December is moving right along!

I did some Christmas shopping this morning, both in person and on line. I like the online shopping- no lines! And I even went grocery shopping, which I do when we're low on cat food or iced tea mix- the necessities of life!

Joseph was on his way home from work and hit a patch of black ice and crashed his car. The car is totalled, but Joseph is fine- he walked away from it. Cars can be replaced, but there's only one Joseph.

Tomorrow is the funeral for Aunt Mary. We won't be going because my Mom could never get into the church with her walker, and for me to miss work tomorrow would create a hardship for a lot of people. I'll be there in spirit.

Steph and I decided that next fall we're going to see Trans-Siberian Orchestra in concert. We've both heard that it's a fabulous show.

I'm really enjoying the new carpet. Hopefully Ralph will get the electric outlets to his satisfaction tomorrow, so the dining room furniture can get put back.

Goals for this week:
Finish shopping.
Finish a few gifts.
Get the dining room back together.

Things to be happy about:
We're not having a blizzard!
Heather, Ed and the kids will be home right after Christmas.
Manda and Ben will be home right after Christmas.
Joseph is fine.

Holly

This is Julie playing in the yard, while it was still warm out! She's so cute!

Finally Friday!

Another week over! John was up from Sunday til Thursday, so I got to spend some time with him. The rugs got put in on Tuesday, and look fabulous! We're still putting the house together, and sorting as we do it. Last night I made an inventory of all the DVDs and VHSs we have, as I put them back into the entertainment center.

Eddie has started his new school in NC. Heather said everyone is settling in nicely. I still can't believe they moved 500 miles away.

I got a call from my cousin today, that my Aunt Mary died. Aunt Mary was the widow of my Uncle George, my Mom's brother and my godfather. Their daughter Linda was my flower girl. We didn't get to see Aunt Mary often, which was our loss, as she was just a sweet, nice lady. She will be missed. The funeral is in Philly, on a workday. I know my Mom wouldn't be able to make it into the church, and it's a day that would be hard for me to take off, so we'll send out regrets.

Tomorrow is the Memorial service for our friend Gene. Steph and I are going- Ralph has to work.

And so it goes.

Holly

This is just unnecessary!

This weather! It was like 22 degrees when I left the house this morning. That is just ridiculous! I actually had to put on my winter coat, something I hate to do. And the high today was just over 30!
Even in the house, I just can't get warm. I have socks and a sweatshirt on over my regular clothes, and I'm still cold.

My brother John drove up from Florida yesterday. He said when he was going thru Baltimore the winds were 80 MPH and it was snowing sideways!

I have to go back to emptying the family room, but just had to share the temperature.

Holly

Sunday Snow!

Not much, actually. Just a dusting, but it's cold, and gray, and windy out. Ralph has the hallway all painted, and the ceiling and top half of the dining room. He's working on the bottom half, which is going to be green. The carpet will be installed on Tuesday.

I spent the morning clearing out the entertainment center and the desktop and hutch. Luckily we had already painted the family room, and it's in good shape. Toast has been helping by barking whenever Ralph makes noise.

My brother John is on his way up from Florida to visit and help clean out Mom's cellar (and hopefully take a bunch of stuff home with him). He left Polk City at noon yesterday, and thought he'd arrive in the middle of the night. Driving a truck with a trailer? yeah, right. He hit ice, and had to stop for several hours, so he got a long nap. We expect him between 3 and 4 p.m.

Heather and Ed have all the trucks and trailers emptied. When I talked to her at noon, she was arranging and decorating. Tomorrow she has to register Eddie at his new school. She arranged Eddie and Julie's rooms similar to their rooms in NJ, and they seem happy.

We have birthdays this month! Ed will be 41 tomorrow, Heather will be 34 on the 29th. Nephew David will be 25 on the 19th.

I finished quilting, binding and labelling the rail fence quilt, which I named Green Tea. It went to it's new home on Friday, when I gave it to my long time friend Carol. Carol has had so much go on over the last three years that she was in dire need of a quilt. She was shocked, and cried a little.

Goal for the week:
Finish emptying "stuff" out of the family room.
Carpet comes Tuesday.
Put everything back in its home.

Holly

They have arrived safely.

That kind of says it all. Settlement was yesterday, and they didn't leave until 7 p.m. I had been worried about Heather driving Ed's pickup with the kids, towing a trailer. Ed was driving the moving truck and towing her car. At the last minutes, Ed's wonderful dad (also Ed) told Heather to drive his minivan, and he'd drive the truck and trailer. I was so relieved! Heather is a wonderful driver, but that was a lot, and to be on unfamiliar roads, in the dark! So when I talked to her last night at 10, they were near DC.

I talked to her around 5 tonight. She was having trouble with the cell phone reception, so we were only on the phone long enough for her to tell me that they'd arrived 2 hours before, and we starting to unload.

Holly

Almost moving day

Ralph has been down Heather and Ed's all day, helping Ed load the moving truck. Today was Eddie's last day of school in NJ. Tomorrow morning is settlement, then they hit the road for Albemarle, NC.

My feelings are so mixed. I'm happy for them that they were able to sell the house (no easy feat in today's market) and find a house in NC that they love. I'm happy that Heather has a comparable job to go to, and I'm sure Ed will find a job without much difficulty. Eddie is so sociable that he'll be fine in his new school, and Julianna will blossom anywhere that Heather, Ed, and Eddie are.

But we're going to miss them so much! Even tho we don't see them really frequently, it's no big deal to go 25 miles to visit. Driving 8 hours will be a big deal. We'll all adjust- we adjusted to Manda being first in Daytona and now in Houston, and NC is only a third as far as Houston.

I'm going to be like Scarlett O'Hara, and think about it tomorrow.

Holly