Am I the Only One Who Knows How To Answer the Phone??

Wow, what a holiday we've had. Christmas came and went. It was fabulous. Mom and dad were here, tree fell, only once, this year, the boys got a new trampoline, and we had snow. Mom and I baked 192 dozen cookies, and yes, I've eaten about 32 dozen. Had my treatment last week and surprisingly enough, I didn't get too emotional. I usually cry for a day or two, but not too bad this time. Mikey turned 11 on the 29th. I can't believe my baby boy is 11. Time flies. Enjoy the babies while they're still babies. The tree came down the day after Christmas and I got almost all the decorations put away by the 27th. No, I'm not the Grinch of Kings Mountain, but when you have a 9 foot tree in your foyer shedding needles quicker than I shed my hair after chemo, you're probably ready for it to come down. I love Christmas, but when it's over, it's over! My dad tells the story of their first Christmas tree after they got married. The first time I heard the story, he took it down on Valentine's Day. After 53 years of marriage, the story has evolved from Valentine's day, to "it fell over on the fourth of July and I dragged it to the curb!" Mom tells him he's full of, well, you know, and the conversation rests until next Christmas.

I left on 12/30 to drive to Raleigh for dad's surgery. He's been having intense pain for the last several months, so the doctor decided it was time to straighten him out, literally. His spine was pretty twisted and his nerves were really squished. The doctor said he couldn't believe he was still able to walk. So, after about 3 1/2 hours of surgery, 9 screws, 2 brackets and a cable connecting the brackets to his pelvis he's, hopefully, relieved of some of the pain. He's in a good deal of discomfort from the surgery, but he's able to move his feet in a way he wasn't able to before the surgery. The doctor was encouraged at the result, so time will tell.

So, last night, being New Year's Eve, mom and I decided to go out and have a bite. Let me just say, I love my mom very much, but, the only thing that's more pitiful than ringing in the New Year with your mom is going on your honeymoon with your mom. But, I digress. We decided, that is I decided to hop on over to the Melting Pot and get some dinner. Now, granted, we were not dressed up. Our clothes did indeed come out of the suitcase, wrinkled, (keep in mind that when mom and dad got married, she ironed his underwear, so she is pretty particular about her appearance and usually doesn't walk around wrinkled) and we weren't driving the Bentley. We walked in and little miss thing at the door looked at us and said, "I'm not sure if this is for you. It's a little pricey." WHAT?? Listen you little too skinny, shiny hair, perfectly manicured pain in the butt. Too pricey?? I know we looked a little disheveled, but for God's sake, we're not homeless bag ladies pulling a grocery cart looking for yesterday's leftovers. Needless to say, we stayed for dinner, dropped a few (I won't tell my husband how many) coins and let the manager know that little miss thing needs to be more careful how she talks to people. All we got for our insult were two free glasses of champagne. Not even the good stuff!! I might have to write a letter to Mr. Melting Pot. Maybe I can get a free dinner out of the deal.

I got home this afternoon. I hated to leave mom there by herself but had to get home to the family. Plus, I've got to teach Sunday school tomorrow. I walked into the house and Michael was on the couch, napping. Shocker. Walked into the guest room to see my boys and they were on the Playstation, shocker. The house was clean, Michael's a good housekeeper. I put my purse on the counter, and looked at the answering machine. 91 new messages. Seriously??? Well, maybe not 91, but 14!! Am I the only one who knows how to answer to phone around here? What if I was in an accident and left a message for my dear husband to come and jaws of life me out of my car?? I'd still be there. Holy cow, some things never change. But, they survived without me for a few days, I think Trina the dog was more excited I was home than anyone else. Welcome to motherhood.

Happy New Year my friends. May God bless you this year with peace and understanding. 2010 was challenging, but could have been much worse. So, enjoy your health and families and much love to you all in the new year. If you call my house and no one answers, it means I'm not home but my family is.