And how did YOU do with 2014?

Well, well, well. Look at that. There are 56 more minutes in 2014, and I'm ready and eager to welcome the new year. In a new twist, I am under strict instructions to wake up Sydney so she can watch the ball drop into 2015 for the very first time. I'll try to rouse her, but who knows, she's a sleepy little kid who loves her cozy bed.
As I am wallowing in the last few minutes of the year, I'll dive into the EXPECTATIONs from 2014. Honestly, I think we've taken care of all the EXPECTATIONs that were really attainable, but let's take a look anyway. New windshield: CHECK, but the three chips in it right now will require some fixing in the next couple weeks. Weight: Still an issue, but hoping to get into an official gym soon. Books: CHECK, though I've got a pile different from the one I had in January. Writing: CHECK; almost done with the project I've got right now, and hope to have it finished by the end of this weekend. Credit Card Payoff: Yeah, well, that didn't happen. Something to strive for in 2015, I guess. Cleaning out the house: CHECK, though it could probably do with me going through the place again. Quit the job: CHECK. Take down Christmas tree on New Year's Day: CHECK; it's happening tomorrow. Hiking the trail: CHECK, though we won't be going soon what with all the rain today. Outdoor patio furniture: CHECK.
Well, in retrospect, that isn't too bad. I'm looking forward to tomorrow and creating a new list of EXPECTATIONs.

I'm available for consults

I do enjoy it when I've done something particularly brilliant and useful during the day.
Today's greatness comes courtesy of my sliding glass door downstairs, and the doggie door that prevents us from locking it. Leaving the door unlocked goes against every fiber of my being, and I admit to it making it very difficult for me to go to bed sometimes. But removing the doggie door is not an option. Several other locks have been employed, but they're never quick and easy, like a normal door lock. It's time for a new idea.
Mom gave me a broom handle that she didn't need anymore a few weeks ago. Today, I took it to Lowe's, where the very helpful young man cut it for me to the length of the door's track. I fashioned a loop of kite string around the end of the stick, and stapled it so the string wouldn't come undone. The other end of the string got tied into another loop, and it was hooked onto a hook I screwed into the wall next to the door. The string gives us a handy way to pick up the stick when it's in the door track. It's also long enough so it can go around and through the vertical blinds, so really, there's no worry about too much tangling. You see? Brilliant. And practical. And clever. You can say it.
And it only took me 10 months to figure the damn thing out. Actually, it only took me an hour, but the getting of the stick, the cutting of the stick, and the motivation took more time than that ... for some reason. Anyway, I will sleep better tonight knowing that my slider is locked and unbreachable.

I need to travel more, for the mugs

ITEM!: My collection of You Are Here mugs from Starbucks consists of three locations: Houston, Las Vegas, and California. You know what I don't have? I don't have a Boston mug. That's a problem for me, and my OCD. I need Boston, because I lived there. Not that I lived in Las Vegas, but I love that town, and I love Boston, and I lived in Boston, so I need that mug. I'm going to reach out to my Boston peeps to see who can hook me up. I honestly can't believe that I didn't get a mug from Michigan in October. I'm on a mission now.
ITEM!: So, of course, on this third to last day of the year, we would have to make an investment in my car to keep it healthy. When I started the car on Friday night in Tucson, the Check Engine light illuminated. Not a good thing when you're 100 miles away from home, but we drove home with it anyway. I was stressed, to put it mildly. But as long as the light's not blinking, you're still okay to drive the car.
Today, we had an appointment to check it out, and of course, the light isn't on just to be on. I had a faulty fuel ignition coil. And with one coil comes four. And with those come the new spark plugs because they were showing wear, as well. Truth be told, the cost was not as horrible as I had thought it would be, but still, who needs to give the car guys a chunk of money this time of year? Ugh.
ITEM!: Today is the third in a row where Sydney and I were stuck at home all day. Saturday was a fun pajama day; Sunday, my baby wasn't feeling her best, so we took it easy for the day; today, we were trapped at home with no car. I swear, if we don't spend most of the day outside of our house tomorrow you may hear me screaming from every corner of the world.
ITEM!: I need to start my Christmas List spreadsheet again so I can keep track of what I buy everyone for Christmas. I had one for several years, but it's been misplaced, so I need to get a new one going. Thankfully, my list isn't too extensive, so it shouldn't take me too long to get this year's done.
ITEM!: My list of EXPECTATIONs for 2014, what with the three days I have to finish it, is still being evaluated for its accomplishments and failures. As for 2015, I'm spending a good amount of mental power considering it and formulating it. I dig the EXPECTATIONs, and look forward to enacting that next year.

Roses and a plethora of oranges

I cut back my rose bushes in the backyard this afternoon. They were quite overgrown and unruly, and it's that time of year, you know. I managed to only get poked by thorns seven times, and didn't get any scrapes at all. My gardenias are doing well, as are my rosemary bushes. The orange tree has ripened with maybe 70 oranges, and we've been harvesting regularly over the last couple weeks. The rest are ready to be picked soon, perhaps tomorrow. And with that, the backyard is looking really well. It's just a matter of making sure everyone lives through the winter.
I looked into making marmalade with my ridiculous amount of oranges, but every recipe I came across requires no less than 15 mason jars, and a boatload of sugar. I'll pass on that, but it sure would be nice to figure out something to do with those oranges. I'll take a bag down to Lisa next weekend, for sure. All I can think of right now is juicing the oranges. Because that at least will go down well with the Pinnacle whipped in my freezer.

Did you send out holiday cards?

I guess I should preface this post by saying that I have not checked my mail in a couple days.
...
So. How many holiday cards have you received this season? I have, so far, received a grand total of six holiday cards. I sent out 37 of them. Certainly, it's not all about how many cards you receive, necessarily. But really, people. It doesn't seem fair, does it?
A couple of people on my Facebook feed actually posted their family photos to their pages with holiday wishes for everyone, but I have to wonder, is that how they're doing their cards this season, and is that how we should do all Christmas cards nowadays? It's definitely cheaper. But does it mean that I now have tacit permission to only send out cards to my family, and the friends who also send cards, then forget about everyone else? Is there a statute of limitations on how long I need to send cards to people who never send one back? Do I get to cut my cards list in half next year?
Next year, will it be sufficient for me to post a picture of Sydney and my dogs and then tag everyone that I want to see it?
Of course, if I go out to my mailbox tomorrow and discover at least 20 cards in there, this entire line of thinking ... or angry rant ... will be moot. But since that scenario is highly unlikely, I'll continue to be bummed in my friends and family.

Home, glorious home, with chores

It's 11:28 p.m., and all our Christmas is done. We spent the day in Tucson, hanging out with Brian's family, and finished all the gift giving and receiving. It was a lovely day.
But you know that day in the winter when you just realize that it's frickin' cold and you really are looking forward to some warmer weather? Yeah, that's today. I'm all bundled up in my pajamas and my sweats. I've got a blanket wrapped around my legs. I can't wait to put on my sleeping socks and cuddle into my bed. It's brr-cold out, people.
Hey, guess what I'm doing tomorrow. I'm going to clean up my house after Christmas. There is a whole bunch of Christmasness going on in my living room, and it needs to be taken care of. You know me; I can't live with all these piles of stuff everywhere. I think it'll be a Pajama Day for Sydney and I tomorrow.

It's because I'm more awake during the day

I gotta tell you. There is something to be said for typing out my blog posts during the day. I feel so much more ... awake and aware of my surroundings! At night, I'm so tired and ready for my day to be over. This is much better.
That does not necessarily mean that blog posts will be done during the day, but it certainly does mean that I'll know that they could be so much better if composed during the day. And it occurs to me that perhaps I should be sure to do them during the day, you know, if the writing will be that much better.
Sydney and Mom are off doing some Christmas shopping for me right now, which is why I have the time to compose two blog posts for the day. You know what else I did? I just walked three dogs around my neighborhood. It sounds like a solid thing to do, but even though, on their own, all three dogs are very good and responsive and well-mannered on leashes, having all three of them in two hands was a bit of a ... wait for it ... handful. Two tugging this way; one pooping; three pulling this way; each pulling a different way; no one caring at all for my sanity. It was an experience. And one that won't likely be repeated anytime soon. It was kind of like corralling a flurry of birds, if you will. They're good boys though, so it was still fun.

I love my Uggs, damn it

I just saw that "Ugg slippers" is at the top of the Yahoo! gift search trends on their home page this morning.
I'm going to tell you, beyond just the slippers, I love my Uggs. I love them, and I won't apologize for it, even though they've become something of a not-cool thing over the last several years. I got my first pair of Ugg boots early in high school, probably freshman or sophomore year. I wore them in the snow. I wore them when it was very cold in Lake Tahoe, Reno, and throughout our ski adventures in Colorado, Utah, and Canada. I loved my boots, and they kept my feet very warm.
Then, they became trendy. All the "cool" girls in school started wearing them with their leggings, and skirts, and skinny jeans and all that. (Yes, fashion has made a complete circle since I was in high school.) After they became the ultimate in cool, they, of course, became the epitome of what was not cool.
I rolled with it, because to me, in my snowy lifestyle, they were still the warmest boots out there, and I still loved them more than anything else I put on my feet. I had Ugg slippers from Australia after graduating college. My boot collection has expanded and included Ugg shoes, more slippers, outdoor slippers that made my life in Boston livable, and more than enough cold-weather boots to take care of a small city.
I sit here, typing this, in my Ugg slippers, that should probably be replaced. And even though my love for other shoes has ebbed and flowed (witness my obsession with Toms), my love for my Uggs has never faltered. Yes, I am better than all those people who loved, then hated, then loved them.
I saw a pair at Nordstrom the other day that I want for my birthday. My point is this: Sure, they're at the top of the trending list now, but where will all those bandwagon fans be in a couple years, when the fashionistas decide they're not cool anymore?

Deck the halls with gingerbread

I have a whole lot of Christmas emotions going on this year. Chief among them is that I would rather be in California. Sydney's old enough, I've decided, that we can transport Christmas, and the magic of Santa will follow her anywhere. This has been discussed, and it looks like I may be able to make my California Christmas happen next year. (YAY!!)
But because I'm feeling kind of ambivalent about where I'm having Christmas this year, I'm overcompensating with Christmas festiveness events. We went to a Christmas festival last weekend. We're planning our ZooLights excitement for next week when Mom is here. And there's a super cool street of lit houses, called the Loop of Lights, that I'd like for us to go see. But also, there is a gingerbread village display at a local resort that is supposed to be pretty awesome. I read up on it, and the installation is 1,500 square feet of gingerbread houses, structures and festiveness. Sounds pretty fantastic, right? Well, don't ask my family, because Sydney and Brian are not at all interested in seeing it. I got poo-pooed by both of them this morning in regards to the village. I only got Sydney's tentative agreement because I'm her mom and I guilted her. Brian is more stubborn, and will be a harder nut to crack, so to speak. But tomorrow is another day, and no doubt there will be an hour somewhere that we can spend going to this random thing.

Peppermint brownies? Is there such a thing?

School is over for 2014, and I've got no Kimmie Time until the first week of January. It's so weird how motherhood makes one both thoroughly enjoy time with their baby, but then also dread it. While I miss her terribly when she's at school, I also can't think of anything more liberating than dropping her at school for the day. So these next two weeks will be both amazing, and irritating.
She gets to spend some time doing some Christmas-y stuff though, like the grocery shopping for the baking, making dough for cookies, helping me wrap some gifts, and doing some shopping for Brian. After that, Mom gets here, and all the Christmas festivities begin in earnest.
This week we'll be baking sugar cookies, fudge, and pumpkin spice cake. What else? I have no idea. I can't decide if we need to try something different. I'll have to flip through my seasonal magazines again, and I've got a holiday baking guide downstairs I should spend some time with. I enjoy baking, you know. It's one of my favorite things.

Seriously, I just cried over him

Alright, so I've now pulled myself together enough to write a bit. I just finished sobbing over the finale, the end, the finish, of The Colbert Report.
Honestly, I love this show. I've been a fan and watched it ever since the first episode aired. It is one of the few absolute delights on my television roster. I'm going to miss it like crazy.
And while I will miss the character and angle and brilliance of the Report, I am eager to see what Colbert does with his new seat behind The Late Show desk. He'll do phenomenally with guests; his monologues (if he has them) will be excellent; and his creativity will keep us intrigued. I'm sure of it. It's so fun to look forward to what he'll do in his next incarnation.
Letterman's retirement date is in May. Will they take the summer before starting the show with Colbert? I hope not. I'd rather not wait until September before seeing Colbert again, you know? I want him back on television now ... like yesterday's now.
Or I'll start crying again.

Christmas carols abound

I'm super chilled, and super tired. I do though, have my evening slippers on, so my feet are warm. I really should be in bed, but I'm still all dressed, and sitting on the bed instead of laying in it. I'm watching tonight's Michael Buble Christmas special as I write this.
I think he's lip syncing some of this stuff. I've found that entertainers, when singing live, tend to lose volume when they pull the microphone far away from their mouths. Bizarrely, this is not happening to Buble. His voice volume is the same throughout, and he holds the microphone at arm's length at times. This is concerning. ... Dude! You're a singer at a single show in a theater! Sing the shit!
Still, I'm a huge fan of Buble, so I'll probably enjoy the rest of this before turning off the lights. But then again, maybe not. I just looked at the clock again. It's late.
On another note (no pun intended), Gwen Stefani sang part of a Christmas carol on The Voice last night, and it made me suddenly, very much want a Christmas album by her. Her voice is so fun and gravelly, and unique, that I think she'd make an awesome Christmas album. There isn't one on iTunes, so I will assume that someone just hasn't suggested it to her, but I'm hoping someone will now. I'd totally buy that CD.

It's because they're good stories

It's that time of year, friends, when the television is less interesting, and the books become priority. Well, kinda. I mean, I still have a whole lot of other things to demand my attention, chief among them is my kid, and Christmas, and the Task That Shall Not be Named. But in a perfect world, I'd be able, and willing, to settle into some books before the world gears back up in late January and February. Especially since I've got a pile already, and I believe I may be getting more for Christmas.
Also, in regards to reading, I was pleased to see that I'd been a hatchet monster to my magazine stack a couple weeks ago, and all the older mags had been recycled.
So I'm not really behind in my reading; I'm on time but had chosen to overlook a couple issues. I don't have anything else to read in my life, so once the Task is completed, and Christmas is over, I'll look forward to doing a bit of reading.
Books are happiness.

They all smelled good, but not HIM

Years ago, I was a small girl who wanted all the Strawberry Shortcake dolls. They were the hot toys to get, and I learned years later that Mom had to travel to hell and back to find all the dolls for me. In this photo, you'll see the Purple Pie Man, the bad guy, in the back left. He smelled awful.
I found this photo the other day, and it reminded me of my awesome collection. I had Strawberry Shortcake, of course, Blueberry Muffin, Apple Dumplin', Huckleberry Pie, Orange Blossom, Lemon Meringue, Raspberry Tart, Cafe Ole, Angel Cake, and Apricot, as well as all their pets.
I think I may still have these dolls in a box in Mom's storage unit. Or did I donate them? I don't remember. Not that I want them, if I did. But this is a really good picture of them. In fact, this is the first time I've seen the Purple Pie Man since I managed to get him out of my life, because he smelled really bad.
I'm super glad I saved all my dolls and such for my "daughter," should she want to play with them. DINOSAURS.

I watched it so you don't have to

I have an aversion to watching people fight and argue on television. I avoid most every point/counterpoint show, from news and politics to sports. It doesn't seem to me that anyone ever changes their mind based on an argument on television, whether you're the person arguing, or in the audience. By virtue of this, I avoid most everything that looks like it's going to be nothing but people screaming, including movies.
This is why I avoided August: Osage County last year. The trailers, remember, showed little more than Meryl Streep being mean and yelling, and Julia Roberts shrieking. That they acted so abominably to their family made the movie even less enticing. I avoided it very much. ... You must be able to see where this post is going.
Brian, who is the bane of my existence sometimes when it comes to entertainment, decided to land on this movie, "just to see," and then chose to stay with it. I was comfortable on the sofa with my phone and my magazine. I still ended up watching this movie, which I will tell you, is a wretched story about wretched people doing wretched things to each other. Everyone is so mad, or crazy, or vindictive. It was an awful movie to watch. And I don't feel any better about myself as a person, or even as a moviegoer, having watched it. I advise against it.