What's Up Wednesday

Welcome to the December edition of What's Up Wednesday, a fun link-up hosted by  Sheaffer, Mel, and Shay  In light of the impending holiday, we are a week earlier than usual this month, and, I'm grateful for the change.

What I’m Eating

Food has not been high on my priority list, lately. Hugh is on the road more often than not, the Cub, while home for break, is AWOL with friends most evenings, and, well, I’m lazy, so, cooking has taken a backseat to foraging for readily accessible items such as cereal, crackers, cheese, and sandwiches. I have managed to drink my weight in Pomegranate Bellinis however, thanks to the case of champagne that I purchased for Queen B’s graduation party.

What I’m Reminiscing About

It’s the time of year when the Salvation Army bell ringers are posted at the entrance to just about every store I visit; this reminds me of the years that I spent as the Chairwoman of the Bell Ringing Committee for my women’s club.  

For five years running, it was my duty to schedule teams of ladies to ring the bells for two-hour shifts at each of four locations throughout Hooterville. Our assigned date was always the first Saturday of December and it was generally pretty chilly, but, while I’m sure that the ladies would have preferred to be warm and cozy in their homes, I never had a hard time filling the shifts.

To show my gratitude, every hour on the hour, I would swing by the kettle locations with a thermal pot of hot cocoa and to-go cups. More often than not, the cocoa was spiked with a little something special, and, that is why I am still considered the most successful Bell Ringing Committee Chair in the history of the women’s club.

Despite my success in drawing volunteers, I often took a shift, myself, and, more often than not, one of my children accompanied me; naturally, we did better when there was a cute kid ringing the bells, especially when they were as enthusiastic about the task as mine were. I miss those days.

What I’m Loving

I wore these Alex and Ani bracelets to Queen B’s graduation ceremony on Friday. The charms (a crown and a bumble bee) represent her quite well.

I used the tassel from her graduation cap to make this ornament.

It now hangs on the Christmas tree, next to both of the tassels from the kids’ high school graduations.

What I’ve Been Up To

I’ve talked a lot on the blog lately about Queen B’s college graduation and the party that followed. Those two events have occupied a lot of real estate in my brain over the past couple of months, so, it is a bit of a relief to have them over with. That said, we had a great time celebrating Queen B’s accomplishment, and, I could not be more proud of her.

This past Saturday evening, Mom and I accompanied Jana and her folks to a live nativity presented by the students from the local Catholic school. It. Was. Adorable!

The event was marketed alongside a craft fair and a hot dog and marshmallow roast, so I kept referring to it as the Jesus Weenie Roast, which caused Jana to dissolve into a hiccupping giggle fit while simultaneously smacking me in the arm every time I mentioned it. I miss hanging out with Jana; bruises notwithstanding. In my defense, where, other than a Jesus Weenie Roast, will you see angels cooking weenies over an open fire? Nowhere. That’s where.

What I’m Dreading

What goes up must come down, you know that, right? So, the holiday boxes will be calling my name, and, come January 2^nd, I have a date with the attic ladder; not looking forward to that. Also not looking forward to finishing up the year-end financials at the hardware store (it simply sucks the will to live right out of me), or to sending my youngest back to Hawaii for another semester.

What I’ve Been Working On

Well, obviously, the grad party, but, also, shopping for, and wrapping, all of the Christmas presents for my family and friends. I haven’t done any baking yet this year, but, will probably bust out at least one batch of my famous cut-sugar cookies this weekend; none of us are eating sugar at the moment, but, the children still enjoy decorating the cookies as a family and I wouldn’t want to deprive them of the experience.

In a most disappointing turn of events, my office door did not win the door decorating contest this year; I lost to several coworkers whose door featured a super lame attempt at Elf on a Shelf “antics”. I’m chalking it up to The Powers That Be not sharing my higher-level sense of humor, and, rather than expressing bitterness, I have chosen to take the high road and will pray for their eventual enlightenment. I’m sweet like that.

Awesome, non-lame door.

Lame, lame, lame. Just sayin'.

What I’m Excited About

We are planning a trip to Maui in March. Hugh, Queen B, Katie, and I will fly over from the mainland, while the Cub hops over from Oahu. We will then retire to an Air B&B for a week of relaxation, adventuring, and sloth. I cannot wait.

What I’m Watching

I have watched an embarrassing number of Hallmark Channel movies this month, and, I have somehow managed to quiet the judgmental parts of my brain that generally complain about the recycled plots, actors, sets, and themes. Progress? Brain matter dissolving into mush? Coin toss.

This may not count, but I have also been watching this video on repeat: it depicts a newly created tradition wherein my mother is contractually obligated to indulge in a shot of alcohol on the eve of her grandchild’s graduation from an institution of higher learning; my niece started it a couple of years ago, and Queen B was happy to carry it on.

What I’m Reading

I finished Kristin Hannah’s Fly Away and, as with all of her books, I was thoroughly engrossed in the storyline. I am currently working on Liane Moriarty’s Nine Perfect Strangers. I’m having a bit of a time getting into it, but, blame that on my lack of free time more than on the engaging nature of the story.

What I’m Listening To

As if binging on the Hallmark channel on television wasn’t bad enough; I have also had my car stereo tuned into the Serius XM Hallmark channel all month long. I used to listen to the Holly channel, but, have found the Hallmark channel more to my traditional caroling taste, which, makes me sound about a hundred years old. You kids get off my lawn!

What I’m Wearing

I'm still all about the comfortable items of clothing in my closet. This includes lots of leggings, long socks, boots, boot toppers, cardigans, and oversized sweaters. So, nothing earth-shattering, here.

Please ignore the cat photo bombing my picture.

What I’m Doing This Weekend

This is the final push for last-minute Christmas gift purchasing, which means that the Cub and I will journey to Neighboring City to find the perfect items for Queen B and Hugh, both of whom have proven especially difficult to shop for this year for some reason.

I am also hoping to visit the local botanical gardens for its’ annual Garden Lights event, and, if all goes well, we will be celebrating a little something special with Jana and Company as well (stay tuned!).

What I’m Looking Forward To

Warmer weather (yes, already!).

Bonus Question: Favorite Last Minute Christmas Gift

You can never go wrong with alcohol. Unless you are buying for a toddler. Skip the chardonnay for the pre-school set.

And, that's it for this month's edition of What's Up Wednesday! I hope you all have a very merry Christmas!