Well, That was a Fast Year

Wait, what?! Is it really New Year's Eve again already? But I'm not through with 2015 yet! I still have 20 pounds to lose! I still have to get on a budget! I haven't even painted the bathroom yet.

Hold on just a minute. We had a WEDDING this year. Now I remember where all those 2015 resolutions went. They went out the window on January 17, when Alisa called us up to announce she and Erwann were FINALLY engaged. It goes without saying that the wedding we put on was absolutely worth every penny and every resolution it cost us. It was only the best wedding ever, with the most wonderful and beautiful people. It's also a good thing that we couldn't see in January what all we would be doing this year. It would have scared the pants off me. For instance-

Hosting 15 French people and five Americans in my house at the same time. For a few moments there, it seemed like the stream of people walking through my front door would never stop. Fortunately, French people take very short showers. Then there was the France vs. US basketball at the Syracuse South Stake Center.  A last minute pizza party/outdoor wedding rehearsal. Pancakes for 30 the morning of the wedding. Heading up the canyon that Sunday morning in my old Odyssey, packed to the rim with wedding crap,  and a guy named Simon holding a 70 lb wedding cake on his lap, while being followed by a bunch of French people in a Prius that was dangerously low on gas. Every day of that crazy week was the best time, and the best memories. And the best part is the strangers we met that became like family in a few short days.

And... that was pretty much it. We had a wedding. That was our year. We have been in recovery mode since August.

All in all, though, we can't complain much about what 2015 brought us. I've spent the past couple of days reading old blog posts from 2012 and 2013. The interesting thing about reading them is that, since I am the one that wrote them all, I can read between the lines like none other. Reading what I wrote brings back all the emotions and all the details of events not shared in words. Many of those old posts were hard to read at times, and they brought home to me again that we have had a few really tough years.  2015, while certainly emotional, is not filled with anywhere near the angst of some of our other years, and for that, I am thankful.

Okay, enough happy and thankful. Now back to complaining. I still don't have a deck in my backyard. We need a new kitchen. I need a treadmill. And a piano. All three cats are still alive. I need a new car. And, apparently, I need to learn a thing or two about gratitude. If all I have to complain about is STUFF, and long-lived cats, then I have a fortunate life indeed.

We did get Duncan on a church service mission this year. That was a work in progress for a long time, and so far, it is all going swimmingly, other than the fact that he frequently forgets to shave.  From what I hear from his mission leaders though, he is not the only scruffy missionary. Shaving is a frequent topic in their mission life skills classes that they have there every day.  I'm not sure why shaving is such a challenge, but I'm thankful for patient and light hearted senior missionaries that just keep on teaching lessons on shaving and rolling with the punches.  They are doing God's work for sure.

Mitch is busy building a gun and keeping up with his school work, in that order. He is in his last semester at Weber, and will be a college graduate come spring. He got a job at a shooting range though, and now he is thinking he should just build guns for a living. The boy loves guns. Always has, always will. He even has me thinking about getting a cute little pistol to keep in a safe by my bed.

Will spent most of 2015 sleeping. When he wasn't sleeping, he was playing video games. He likes to eat too, but only if he doesn't have to go to any effort to prepare his food. He can reach into a refrigerator or the pantry, but anything other than that is really too much bother. For instance, a sandwich is too much work. Heating something up in the microwave is out of the question. So that really limits his food choices. It makes me worry how he will ever survive on a mission, which is what his current post high school plan is. He does shave every day though, so at least there's that.

Audrey decided that her sophomore year of high school was the perfect time to try every possible high school activity that she could.  She signed up for everything available and we did not see her from the end of August until Christmas break. We are beginning to wonder if she just doesn't like us. And now, she has cut off all her hair, so we barely recognize her when we do see her. She looks adorable with her new pixie cut though. Kind of like our own version of Audrey Hepburn.

Olivia is growing up way too fast. She has had kind of a rough year. She got the birds and the bees talk AND heard the truth about Santa, all within the span of a few weeks.  That's a lot for a naive ten year old to take in. Looking back, none of that was among my finest parenting moments. You would think that by the time you get to the sixth kid, some of those things would be old hat, right? Well, it's not. It never is. Each kid is different, and I feel I have managed to blow it for each kid in their own special way. Olivia got a double dose of mom blowing it, but hey, she asked. She BEGGED to be told the truth. She is coming to grips with it all, but it was an emotional Christmas for both of us.

That sums up what the kids have been up to. Dan and me, we just plug along, same as always. Dan stays busy seeing movies and reviewing them, and working lots of long hours to pay for all the shenanigans that go on around here. I work long hours too, but most of my earnings go to buy insurance to pay for all of the medical bills resulting from the shenanigans. We are hoping to be up to some serious play in 2016, and can't wait to see what else it brings us.  Unless it brings us stuff we don't want. Like more cats. Then we will be in no hurry.

The Fifth Day of Christmas

So far, we have taken a lot of dog pictures with our new camera. I shall gallantly restrain myself from posting all of them.

Other than dog pictures, we managed to get Grandma on Christmas with her eyes closed. I know she will appreciate that one.  Sorry mom.

The day after Christmas, we headed out to the Fort. Kids played in the snow, Audrey and Sydney drove them around on 4-wheelers, and they visited the horses.

You will have to take my word for it, since I do not have photographic proof, but the Metcalf have NEIGHBORS. Real live neighbors, with  houses, on both sides of them in close proximity.  I think there are seven  houses on their road now. Bizarro.

 This is just one shot of the cousin chaos that reigned. Olivia loves her some cousin time.

The next day, we braved the elements and took a family trip to see the lights downtown. It was cold, but MUCH less crowded than it was a few weeks ago when I took a quick stroll through there.

I was thinking that I have seen the lights on temple square at least forty times in my life, probably more. I don't think I'd be heartbroken if I never saw them again, except for the fact that I am compelled to give my kids the same memories of being dragged all over downtown in the cold.It just wouldn't  feel like Christmas was complete if we skipped it. Also, it was an activity that got the male members of this family out of the house for a while and away from the brand new PlayStation 4 that we got for Christmas. I have not seen much of any of them since that thing was opened Christmas morning.

Audrey and Olivia spent last night having cousin sleepovers, Audrey at Sydney's and Olivia with the Jacksons. I was going to attempt to be motivated today and get some Christmas things put away. Then I realized it's only the fifth day of Christmas, so what is my rush?  Instead, we have Christmas music playing, and I'm trying to finish off the gingerbread.  Maybe I should finish my Christmas shopping too. There are just a few items to finish up, and  yes, I am the world's best procrastinator.

Meowy Christmas

Christmas Day 2015 is already history and we totally rocked it. I got TWO naps. Mitch came out Christmas Eve and stayed last night as well, and it's been great having him around, as we barely see him anymore. Dan cooked dinner. Everybody got what they asked for, and not much else, which served to simplify the entire shopping/wrapping/worrying gift process. I didn't even count to see if each kid was getting the right amount of gifts this year. I'm sure it's a sign of age or of too many Christmases where I was the boss, but I just don't care that much anymore if Christmas is perfect.  Although, this Christmas was pretty close.

I was the only one that got truly surprised, and that was when Santa brought me a camera. A really nice camera that I might have to go back to college to learn how to use. So,  be on the look out for some super artistic stuff on here. Maybe.

Alisa keeps sending us pictures of lovely European places and French food.  My parents were here yesterday when she called on Facetime, and they were absolutely astounded that we could see and hear her from so far away. We said hi to Erwann's family, got a tour of their darling house, and met Felix the dog. Grandma Sally just cannot believe what we do with our little gadgets.

Okay, now let's talk for a moment about the cats. We still have three cats. I keep thinking that I cannot take having three cats for one more day.  And yet, here they all are.  Every morning, Buck finds whoever is up first and follows them around meowing plaintively until he gets fed either his milk or some smelly disgusting canned cat food. He will not settle for dry. He has bad teeth though, so I can't fault him for that. When Belle hears the fridge open, she comes running too (well, hobbling, she doesn't really run anymore), knowing that Buck has been successful in his food quest and now she can cash in as well.  We have to put Piper out while they eat. She cannot stand that the cats get to eat smelly disgusting squishy food while she is stuck with Iams - poor thing, so we have to put her out. She stands at the back door and barks, scratches, jumps and makes a fool out of  herself while the cats eat, and as soon as we let her back in, she bolts over to their food dishes and takes care of whatever remnant remains.  Hokey, our third and youngest cat, is much too proud and independent to take part in this debacle. He won't touch canned cat food. He is either outside or asleep on the couch in the living room, recovering from his nightly hunt. He is definitely a Republican survivalist.

Belle on the other hand, has decided that the only worthy watering  hole for her delicate constitution is the bathroom. She refuses to drink from anywhere else. So after she eats, she goes into the hallway bathroom, sits down, and meows loudly until one of us brings her some water in a bowl.  It doesn't actually have to be bathroom water, it only has to be served there. Why do we cater to her this way? I have no idea, other than she is old, blind, deaf, and we feel sorry for her. And, she has lived with us long enough that she has us well trained.  Also, because she is blind and deaf, she gets stepped on a lot. She doesn't move too quickly anymore and she can't hear us coming, so oftentimes she is sitting in our way as we rush around and we accidentally trip over her. Then she yells at us. And then we feel guilty for abusing an old cat.

Speaking of cats, Christmas continues today with the annual trek to the Fort. Cedar Fort, that is, with cats, dogs and rodents aplenty. Fun will be had by all, I am sure.

Christmas Time is Here

It's feeling festive around here today with snow falling, Christmas music playing, snowman and snow cat building, gingerbread baking, present wrapping, and house cleaning.  We have gifts for neighbors to deliver and I'm sure a few last minute shopping trips we will have to make. Whatever is going to happen better start happening fast. Olivia asked what day it was, and when I said it was the 22nd, she said, "The 22nd! That means only one more day til Christmas!"  "No, it's three more days til Christmas" I told her.  "Not if you don't count today and Christmas!" she says. I like the way she thinks. Anyway, it's going to feel like only a day for sure.

Here is their snow cat. and Audrey's cute hat.

Then Dad even got in on the action and whipped up this guy to go with Snowcat.

Alisa and Erwann left today for a combination belated honeymoon and Christmas vacation to Europe. It will be a different Christmas without them here. No crepes. Nobody in the guest bedroom this  year.  No trips to the airport, which is a first for us in about four years. Just a quiet little Christmas with seven of us, which we plan to revel in, since who knows what next year will bring. And. we will be glad when the Hickels get home on the tenth of January. Some trip, huh? The glamorous life of my daughter.

Now, on to those gingerbread men.

Since I've No Place to Go

The weather got frightful yesterday and dumped about six or so inches of snow on our little corner of paradise. Another dump was forecasted for this morning, but that fizzled out and only  turned out to be another inch or so. Still, it's perfect weather to sit at  home and pretend like I am snowed in today. Olivia is spending a few days with Grandma Linda and Grandpa Dan, and the other kids are at school and mission, so I have a few blissful moments to myself at home. I should probably be panicking about Christmas, but I think I will just make fudge instead.

 

Before the snow, we took Piper (and the kids) to see Christmas lights- the kind that are set to music.  She was enthralled. She sat up and stared out the window through the whole 20 minute show. Her head bobbed up and down in time to the bouncing lights and she barked every time the inflatable snow man deflated and inflated. Stupid dog.

 We are thinking about making this our 2016 Christmas card.

That same night, Audrey was off at Woods Cross High School, winning FIRST PLACE in duo interpretation at a speech and debate tournament. She took third place last time she competed, so she was justifiable excited to take first this time. And yeah, we are pretty proud of her too. 

 EMOTE! EMOTE!

This is where Hokey chose to wait out the storm. Dumb cat won't have anything to do with anybody most of the time and will most likely bite you if you try to pet him. Just get out the laptop though, and settle down in a comfy chair to get some work done, and he is all over you. Perched right on top of the key board, begging for some attention. 

 He looks like he is ready for Christmas, right?

Mars and Venus

Dan: (fiddling around with a broken drawer in the kitchen) I am so sick of this drawer. We just need to get it fixed.

Me: Yeah, I hate that drawer. I hate that whole set up. We need to get a second mortgage and just redo this whole kitchen and make more room in here.

Long silence.

Dan: Yeah, I'm just going to fix the drawer.

And that's how we roll around here folks.

Not in My Bed

Tuesday nights are getting out of control around here. Dan is usually gone on Tuesdays, and without him around to maintain some order, chaos reigns.

First off I had to in to work on my day off to cover for a co-worker who went home sick with a nasty stomach bug. I worked with her all day Monday, and with every twitch of my stomach, I was sure that I was about to be over come with nausea and vomiting.

Then last night, Piper and Olivia both slept with me in my king sized bed. We were all on the same side, with me huddled on the edge trying not to fall off. Both of their beds were empty and quiet. It's ridiculous and something that Dan would never stand for.  But I am a sucker for small, warm bodies cuddled up with me in my bed, so somehow, it is not difficult for both of them to end up under the covers with me.  I just always have it pictured that we will all be snuggled in the middle of the bed. But even if we start in the middle, it always winds up with me teetering on the edge. 

And then at 2:14 in the morning, I was awakened by Piper jumping off my bed. Piper usually sleeps like a rock all night long, so it was unusual for her to be up. And then, almost as soon as I was semi-conscious, I heard the unmistakable sound of barfing.

There is no more annoying noise in the world than that of your dog throwing up in the middle of the night. Go on, try and name one. I bet you can't.  But least a dog has the courtesy to get out of bed before they barf, which is more than you can say for a child. At least I didn't have to get up and start washing sheets.

Anyway, the night turned into an unending cycle of gagging and barfing noises, getting up to let the dog out, the dog barking to be let in, letting the dog in, just drifting off to sleep again and then more gagging noises.  My sleep-addled brain could not quite get a handle on the best course of action. I couldn't leave her outside. She would bark and wake up the neighbors. I didn't want her to throw up in her kennel, although  now I really cannot recall how her vomiting in her kennel seemed worse than her vomiting on my bedroom carpet.  And I just wanted to go back to bed. Of course, Olivia slept through it all, spread eagle on my side of the bed. Piper and I finally got a little bit of sleep from six to seven, then it was time to drag my rear out of bed and face another day,while Piper looked guiltily at me from her warm place at the foot of my bed.

I guess I'm glad it's not me throwing up. Cleaning up dog vomit in the middle of the night is perhaps slightly more appealing than being nauseous and vomiting yourself.  Oh, and the dog seems fine tonight. Of course, she got to sleep it off all day.

Mocha Me Crazy

A really bad thing happened a few days ago. And then, it happened again today. See,  I was shopping at Target last week, and I innocently stumbled upon these mocha flavored M&M's that were strategically placed at the register, where I couldn't help noticing them. They practically threw themselves into my cart, and I naively allowed myself to be taken in by them.  Now, mocha seems to be one of those things that nobody sits on the fence with. You either love mocha or you hate it. So, if you are one of those crazies that does not like mocha, well, all I can say is, as you were.  But if you love mocha, oh my word. Prepare to swoon.  These mocha M&M's are just life changing.  I bought one bag, ate almost the entire bag on the way home, then obsessed over them day and night for a week. Finally, tonight, I made it back to Target to get some more and thank heavens there were still some there. I was so worried they were going to be sold out by the time I got back. And then I would have had to cry a little bit.  I bought five bags.  I just can't even explain in words how tasty these little buggers are.

The really bad part of all of this is that lately, I have zero self control over anything I eat, and even less over things involving chocolate and mocha. I joined Gold's gym last night in an effort to get back into shape, and I'm sure that I have since eaten at least four times the amount of calories I expended in exercise, just in sugar.  I would blame Christmas, but really, it's been a problem since the wedding.

I was looking over old blog posts from 2012 tonight. I am finally getting ready to splurge and order my blog book from that year. And after looking at 2012, I have resolved to do two things. The first thing is to blog more. There are so many things from 2012 that I completely forgot about until I read my blog and saw the pictures, and I'm so glad I have those posts. It seems harder to write these days, maybe because everyone is older and more private and boring, but I am vowing to be a better blogger in 2016 than I have lately.

And the second resolve is to lose some stinking weight already. I lost a bunch of weight at the beginning of 2012, and looking at the pictures from that time makes me want to get motivated to do it again. I just have to realize that Mocha M&M's are NOT MY FRIENDS, no matter how sweet they seem to be to me.  I love them, but they are just not right for me. Our value systems will never mesh.

Thanksgiving

We had such a great little Thanksgiving this year.  We opted for the "small group" option this year, and stayed home. Alisa and Erwann flew in for the weekend. Since they aren't going to be with us for Christmas this year (sniff sniff), it was great to have them here. Although, I must say, I really missed our warm, beach-themed Thanksgivings that we have enjoyed in Southern California the past two years. Oh well. Maybe next year.

 Thankful for sister time

 No Metcalf Thanksgiving celebration would be complete without a little dog torture. Piper was not a fan of the werewolf mask.

And here is our whole crew. Grandma Sally, Aunt Carole, Will, Alisa, Erwann, Duncan, Dan, Grandpa Dee, Olivia, Audrey, Mitch and me, (not pictured, as usual, not complaining, just stating a fact).  We started a new tradition of weighing in before the meal, and then again after. Mitch won, he gained like five pounds. I gained two and a half. 

The rest of the Thanksgiving weekend was relaxing and peaceful.  We ate breakfast out every day.We took Erwann Black Friday shopping for about 20 minutes, which was enough for all of us.  Audrey, Alisa and I had a girl's night out and saw Mockingjay. Erwann got to go to two basketball games, one at the U, and a Jazz game, that he took Alisa and Dan to, for Dan's birthday. And then, they flew home on Sunday.  But not before we got the tree decorated.

 And, now, let the Christmas Carols begin!!!

Goodbye Princesses

It all started with my neighbor deciding to sell her daughter's adorable bedroom set for a ridiculously good price. Olivia has been using an old, old, OLD dresser since she was born, as in probably close to 100 years old. The drawers were falling apart, and falling out, and it was not big enough. So, I jumped on the bedroom set, which then involved calling up my home teacher to get his truck and bring it home for me, which resulted in this:

Will taking a cold ride in the back of the truck to hold the furniture in. Fortunately, it was a short ride.

Then, once we got the furniture home, and her bedroom torn apart, I realized that I could not in good conscience go to all the work of switching out furniture without repainting her room.

Which led to saying goodbye to these wall stickers that we put up when we moved in.

  I started to pull them down while she was at school, then I stopped, for fear that she would be sad they had come down without her.  I thought about trying to save them so we could put them back up if she really wanted them. Then I thought, oh well, and just pulled them all down and threw them away. She never even noticed they were gone.

 And a before shot. Excuse the unmade bed. This is pretty standard around here.

After I shed a few tears over  the loss of the princess stickers andmy baby growing up and growing out of princesses, we got down to the business of painting. Olivia was all over that, and turned out to be a pretty good helper.

And now she has a fresh and clean room with new to her furniture, three spring green walls and one fresh hyacinth wall. A month later, we are still getting around to touching up a few spots and getting her a new bedspread. So no after shot  yet. And I have yet to put my paintbrushes away, since Audrey is now making noise about moving her bedroom downstairs.

More Halloweenering

Just a few more Halloween shots that we want to save.

Our pensive Harry

No matter how hard I try, I  just don't look that scary.

Our Dumbledore, aka Audrey, who makes a very good wizard.

our werewolf, aka a bunch of towels stuffed into a werewolf costume, also in full birthday regalia in celebration of Dan's birthday on Nov. 2

And a few more of our Harry. She makes a very good wizard as well, I think

Halloweeners

So. I've had my phone for almost two years. Tonight I found out I can edit pictures on my phone. Turns out that sometimes, I am not the sharpest pencil in the box.

I took this picture of Livvi and friends at a Halloween carnival tonight, and because I am also not the most professional of photographers, I had way too much ceiling in my picture. This is what prompted me to explore the boundaries of the camera on my phone and now I feel like a kid with a new toy on Christmas. And just in time for Halloween too!