Have You Worn or Watched It Yet?

I got a couple of DVD's for Christmas 2007 and I have only watched one of them. I got Devil Wears Prada that I watched sometime in the Spring and I still haven't watched the other DVD Hairspray!

What's wrong with me? My kids give me DVD's and I don't watch them. I shriek with delight once I open the presents - I am genuinely happy - but then I set them aside and sort of forget about them.

Well, I have made it my mission to watch Hairspray from Christmas 2007 before 2009 comes in! No ifs ands or butts about it!

BTW, what are some gifts you have gotten for past Christmases or other holidays that you have yet to wear or watch? 2008 doesn't count.

Happy Holidays Everyone!

We had a great Christmas and our kids were very happy with their gifts. My sister and her husband gave me a jacket and a few sweaters and gave my kids and my husband new jackets and a few shirts. We also got two new puzzles as we used to do puzzles a long time ago, but they thought it would be nice to get back to that. I agree!

My kids gave me a DVD of one of my favorite movies, "Corinna, Corinna" and the first season of 24, which I had not seen and one of my favorite shows!

What did you guys receive for Christmas and/or what gift did you give someone that they loved?

Gifting on the Inexpensive (Cheap) :)

I really had not planned on giving holiday gifts to anyone at work. I got a couple of gifts from friends at work. I feel obligated to give them something, so I figured I would bake some cookies (oatmeal w/craisins) and brownies (from box), enough for everyone to enjoy.

I hope tomorrow (Tuesday) there will be enough people there to enjoy them!

Are there any homemade gifts anyone out there has given to friends or co-workers? What are some of your ideas for NOT spending a lot, if any, money?

I Don't Have Room for an Insta-Bed

Today was my office's holiday luncheon. It was two hours and it was packed with fun. We ate lunch which was lasagna (veggie and meat), garlic bread, two chicken dishes, two salads and pizza. It was really good. We played this white elephant game where we had to wrap something from home that we didn't want and bring that in. I got three little bottles of shampoo/conditioner/lotion set. I found a pair of white shoelaces that had never been opened, wrapped them and brought them in. I don't know who got those.

We also had Secret Santas and I got a $10.00 gift card to a grocery store. I gave out a $10.00 cash card to Jack-in-the-Box.

We played holiday charades and they raffled off four insta-beds (the kind that you blow up and it makes a mattress). I didn't want those so every time they called out a number, I was saying to myself "please don't call my number". Thankfully, I didn't win anything. At the end, though, we all got gift bags with candy, $25.00, a calculator with our company name on it and a scratch off.

I couldn't figure out the scratch off (hope I didn't win anything big) and I put the $25.00 in my purse.

Do any of you have B&M jobs and what did you do for a holiday party?

Short Cut (ish) for Cooking?

I love to cook and bake. I made my older son's 19th birthday cake out of a Betty Crocker box mix. I can bake from scratch, but I really like taking short cuts. I guess I don't really consider it a short cut since I'm still taking the time to mix everything together and bake in the oven. A real shortcut would be to drive to Costco and get one of their cakes already made and decorated (I've done that too!).

Anyway, I've also used the cookie mixes from a bag, cake frosting, cake decorating tubes,and muffin mixes. I'm busy and the time savings are awesome! I really like the holiday cookies that come already cut out in shapes, so all you need to do is bake them. Every time I've made sugar cookies from scratch (real scratch), I can never roll them out good enough to cut them in shapes.

I want to know what are your favorite short cuts for cooking? I haven't made a biscuit from scratch in a year!

Do You Know People Like This?

I don't understand people...especially business people. We have a realtor and a mortgage broker and both seem to be incommunicado (sp?). I don't understand people who say they are going to call and don't... for days and days. We're not serious about house hunting yet, but this little experiment is a cause for concern.

Do you know people who are supposed to be "on your team" not communicate with you? How does that make you feel? I would never reveal their names, but I still keep their cards in my purse... just in case they come to their senses.

Put a House on the List

There's less than two weeks until Christmas and, once again, I can't believe it's almost here. We've decided, like we do every year, not to go crazy on gifts. We haven't even started shopping for Christmas and we haven't even bought Christmas cards to send out. I'll never forget one year, we didn't even send any cards out and people stopped short of asking us "what's wrong with you?" That was the last year we missed sending cards. We do have our tree up!

It's tough as the kids get older (19 and 15 - both birthdays in December) we don't really know what to get them. I've asked them to write out a little list, but I haven't seen one list from either of them. I told them not to just mention stuff they want and expect me to remember it like a short order cook or the waitress at Norm's. I did happen to make a little list that is, you guessed it, in my purse. It has stuff on it that I could remember and what I thought they would want. I just have to remember to actually purchase the stuff and not carry it around on a piece of paper the way it is now.

Each year my husband and I say not to get each other anything for Christmas. This year is no different. My husband bought one of those mini computers from Best Buy for himself to replace an old laptop that had been blinking out on him. He also bought some new clothes for work. He told me not to get anything for Christmas for him since he had bought these things a few months ago. Today, he mentioned that he wanted some renovation books for Christmas like the ones you see at Lowe's. I didn't say anything, but I wonder if I should drop him a little hint too? We're planning on buying a house next year and that's why I said I didn't want anything for Christmas. I wonder if I should add "house" to my list?

I'll Get Back to Ya

We're having a Holiday luncheon next week during work hours to celebrate the holiday season. I put the invitation in my purse to remind me to pick up a gift for my "Secret Santa". The gift has got to be $10 or less. I'm not sure what I'm getting for him, but my Secret Santa loves food and I'm leaning toward a gift certificate to a fast food place. He would love it! He's single and he loves to eat. He's always eating fast food or something as equally nutritious for lunch.

I'm pretty happy with whatever anyone gives me. I've always said it's the thought that counts. One time my sister sent me some kitchen towels for my birthday. I love them and I still use them. I feel if anyone gives you a gift to celebrate something happening in your life, be grateful and say thank you... and mean it. I'm not talking about if someone gives you a paper clip or a piece of lint, I think you know there are boundaries! You never know what people's finances are like, so be thankful for the small gifts as well as the big ones. I'd be happy with another bottle of hand lotion from Bath & Body Works... that's what I got last year and I was really happy. I'm sure I'll be just as happy this year. I'll let you know what I get.

I Have the Ticket in My Purse

I got a ticket today. I was so proud of myself for leaving early enough to get to work 10 minutes early... I know, I know. Well, I thought I would take a short cut and make a left turn through this neighborhood to bypass a light and a busy street. I can make a left turn, but only after 9:00 am. I knew it was 8:45 am when I turned. I thought about making a u-turn then make a right turn onto the street, but I looked down the street and didn't see any cops (like usual), so I made the left turn as planned. Just as I turned, I saw a cop on foot motioning me to pull over! OMG he had pulled someone else over and saw me and waved his hand for me to pull over. Busted!

I showed him my license and it took about 7 minutes for me to find my proof of insurance and registration card in the glove compartment. My husband usually drives this particular car, but I took it this morning and was lost in a sea of repair bills, food coupons and older registration paperwork until I finally found what I needed. The cop was patient, actually walking over to his car parked on another street, that I didn't see, to write up my ticket. He even let me call my husband to ask where he put the paperwork. He was also very nice when he handed me my ticket, told me my options (plead innocent- right- plead guilty and pay -probably- go to traffic school - maybe) and when he told me to "have a nice day." Funny, as I was listening to him, more cars drove by and I wondered how many of THEM had made that left turn before it was time.

I was 10 minutes late to work. I will never make another left hand turn before 9:00 am again! Shame, as I only live about 15 minutes from work. The cop said it would not be a ding on my insurance. We'll see. I have the ticket in my purse.

My Purse Will Do Just Fine

I don't clean out my purse very often, but when I do, you wouldn't believe the interesting stuff that is in there. I just got my purse about 4 weeks ago on sale at a Shoe Pavillion that is going out of business. It's not a huge purse, but it holds my stuff nicely. I have a lot of little things in there.

For instance, we all went to San Diego about 3 weeks ago for my son's birthday. He loves the Chargers and we got tickets to a game as a surprise for him. We had a blast, even though they lost in (I'm not kidding!) the last two SECONDS of the game. We still had fun, especially since it was our first time going to a professional football game. I have my tickets from that game in my purse.

I also have tickets to the Wild Animal Park that we also went to on that weekend. We had a blast and I took a lot of pictures with my camera phone. Well, I can't really make out all the animals because the pictures are a little small. Oh, well. I still have the ticket in my purse, along with a ticket stub from the movie we also saw (Quantum of Solace... ummm Daniel Craig!).

I should put all that memorabilia in a scrapbook (don't own one) I guess, but if it's in my purse, I can look at it every time I go in there. Wow what nice memories! I think my purse will do just fine. :)