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November 26, 2010

IT'S FRIDAY, MY FAVORITE DAY!!

We have been in West Linn all week taking care of the three granddaughters. They have had the whole week off from school for the Thanksgiving holiday and so Dave and I have been entertaining them. We were homebound most of the time because we don't have car seats to take them anywhere, so we have been helping them with their homework. Jadyn, who is in the second grade, has been working on reading to Granddad and Jaysa, who is in kindergarten, is learning her alphabet. She knows how to say them but to read them and write them has been taking some practice. They also love to create things on the computer so that has been something for them to do.

Burrrrrr! It sure has been very cold (in the teens and lower 20's at night) and then we also had some snow. Not a lot of snow, but then it doesn't take very much to stop this whole city cold! I don't know if it's the liability or what, but as soon as there's anything on the ground at all, the first thing they do is cancel school! Anyway, the girls were so excited when they woke up one morning to see the snow and it was like herding cats getting them dressed in their boots, gloves, hats, snow pants and jackets to go out side to play in the one-half inch of snow that was on the ground. The outside play didn't last very long simply because it was so cold and there really wasn't enough snow to play in. Playing in the snow sounded like fun until they realized how cold it really is out there! Anyway, after they were done, we had to get them back inside and get their clothes changed and get them warmed up again. The whole process seemed like it took all morning and I think they were only outside for a half hour or 45 minutes! Once they were able to get out and play, they got that out of their system and they were content to stay indoors the rest of the time.

The girls are pretty good playing together and once in awhile we have to break up a quarrel or two. They really miss school and seeing their friends.

Dave and I managed to get together one night this week with his cousin, Marta and her husband Gene. They moved back to Portland from Montana last fall when their son, Matt started college at Portland State. I had discovered a two-year old gift card for this Italian restaurant that Dave had received for some extra work he had done for the Blazers and so we had Marta and Gene join us for dinner. They just returned from a trip to Prince Edward Island and other places back east and we were anxious to hear about their trip.

While we were in town we also took an old computer over to my sister Judy. Leslie and Jason had generously donated it to her since an old laptop we had given to her died. Judy's computer skills are a little rusty, so Dave have her a quick computer course to help her get started. She really only needs to be able to use the email and Internet and now she has what she needs to be able to keep in touch.

Thanksgiving has come and gone and I hope everyone was able to be with their loved ones and families. We spent our Thanksgiving with the all our family down at Jason and Leslie's where they had a total of 17 people for dinner. Jason cooked two turkeys; one on his grill and one in the oven, both were delicious. He also fixed his famous stuffing which is always a treat. We ended up with six pies; two pumpkin, two chocolate, one banana cream and one apple. If anyone went hungry, it was their own fault! Of course, the football game was on the TV and Dave took a lot of satisfaction in being the only non-Cowboys fan in the room - especially when Dallas lost!

Now that Thanksgiving is over, let the holiday shopping begin! I don't bother with Black Friday or any of that. I don't like to fight the crowds and even if I am an early riser, 4:00 a.m. is much too early for me. If I watch the sales, I can come up with deals that are just as good. It seems like Christmas will be here before we know it and I am totally not ready to even begin. At least I have Dave taken care of. We have a GPS in the Jeep, and he mentioned to me that he wished he had one in the Suburban. We were in Costco and saw a Garmin GPS for a pretty good price, so I got it and told him "Merry Christmas"! Then we went looking for a blender, since my old one went up in smoke the other day. I found one I liked, so we got it and Dave told me, "Merry Christmas"! That takes care of that! Anyway, we have made plans for the whole family to come down to our place for Christmas this year. The Blazer schedule just happened to work out where Dave will have the whole week off during that time!

Well, by the time we get home on Saturday, we will have been gone for nine days. That is really too long to be away and I am looking forward to being home again. My babysitting stint comes to an end today and Dave has a Blazer broadcast tonight, so we will leave for home first thing tomorrow.