Decorate Your Soul

I am losing sleep over my lack of posts around here.

Is it too late to share what a wonderful Christmas we had? It’s not 2008 yet, I might still be able to get in a pictoral version of Christmas.

Andy got this really cool addition to the Wii- it’s called Guitar Hero:

Yes, he is in fact getting in touch with his fifteen-year-old  hard rocker self this week. I will have to capture his action this weekend.

My mom had this great idea that all the ladies could match this year, so we sported these cutey red thermal tops on Christmas Day- see, cute, no?

But this picture leads me to believe that there is such a thing as "too much" red. Luckily, my aunt bought me this cool neon green vest to ground the red:

Andy said I looked like an ornament with those colors. Isn’t he silly? (that’s my little sister next to me – she’s not so little anymore- she’s going on 20!)

Ashleigh loved her new Strawberry Shortcake tee so much that she stopped opening presents and put that thing on IMMEDIATELY:

And my very own parents got a Wii, – they crack me up with how competitive they are:

On Christmas Eve, I took about 238 photos to get one, just ONE of the girls looking pretty in their dressy dresses. I go back and forth with should they match, should they not. I mean, I’m not losing sleep over it, but seriously, my right brain has some punches to throw at the left brain when she says, "It will look so cute in a picture, though." I’m talking about the matchy matchy dresses still- in case I lost you.

Same story with getting a picture with Grandma Sincock. Perhaps we’ll have better luck next year.

Now my little sugar plums can go back to dancing about in my head for another three seasons since you’re al caught up on our Christmas. Phew.

Hope you all had a blessed Christmas celebration!

I think I own about three watches. I was considering asking for one for Christmas- a new bright colored, thick banded one from Fossil perhaps- or a classy dual toned one from Anne Klein, or even a running watch from Nike. Then Andy reminded me that he had bought me one the first birthday I celebrated after our marriage.

So, I pulled out the plastic box under the sink and sure enough- five watches down there (you think a better housing plan would be devised than just under the sink, but no such thing currently exists). The GUESS? watch that has dead batteries and paint all over the leather band from my days as a Home Depot employee… the Kenneth Cole silver banded that needs to be resized to fit my wrist and guess what new batteries!… the cutey flip flop banded one with many colors that scream "wear me during the summertime"- dead… another one that is made by Fossil with a dual tone metal band- and you guessed it, needs new batteries.

I pulled them all out and laughed at myself. I don’t need a new watch. I need five new batteries and one new watch band. And the thing is, I don’t even like to WEAR watches since they leave "watch tans" on the wrist. Seriously, what am I thinking? I am so superficial. I prefer a naked wrist than proof of knowing at all times what the hour it is. Plus, with cell phones, who needs a a watch anymore (besides my husband who is always wearing one or another and checking the time twelve time a minute)?

What’s on your wrist?

It is well known that I like cookies (or wait, didn’t you know?). Last night, a friend of mine hosted her annual Christmas Cookie Exchange- yum! It’s so hard not to sign-up in advance for next year. Despite the fact I lack an errant cookie baking gene, I know I can’t muck up these Peanut Butter Hershey Kiss cookies (or previously brought snickerdoodles) and these are what I contributed:

Peris sent this photo out today of the cookie spread from last night:

Pretty impressive, eh?

I have to report to you my favorite ones that were brought because it made me laugh. The one’s up one plate and to the left are Turtle Dove (or some other named, but closely related) cookies. My friend that made them was so humble about her presentation, speaking of how they were not that aesthetically pleasing, kind of flat, etc. but I didn’t care, I told her, they will taste amazing (they looked so delectable, it was all I could do but cram them down my throat in front of her).

When I arrived home, I dragged Andy out of bed to share my sweet treasures and of course, went on (and on) about these amazing turtle supreme type ones, caramel gooeyness, chocolate chunks, soft and tasteful- seriously, melt in my mouth good. So today, I asked for the recipe.

Turns out I can buy them at my local grocery store.

ha.

The Christmas Cards are done.

I didn’t think they ever would be. Nor did I think I would be able to pull  off as many homemade cards as I wanted. But I did. Even though my husband thinks I am CRAZY and wants to slice my list in half. NOOOOO! Kicking and screaming, I justified keeping in contact with my first friend of my first job some twelve years ago…

I may be slightly crazy, but it really brings me such joy to sit and stamp and write little notes to my family and friends. But with all the photo cards I have come across this year (the majority that we have received), I am rethinking this homemade effort I take on. Just because it looks so cool and EASY… Shutterfly! Costco! Snapfish! All these sites at my fingertips.

At this point, I have a year to recover- I will revisit this decision next year.

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Not to be buried on the back page news, but worthy of noting (I’m, such a bad wife to have not mentioned this here before, but in my defense, it is a blog titled "Susie Sincock")- Andy was picked up as  a Major Select for next fall. What does that mean? He will be promoted with some fancy ceremony, new pins to wear and awards to hang on his "Love Me" Wall (the Air Force loves things like that) and of course, a higher shoe budget a larger tip for the baggers at the commissary. Congratulations, Andy! Despite my sarcasm, I am very proud of you

The coffee maker on the right has served us faithfully for five + years, but we wanted to upgrade to a stainess steel thermal insulated one. We replaced it with the same model (it’s boxed up in the garage still awaiting it’s shipment back to the company) only two weeks after it dripped all over the counter and we still don’t like it since it: 1. Doesn’t get the coffee as hot as we’d like and 2. Still drips coffee all over the counter and 3. You can’t measure water in the pot- you have to use the stationary part to measure (now don’t talk to me about user error- it’s a crummy design, period).

So, now we have a third coffee maker- the new and improved version of our first coffee pot. Isn’t that just ridiculous? I think my parents are on to something- if it ain’t broke- don’t fix it.

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Thank you for all your input and good ideas for RAK’s (the last post). I’m so excited about them!