Black Friday

Instead of being like the crazy people who get up at 4 am just to get some crappy tv for 25% off, I opted to stay in bed today until my sleep in time of 8am. Then I took the dog out, watched an old episode of Oprah, had breakfast and read a magazine. All, so relaxing on my day off.

Jeff and I splurged a bit early and got our joint Christmas gift for each other. We got a deep freeze to go into the basement. Currently, my love is rerouting electricity to the unfinished area - I'm a bit concerned. I'm dying to eat something other than Thanksgiving food, and he'd prefer to stick to his left over sweet potatoes and turkey. Argh, I don't think I'll win this battle.

In hopes of getting our office and basement completed before out party on the 13th, I have been on the quest all day in search of window treatments for the office. Nothing too fancy, but something nice. So far, I've come up with nothing, except some insanely over priced ones on Ebay from Pottery Barn. I picked out paint color for the entryway, hallway and office and the 2009 project - the dining room. I've cleaned up our middle bedroom since the baby decided that the guest rooms were not a place to go potty anymore - thank goodness! Baby gates came down finally. I cleaned up the last of our wedding goodies and put those away safely, and now I'm just purging.

I have a stack of clothes atleast 4 feet high that I am going to be gifting to the good will - if you want to rummage through - come take a look. Good thing I don't wear clothes until they are all pilly and nasty.

I feel like I'm winter cleaning - which is a good thing because this place needs to shine like the top of the Chrysler building in 2 weeks!

Things to be Thankful For

As I am baking my Oreo Cake and Turtle Pumpkin Pie, I am reminded how truely blessed I am. There are so many people now who are losing their homes, can't pay their bills or even don't have a job - in this economy, it's really get back to the basics of what is important.

Yes, I know I have a "shopping problem", but in light of all the economic craziness, I have scaled back. We aren't even having Christmas this year on Jeff's Dad's side of the family just to save money. I'm okay with that, since I don't really need anything. But when you think of all the great things you do have, its nice to put all the bad on the back burner for just one day.

Here are just a few things I am thankful for:

1) My wonderful husband. Even though he's an ass pain and was born without the romance gene, I know my life wouldn't be the same without him.
2) Health - knocking on wood, I have been healthy with no issues except for ones I have brought upon myself which I am working on. Hopefully as I grow up and grow old I won't have the problems that others in my family have faced.
3) Family - regardless how screwed up things are - I know I have really 4 families I can rely on for help.
4) Friends - without you, most of 2008 would have been impossible. Melissa, John, Becky, Crystal and my new friends Melanie and Kate have all inspired me to be a better person. I only hope that I have touched your life as much as you have touched mine.
5) Stability - oddly enough, even working in the financial industry, I feel safe and secure knowing that everything is okay and I'll have a job. After a couple of years of craziness in the contracting world, I have settled down and I feel like I could retire at good old EJ. I love knowing what to expect when I get there, but still know there is enough action going on so that no 2 days are ever the same.

I wish everyone a day of rest, relaxation and time to spend with friends reflecting on what is truly important and how to life, laugh and love.