Twas the Night before Christmas

Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house, it was quiet. I mean I'm the only one up enjoying the quiet. Amazing to look at the tree with all the presents and know that in 12 hours it will all be gone. I've been cooking all day and staying warm while it has been snowing, yes snowing, outside. We set a record for snow in one day in Oklahoma and will definitely have a white Christmas. I haven't had one of those in 30+ years. The drifts are huge, we can't get out of the house, let alone the neighborhood. ALL of the interstates in the state were closed down. I don't think that has ever happened even in the ice storms we've had. It looks pretty but the house has been shaking with the wind blowing 50 mph. You know that Oklahoma's weather has it all and we certainly prove that point all the time.

Thanksgiving Turkey

The local newspaper had a story about the inmates in the county jail would not be receiving turkey dinners on Thanksgiving due to budget cuts. It seemed to state that people would be outraged at this. I for one applaud the sheriff for not giving them the dinner that would cost about $2,000. They have already laid off 20 employees. And since when did being incarcerated mean that you get to enjoy turkey dinner. I thought the point of jail was to deprive people of things so they wouldn't commit crimes. Did I miss something in civics class?

United Way Day of Caring

Tomorrow is the Day of Caring here in Norman where businesses donate their staff's time to go to work at non-profit organizations. I've done this now seven years. Some years have been easy and we've been done by noon. I don't like those years. One year I packaged boxes of donations for Hurricane Katrina at the Salvation Army and got very proficient at shrinkwrapping pallets. This year we are winterizing Health for Friends which is a local organization that provides free and reduced health care to people without insurance. We've had rain now for a week and there is a chance for it tomorrow so this could become a very muddy event.

Birthday time

You know you are getting older when your birthday doesn't mean anything to you. When you are a kid, you count down days because it usually meant something great was going to happen. You got to be a teenager, you got to vote, you got to drink. Now they are just another day. For my birthday this year I get to spend all day at a retreat for a federal organization that we work with. Normally I do take it off but not this year. So I'll spend it listening to speeches, brainstorming about how to solve their workforce problems and get a free lunch. I guess that didn't change.

Results from Wine Tasting

I hosted my first wine tasting Monday evening at the house. I was nervous since I had never done anything like this before. But I shouldn't have because it was fantastic. Everyone enjoyed it and had a great time. There were lots of interesting conversations going on and we all enjoyed the wine. The cheese and crackers were eaten and we finished five bottles of wine. I hope to have another one this fall but it may have to wait until 2010 depending on schedules. Or maybe someone else will host one themselves.

Bedazzling vs. Stoning

I have learned a valuable lesson. Bedazzling is not the same as stoning. In fact, the word bedazzle should not be said anywhere near dance moms. I made this mistake yesterday and will never make it again. We stone rhinestones onto uniforms and costumes. Bedazzling does not use good crystals.

So let that be a lesson to all of you out there wishing to take up a craft.

Back to School

School starts next Thursday. The good thing about high school is there isn't a set list of things to buy supply-wise. The bad thing is when you get to each class they say what you need and a lot of the time you need it the next day. So the first night is hectic. You also have to make sure you have the right clothes. Luckily we really don't have to buy too many things this year since Whitney has to wear a uniform about once a week. And it is still so hot it makes no sense to buy jeans yet. But the day of getting her schedule we did spend a ton of money on Norman Tiger shirts and an entry rug for our house. The shirts weren't all for Whitney as I needed one since I'll be going to the games and need to support our team. But then there was the locker fee and a parking decal. I know that high school is just the tip of the iceberg for two years from now when we get hit with college costs. So I'll pay my money and shut up.