Christmas 2011

We survived another Christmas! After being sick last week, we packed up on Saturday afternoon and headed to Wendell for "Christmas: Part I" with my family. Mom had the house decorated beautifully - it was warm and cozy and felt like the epitome of "Home for the Holidays". We spent time together talking and laughing and eating and enjoying each other's company. As tradition would have it, we had a gourmet dinner with bacon-wrapped beef tenderloin, twice baked potatoes, asparagus, salad and divine desserts of chocolate cheesecake and fondue!

The children played and Reagan got the sticker chicken pox. Daddy read THE Christmas Story from the book of Luke. We played a game while opening gifts, and we watched the children's priceless faces as they opened items on their wish lists. It was a wonderful evening!

After six fun hours of all things Christmas, we went back home. I was voiceless and exhausted. We were sound asleep by 10. Whew! In John's excitement, he was up by 6am Christmas morning and was oh so generous to let me sleep until a whopping 7:30! We exchanged gifts, ate breakfast, watched A Christmas Story and took a nap before taking showers to head to Rocky Mount for "Christmas: Part II" with his family.

We had a yummy lunch of roast, ham, Spanicopita, potatoes, green beans, and meat balls! It wasn't long after lunch began that the rest of the crew showed up. We had a wonderful time exchanging gifts and watching the children play with their new toys.
We gave Hannah a pair of "My First Skates" that I'm pretty sure she did not take off for the next two days. It's always so fun to see a child really enjoy a gift you've picked out just for them! Jackson was such a sweet boy and was always coming by asking to be held. Even though he's a big boy, he's still a snuggle bug.

We left Rocky Mount that evening exhausted, and I was voiceless once again. We were home by 7 and I'm pretty sure we were asleep by 9:30. We spent most of Monday relaxing, napping and running a few errands. I am working all day Tuesday and till 1:45 on Wednesday, then I'm off again until January 3. It's kind of nice to be back at work where it's quiet and I'm not tempted to do house work. It's giving me a chance to rest my voice because I haven't needed any medicine today, but I still have this darn laryngitis!

Hope you and your family had a blessed Christmas!

Merry Christmas

From our family to yours.

Merry Christmas Eve Eve

On this Christmas Eve Eve, I'm going to tell you a gross little story.

It seems that every Christmas, all the stress and meanness (as my Meme would say) of the year decides to rear its ugly head in the form of a near death sickness. Last year, as the snow was falling on Christmas night, so was my health. I developed a horrible cold that lasted about a week.

This year, I came down with a virus on Tuesday night that tried to kill me. It started with a scratchy throat that I thought nothing of - chalked it up to sleeping with my mouth open the night before. Wednesday morning came and so did the upset stomach. Yes, three times in about an hour. My throat still hurt. I took a shower and started getting myself together for the day. After kissing John good-bye and drying my hair, I decided that I needed to go to work a little later so I could get some rest. Thirty minutes after that decision was made, I decided I just couldn't go to work at all. The longer I sat, the worse I felt. Due to John's demanding urging, I drove to the Minute Clinic and saw the nurse who kindly said, "You have a virus. There's nothing I can give you for it. Go home, drink lots of fluids and get some rest." She also informed me that my right ear was completely blocked by wax. (Guess that explains why we've been listening to the TV at a much higher volume lately...)

Umm, ok.

Once home, things fell apart quickly. The fever set in around 11am. The fever's friends, chills and aches, showed up with it. Despite my best efforts, none of these went away until 11am the NEXT DAY. It's been a long time since I've been this miserable. In the meantime, I asked my Mom to come clean my right ear out (you may not know that I've had four operations on this ear, and I only trust my Mom or the doctor to look at touch it). She came by around 5pm and you wouldn't believe what she pulled out of my ear. I'm pretty sure some of it was brain matter or candle making materials. It was disgusting.

Anyway, after laying in bed all day Thursday and sleeping 6-7 hours, I ate dinner and was back in bed by 9:30. Sleep was difficult, but I managed to get about 7 more hours of sleep. Because I am out of PTO at work, I came in today. Things were really rough until about noon, and I think I'm making the turn toward feeling a lot better. I took a mini-nap in our wellness room around 10:30, and I really feel like my energy is coming back.

We are closing early today, and 3pm can't get here soon enough. I want to be back on the couch with my love bug nurse, Milo, watching Teen Mom 2 and Ellen.

Thankfully, I should be well enough to enjoy Christmas Eve and Christmas Day this weekend. Unfortunately, I have to work two days next week instead of having the entire week off, but that's okay. I am thankful to have had a chance to be at home and rest. We are spending Christmas Eve with my family tomorrow night, and we'll celebrate Christmas with John's family on Christmas Day.

Hope you all have a very Merry Christmas!!

The Christmas Story

Found this on Project Baby Blog. Just love it.

Busiest Weekend Yet

This weekend was our busiest December weekend, but it was great! I took off on Friday to have my 30,000 mile check up at Leith Honda (go see Melanie if you don't already have a service consultant!). Their new facility is really nice, and I was in and out in an hour and twenty minutes! I ran into Belk at Triangle Town Center to pick up some Clinique and was headed home to do chores. I dusted the entire house and cleaned both bathrooms. After eating some lunch, I got my hair cut at Heavenly Beauty Salon and Spa in Knightdale (go see Rosa - she's awesome!!). John got home around 3, so we went to the grocery store, Blockbuster and Buffalo Wild Wings for a gift card. I immediately started cooking when we got home because my parents were coming over for dinner. We had chicken piccata, egg noodles and roasted asparagus. Delicious! We all went to LWFC's Christmas Production followed by frozen yogurt at Sweet Frog. It was a really fun, FULL day!

When we got up on Saturday, we decided Krispy Kreme was in order for breakfast. It was a great choice! I made cream cheese sausage balls after breakfast because we were having lunch with my father in law's side of the family, and we wanted to take something yummy to share.

I know y'all want that recipe, so here ya go:

1 lb. sausage
1 8oz. block of cream cheese, softened
4 oz. shredded cheddar
1 1/4 c. Bisquick

Mix together all ingredients (if you have a stand mixer, let the dough hook do all the work for you). Bake for 20-25 minutes at 400 degrees. Enjoy!

So we had lunch with the family in Princeton, and we stopped by the outlets afterward. I didn't want to stop, mind you, but we pulled right into a spot as someone was backing out and I had GREAT luck at Ann Taylor Loft and GAP. I ended up with 8 shirts and 2 pairs of pants for less than $150! Finding clothes is a pain in the bootay for me, so I was ecstatic to find so many things that fit for such good prices. We had dinner at Dickey's that night - if you haven't been, go for dinner - it's a little pricey for lunch. It's so good. They really know how to do BBQ of all kinds. Oh, and get the Caesar salad as a side - it is so fresh and yummy! We did a little laundry and watched The Hangover II after dinner.

John had to be at church to serve on Sunday morning, but I stayed home to prepare (vacuum, set up tables/kitchen, Windex glass doors, make bed, etc.) for my college girlfriends to come over. See the post below for details on that. We had a great time! Once they left, I had a little clean up and another load of laundry to do. I also prepped our lunches (cooked pasta, made dressing, cut up veggies, assembled pasta salad, cut lettuce and tomato for sandwiches, made John's Monday sandwich, cut up pineapple and put in daily containers - takes some time, but makes things much easier in the end) for the week and packed Monday's lunches.

It was a great weekend, but it was super busy. Work this week, on the other hand, will not be busy for me. It may be agonizingly slow, actually. I am trying to stay busy and offer help to some people who are busier than me. John and I are both off work December 24-January 2, and I am really looking forward to spending some QT at home with my two boys.

Did I mention - We leave for Mexico three months from NEXT Saturday! WAHOO!!!

11th Annual MC Girls Christmas Luncheon

Yesterday, I hosted the 11th annual Christmas get together with my college girlfriends. Most of us only see each other at this event each year, but it is always such a special time to catch up. This event began in our dormitory parlor in college, then it became a progressive dinner at our local parents' homes, then the dinners were held at our own apartments after college. As we began to marry and have busier lives, the progressive dinners turned into one dinner at one home. This year, we decided on a lunch gathering, as the majority of girls could attend on this day and time. Our group has gotten bigger and smaller over the years, but we always have a good time regardless of size!

I decided to let Q'doba cater this year, and it was the best decision I've ever made. We had a very busy weekend, so picking up Q'doba and having everything taken care of was such a breeze! The girls brought desserts and ornaments for our ornament exchange. We really had a wonderful time and missed those who weren't able to be with us.

Jingle All the Way!

I saw this precious Pedigree commercial on a blog I keep up with today and HAD to share! Enjoy!

Away in a Manger

Merry Christmas!

Too Soon?

Is it too soon to think about some New Years Resolutions? I don't usually do these, but this year, I have a few I'd really like to stick with:

• Exercise. This is so hard for me, but it needs to be done. I NEED to stick with it.
• Floss. I actually started this two weeks ago after my last dental cleaning. So far, I've done really well - I'm averaging every other day!
• Pack Better Lunches. I read a blog post about this today, and it reminded me that I need to get back on track with what we're eating for lunch. I need to pack more fresh fruit and veggies!

Not so much a resolution, but a goal: We are determined to be debt free (except our mortgage) by December 2012. Period. There is no room for failure. We want to stop paying CFNC and SECU for loans and save that money for our future goals. This puts us on a fairly strict budget, but nothing we haven't been doing all along.

Have you made any resolutions for 2012 or are you just trying to survive the holidays??

Weekend

We had a great weekend! It began with some delicious Zaxby's on Friday night. Did I mention I can eat anything I don't have to bite into?! Glorious!! We did our Wal-Mart/grocery run after that to pick up everything we needed for the weekend and this week. Mission accomplished and we survived.

We had lunch with John's maternal side of the family in Rocky Mount on Saturday. It was great fun and awesome to catch up with everyone. The children are getting so big, and I fell less like the "new girl" and more like the old shoe. It's a really comfortable feeling that I love. We went to a tacky Christmas sweater party at my friend Meredith's tee-tiny tree house Saturday night. It was great fun! We got to meet some of her friends, coworkers and her new puppy. John's homemade, light-up, tacky Christmas sweater was a hit, as usual! Unfortunately, I do not have any pictures, but it was a great time!

We slept in Sunday morning and ran some errands before going to see Ira David Wood's A Christmas Carol with John's parents that afternoon. It was wonderful! Going to see it is a new holiday tradition for me, and it is one that I love.

We are having dinner with some sweet friends tomorrow night and have another busy weekend coming up. Can you believe we have less than two weeks until Christmas? John and I are taking 6 days off between Christmas and New Years. We can't wait to just hang out and do whatever we want!!

Hope you had a nice weekend too!

Egg Casserole Recipe

You might be curious as to what egg casserole recipe I'm making this Christmas, so I will share:

12 eggs
1 c. milk
16 oz. sour cream
1 c. shredded cheddar cheese
S&P, to taste

Crack eggs into a large pan. Add milk and S&P. Scramble until just done - not too hard/dry. Remove from heat. Fold in sour cream. Refrigerate overnight. Remove from fridge and sprinkle cheese on top. Bake, uncovered, at 300 degrees for 30-40 minutes. Feeds 6-8. Enjoy!

Of course, you can cut this recipe in half or double/triple it easily. You can also add yummy things like crumbled bacon on top before baking. This year, I am going to add in cooked, chopped sausage before folding in the sour cream and refrigerating overnight. I'll let you know how it turns out. You really can't go wrong with this recipe - so easy and SO delicious!

Post-op 20/20

This morning, I went back to the periodontist for my one week post-op appointment. I got some good news, and I got some bad news.

Good news: The tissue graft on the left tooth has taken and is growing well. That tooth had 4mm of recession with plenty of bone and tissue to connect the graft too. Hurray!

Bad news: The tissue graft on the right tooth has not taken as well and is not growing like it should (I already knew this from looking at my mouth over the past week, so I was prepared for this news). That tooth had 6.5mm of recession with significant bone loss. Because a graft can only be connected to bone (tooth is not bone - it is different) or tissue, connecting the graft was very difficult.

What This Means: He wants me to continue letting my mouth heal for another two weeks. He wants to see me again where he will decide how to move forward. If significant changes haven't taken place on that right tooth, we will have to do a less invasive procedure where he takes tissue from the surrounding teeth and covers the problem tooth like a curtain. There is a chance he'll have to do another very small graft from my palate, but it would be much smaller and would heal very quickly.

I still can not bite into anything like an apple, burger or biscuit. I am forbidden to remove my lip from my lower teeth for the next two weeks. Keeping it closed is critical to the healing and growth of that tissue. I can brush all of my teeth except the lower front gum line (thank God). I can kiss John again (wooHOO!).

Hindsight is always 20/20, I suppose. I've known for two years that I needed to have this procedure done, but out of fear, I put it off. Doing so increased recession and deteriorated the bone of the problem tooth. He is going to do everything he can to give me a permanent fix that will last 30-40 years and prevent me from losing that tooth.

Take care of your teeth, folks. They're the only set you get. Shoot, take care of your whole body. You don't get another one.

Cheers!

Favorite Christmas Stuff

Truthfully, Christmas isn't necessarily my favorite time of year. It's cold. It's dark. People are sick. People are also crazy when driving and shopping. BUT, before you think I am a total Scrooge, there are a few things that I love about the annual Holiday season. Here's the short list:

Icicle Lights
I love some icicle lights on a house. We don't have any on ours because John is not a fan, but I think they're so pretty! I like the look of white lights on a home, and I think the icicles just make everything pop. Some people think they're tacky, but to each his own.

(Not our house.)

Christmas Movies
I love Christmas movies! They offer feel-good entertainment sans sappy love or gory action. This photo isn't a great representation of my favorites, but it includes some. Others are: Four Christmases, Home Alone and The Santa Clause.

Christmas Music
I am one of those crazies who seeks out the radio station playing Christmas music as early as possible. In fact, I started listening to Christmas music on demand on wralfm.com around Veterans' Day - not all day long, but maybe an hour during the day at work. I especially love singing Christmas carols during church on Sundays or at a traditional church service like The Moravian Lovefeast or Hanging of the Green. These carols are beautiful songs of Praise to our Creator and King!


Sausage and Egg Casserole
Y'all know I love food. You also know that I haven't eaten normally in about a week since my surgery. One of my very favorite traditions is preparing a sausage and egg casserole on Christmas Eve to be eaten on Christmas morning. My Mama did this for us when we were little, and I continued the tradition last year. I won't be using the same recipe this year as last year, but it will still be a sausage and egg casserole. Delicious!!


Cranberry Chutney Yankee Candle
This is my most favorite candle scent in the whole wide WORLD. I love anything cranberry scented, but this one takes the cake. Each Fall, I take my 20% off Bed, Bath and Beyond coupon in when this candle is the "Scent of the Month" at 25% off and get this giant candle for almost half price. John has restricted me to only burning it 2-3 hours a day. Sound ridiculous? It's not. If it was up to me, I'd burn the entire thing in one day because I love it so much!

Of course, I enjoy spending time with friends and family and all that jazz, but this is just some of my favorite Christmas stuff.

What are some of your favorite Christmas things?

Survival/Weekend Wrap Up

Hey there! If you're reading this, then you know I survived the dreaded dental surgery on Friday!

*Disclaimer: This part gets pretty graphic.* We woke up bright and early Friday morning and stopped by Hardee's for a bacon, egg and cheese biscuit before heading to Zebulon for my procedure. They took me back right on time, and John waited for me in the lobby. It probably took 30-45 minutes for them to give me countless shots of Novocaine in my lower gum line and the roof of my mouth. Then, the procedure began. While I didn't feel anything, I knew it was just as bad as I thought it would be. They literally chopped up my lower gum line with a scalpel and cut it to pieces with scissors. Then, they cut out a square in the roof of my mouth with a scalpel. I could see everything they were doing and feel the pressure, but no pain. It was very confusing because my mind was telling me I should be in serious pain, but my mouth felt nothing. Either way, it was very uncomfortable laying there with my mouth wide open trying not to swallow too much of my own blood for an hour. After getting four stitches and a written prescription for Vicodin (seriously??), we were headed home. We stopped at CVS for some Aleve, and I was on the couch for the rest of the day. John was such an amazing nurse! He took care of Milo and got me anything that I needed. We even got to watch movies that I like that afternoon! Milo didn't leave my side too much, and it's always nice to have snuggle time with him. I was in bed by 9pm that night.

We woke up pretty early on Saturday, and I quickly realized that I wasn't in pain! I actually felt GREAT! John went to Men's Breakfast at our church, and I decided to go visit with Mom while she had the grandchildren to decorate her tree. We had a wonderful time visiting, and I surprised a lot of family members by how well I was doing. I got home around lunch time to a completely clean house! John had vacuumed, dusted, blown off the front porch and garage and straightened up the rest of the house! What an amazing husband! We were bums the rest of the day and watched serious amounts of football. Unfortunately, the Hokies didn't win, but we still enjoyed watching all the championship games.

We served at church on Sunday, had lunch at Moe's and ran some errands. I'm really not sure how I ate Moe's. I haven't been able to eat anything that solid since. I spent a couple of hours in the kitchen that afternoon, cleaned the bathrooms and worked on dinner - delicious homemade macaroni and cheese and homemade creamed spinach - John grilled chicken to go with it. We went to Lights on the Neuse with John's side of the family after dinner. It was so much fun! We went last year, and it was SO COLD, but last night wasn't so bad.

I'm still feeling great! My mouth is healing really fast! The roof of my mouth is the most bothersome, not because it's sore but because it's inconvenient. I can't chew on that side of my mouth until it's completely healed, so I've developed a new sore from chewing on one side of my mouth. My gum line appears to be healing normally. The perio-pack is dissolving on it's own, and the stitches should quickly follow suit. I feel like I have chipmunk checks and Angelina Jolie lips, but I look normal in the mirror. I will be on a liquid/soft foods diet until my post-op on Friday morning where he will hopefully tell me I can go back to eating normal stuff again.

Fear

Last Sunday, our guest speaker at church talked about fear and doubt and how to overcome that in Christ Jesus. It was an awesome message and right on time for me. You guys are aware that I struggle with fear and anxiety from time to time.

But what about fear of things like snakes, spiders, falling down stairs or surgery?

That's right. Surgery. The time has come for my gum tissue grafting tomorrow, and y'all - I'm terrified. Now, I've had my fair share of surgery in my life, but I'll be awake for his. Numb, but awake. They'll take tissue from the roof of my mouth and graft it on my front bottom teeth. Sounds awful, right?

Perhaps it's the recovery that I fear. I love to eat, and this recovery will restrict me to soft foods and liquids for 4-5 days. I've bought jello, yogurt, pudding, macaroni and cheese and ice cream. Since I do 99% of the cooking in our home, John's culinary expertise is limited. He can make a mean French toast and scrambled eggs, but what else will I eat? Will I be in a lot of pain? Will I bleed like I did when I had the frenectomy two years ago? Will it be uncomfortable to talk, and how will I suppress the need to voice my opinion every 2.5 seconds!?

I'll have to deal with all this sooner or later. Surgery is tomorrow morning at 9am. Please pray that I can have some peace and not be so nervous about this. I know that everything will be just fine, but I'm just anxious.

Hope you have a great weekend!

Snoopy

Milo stole a Christmas present from under the tree last night and tried to open it. We should have named him Snoopy!