Here's our new baby, Petey 

Zoey loves her Mommy 

Sunday, December 26, 2004
I want to thank my sister Jan for this week's questions! Enjoy!! =)1) Which holiday do you celebrate this time of year? (If necessary, modify the following questions to suit your holiday.)2) Do you begin shopping for gifts earlier than Thanksgiving, looking for the perfect gift? If not, when do you begin?3) Do you only purchase gifts that you know are perfect for the recipient and if you don't find that gift, do you just get anything?4) Did you receive or give any "obligatory" gifts this year?5) Do you decorate your tree as evenly as possible or do you skip the areas that are not visible?6) Do you like multi-colors on your tree or do you prefer monochrome?7) Did you bake "traditional" cookies, frost them and decorate them? or did you cheat and buy the ready to bake kind? (like I tried)8) Are you the host of a holiday gathering? which one? family, work, friends9) With whom do you spend the holiday?10) How did the holiday turn out? Perfectly? funny mishaps? miss anyone?
1. I celebrate Christmas and "no school!"
2. The only time I started shopping early (August) I a)spent too much money, b) had kids who changed their minds about what they wanted by the time Christmas came around, c) forgot where I "hid" some of my stuff! I now always wait until after Thanksgiving, and usually after I get out for break, but Kevy does the "high tech" shopping, so that covers a fair amount of ground.
3. What? I can't hear the question?
4. Probably.
6. You will love this, bug. We got one of those fiber optic trees this year, and I didn't decorate it at all! Until now, we have always gone with "whatever." You know; the ornaments the kids made, the ornaments we have gotten as gifts, etc. I gave some thought to a "theme" tree this year. I have lots of music ornaments. Maybe next year!
5. I don't decorate the tree evenly (when I decorate it) because the kitties play with the stuff that hangs too low.
7. I hardly ever bake the kind of cookies that you decorate, but the last time I did, i think i did the pre-cut type. I had bought them from a fund raiser thing. Usually I do mexican wedding cakes, magic bars and fudge. This year I made fudge only! It's my annual "gift" to family, etc.
8. I used to have an annual Christmas party that became a "must" for most people who got an invite, but I didn't have it the year Kevy got laid off, and haven't had it since. It had become huge by then, with 50 people on average who attended. It was fun, but it took a ton of time and money to prepare for.
9. We try to spend time with all of the family at some point. I skipped the faculty gathering, though.
10. It has been a good holiday. It has been restful. We're planning on staying home on New Year's eve. That's our favorite way to spend that night. Of course, we missed, you, bug!!

Sunday, December 19, 2004
More questions submitted by our fellow Monday Madness participants........Have fun! I may post the final set of participants' questions the week AFTER next. Thank you everyone for playing my meme! Have a blessed Christmas! =) 1. From Becky... How did you learn about computers? Were you self taught?2. From Tom... What is your favorite color and why is it your favorite color?3. From Olivia... What one thing going on in the world right now, has the most effect on you personally?4. From Barb... If you were going to develop your own meme, what kind would you create?5. From Sherle... Why do you enjoy answering memes?6. From Teresa... What is your wildest dream?7. From Mz. Em... Why do you answer these questions?
1. We got our first computer, an Apple IIgs (which was THE machine!) in 1988. I think it was a combo of asking other people, a lot of trial and error, and tutorials. Of course, there was no internet, blogs, etc back then. Basically, you could type, make spreadsheets and data bases. There were no "wizards", either. I remember, when I started doing grades on computer back then, I made up my own "gradebook", complete with the computations, etc. It was pretty archaic!
2. Purple is my favorite color because . . it is.
3. Great question! This summer I read "The Five People You Meet in Heaven." It's a great little "one-day" read that I think really makes you think about what you think you know and what is "truth." It's entirely possible that the thing that has the most effect personally is something you may be totally unaware of. We are all "pebbles tossed into a pool." Our lives are a finely woven fabric. . . . or the economy. (hahaha!)
4. What does "meme" mean?
5 They are thought-provoking!
6. I'm afraid to even think about that one! I have seen enough "Twilight Zone" episodes to "be careful of what I wish for!!!"
7. Isn't this pretty much the same as #5?

Greetings! I'm in 2nd hour and we're eating. It's the last day before Christmas break and my Drama class is having a "sensory awareness" day. Right now we are experiencing the sense of taste. We'll be doing Charades after food! Today's theme is Christmas songs.

Yay! I just saw my school go up on the "closings" list. Only 4 days to Christmas break! I really didn't think it would happen, but it's fine with me! I really did enjoy my time working on the play, but it's nice to have a bit of free time again. Maybe I'll start cleaning my house today, or not!

Sunday, December 12, 2004
8 more questions submitted by MM players! Thank you!! Please consider paying a visit to your fellow participants' sites...(links provided) 1. From Mel... Do you have a favorite 80's song?2. From Luzja... What’s the biggest event in your life to date?3. From Amy... What's one more thing during your lifetime you would like to learn how to do well?4. From Susan... what is your earliest childhood memory?5. From LDH... What is the airspeed velocity of an unladen swallow?6. From Beverly and Rosie... Where, When and What is your most favorite memory?7. From Shirl...Do you fit in?8. From Sherle... Tell me your favorite recipe then go to Recipe Swap and share it with all of us!
1. There weren't any good 80's songs, were there?
2. Birth of children, blah, blah blah.
3. I think I would like to learn to make a quilt, and play guitar
4. Moving into our home that we spent most of our childhood in.
5. Are you on crack, LDH?
6. I can't think of a favorite memory. Too many to choose from!
7. Yup!
8. Favorite recipe? To gift - Fudge, for dinner - Chicken enchiladas

This is a picture of Josie Marley, Scrooge's business partner

These are cute little goblins from my play, which ended last night. Now I have my life back!