teenagers, Christmas, and poor me syndrome, and travel plans

Suzanne took this pic on Thanksgiving...the day we didn't have our celebration, the glorious day we went to the park. It wasn't just the beautiful weather, it was my beautiful girls. They were all on board, and if you have ever had a teenage daughter, you know what I mean. When one girl has the attitude, it can taint the whole day. We had the park to ourselves, and it felt good to be silly and run around and swing as high as we could go. This is how little kids feel all the time, impervious to what others think...

Evelyn and I did venture out to do a little bit of Black Friday shopping on Thursday evening, since we had our turkey dinner on Wednesday this year. Walmart was madness, and people were annoyed and frustrated, but there were a few cheerful faces. We got the one thing we went in there for, and three extra things on the way out the door. We had some good laughs at about a lady in the parking lot cursing the drivers and saying how They Ain't Got No Business Tryin' To Run Us Over When All We Want Is To Get Us Some Deals. Proud to be an American.

So yesterday I didn't go shopping, for the first time in Black Friday history. Paul and I went to the canal with the two little girls and their bikes, and Suri. Suri was so good...she got to off-leash it for most of the time...she doesn't go too far, then she turns and trots back to us, she kept between the girls ahead, and us. We walked over two miles.

At home, it was time to decorate for Christmas. Joseph and Jonathan took a trip to Washington D.C. to be with Samuel this weekend, along with some of their friends. Some of the girls went someplace with Emily, so it was only the two little girls, Sonja, and me left to pack away the autumn stuff and get out some Christmas stuff. Camille and Char were really in to it. They put lights up in the kitchen all by themselves, then got pretty princess dresses on, turned out all the regular lights, and danced to Christmas music in the lovely light of those twinkling little Christmas bulbs. I got out my phone to take some pics, and Char hid, so I told her just to dance and I would put it away. :)

This morning, we have our last college football game to work, then we're picking Lydia up. Mali works nights now at the hospital, 7 to 7. She runs on fumes, but we are happy when we get to watch Lydia.

Okay...here's a story...the electricity in our living room stopped working several months ago, except for a few outlets. So we ran electrical cords to a few lamps in the evenings, then I picked up the cords and rolled them up in the mornings. We had asked a friend to come fix it for us, and he didn't get to it...so we asked again, and he would get to it, yes. Months went by. I thought it would be like that forever. I know, I know, we should have just called an electrician, but anyway. The story...I was talking to my oldest son Ben the other day, and he was incredulous that we were not getting it fixed. He is in an apprenticeship for HVAC (heating, ventilation, air condition repair/installation). He said it was probably a simple fix, and that for my Christmas present, he was calling an electrician. He did. The guy called us yesterday, was in the area, and came over to take a look. Long story short, it was a simple fix. And now it's fixed. The guy was super nice, and was floored when he asked if all the kids milling around were ours and I pointed to a family picture. He was simply floored. He genuinely liked the kids here, talked to them, told them to be nice to their mother.

Now our house was clean, we just had thanksgiving, and we had cleaned. But our house...is getting a bit run down. There are things that need fixing...like the big spot of where the hallway gate had been...where the paint rubbed off...and we never did put the molding down in the living room along the bottom of the walls, after getting new flooring.....like 6 years ago. And then there's the kitchen window with no trim around it, the one Paul replaced himself. And so on. It's not a mansion, but it's our home, and it's mostly clean. But.

Ben had made arrangements with the electrician to send him the bill, because it was my Christmas gift. But Ben texted me and had me guess how much the guy charged. Nothing. Not a penny. He told Ben that once in a while he likes to bless people, and our family "seemed like we needed it". I didn't know whether to laugh or to cry. But I decided to just be thankful, and not take it as an insult:)


And the travel plans: Emily and I are taking the two youngest girls of the Five-Girls-In-A-Row...to Norway in March! Suzanne 14 and Sonja 13!!! We bought the plane tickets!!! We are going to a sisters conference, and to visit Abigail and Margaret! And, we have an 8 hour layover in London on the way home and are hoping to see the city. Sonja Kathleen is ecstatic, she has to get a passport!!!! She is going on a plane! Sonja is the youngest of those five girls in a row, and she is the sunshine of the group. She is loud and silly and funny and she appreciates things. She's called, "Ginger", but she insists her hair isn't red, just a little orange-y. Suzanne just went to Israel,so she is a seasoned traveler. But she's never been to Norway, and is quite excited. She's more quiet and reserved, but when she does get chatty and animated, it makes you feel good. And to make her all happy about something is so worth it.

Anyway. Life is good.