It’s time to start getting ready for our Summer season already. We’ll be having meetings pretty soon and I need to finish up buying my inventory & get started on my sewing projects. I don’t have a lot to do, but I don’t want to be trying to get things done later in the year, because I know I’ll start putting it off & then it’ll be July & I won’t have done anything.

Dawn won’t be doing any sewing or crafting this year, she’s having some problems (I wrote about it in my other blog and her quest for affordable health insurance) so I’m pretty much on my own where that’s concerned anyway. There are still some things I want to order from my wholesaler, and other things we need to get put together, but we are a lot closer to being ready than we were last December. I started as soon as Faire was over this year, and feel pretty organized at this point.

We had a very happy holiday, I got my biggest wish, which was to have my son, Erin home with us. It took us some doing, but we managed it, who knows when we’ll get to see him again, so it was worth everything we went through.

Troy got me a very nice Dell netbook & a Zune, I got him a netbook with a TV receiver & we’re both very pleased. The kids both got what they asked us for, the family was happy with their gifts as well, so it was a successful & happy day together. So, while no one got trips to visit (and stay in) any Toronto hotels, we all received something nice. My dad bought me a Bailey’s gift set with a bottle of Bailey’s & a couple of glasses, so I’m a very happy camper!

It was really nice, because shopping was pretty much stress-free for us this year, I told the kids straight up to tell us what they wanted & that’s what they’d get, and that I wasn’t going to guarantee extra gifts, but if I managed them, that would be a bonus. Thankfully, they have pretty reasonable wishes most of the time.

Garrett called me this afternoon, he & his wife, Keri, were planning to have their friends over for Christmas dinner, which I thought was excellent. It’s their first married Christmas in their first apartment. I’m so proud of him, and he seems to be very happy & satisfied in his decision to get married.

Anyway, that was our holiday, how was it for all of you?

I really wish sometimes that we were wealthy. Not for the usual reasons that most people seem to have, but because I love to travel. Not to any amazing or expensive locale, just here in the United States. I see so many great travel deals come to my email & guess what? We can’t afford any of them, because of the damned airfare.

If we had money, we could get reservations in one of those nice orlando florida hotels, book our airfare & just go. We could spend the holiday away from stress, or at least go for birthdays or our anniversary, you know? Now, we look at camping as an exciting weekend away, because it’s what we can afford to do. Yes, we enjoy it & we do get to relax, but just once in awhile it would be so great to go somewhere resort-like, with stuff like indoor plumping and restaurants.

There seem to be a lot more houses that are decorated for Christmas over here on the “poor” side of town this year than there are everywhere else. Usually those multi-million dollar McMansions up on the hill are lit up to the max, with displays that probably cost an extra $1000.month in electricity. Either there aren’t as many this year or I haven’t been up there at the right time to see them.

I have been amused by a few on this side of town, though. One family had an entire Nativity scene inside an old American Standard toilet as the centerpiece of their display. While that appealed to my more blasphemous side, I can see where some people would be offended. Another family has decorated their huge evergreen tree as a toy soldier, in years past it has been a snowman and an angel, too.

I just have lights in the windows at the front of my house & a wreath on my door, like always. I don’t have any outlets outside, so I do the best I can. i love all the lights and things, though, so I’m sure Troy is thankful I can only decorate indoors!

As of this afternoon, I have one more gift to buy & some candy for the stockings. I spent the weekend out shopping with different people and pretty much managed to take care of just about everything that was left, thankfully. I took Dawn to the store today to pick out a gift for her oldest & get stuff for the other two. She wasn’t going to have money to get them anything, so I bought it & she can just say it’s from her. I also took her to get her hair trimmed, so she’d feel better about herself.

Troy & I had a good time shopping yesterday. I took care of gifts & we got things for the house, like new knives and snuggly blankets for out here in the living room. I bought the new Stephen King novel (Under the Dome) and the new Biggest Loser book (Simple Swaps). Troy got himself a Robert Parker book (Resolution) and some tiles for 4th edition D&D.

We really enjoy being out together and going to St. George, too, and let me tell you, if you’re in Utah, Sunday is the best day to Christmas shop, because I was out there Saturday & Sunday. Saturday was so crowded it was crazy, Sunday was mellow and unlike holiday shopping at all. It was great.