10-12 and the BIG REVEAL

I am so sad to see this secret elf swap come to an end. I'm going to sound like a broken record here, but it's been so fun to have something to open everyday. The last week has been kind of rough around here with my boys (well, one of my boys in particular) and her gifts have made my day, everyday.

So to back track a bit. On Sunday, I had a bit of a dilemma because I had two gifts without day tags on them. And I really didn't want to open day 12's first because I didn't want to spoil the next few days. My Secret Elf found a way to let me know that this is the one I should open first:The wrapping was so cute I almost didn't want to open it. (I said almost. Of course I wanted to see what is inside.) And I wasn't disappointed when I found this:

Homemade Pumpkin Butter. I love all things pumpkin and can't wait to try this out. She included a recipe for a fruit dip that includes this. And the jar is wrapped so cute in Haiku paper too.

Then yesterday, I found this cute thing under my tree:

It's a lip balm holder including an Stampin' Up lip balm. These are really cute and I need to figure out how to make them so I can share it with my customers. And I love this striped paper. It was the first from that pack of paper to get all used up at my house. And the stamp (From this year's Ronald McDonald House set) should have been a clue as to who my elf was, but I didn't catch on. After all, we all got this stamp set at convention.

Then this morning, this cute box was sitting all lonely underneath my tree just crying to be opened:
A box made out of ski slope paper and wrapped up with that wonderful stitched chocolate ribbon and those cute felt flurries. Inside was this wonderful surprise:

A beautiful hand made card with this stamp set that I have always admired but never bought. It accompanied these yummy soaps direct from North Carolina. That means my secret elf is:


Angie!!!! (This picture is of Angie, me and Amy at convention). I got to know Angie at convention this summer. She quickly became one of my favorite people because it seemed like we have so much in common. We were both moms to one (at the time) who's sons have spent time too much time with doctors (although her son has spent way more time than my AJ). And as we talked, our views and experiences seemed very similar. I am lucky to count her among my friends. Thanks Angie for making this holiday season so much fun! Love ya!

And I have to say that I had no idea it was her. I guessed a few different people at different times, but never Angie.

Now almost as fun as opening my gift has been seeing what my elfette has said about her little gifts. Want to see what I made for my elfette? Check out Lisa's blog. I had so much fun being Lisa's elf too. Love ya Lisa!

Days 7, 8 & 9

I hope my secret elf knows how much I have loved getting a little something everyday. Even if I haven't been the best at posting my bounty every day, I do love everything and it has really made my day to open a gift. Here is what I received the past three days:


On Thursday, the box of really yummy smelling candles. And Jen from New Hampshire reminded me that candles aren't for hoarding, they are for burning. I was shocked to hear that. You mean, people actually burn candles and don't just leave them in the box smelling all nice and pretty?!?!? Oh boy, where have I been.

Yesterday, we had a very rough morning. When I was in the middle of my total meltdown, I remembered that I hadn't opened my elf gift yet. Whew. Made my whole morning better to find this really cute mug with candies in it. It even has that gorgeous striped Stampin' Up! ribbon on it. (Which I am hoarding an entire, unopened roll of if you must know.) It says, "Dear God, do you hear every note?" I hope not, since I haven't been to choir practice all season and will be singing with the impromptu choir tomorrow at church.

And today, I found this cute snowman under my tree. I love snowman. And this one is just adorable. Thank you elf! You are the best!

I should also mention that I finished off the tin of shortbread cookies I opened last weekend yesterday. I think those were the best non-homemade shortbread cookies I've ever had. Yummo!

Better Days

I love all kinds of Christmas music. I love the traditional Christmas hymns we sing in church this time of year, "Silent Night," "Away in a Manger," and "Joy to the World." I love the crooners singing "White Christmas" and "Chestnuts Roasting on an open fire." It just isn't Christmas for me until I here the Carpenters sing "Merry Christmas Darling," Wham sing "Last Christmas" and Band Aid sing "Do They Know It's Christmas Time."

But the last few years, a new favorite as emerged: The Goo Goo Doll's "Better Days." Here are just a few of the lyrics:

"And you ask me what I want this year
And I try to make this kind and clear
Just a chance that maybe we'll find better days
Cuz I don't need boxes wrapped in strings
And desire and love and empty things
Just a chance that maybe we'll find better days

So take these words
And sing out loud
Cuz everyone is forgiven now
Cuz tonight's the night the world begins again."

2008 has been a rough year for so many people I care so much about. In my family, we've had deaths, a cancer diagnosis, a heart attack, major surgery, failed classes, tough economic times, struggles with our children, etc, etc. Among my friends, more deaths of loved ones, more cancer, more health troubles, financial troubles, marital troubles, etc.

Every time I hear this song, I think of all of these people, all of you. What better wish could I offer any of you than the chance that maybe we'll find better days. (I know I could use a whole lot of better days.)

So that is my holiday wish for all of you: may 2009 be full of better days for all of us.