Sudokuaholics Anonymous 3

Good morning all! It's been a busy week here and I am up early this morning. The kids, well 3 of them anyway, are going back to school tomorrow. I don't think they got all the work done they were supposed to during their break. We all went out shopping yesterday for Black Friday and spent way too much money. Although everything was 50% off, plus an additional 15% coupon, plus you get a $10 coupon for every $50 you spend. That's why everyone shops! The stores were packed at 5am and since it was still dark out, it looked like a typical Christmas shopping evening.

Oh Gail....What a HOOT!!! Sounds very much the sort of thing I would do! We must be kindred spirits. Makes me think, [dunno why], of the time I got the giggles while a policeman was writing me out a ticket for driving in bus lane. They had just pulled my husband in behind me as well - we were both driving in to drop one of our cars off for a service. Turned out to be a very expensive service - I was still driving with a NSW license [and plates on the car] and I do recall the questioning going something like....." and so you don't live in Deniliquin anymore...and how long have you been living in Melbourne...and I suppose that isn't your married name either...believe in keeping it in the family - don't you...." Thoroughly chastened and unrepentant I agreed to rectify the matter of the car rego, license, fine etc. etc. Didn't take me too may years...Young and.......?

Coffee pot is on early today. Woke and could not stay in bed, so, took the short trek to the puter (Maybe 2 steps hehe). Well, that is AFTER I put the coffee on for all of you.

I hope we get to go out to the mall today. Online I have found a recliner I want for hubby. We need to check it out in person fore ordering. It is the right price, the right color, and has the advantage of having both heat and massage! Maybe I can save on the heat bill, warm up his chair to his liking and turn the house heat down to my liking. could it be that simple?

anyone decorating for Christmas yet? I am such a child about Christmas, love the lights. Maybe it is cause of the dark short days, but the added lights inside and out make me happy, so I still do them. Several friends say they are not decorating, or cutting way back, as they will not have a gathering at thier house, going away for Christmas Day or longer. I think we will only have Al's daughter and fiance here, but a couple years, we had no one visiting us and still I put up the decorations! My outside "display" is small and can be put up in 30 min or so, but enough to make me happy. I have swag lights that go around the rails on the small front porch and down the stairs, 2 sets, six swags, but just enough. Then I have a 4 foot tree, lights only, made for outside. Lighted wreath (hummm, we did not find that, must look again) but I can see these lights through the storm door from my chair. In mild weather, the regular door is opened, just the glass storm door closed, so I get to see my outside lights a lot.

Hope today and tomorrow to get my tree up indoors. Takes longer, I have boxes and boxes of " jeweled" ornaments and real glass icicles that go on it, and decorating trees somehow became exclusively in my job description. Tree is to celling height, but skinny, not a big space for it.

For several years, I put up only a 4 foot table top tree, cause was not sure what the kitties would do to a big tree. Last year, decided to go back to a tall artificial one, with lights already on it. One of the concessions to getting older I suppose, putting lights on is the hardest part. Kitties ignoreed it totally, after the first sniff and a verbal warning from me. Happy to have the big tree back in my living room!

When daughter was small, I gave her a tree of her own, in her bedroom. It was a 4 foot tree, sat on the floor, and she could reach every branch, even at age 3,4 and 5. I put on the lights, and then gave her unbreakable ornaments to put where she desired. That tree was sometimes redecorated several times a day! She got great enjoyment from it and just looked at MY tree with all the breakables.

MORNING STELLA and BEAN, I think you checked in while I was writing my book this morning!

Suzy, if you haven't washed the stuffed animal yet, I have a word of caution. If the animal is fluffy and has long hair, don't put it in the dryer! The dryer will crimp the hair and make it into a tight afro! I made that mistake years ago. My eldest daughter had a beautiful white fluffy cat that was getting dirty from being carried everywhere. I washed it on gentle in a laudry bag and it came out clean, good as new. I put it in the dryer, and it was destroyed. The heat killed the long hair. It happened with my other daughter's winter coat as well. It had a fluffy fake fur collar around the hood that ended up looking like matted wool!

Hi MizT and Bean. I was hoping to get some of the Christmas decorations up while the kids were home, but we've been so busy. Hubby got the lights up outside. He wanted that done before the snow and cold weather hit. I would like to put some lights up in the backyard as well. The lights are so pretty!

I forgot that I have to do the December calendar for the girls before they go back. We also need to take our family picture. So much to do, so little time! D#1 wants us to watch her school's football game on TV this afternoon. They are playing for the championship and a number of her friends stayed at school over the break and will be there. We usually put the game on to see if we can see her in the student section. Before she went to Boston College, I had never seen a football game and now I've been to one and we watch her school on TV!

TOPIC FOR DISCUSSION

Do you put up a tree for holidays?

How do you decorate it?

Ornaments of every type, including every construction paper and glue ornament your child has ever made from Kindergarden on? Home made ornaments? Popcorn and cranberry strung on string? Paper chains?

Or a "designer" tree, or tree with a theme, only little drummer boy ornaments, or some such?

My tree has ornaments I have made or someone has given me, lots of memories there, but it is still a "decorator, designer, themed" type tree. I change the theme every few years, by adding something, or replacing something.

Two years ago, I changed my gold and white tree with angles theme, to a jeweled tree. My daughter was interested in making jewlery, I looked for beads and such for her, and fell in love with beads! I do not wear a lot of jewelry, and did not want to make to sell, so, I had the idea of making ornaments for my tree. String them like a short necklace, attach to earring finales, and have Tree Jewlery! Lots of gold, silver, and jewel tones, and fake crystal, very sparkly! I found a really colorful and unusual wrapping paper the day after Christmas a couple years ago. It has Christmas pressies with huge wired ribbon bows, in all the jewel colors, stacked pressie to pressie, no white in this paper. I bought ROLLS and ROLLS of it! and rolls and rolls of wired ribbon to go on too I told ya, I am such a kid about Christmas! doing this is my gift to myself and I have lots of fun.

Hi there MizT and Stella. I have only just discovered this wonderful page. Now I KNOW that my house will always be a mess and I'll never get ANY work done!! All these wonderful people to chat to - I'm home all alone at the moment [hubby, son & 2 dogs all over at grandma's for a sleepover and there is no one to fight for the computer] what bliss.
I love and all the decorations. Have just ordered some new lights etc. on line and will be eagerly watching the post for them to arrive. Each year I search through the January sales for decorations that I couldn't buy before christmas and justify the cost. It is so exciting when I get the box of decorations down because by now I have forgotten what new treasures I bought last January. I t usually inspires me to blitz the house and clean it b4 putting the tree up. Hope to get it up within the next week or two. Must try and work out how to post photos on my page and I'll put up a picture of my tree. Ciao for now.

Lots of red and gold on a green tree. My son and I used to have a 'decorate the tree' ceremony where he put deco's up willy nilly and I would then try and balance things once he is tucked up in bed. Now he is a big lad of 17 I don't resort to such tactics - I sort of try to follow some type of design theme. I don't go for some of the designer trees that are all one colour or one theme - I'm not that disciplined. A lot of my decorations have special meaning for me - gift from friends etc. I've found that classy decorations are a good kriskringle gift for those friends who have everything or whose tastes are so expensive I can't afford to pander to them and viceversa.

The dogs have antlers with flashing lights that they condescend to wear for me at christmas. Old Tom was a big hit in the nursing home a few years ago when F.I.L was still alive. He galloped around all the residents and totally made their day with his flashing lights and wagging tail.

As I type this Kevin Rudd is being introduced as our new Prime Minister....an interesting time of change for us all downunder. Keep tuned.

Now I know the state of the nation I can go to bed.
Night all, over and out.

Hi MizT, our tree will not be going up for another couple of weeks. We bought a new artificial tree last year which is pre-strung with lights (that reminds me I have to get some replacement bulbs). It is green and white and slimline. I have lots of glass decorations which came with the tree, they are silver and turquoise. I also have a collection of limited edition Swarovski Christmas ornaments. This year I'm a little worried about putting them on the tree as we don't know how Callie will react. I would hate these to be broken. I will probably leave them off the tree for a couple of days. Have you ever seen a photo of the Christmas tree in Zurich? http://www.pbase.com/lapetina/image/72777786 there is supposed to be £250,000 worth of Swarovski crystal on it.

Hi Bean, I didn't think I recognised your name so welcome to SA from Sevenage in Uk. Hope we get a chance to chat, we all know about messy houses and jobs being delayed because of this site

We used to get a big real tree for Christmas, 12 - 14 foot. (cathedral ceiling in living room) We would search every where for the perfect tree around Halloween and tag it. Then we would all go the first weekend in December and cut it down. That was usually a big adventure. The tree usually covered the entire car! We haven't been able to find that kind of tree in a couple of years so we've been using an artificial tree. It looks like a real one but it is only about 7 1/2 feet. Over the years when my family gets together, the adults exchange handmade ornaments. The kids get an ornament every year from us and their grandparents. I love our tree because it looks like it is covered in hundreds of mini toys. For the past couple of years I've also put up a table top tree that I put in the dining room on an end table. I decorate that tree just with all of our Disney ornaments that we've collected over the years. Last year I took 16 pictures of ornaments of the Disney tree and put each one on a post card. I sent them to D#1 at college so that when she put them on her wall, they turned into the tree and then she had a Christmas tree of her own.

I found a picture of the post card tree that was above D#1's bed at school and I put it on my page. I also put a picture of my tree (not this year) and updated my youtube to "White Christmas" from the movie "White Christmas."

Bright snd breezy at 45F.

, Bean.

We always had a real tree - until we lived next door to a fire fighter... Now we have a huge artificial tree that looks real. I dread the day it falls to pieces! I love decorating for Xmas and usually put everything up on the first weekend in December. Won't be happening this year though as I will be in hospital. I think I'll get all the stuff out before I go as I won't be able to lift when I get home. I have lots of blue and purple decorations, decorations the kids have made, decorations I have made, so many decorations I run out of places to put them...

Thank you Stella! I have been surface washing the stuffed toy with mixed results and had planned to hand wash then dry in the dryer this week. I would have killed it! She never would have slept again!

It looks like my local rep got back in. I'm glad. She works hard and does a lot of good locally. Apart from that I was a bit concerned which ever way the election went! Glad it's over.

Bean! We're glad you could join us here. It's a great group of people you'll meet!
Hello also to Stella, MizTricia, Brenda, Ruby, Suzy on this page. Greetings also to Rena, Lynda, Jenni, Becky, Mamacita, Rolanda, Gail, dino, Mary, vdV, Cyndi, Eve, Ian, and all others I haven't had a chance to chat with recently! I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Well it's about time to get everyone up and going. We're off on a Dolphin Watch Cruise today. Should be fun!

Sounds like a wonderful trip Suzy

I'm collapsed on my bed after (1) eating too much at a friend's 70th birthday party yesterday and (2)staying up to watch the first speech of our new prime minister. And it is mid-morning already. I think I will be having a quiet day! Now where's MizT's coffee?

Glad you found us, Bean. Will have to get out the tree soon. Meanwhile, I'm gearing up for the family to be here on boxing day.

EVERYBODY....check out Julie's impressive list. Well done.
Thank you ALL for the very warm welcome...I really find it hard to believe it took me so long to find this page. Look forward to chatting to you all a lot more in the future...and now to find myself a puzzle.

everyone..

noice to see you Bean..

Weather today.. cooler and very overcast, no wind.. I think I might go and spend a hour in the garden - weeding !!

Enjoy the garden, Rolanda, and the cooler weather.

Hey Dino, that doco I saw 'Bomb Harvest' about the de-mining in Laos is on the ABC on thursday night. Worth watching if you are free

Mary, will try to remember.

Hi all, welcome Bean. We have a white artificial tree with silver and gold decorations, mostly glass angels and icicles and lights. It is never decorated until Chrismas Eve. We have lights strung around the garden, that is all, we don't have any others. Yes we do, on the table Christmas day I have some gum nuts and leaves painted gold with red and green baubles and ribbons. Probably the most trouble is taken with the table decorations, we always eat by candle light. ( not for romanic reasons, it is so dark people can't see the cooking mistakes).

the clouds have disappeared, the sun is hot.. finished doing a small portion of the garden.. lunch time !!

Christmas Tree : 4 ft artifical with fibre optic lights.. usually put up the week before Christmas and taken down a couple of days after Christmas.

Bean. The more the merrier.

About the Christmas tree. We have 3 artificial ones. The first is the old silver aluminum kind that you're supposed to use a light wheel with (vintage 60's). The second is a 6 foot green one. The last time we had it up the dog ran past it, knocking some of the ornaments off. Took it down the next day. We now place a 2 foot green one on top of the entertainment unit.

BTW, if you're in need of a good chuckle, I changed my YouTube to Ray Stevens, The Streak.

Cooee cobbers!
Gday Bean, glad you found us. I can't believe it took so long, sometimes when we're all in here, we chatter and natter so loud that those on easy come and tell us off for talking so loud!!!
BTW I'm not really here. We just went out to get some more plants for the garden and hubby had to stop off for a nanna nap, so here I am just checking you all out. He's ready to go out planting now, so I will catch y'all later.

My Christmas tree is also artificial. Necessary this year because the littlest is not quite 2. And the ornaments are the ones that survive form one year to the next, though I did buy a new box at the end of last season. Can't remember what is in it. the lights go back 20+ years, but they still manage to twinkle on and off, so I guess they will be here until they fall apart. I put it in the window where it can be seem from the street. Lots of people walk past on their way to the beach, so I hope it brings a little delight to them. Even though I am a Buddhist, I would love to find a nice manger. We have a light festival at around the same time, so this fits in well with the Christmas spirit.

Great trip today - no dolphins, but a mother and calf humpback - until the lunatics in the speedboat decided they wanted to look too and sped up and scared them off. Lunch with clown and Santa at Moona Moona afterwards.