Update on LIFE

I've not forgotten my pledge to write more often however LIFE is getting in the way. Is it such a bad thing, to have so many activities going on that I don't have time to sit on my butt in front of the computer and write? Probably not. There's always Busy Season for that (when I become a CPA Widow).

Of course, this year (or, next year), will be quite different from that regard. And, speaking of such, we've both been busily working to get Mr. B's official website launched. Soon! Quite a bit of re-writing/editing, but, the end result will be, hopefully, exactly what we want. More on that later.

The B's had a fantastic Thanksgiving weekend spent with both the Senior B's (and extended B Family) and Mr. H (Mrs. B's Father). Lucy came along for the weekend and also had a grand time. Unfortunately, Mrs. B forgot to take ANY pictures of that fun weekend, save one I took of my first attempt at making a Pumpkin Pie Martini and one taken after we got home and one of Mr. B and Lucy wiped out after several full days of Thanksgiving cheer.

That evening, we went to an Advent service at our new church. Not only did we go to the service, we participated in it; the "Hanging of the Greens" tradition. I was trying to recall if I'd ever done this before in my youth (back when I used to go to church); I don't think so. In any case, the B's hung a wreath and I'm happy to report that (at least as of yesterday morning), it's still hanging! We also discovered that it's indeed a small world. One of our neighbors on The Loop also attends this church, as does a business contact Mr. B recently made.

Now we're into the full throttle of preparations for the Christmas season. We're both trying, though, to keep it simple; no need for us to get caught up in the frenzy. Even so, there is plenty enough to do. I've started the holiday cookie baking; I wasn't going to do this, however, I received a few special requests, so, I buckled! Honestly, I do enjoy it.

Mickey Doodle! My Snicerdoodles were spreading upon baking more than usual. Pulled the sheet out of the oven to find this! Mickey had an emergency ear amputation and all is now well.

This past weekend, we got serious about decorating. Mr. B brought all of the Christmas boxes down from the attic and we spent several hours putting things up and about. Although our space is smaller here, we managed to get the majority of it placed. It did take a bit longer than usual,though, since we were working with new space and had to figure out WHERE things look best. Frankly, some stuff may get moved around some :-) The big thing remaining is our tree. Dilemma! In year's past, we've ALWAYS had a real tree. However, two things posed a problem here. First, the real trees are very, very expensive plus I'm not sure how fresh they really are since they have to be shipped (probably from NC!) Second, there is not an obvious place in our new home for a tree. After quite a lot of consideration, we decided to buy a fake tree, but, no just any fake tree, we purchased a flat back tree so we could place it up against a wall, thus saving on space. Hopefully after it's all decked out, it'll look real enough. I guess though, this means I have to go out and buy some of those balsam/fir air fresheners so our house will smell like a tree.

Maybe next year, we'll buy a small real tree for the lanai. We'll see.

All the pets are doing well, as evidenced by this picture (Athena DOES exist, she's just camera shy!) And, yes, Pete really does look this grouchy all of time.

Busy week ahead; I have an Opera Guild holiday lunch to attend Tuesday; that night, we were invited to go with a group of neighbors to dinner and a Christmas Pageant. We're going to a holiday open house held by our pool ladies Friday night. Our new tree should arrive Thursday so we'll be able to decorate it this coming weekend. The Kid arrives on the following Tuesday for a quickie visit; we'll drop her off at the airport on the 15th and then head to the Port of Tampa to get onto Jewel of the Seas for our four night cruise.

When we get home, it'll then be time to prepare for Christmas, house guests, good meals, etc., etc. It's a bit busy, but, it's all good!

Mrs. B