I'm a Fat Cat, Baby

The holidays are over (if you don't count New Year's Eve/Day .. which, I don't .. it's not for a teetotaler Baptist, like myself, who doesn't watch much football), but the leftovers remain.

If you were to look in my refrigerator right now, you would see mass quantities of food waiting for human consumption. Unfortunately, I'm the human (I am not an animal!) who .. consumps!

Ham, turkey, shrimp, green beans, potatoes (is that how you spell it, Dan Quayle?), etc., etc., etc. Then there's the desserts (too many to count) which have a tendency to "call my name" (I hear voices .. evil voices) late at night .. just before I go to bed.

This has consumed my thoughts (cookie, cookie .. me want cookie) and corrupted my thighs (I love that old gospel song, "He Looked Beyond My Thighs and Saw My Knees").

Things have really gotten bad.

I have been very proud of myself for not gaining that much weight since graduating from high school (yes, I did finish .. surprise). Well, .. I got some new jeans for Christmas and Saturday night I had to go exchange them for .. "big boy" jeans. Yes, I wear a husky size, now. I'm so ashamed!

All this talk about food and weight gain has made me depressed.

I think I need some ice cream to help cheer me up.

That's a Wrap

Today is the day. All the Christmas lights and decorations must come down and be packed away, never to return (until the Saturday after Thanksgiving .. 2009).

They say (again, I'm still not quite sure who they are), when the cat's away, the mice will play. I say, when the cat's away .. hurry, take down the Christmas stuff. Not very poetic, but true.

Meg and Will are with his parents until late today. This means we have a brief window of time before the "grandcats" return to wreak havoc and continue their reign of terror (actually, they are pretty well behaved .. well behaved is boring and doesn't add readers to the blog).

We can take down all the "tinsel and garland" (that sounds like a New York law firm) today, or wait until January 3, when the whole crew heads back to North Carolina. Since my neighbors probably don't want to look at a "happy house" for another week or so, we're going for it .. today.

For those who are wondering, "happy house" is a term one of my friends uses for homes that keep Christmas lights (the icicle ones are particularly beautiful) hanging on the outside, year round. You've seen them and, perhaps, thought the owners were just too lazy to remove the handiwork they created with such zeal in early December.

This is not the case.

If you leave the lights hanging, whenever there's a special event (the birth of a new child, anniversaries, etc.), you can plug them in and let the entire neighborhood know .. we're happy at this house!

Well, Cheryl's not in to the whole "happy house" scene, so I'd better quit bloggin' and before she starts doggin'.

She'll regret this decision in May when her birthday comes and the house looks dark and abandoned.

All Good Things Must Come to an End

Drew has to be back at work this afternoon, so he is gathering his (now clean) clothes, packing up his Christmas gifts (that won't take long .. we're in a recession, you know) and getting ready to head east, in an hour or so.

It's always a blessing to have the "kids' in, even if it's for a couple of days. However, it seems to get harder every time when we have to (re)say "goodbye" and watch them back out (be careful, those cars fly over that hill) of the driveway.

The upside is Meg is still here .. so are her cats (oh joy .. rapture!). They are not bad cats. They are just .. cats. Nuff said.

I am my mother's child, so I am required .. by law, I believe .. to worry about my children 24/7. This means I have to "endure" Drew's four hour drive (with rain in the forecast) and wait by the phone to hear he has made it safely "home." As a side note, he won't remember to call and I will have to call him. This is the way it works. Always has. Always will.

Our time together was brief. However, we managed to eat a lot of good food, watched a few movies on DVD, and attended the church's Christmas Eve service as one big, happy family (cats not included .. sorry Jack & Dewey).

This was, definitely, a Christmas to remember .. and since my memory is not what it used to be ..

I have photographic evidence.

Happy Birthday, Jesus

'Twas the Morning of the Night Before Christmas

The kids are home and I want to spend more time visiting and less time blogging this week (sorry, fans).

These photos depict Christmas in the south.

Have yourself a Merry Redneck Christmas!

Here Comes the Son

It's been great having Will & Meg here for the last few days. However, there still seems to be something missing. Something that will make my holiday season .. complete. There is. It is my firstborn, a son .. and he shall be (is) called .. Drew.

Although we were able to see him during Thanksgiving (a couple of days, in Humboldt) and Megan back in October (a couple of days, in Pigeon Forge .. she got the better deal), this will be the first time the entire family has been together in quite a while (our family Christmas card has two pictures on it .. we couldn't get the four of us in one place long enough to snap a photo).

When the kids grow up and leave, things change.

I don't eat as many home cooked meals (until they come back, to visit .. note to self .. start new diet after holidays). I don't wake up in the middle of the night to see if their car is in the driveway (I still wake up in the middle of the night, but I don't check for their cars .. too often). I don't have anyone to argue with over small, insignificant, non-important issues (Cheryl wins every time .. that's no fun).

The "empty nest syndrome" is very real and it is devastating .. for a short while. However, you slowly start getting used to to idea of reclaiming your space and .. time.

There are no more band contests or ball games. There are no more fundraising items to sell (can I get an amen, somebody?). There are no more loans to float .. for the most part.

Life is a journey. There are ups and downs, highs and lows, goods and bads (I can go on and on .. I really 'got it' the day we learned opposites at school).

For this portion of the journey, there's just the two of us (except for the daughter, son-in-law, son, two cats, and five tons of dirty laundry that has returned to the nest for several days) and the Lord.

This week, the journey is a sentimental one.

Cover Me .. I'm Going In

With only three shopping days left before Christmas, someone needs to tell all those people at Walmart, can't you read? .. we're in a recession.

Money may be "tight" these days, but it sure is hard to find a parking space at any mall in any city across America, as we approach the twenty fifth of December.

We all like our "stuff" and I'm just as guilty as the next guy when it comes to wanting more things (an extra marital affair will never be my downfall .. electronics or computer related items, however? .. sometimes I'm disturbed by the way I look at my iPhone).

Even the Christian community .. those who know the real "reason for the season" .. is caught up in all the hype: Buy more (make that, charge more). Be happy.

Happiness comes and goes, but true joy can only be found in something .. or someone .. that lasts, long after the presents are unwrapped and the kids have gone back home.

The greatest gift you can receive this Christmas is the One, who's birth we celebrate.

"Where meek souls will receive him still, the dear Christ enters in."