Making a List....

Checking it twice!

The kids are working out their Santa lists. Good thing since "Santa" is making the shopping run tomorrow! J.T. listed out a bunch of expensive things: X-Box, Nintendo DS, Games for Nintendo DS, Batman lego.... and had to be reminded that Santa has to be paid for the toys he delivers. the Batman lego seems doable. Except for the fact that they don't make Batman lego anymore and judging by the prices listed on Ebay, made very few at all! $200 for a 200 pieces of lego in a box? Not so much.

Abby keeps adding to her list. Nintendo DS, Dora game for Nintendo DS, lipgloss and nail polish, Splashy the Whale, and hundreds of "I want that!" moments in Wal-mart and during cartoons. Oh how I wish I had developed the idea of Dora or lego.

The tree is up and has been (thank you very much) since the day after Thanksgiving. It is leaning a little. Maybe alot. But the ornaments are staying on! I think I forgot a crucial piece when packing it up last year. Something to do with fitting the pole into the base? (Shut up Aunty Evil). It's a lovely pre-lit piece of fake greeny that takes all of 2 minutes to assemble. I LOVE it. Bets the heck out of the one we had with 60 branches that had to be matched into color coded slots.

I've even already purchased a few presents. Rob guessed his before I even got the bag out of the car. It's a bathrobe to replace his tatty one. "What else would you buy me from the mall?" he says.

The Christmas tunes are on high rotation. Abby has altered the lyrics to "Rudolph" by changing the "guide my sleigh" bit to "guard my sleigh". Which really does make sense. There have to be millions and millions of dollars worth of toys piled into that thing. An enterprising elf could make a fortune on the black market with some of those electronics.

One of my work projects has been a Giving Tree. The tree is loaded with cards. Each card lists the name of someone, their clothing size, shoe size and a wish list item. Most of the names are for school age children. It is heartbreaking to read hand-written notes from teachers: "Really needs new shoes" or "desperately needs underwear and socks". We live a life of plenty when so many don't. It is wonderful to see people taking the cards and coming back with armloads of gifts. Most people have gotten every single item listed on the cards, even though they were asked to just choose something.

So... after feeling behind to start the season, I'm beginning to find my feet and gain a little traction on the road to the holidays. I hope you are all good enough to find a little something from Santa under your tree this year. A couple of you (ahem, you Aunty... and your favorite Abby) need to get cracking though!