The last few weeks slideshow...

They say that a picture is worth a thousand words. Here are a few pictures that are better written then any words I could use of our last few snowed in weeks.

Welcome Baby Natalya! Born at 12:30am 6lbs 1 oz. We are almost Birthday buddies!

Prayers...

Please pray for Katherine (my sister) and baby Natalya. They are heading to the hospital right now. Will keep you updated as to when the newest member of our family is born!

Sometimes you get what you ask for... in weird ways

You know how last week I wrote that I wanted to shampoo my carpets? Well, yesterday I had to pick up Big P from school because he was not feeling well. He came home and took a nap (a rare thing in his life). After his nap he seemed to be fine. So I pulled out the carpet shampooer to do the living room before we set up the tree (which I wanted to do last night and we did do it). little p comes running downstairs and says, "pablos (how he says it) threw up". I run upstairs and Big P is on the futon couch, with vomit all over him, the couch, the blankets, pillows- you get the picture. and little p threw up in the middle of the floor! So I rush the boys into the bathroom, give them a shower to clean them up and then tackle the extra room. little p is not sick, but Big P is still sick and I have had to not only shampoo the living room carpet (what I wanted to do) but the boys bedroom carpet, the extra room carpet and DH said this morning why don't you get that spot that is on our bedroom carpet while you are at it?!!? So, all of my carpets are clean, a number of our blankets are clean, the futon cover is clean. Definitely be careful of publicly stating what you would like to do... you might just get to do it but in a weird, roundabout way! Hope your day is not so cleaning involved as mine has been (but we do have our tree up and after I eat lunch I am going to put up the rest of our decorations- although all of our outdoor lights have died! I may just have to buy some of those new fangled LED lights:) And at least I have some great Christmas music via www.pandora.com to listen to while I do all these things.

December 9- 16 Days Until Christmas...

I think I did everything that I posted about last week. Although, I forgot to bring my gift to the wedding! Isn't that slightly tacky? I have the gift (a beautiful icon of the Theotokos) I just didn't bring it with me. At least I know that I can give it to my godparents and they will give it to their daughter (my godparents live down the street from my parents... nice and convenient).

This week it seems as if there is something every night! Last night I had a youth advisor meeting at church. Tonight is our moms group Christmas gathering (first annual). I am bringing homemade bread, hummus, veggies, and Trader Joe's Candy Cane JoJo's (otherwise known as the best cookie ever). I hear they have a dark chocolate dipped candy cane jojo... I think I might need to try that:)

Wed I work which means I come home late.
Thurs. is a school meeting and Pappous is going to watch the kiddos.
Fri. we are home.
Sat. is a baptism.
Sunday is, well, Sunday and I think that is always the busiest day of the week (why they call it the day of rest I will never know). Oh, and it's my birthday that day. I think we are going to dinner?!?! I am not sure if my mom will be back down from Seattle. She is staying with my sister this week. Kat is due Dec. 26 but has fast and early deliveries. Until my brother in law returns home, my mom is with her.
At some point we need to put up our Christmas decorations. We have two new to us pieces of furniture for the living room which I am very excited about. Our living room was very bare and now we have two hutches/curio type cabinets. I can now display all those lovely items I have kept in storage. I have a place for my teapots and wineglasses. Very exciting but I have to wait to put up Christmas stuff. Growing up we always got our tree around my birthday (you would not know that now if you went to my parents home... since moving out, mom has decorated the day after Thanksgiving:)
I am done with my shopping. I have three (yes, three) orders through Amazon right now. So I am waiting for boxes to arrive and then there will be the wrapping of gifts.

Ok, I have to go, little p has finally figured out how to open the refrigerator and is re-arranging food. I'm not exactly thrilled by this new development...

December 2- check in (only 23 days until Christmas)

Went Christmas shopping with mom today. Found some great gifts (esp. for my niece, miss m). Even found some bonus gifts for little p:) We draw names in our family and I was able to buy my secret santa a gift today, too!

Iam sometimes the last to know about cool things on the internet. DH told me about www.pandora.com We have each created our own radio stations with our favorite artists. Yesterday I created a Christmas radio station. I was already getting tired of listening to the all day Holiday stations on the radio (with all their commercials and way to jazzy renditions of Silent Night... you may know what I mean; although you might also like that kind of Christmas music:) So I now have my own Christmas radio station. And I can add songs or artists or even genres (be forewarned that if you add Christmas Traditional you will get a lot of older (i mean medieval) music in Latin...not that that's bad, it was just surprising when I really just wanted a decent version of "God Rest Ye Merry Gentleman"... I do like some of that medieval latin Christmas music!) Anyway, go make your own commercial free radio station:)

We had a lovely Thanksgiving that lasted for about a week. We can never do things simply, we always have to extend everything to the bitter end. Sunday night was Thanksgiving at my aunt and uncle's because they are now in Austria for vacation. Wednesday night was a spaghetti (or, if you are little p, scabetti) dinner at my parent's home to meet our long lost cousing mike (we didn't even know that we had a cousin mike... he lives in kentucky). Thursday was Thanksgiving as it is meant to be. Friday I spent the day with my children at my parent's home. DH was working (although he drove to work and came directly to my parent's after work), my mom also was working but was sent home early. My brother and sister in law came over (they went to her family for Thanksgiving Day). Saturday we met my parents and my sister and her children in downtown P-Town for some window shopping and lunch. We separated from the group and went to Powell's to look at books with the kids. Then headed to Next Adventure to check out their used camping gear and scored a used lantern that uses white gasoline rather than propane (we are doing away with all propane camping gear- we have my parents old stove and DH has his new backpacking stove). It was $15 and looks brand new and came in a sturdy plastic case! Sunday we went to church and then came home and then went to my parents home because we had left one car over there (when DH drove over after work on Friday). We ended up making some more scabetti with marinara sauce for dinner.

Did I already tell you to create your own Christmas radio station? Go Do It Now! I am listening to it as I type this and I love it!!!

To do this week:
Work Wed, and Fri.
4 loaves prosphora for church
St Nicholas gingerbread cookies on Thursday for the school.
Moms and Tots on Thursday.
Wedding of my god-sister on Friday evening at Holy Trinity.
Saturday morning- hierarchical (sp) liturgy at St. Nicholas.
Dr. appt. Wed. for Big P (this is a big appt. with the neurodevelopmental physician- we meet every six months and review his progress and this time we have made some great big huge progress!).

Would like to do:
clean the carpets (with carpet cleaner)... HA- don't think this will get done this week!
finish Christmas shopping (I am almost done)

What do you have to do this week? What would you like to do this week?