A Series of Unfortunate Events

It all started with the oven heating element exploding. We had to order a replacement part, so we were left without the use of our oven for a few days. Thankfully, our neighbors allowed us to use theirs when we needed to bake.

The next appliance to go on strike was the washer. We had to make a tough call--try to get it fixed or purchase a new one. We bought our highly-recommended Fisher and Paykel washing machine just a few years ago. It was a great machine until it started leaking water everywhere and stopped spinning. The poor thing had probably worked its heart out doing thousands of loads of laundry. Since the machine was made in Australia, it's tough to find an "authorized" repairman, and the parts are hard to come by and expensive. It costs around $100 just to have the repairman look at the machine. Taking all this into consideration, plus the fact that there are some great after-Christmas appliance sales, we decided to buy a new washer. I braved the slushy, icy roads and headed to the local Maytag store to check out their deals. A saleslady showed me several sale models and I bought a "scratched and dented" Whirlpool floor model for a mere $339 (before taxes and delivery). (The "scratched and dented" part of the machine is near the bottom and hardly noticeable.) It will be delivered Wednesday (weather and roads permitting) and our old one will be hauled away. I'll miss the Fisher and Paykel and feel a bit sorry that I've given up on it.

This morning while Lance was ironing church clothes our iron died. Of course, this happened before I had ironed my clothes. I quickly put my outfit in the dryer along with a damp towel. This method mostly worked and the wrinkles in my clothes were hardly noticeable as I left for church.

Lance went out into the garage to back the car out and noticed that someone (probably him as he was the last person to drive the Sienna) had left the interior lights on all night and the battery was dead. Thankfully we have a "spare" van until April, so we drove that to church.

As I sat in the church pew, I whispered to Lance: "When we get home, we may find that our heater or water heater has quit." Lance replied, "Don't say that aloud. I was just thinking that myself."

We returned home to find everything in order. If the remaining working appliances decided to conspire against us while we were at church, they haven't acted out yet!

A "Different" Christmas

We crawled out of bed this morning at 8:00 after holding Mark off as long as possible. Mark awoke the other three kids by announcing that it was time to open presents. He'd been in our room a couple of times since 6:00 am and even climbed into bed with us twice. Last night (or should I say EARLY this morning) he claimed that he needed a "sleeping pill" to get to sleep. He didn't get one.

The kids surveyed what Santa delivered to them which didn't take long because they didn't get a lot. Then they opened their wrapped presents given to them by friends, relatives and neighbors. Every year they are admonished to record what they receive and write thank-you notes. They're pretty good at the recording and not so good at the thank-you-card writing. I keep trying; they've been taught.

It seemed like a pretty typical Christmas for our family except for a few notable differences listed here:
*We have a WHITE Christmas, and I can't remember the last time we had one here.
*We couldn't make it up Uncle David and Aunt Liz's driveway without getting momentarily stuck in the snow twice.
*Our electricity went out today for 2 hours. I eventually was able to repair my hair, do the dishes and cook dinner. I wanted to give the power repair people big hug!
*Our washing machine broke. Hopefully all it needs is a simple, fairly inexpensive repair.
*We have mounds of trash (which isn't really atypical of Christmas) because the garbage collection company can't collect the garbage due to the snow.
*Santa didn't bring the children ANY candy in their stockings. No complaints.

I love the Christmas and the reason for the season, despite the few bumps (literal and figurative) in the road!

The Businessman

Zachary's cell phone is in our possession. He downloaded several costly games and ring tones without our permission, so we're keeping the phone until he pays us what he owes us.

This morning Zachary told me he had the money he owed us, so he opened his wallet and counted out several coins and bills until the amount he paid was equal to the amount he owed. I was a bit curious about how he earned that money, but his dad was the one who called him on it. "How did you get this money?" Lance asked.

Zach's reply was, "Sometimes I sell items from my lunch that I don't want to the people I do business with. One guy is willing to pay $2 for some Mandarin oranges because he loves them so much. I usually sell things for $1 each."

Lance was momentarily speechless, but then composed himself and asked, "You mean you sell the items we bought for your lunch with our money, and you pocket the money yourself; then you pay us back with OUR money to get your cell phone back?!" He continued, "Those items are not for re-sale."

Now we have the cell phone back in our possession AND the money Zach paid to get it back.

Christmas Survey

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Bags! I'm NOT a good gift-wrapper (just ask my sister).
.2. Artificial or real tree? I prefer real for the smell but artificial for the functionality and the lack of dried pine needles. (We have an artificial one.)
3. When do you put up a tree? A few days after Thanksgiving unless we're being audited by the IRS and have to wait until mid-December.
4. When do you take it down? When I feel like it. Gosh.
5. Do you like eggnog? Yes, but mixed with ginger ale or Sprite.
6. Favorite gift received as a child? Either a Chrissy doll or a stereo, but I received a handmade cedar chest from Blake when I was about 20 that I love!!! I was also excited to receive my first pair of pantyhose when I was 9.
7. Do you have a nativity scene? Yes.
8. Mail or email cards? Mailed newsletter.
9. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? Pikette's clothing--any and all.
10. Favorite Christmas movie? Muppet Christmas Carol.
11. When do you start shopping for Christmas? Right after Christmas for the next year.
12. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? I think not, though I may have wanted to on occasion.
13. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Homemade caramels, ham and gluten-filled treats I can no longer eat.
14. Lights on the trees? Yes
15. Favorite Christmas song? O, Come All Ye Faithful; O, Holy Night; Angels We Have Heard on High; Good King Wenceslas (almost all, actually)
16. Worst Christmas song? Livin' in a Latte-wonderland (You have to live in the Great State of Coffee to understand this.)
17. Travel at Christmas or staying home? Travel 5 miles to Woodinville on Christmas Eve and stay home Christmas Day.
18. Can you name all of Santa’s reindeer? Yes, and I even remember Olive, the other reindeer.
19. Angel on the tree top or a star? Star or angel--which ever comes out of the Christmas box first.
20. Open presents on Christmas Eve or Christmas day? Both
21. Most annoying thing about this time of year? Holiday stress
22. Favorite thing about the Christmas season? Sights, sounds, smells, tastes of Christmas; and getting cards and newsletters from family and friends. Plus all of the Christmas stories . . . too many things to mention.
23. Favorite ornament theme or color? Vintage, and every color.
24. Favorite food for Christmas dinner? Clam chowder (Christmas Eve) and ham for Christmas dinner.
25. What do you want for Christmas this year? Nothing that can be wrapped and put under a tree. All the things I want are intangible!

Snow Day

For several days, the folks at the National Weather Service have been predicting snow for our area and saying that we'd receive the most snow this morning. Last night Zachary's seminary teachers called to say that this morning's seminary class was cancelled. We set our alarm for an hour later than usual, and when it went off, Lance got up to check the school district's website. Sure enough, school was cancelled, too. Once it got light outside, we looked out to see just how much snow was on the ground and roads. Nothing. Not one flake of snow (except what was left over from last week's minor dusting). Yet, school was cancelled. Surely it'll snow before the morning's over, we thought. We were wrong. No snow all day. Not one flake until tonight when we received a slight dusting--a slight dusting like the dusting of powdered sugar I put on lemon bars.

I just checked the weather forecast and discovered that because the Seattle area is "shadowed" by the Olympic Mountains, we were spared the snow our neighbors to the north and south got. The threat of snow has passed for now. Hopefully, the kids will be able to go to school Thursday and Friday before going on break for the rest of the year.

"Merry Christmas!" Love, the IRS

We received a letter last week from the Grinch (aka IRS) notifying us that we're being audited. The audacity! Especially right before Christmas! They've called into question the amount we claimed in charitable contributions. How ironic to question our gift-giving--especially when we're so close to Christmas. (It's also ironic that Lance is an auditor for our church.) So, Lance has put on hold all of our pre-planned Christmas projects to deal with this matter. (Our response must be received by the IRS before the end of the year.) He has spent many hours documenting this information and has put it into a tidy little form that even the IRS should understand. Hopefully our documentation is sufficient and we won't hear from them again until we receive a refund early next year. (I have the optimism of a Who.) Wish us luck, please!

Me, the Baseball Player

Sara announced, "Mom, you are the type of person who would never steal second base." She continued, "You might steal home, but you'd never steal second because you'd never risk so much for so little."

What do you think she meant?

The Shape of Santa

Tonight Mark observed, "Santa always needs to get morbidly obese before Christmas."

The Deal

Today we had a small family discussion about Christmas decorations, and Lance confessed that he "hates putting up Christmas lights." He elaborated, "I love looking at the lights, I just hate putting them up and taking them down."

Then Sara added her two cents, "I hate cleaning my room, but I love looking at it when it's clean."

Lance took advantage of the conversation and said, "Hey, Sara, let's make a deal. I will put up the Christmas lights after you clean your room."

I'll let you know whether or not we get Christmas lights on our house.

Oh, The Power of Power!

Lance is now Mark's 11-year-old Scout leader. There are 3 boys in the group. Mark is the oldest and was just made aware that he is the Patrol Leader. He loves his new position. Really loves it. After last night's troop meeting Mark explained to me that since he is Patrol Leader, he is "in charge" of every meeting and is responsible to help plan each activity. Then he said, "I am a potential threat to the Scoutmaster." Watch out, Dad!