It's not like I've got laundry, sewing, or baking to do. Or vacuuming. Or cleaning the floors ...
- Working this holiday season is not nearly as bad as I thought it would be. The la
st time I was in retail, it was "live" - I worked at a mall and faced customers who were often grouchy and sometimes mean. On the phone, most people have been happy and looking forward to their purchases. Plus, my job is to fit their needs, not upsell where it's not necessary. This puts less pressure on me as well as less on the customer. Now, I haven't gotten to my two-week stint of 30 hours minimum, but I've at least managed to make my schedule pretty consistent with regular blocks of time every weekday for those two weeks. - I have been working on this new idea for me: letting go of total control. I tend to be quite a control freak at times. Can't figure it out, but I've been trying to let go. I let the girls make their Jesse Tree ornaments with very little input from me, and I let them do most of the measuring for the chocolate chip cookies we baked. And I was quite surprised to find that the world did not end, the ornaments look beautiful, and the cookies are still delicious. And the girls had more fun, too.
- The other day, I had stuff to do (as if that's any different), but when I went up to check on the girls' progress with straightening up their r
oom and playroom/spare bedroom, I surprised them by holding out a pillow and asking, "What is THIS??" Confused, they answered, "Um...a pillow?" "NO!" I thundered. "IT'S A WEAPON!" And I proceeded to have a pillow fight that I had planned only moments before. You hear that? MOMENTS of planning on the pillow fight. How's that for spontaneity? And I hadn't even planned to be spontaneous that day, either! - In spite of the pillow fight, the laundry still got done. I realized that I could stop and have a good time even when I have work to do. Next up is Uno Attacks, which is also not as messy as you might think, but is more fun than you imagine. Plus, the girls might not know it, but it's a math exercise. shhhhhh...
- Travel Man has been working from home once a week, which is really nice. We have breakfast, lunch, and dinner together, he gets work done, and the girls get to hug and kiss him throughout the day. I love telecommuting! (Did I mention that I get hugs and kisses from him, too? BONUS!)
- Little Girl has two recitals this month, one informal, one formal. The more formal one is at a local middle school on the 13th. The informal one is giving me fits. It's going to be outdoors on Saturday around noon. Her costume is being modified - the class will wear long-sleeved leotards under the costumes - but it's still a leotard with crinoline attached, and it's got clear plastic straps that make it look strapless. (I actually find that a bit inappropriate, and costumes like that are why we are pushing for ballet instead of tap next year, when she'll have the choice to go one direction or another.) With that combo, they'll be wearing tights and pillbox hats and tap shoes. And it's supposed to max out on Saturday at ... oh, about 40 degrees. Fahrenheit. Yeah, I'm not thrilled, but I'll have hot chocolate and blankets, and she'll only be undressed for her routine.
- I have worked a bit on my Christmas letter, which I do annually, but haven't finished it. I also haven't managed to get our portraits done, and Big Girl turned ten in October and hasn't had her annual "school picture" done, either. Sears will hear from me today, and I'll beg to get in next Tuesday or Wednesday. Plead, even. Yikes. I wish there were other studios to go to, but in our town, it's Sears, WalMart (ick), or somewhere even more expensive than Sears. I miss the JCPenney Studio in the Altamonte Springs mall in Florida. They had the best photographers there. Maybe, if we get a really, really good camera, I'll start doing my own annual portraits. But I can't do it with my dinky Fuji/WalMart camera, so I'll have to wait.
And that's it.
Have a blessed week!
[image credits: pillow fight,
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