Ack!


Whaddaya mean, it's just a week until Christmas?

It's the last day of school before the break. The kids will take their last two semester finals this morning, and be home for lunch.

The tree is up, but with no tinsel. I've been avoiding the big-box retailers as much as possible and the grocery store doesn't have any. Hubby won't mind, but I think the tree doesn't look "finished."

All the out-of-town gifts? I haven't bought a one yet, which makes it really hard to mail them. Whoops. Hey, the cards didn't go out until Thursday morning...

I'm still futzing with the menu for Christmas Eve supper. Daughter wants the traditional Italian "fishes" feast, albeit with just three or four courses instead of seven -- there just aren't that many of us to consume (or create) all that food. With all the hate I got two years ago over the clam chowder, I'm investigating shrimp bisque instead, but that's hulla work (dittos etoufee or gumbo.) I think I may just dump some bay shrimp in my Clementine-Granny Smith salad and skip the soup altogether. Or put out clam chowder again; there'll be more people who will eat it this time because my mom and stepdad will be here. Now, I have to figure out some sides for the salmon. I'm thinking just steamed broccoli and the bacon-less version of Bow Tie pasta. (Why yes, we did have that for dinner last night. It works.)

Daughter made a couple of kinds of cookies late last week so we'd have something to take to the annual chili, cookie-decorating, and treat-exchange party, but I've made nothing except a batch of fudge since. We came home with a plate of decorated sugar cookies and a tray of everybody-elses' treats; nobody's been lacking Christmas goodies to eat this week. Still, there's apt to be a mutiny in the ranks if Crispix mix, Cream Cheese cookies and Mint Meringues don't happen fairly soon. Of course the weather has to bloody dry out before I can make the last -- we're .03 of an inch short of the all-time wettest year on record for Arch City. They're promising us well more than that before the weekend's over. Which also makes shopping so fun (see paragraph 3.)

The trip to the grocery store is going to be Ex.Pens.Ive. And needs to be done soonest, because I'm out of things to cook for supper.

We're going to see the lights at the Zoo tonight because #2-Son's Judevine teens group is going (oh jeez, I gotta remember to get cash to give him.) While it's 60° F right now, it's supposed to be 30° F by sundown. Which explains why the wind is blowing so hard it knocked over my concrete birdbath. The little artificial Christmas tree on the front porch didn't stand a chance. I purposely don't put any breakable decorations on it, and that's why. I'm also not going to stand it back upright until the wind dies down.

I'm off to the Y and to run a couple of quick errands this morning, then I guess I'll haul the crew to the supermarket (it cuts shopping time by 2/3rds to divvy up the list) after lunch. This weekend is housecleaning, which will make me soooo popular with the ranks.

Posted: Fri - December 19, 2008 at 08:17 AM   Home         | | View Technorati reactions

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