Getting Going Today

So tonight, the hub is going out.  That leaves me and the kiddos, and I'm beat-tired.  Also, it's cold and raining.  I could not sleep last night.  There are so many things I need to do and so few I wish to do...  lasagna's baking in the oven and won't be in much longer so I might as well knock out a few chores while I wait for it and continue to supervise homework.

Let's do the DLTCP thing, shall we?

Dishes: 
Empty dishwasher, fill back up.  Same w/ drainer.  Gather all dishes from everywhere and put in.

Be right back...

Back with your scintillating 5 minute report.  In 5 minutes, I emptied both the washer and drainer and then emptied the dishes in the sink (put in the d.w.).  I have a few more to gather, then it's on to The Laundry.

Laundry plan:  start a load of sheets/blankets/pjs. 

Be right back again...

Thanksgiving Debriefing 2010

I like to jot down what worked and what didn't for each holiday or event so I can remember when it rolls around again, and perhaps save myself some trouble.  Or repeat what did go well that I might forget about!

Without further ado:  Thanksgiving 2010

NUMBER OF PEOPLE:  A+
We had 10 people.  That was awesome and I think everyone had a nice time.  That is HUGE for my family -- we aren't used to have more than 7 or 8.  (I know some families have 30-50 people present -- I cannot imagine!)

TIME TO EAT: A-
We had dinner at 1:30.  Well that was that "aimed for" time -- it was really 1:45-2 pm before we actually ate.  Some of that was my last minute jostling, some was because my mom arrived right at 1:30 with the goods so we had to distribute them. Essentially it worked well though.

TABLE ARRANGEMENT: B
We had the 6-person table in the dining room (that's w/ the leaf in) and the card table in the living room but it was really sort of in the open double-arch between the living and dining rooms.  It really sort of blocked traffic flow -- I think I would probably push it more in the living room next time around but basically things were fine.

DINING ROOM SPACE:  B
Got rid of the microwave cart behind the door (kitchen doorway w/ little double-doors which open into the dining room).  That was great -- although I did fill the space w/ two TV-type tables to hold the triple crockpot thing I used to keep the stuffings (two types) and mashers warm. That made it crowded but better than the deeper micro-cart I used as a beverage stand.

I have a small console-type cabinet I use as a sideboard in the dining room.  It doesn't match the furniture -- it really goes in the living room.  It did OK.  What I'd like to do is somehow get the cd cabinet out of the living room (really we need to donate it but that's a whole audio issue w/ the hub) and put the small console/music cabinet back into the living room where it goes.  It functions OK as a sideboard in the dining room but a larger, shallower, wider surface would do better, perhaps w/ closed storage underneath.  I guess I need to find a second-hand buffet cabinet of some sort.  And then we need to move the small corner cabinet to the unused back corner of the room.  I'm also thinking if we were to do the tv table thing again using the far corner would make a lot more sense (the one where the small corner cabinet currently is).

FOOD:  A
I think everything worked OK.  I did mess up the squash casserole -- forgot to get the stuffing mix and it really was lacking on the top and bottom.  Didn't taste the same until I layered the stuffing stuffing on the plate with it.  :)  Still, yum.  I think I might have been better off with frozen squash at this time of year though -- I use yellow crookneck summer squash and the ones I bought looked great but were lacking. 

We did have a ton of leftovers but I think it was probably just right as we sent some home w/ all of the visitors, and took some to a friend of mine who had dinner with his kids but ate out.  He lives alone and had no leftovers so he was very happy to get some. In retrospect, I wouldn't change that at all. 

TABLE DECORATIONS: C
The table linens I got from Target were terrific and I envision using them for years.  They toned down the watermelon color on the bottoms of the dining room walls too.  :)  I did not, however, unrumple them.  I also hadn't set the table the day before as planned -- poor DH had to rush to finish decluttering all the paper piles I procrastinated on.  <guilt/shame>  He also had to set the table willy nilly.  Not too proud of that but he was a trooper and did great.  Of course.  So next year: dejunk the dining room well before (!) and set the table a day or two prior.  Lay a sheet over it if need be. 

I did not clean my candlesticks.  They are glass/crystal and are filthy from previous use.  They really were shameful.  I did have 4 taper candles -- the federal style ones I love -- and also got some vanilla-scented pillar candles but forgot to light the one on the sideboard. 

Would have helped to turn the lights down in the dining room.  Would also help to have functional blinds -- the kids have been murder on the metal mini-blinds and they barely work.  I would love to eat w/o feeling as though I were sitting right on the street on display.  :) 

I never did get a centerpiece going.  Need to work on that next year.

Used a flameless short pillar candle on the kids' table.  With a seasonal pinecone/berry candle-ring around it, I swear you could not tell it was a battery candle.  I was really impressed.  $3, Walmart.  Note to self -- get more!  It was even scented.  Did require AAA batteries though, which I luckily had on hand.

KIDS: B
The kids themselves were OK.  They were amped up but did fine.  Thing that worked well: Blessing Mix project.  Went of beautifully and kept them involved.
During dinner, the kids were pretty good.  Aunt A was terrific enough to sit with them at the kids' table so she kept them occupied and under control.  :) 
Bipolar DS had a meltdown with me in a different room -- I pushed him on something and he had a temper tantrum.  We could have both approached that differently but it was pretty short-lived. 
The kids ate and then left the room.  That worked great.  Things were fine and happy until the kids all got together with the adults in the living room where the kids got completely amped and were vying for attention, and the adults were tired and (some of us! *me, cough cough*) were cranking at them.  If we had not drawn them back into the same room with everyone, but instead had a movie or a project in a different room or just let them be, it likely would've been better.  But it was all good.

And boy was it lovely lovely having everyone there.  Very nice family time all around. 

Final To-Do Lists for Thanksgiving: Cooking

How to put this together?  Dinner time tomorrow:  1:30 pm.  Sooo...


1:30 Eat up, Buttercup!
1:15 Saute beans
1:00  Rolls in, Pineapple in, cook carrots, zap beans, bake squash casserole
12:45 Assemble pineapple
12:30 Cook stuffing and put in buttered crock pot on low
12:00 Prep carrots
11:00 Cook potatoes and put into buttered crock pot on low with butter on top
Tonight:  cool cranberry, bake pie, bake cake, chill wine, set table





*Mashed potatoes:  will take 30 min to cook, another 15 to prep (10 and 5)
Scalloped pineapple:  5 min to mix, 30 to cook
Rolls:  need to see
Cranberry:  needs to cool tonight
*Pumpkin pie:  bake tonight
Carrots:  10 min prep, 20 min cook
Beans:  decided to do Steamfresh Whole Green Beans, and then quickly sautee them... so 2 packs, zap for about 5 min each, then 10 min sautee w/ whatever (won't be in the pan that long)
*Stuffing:  decided to put a little sausage in some of it; 10 min prep time (cut onion, celery, brown sausage), cook for about 10 min
*Chocolate cake:  bake tonight
Wine:  put in fridge
Squash casserole: 

Still need to get:
Evaporated milk
Mums
Squash casserole stuff
Bugles
Baggies

Final To-Do Lists for Thanksgiving: Cleaning

Kitchen:

1. Floor is mopped, stripped, re-polished.  YAY!
2. Dishwasher needs emptying; so does drainer.  (Drainboard, however, has been scrubbed.)
3. Paper piles still loom large.  Ack.
4. Countertops still in need of some work.
5. Bench still needs a bit of attention.
6. Fridge still needs cleaning/scrubbing out.

Dining Room:

1. Microwave cart was cleaned out and sent to Goodwill where it will find a new, happy home!  They were happy to see it which is gratifying for a piece of furniture just cluttering up a place.
2. Most of the contents therefrom have been put away.  Finish that.
3. Finish sweeping the floor (did some where the cart was).
4. Still need to unrumple the linens.
5. Need to attack a box of papers.  <shamefaced -- told you it was a downfall>

Living Room:

1. Need to remove dog crate.
2. Need to take tags off throw pillows. (2/$12 at Target -- what a find!)
3. Need to bring up folding chairs for the card table.
4. Need to vacuum floor and one remaining club chair.
5. Need to polish/dust piano.

Bathroom:  Just needs a going-over in the morning.

Family Room:

1. Still needs vacuuming.
2. Still needs some dejunking.
3. Get kids to sort the random assortment of game pieces that need to go back to their homes.

Grocery Savings

I'm experimenting with saving money on groceries again since food is our single biggest expense and probably the easiest to cut if I work hard.

I've used the Grocery Game website before.  Now keep in mind that I know I could peruse specials and such myself, but I get terribly addled and it's easier to have a list of what to get straight from someone who's done the homework. 

I also tried a coupon clipping service.  I chose Coupons and Things by Dede.  I make some money doing some online freelance writing, so I always have ten bucks or so in my PayPal account.  I ordered the coupons I needed and PayPal'd the money from that little fund.  We don't currently get any newspapers and I'm horribly disorganized about gathering coupons, clupping them, and organizing them.  It was a total treat to go through an online checklist and pick what I needed, then PayPal over and get the nicely clipped ready-to-go coupons in the mail a few days later.

The trick is going to be getting on The Grocery Game site the first day of the new specials posted for my store, then ordering the coupons and getting them prior to the specials expiring. 

My store's specials run Thurs-Weds, so I went through last Thurs and picked everything I wanted to buy.  Furthermore, I use an online shopping service -- my grocery store (Harris Teeter) has a thing where you shop online and then go pick the groceries up from the store.  You just have to give them four hours to do the shopping, and the service costs $5.  I figure I save this much by not impulse-buying with the kids in tow.  Also, I save a ton of time.  And I shop much better online than wandering around, even with a good list.

So I picked my items on Thursday night, then ordered the coupons on Friday.  Usually they would arrive before now but it was a holiday weekend per the coupon site, so I was hoping to get them by today.  Today it was.  I zipped in the order online, and will pick it up this evening.

I figure that in the future, I can pick the items on Weds/Thurs and get the coupons then, and then key in my order online and save the cart, not submitting it until I get the coupons in the mail.

At any rate, I'm going to see how much I saved using specials and coupons this week, less the price for the coupon, grocery list, and online shopping services.  Ha. 

More Breaking News

I am completely excited and thrilled that there will be 10 of us at Thanksgiving dinner here this year.  :)  I can't wait to see everyone!

Breaking News

I must have my Grammy's squash casserole.

I'm not even sure it will wait until Thursday.

That is all.

Thanksgiving is Thursday, OMG!

All right, everyone (me), calm down.  Just calm down.

Let’s do a State of the Household recap:

·         Linens, nicely coordinated thanks to Tarzhay, are on the dining room table (but rumpled) and the adjunct card table (also rumpled – the linens, not the card table)

·         Fridge is a nightmare.  Except for the fruit drawer – it’s lovely.  I washed it in order to stash all the fruit I ordered from the band.  (Why did I not eat that fruit this morning for breakfast instead of sitting here at the Chick-Fil-A parking lot?!  Oh yeah, I’m disorganized and I run late a lot and had to get kid #3 to preschool on time so I bolted without food.  Again.  I need to address my eating habits – I feel another post coming on.)

·         Counters were clear but now are junky again.

·         Dining room is pretty clear except for the massive papers, now nicely corralled in the box waiting for sorting.

·         Living room is a freakin’ war zone.  Biggest thing in there is the dog crate.  Other things are items that need sorting and putting away, and then trash from all the contraband stuff my kids carry in there and eat, unnoticed they think.  (Very sneaky except for the tell-tale wrappers on the floor which the dog then shreds into wrapper confetti.)

·         Kitchen floor – still only half stripped/mopped/polished, but it’s the good half, darn it!

·         Groceries – DH is a rock star and purchased dinners for the nights through and including Wednesday.  I just need to take care of getting the things for whatever I’m left cooking after I subtract out what Mama is cooking plus what I’m cooking but Mama bought at the store trying to be helpful, bless her heart.  (I’m so confused.)

·         Main bath is currently in excellent shape.  I will not hold my breath.

·         Family room is marginal.  I did clean up some stuff (read: clean laundry I never bothered to put away) this morning instead of eating a nutritious breakfast.  (Can you say, addled priorities, Jen?!)

So my takeaway list from all of this:

1.       Clean the family room.

2.       Clean the living room. -- IN PROGRESS, LOOKS PRETTY GOOD

3.       Clear the counters.

4.       List what I’m cooking and buy the ingredients.  Also make a cook schedule.

5.       Nail down the exact meal time.

6.       Sort out dining room papers.  (Now I say this every year, and I still end up stashing these much to my three-months-later chagrin.  I WILL sort before Thanksgiving.)

7.       Clean the fridge to make way for food!

8.       Unrumple linens in dining room.

9.       Determine centerpiece.  (Need to get a gourd or two, or some Indian corn, or some such.)

10.   Clean up the front porch area (ha, I snuck this in didn’t I?!) and purchase some mums to put in the pots out there.

11.   Finish kitchen floor if there’s time.

12.   Patrol main bath.

Thanksgiving Food Update 11-22-10

Let’s revisit the menu, shall we?

Turkey – Mama is cooking this

Mashers – I am cooking these.  Need 5 lb. potatoes, milk (have), butter (have)

Stuffing – I am cooking this.  Have some ingredients (yes I’m using Stovetop – SHHHH) but need to get the celery and onion to sauté in chicken stock and doctor it up).  I do have chicken stock thanks to Mom.

Rolls – DH bought these, thereby protecting his bread interests.

Cranberry Jelly – Mom bought this and sent it up.  Put in fridge before the big day.

Salad – Mama’s doing this

Carrots – need to buy

Green beans – need to buy

Gravy – Mama should have and is doing, double-check

Pumpkin Pie – need to buy crust and pumpkin, make sure I have other ingredients, get Redi-Whip

Chocolate Dessert – pin this down, get ingredients

Appetizers – get nuts and dried cranberries – we’ll eat soon after everyone arrives so really just need munchies

Wine – Have some, get some

Water – get a carafe ready

Juice for kiddos – probably will mix something like pineapple and sierra mist, or something

Sodas – need to replenish

Ice – make sure ice maker is full and working (thanks DH!  (he fixed it – he’s awesome))

Coffee – make sure cream and sugar are ready, I have coffee, big brewer is set and ready to go, should have coffee already, probably get some disposable cups to take it away in so dad-in-law can take some for the road since he’s driving down and back same day

Thanksgiving Blessing Mix Recipe

I'm thinking of making this with my kids for everyone at the Thanksgiving table.  Variations of this are all over the web, but this one is from the Organized Christmas website.  There's a cute tag to print out that goes along with each bag to explain the significance of each item in the mix.

Organized Christmas: Thanksgiving Blessing Mix

 

Thanksgiving Blessing Mix Recipe

Ingredients:
2 cups Bugles brand corn snacks
2 cups small pretzels
1 cup candy corn
1 cup dried fruit bits or raisins
1 cup peanuts or sunflower seeds
1 cup M&Ms-brand chocolate candy
16 Hershey's-brand chocolate kisses
free printable blessing mix gift tags or bag toppers

Directions:
In a large bowl, gently mix all ingredients except Hershey's Kisses.
Place 1/3 to 1/2 cup Thanksgiving Blessing Mix in small cellophane treat bags. Add one Hershey's Kiss to each bag. Close bag with chenille stem or twist-tie.
Print 4 copies of the Thanksgiving Blessings Mix printable gift tag or or bag toppers, or hand-write your own tags with the wording below.

Cut out tags, and attach one to each bag.

Makes 16 Blessing Mix gift bags.

Thanksgiving Planning 11-20

Thanksgiving is all about the dining room.  OK and the kitchen.  My kitchen is ok... the dining room needs help.

Here's how I'd like to see things:

Table seats 6...

• Dress with a table cloth and some nice placemats. 
• Set with china. 
• Put out some sort of centerpiece -- I'm thinking something with leaves and mini pumpkins, something like that.  Pine cones.  We'll see. 
• Set out candles.

Now, I'm having 7 adults and 3 kids, so I need another table.  I usually have fewer people and just stick a card table at the end of the real table, then cover the whole thing with a tablecloth for an awkward, yet functional, way to seat 8. 

What am I goint to do... ?  I gotta think on this a bit, but it'll be the same sort of decor.  Probably minus the candles.  :)

Making Room for Family -- 10 Tips for Maximizing Table Space This Thanksgiving
Small Houses and Holiday Dinners
How To Make Room For Thanksgiving Guests

So my to-dos:

1. Figure out where to seat 4 more people.  -- I'm back.  Card table in adjacent living room with nice tablecloth and decorations.  :)  HAVE THE CARD TABLE SET UP IN D.R. CORNER FOR NOW WITH TABLECLOTH AND PLACEMATS ON IT
2. Pick and clean tablecloths.  GOT THEM
3. Purchase placemats.  GOT THEM
4. Set out china.  IT'S READY
5. Get candlesticks and candles all set.  (Purchase tapers?)

SAT 11/20 PM UPDATE:
I got what I needed at Target.  Everything looks fine on the table, so I just need to run them through the dryer with a damp dishtowel to shake out the wrinkles closer to the big day.  Or iron them.  Whatever.  :)

Still need to figure out a centerpiece, get candles, ...

I found some terrific playlists for Thanksgiving music.  Here they are if you need any ideas. 

NPR: Songs for Stuffing - A Thanksgiving Mix

Good Housekeeping: Thanksgiving Songs Playlist - Music for Thanksgiving Dinner

Goals and Progress, 11-18-10

I gotta get going here.  I worked today and have been chatting w/ the kids about their days, about their report cards, helping with spelling tests.  All very nice but I have a terrible mess on my hands.  The house is a mess anyway, and then Thanksgiving is right around the corner.  I am scheduled to help out in preschool with their party tomorrow morning all morning, so I need to get moving this afternoon.

I feel not-so-ambitious.  To make matters worse, my dog, who is pretty old and did not behave herself today, got trapped somehow in the bathroom and totally wrecked it.  It's a disgusting mess.  She's completely housebroken but it looks like she freaked out in there and wasn't so much today.  I have my work cut out for me there.

So my goals for this evening:

1. Clean up the darned bathroom.  U G H    DONE
2. Usual house chores:
1. Transfer wash to dryer, fold dryer stuff, stick in a new load to wash.  Also put away clothes I folded last night but left in the basket b/c the boys were sleeping and I was tired.  DONE.  PUT IN A NEW LOAD - SAT 11/20.
2. Empty dishwasher and drainer.  (I always set the dw to run overnight.  I try to do the same w/ the washer.)  DONE.  DH EMPTIED SAT 11/20. 
3. Put all dirty dishes in the dishwasher.  DONE.  NEED TO DO SAT 11/20
4. Put all scattered clothes in the hamper.  DONE SAT 11/20.
5. Put all trash in the trash cans.  Take out when full.  NEED TO DO SAT 11/20
6. Sweep up the floors.  DID KITCHEN.  NEED TO DO AGAIN SAT 11/20
7. Swish and swipe the main bath.  DH DID SAT 11/20.
8. Make dinner.  (What to have?!)  DID THIS.  What's for dinner on Sat 11/20?  Hmmm.  I think country-fried chicken... will have to get some go-withs.
9. Clear off the couch and kitchen table. 
10. Do 5 more minutes of cleaning through paper piles. 
11. Do 5-10 min holiday chores.
12. Do 5-10 min of budget/bills stuff.  DONE!  ~Need to pay another bill 11/20 and take to mailbox
13. Do 5-15 min of decluttering -- in the dining room!  Find that table!  DH DID SOME 11/20, BLESS HIS PEA-PICKIN' HEART.  NEED TO DO MORE.
3. Wring #1's neck for not doing his homework yet.  (He's supposed to be seated at the kitchen table as I type.  His homework is supposed to be between 4 pm and 6 pm, then it's over, time up.  This was all due to a conference w/ his teachers because he was such a pain about the homework all night.  I need to go get him back on task... he's running around the playroom whooping and hollering.)  DONE

Let's see how much I can get done or delegate to another family member.  :)


Updating list on Friday 11/19:

14.  Need to mop kitchen -- STRIPPED HALF THE KITCHEN FLOOR W/ AMMONIA-ARMSTRONG MIXTURE PER THE LABEL -- F U M E S!!!  Scrubbed it and then rinsed, looks much better.  I have my little before half (the breakfast nook half) and after half (the kitchen half).   NEED TO STRIP THE OTHER HALF OF THE FLOOR (THE NOOK HALF)

Agh the Dining Room

All right... truth time.  Now I'm hosting Turkey Day here with my parents, my sister, my father-in-law, my brother-in-law, and the hub and 3 kids. 

Good news... Mom, local, is bringing a lot of stuff including the turkey. 

Bad news... I haven't seen my dining room table since New Years.  There is an *embarrassing* amount of stuff on it.  Under it.  Around it.  <ducking>

Now I'm going to make the shameful list of all the crud in my dining room in an effort to tell myself I can handle this:

1. Piles of paper.  OK no need to go into this in detail... I tamed the paper pile in 10 minutes, so I can handle this.  Maybe.  I will.  At least I'll try.  -- BOXED UP AND WILL GO THROUGH ASAP
2. Plastic bowls that don't fit anywhere right now. 
1. Going to my standard questions: 
1. (a) How often do I use these?  Let's see, I probably use one weekly, one monthly, and the rest, every few months. 
2. (b) Where do I use them?  Kitchen. 
2. So one of these needs to be mid-level in a cabinet, and one needs to be way down or way up, and the rest go to down to storage or up over the fridge or something.
3. Printer.  This will probably live there until Tday and then sit on my bed until time to put it back in the dining room.  :) 
4. File box and box of file folders. -- PUT THESE AWAY IN A F.R. CABINET
   1. Going to my standard questions: 
   1. (a) How often do I use this?  Let's see, I probably haven't used it in months... I was trying to set up a good file system. 
   2. (b) Where do I use them?  Kitchen/Fam Rm. 
   2. So I guess this needs to go down to storage right now, or at least in a hard-to-get-to cabinet in the Fam Rm.
5. 2 trash cans.  (Ummm why?)  Obviously one needs to leave this room and go somewhere it's needed.  One probably needs to be in the corner of the living room?
6. Coffee maker. 
1. Going to my standard questions: 
1. (a) How often do I use this?  Every few months.  I use it for company.  I have a one-cup maker for daily use. 
2. (b) Where do I use it?  Kitchen. 
2. So it needs to go to storage.
7. Rice maker -- GOING TO STORAGE PANTRY FOR NOW
   1. Going to my standard questions: 
   1. (a) How often do I use this?  Every few months. 
   2. (b) Where do I use it?  Kitchen. 
   2. So it needs to go to storage.
8. Christmas dishes.  (OK I'm keeping it real here.  This is awful.  Yes out from last Christmas.)
   1. Going to my standard questions: 
   1. (a) How often do I use this?  About two months a year. 
   2. (b) Where do I use it?  Kitchen. 
   2. So they need to go to storage most of the year, but from Thanksgiving until Christmas, they go into the kitchen cabinet and the other dishes go to storage in their place? 
9. Too much furniture.  Two pieces at least should go.
10. Camping stuff I never put away a few months ago.  AGH  PUT IN STORAGE
1. Going to my standard questions: 
1. (a) How often do I use this?  One season a year -- summer
2. (b) Where do I use it?  Um, camping. 
2. So it needs to go to storage -- totally needs to go to the camping storage space.
11. We're not even going to talk about the living room adjacent.  That's another post. 

The Dreaded Paper Pile

I have a bazillion inch paper pile to conquer. 

Here are some things which might be there, and my plan for them:

1. School papers
1. Art -- keep the A+ stuff, toss the rest
2. School work -- graded -- keep the one best from each kid and post on fridge, toss the rest
3. Report cards -- file all
4. Memos from teachers -- throw away outdated, keep newer ones
5. Field trip slips -- throw away outdated, keep newer ones, sign any that need it
6. Curriculum guides -- toss (info available online)
7. Other
2. Church papers
1. Bulletins -- toss all
2. Newsletters -- keep this month's, toss the rest
3. Kid papers -- toss all
4. Other
3. Papers from the mailbox
1. Bills -- put in bill file alphabetically
2. Statements -- put in bill file alphabetically
3. Junk mail -- toss or shred/burn
4. Coupons -- toss (I just can't keep up w/ them)
5. Letters from friends -- file
6. Other
4. Work papers
1. Notes to self & lists -- toss the obvious, put the others in my work tote bag
2. Reports -- same
3. Other items from the printer -- same
4. Other
5. Medical papers
1. Insurance slips -- file
2. Other -- file or toss
6. Books (don't ask) -- put in "Elsewhere basket"
7. Magazines -- put on magazine table (discard anything old)
8. Photos -- put in photo box
9. Other

UPDATE:  OK I got through most of the pile in just 10 minutes.  What is my deal?!!!  Why have I not kept up?  This wasn't too bad.  DO IT NOW.  :)  Very rewarding.

Wacky Reviews: Makeup

I bought some makeup at Target today on a whim and thought I'd let you know what I thought.  Now, realize that I am not one to use expensive makeup (that would require $$$) and so I'm pretty easily amused.  That being said, here's what I got that I liked:

I bought some e.l.f. stuff.  Have y'all heard of this stuff?  It started as an online company -- apparently their shipping is slow as Christmas (never tried it myself).  However, the products are now available at Target, which I like to call The Mother Ship.  Therefore, I have now bought some.

I got this one.  Once I finally got the stuff to start coming out of the sponge thingy on the end (I never have patience for that!), I liked it.  It's a kind of vanilla-mint flavor and is shiny but not obnoxious.  The color is nice.  I'll give it a B+.

I got this eyeshadow -- the color is called Pebble.  It's from the fancy e.l.f. Studio line -- meaning it cost $3 instead of $1 like most e.l.f. stuff.  The packaging is black and a little of an upgrade from the usual, and it has a little mirror in it, which I loved finding.  Giving this one:  A

Got this blush, also part of the $3 Studio line, in mauve.  I like it -- it is a little sparklier than I would love, but overall, nice.  Grade:  A-

I bought this in a brown combo, just to keep in the car for a quick application.  $3.  The larger end is an eyeshadow and the smaller is the eyeliner.  This is cool -- no sharpening needed.  Went on a lot more smoothly than I expected.  Grade:  A-

So, Today!

All of that to draw up my marching orders for today!

Do the Get Myself Ready list first.
First things first, all mornings:  ALL DONE!

1. Get up and wake kids 1 and 2.  Oversee their getting ready for and off to school.  DONE!
2. Get kid 3 up, ready, and off to school (no matter who is actually driving him).  DONE!
3. Get myself dressed including shoes.  No arguments.  (Flylady thing.)  DONE!
4. Brush teeth.  DONE!
5. Take meds.  DONE!
6. Eat breakfast.  Must be quick and nutritious.  Think: bowl of cereal, not toaster pastry or McDs.  DONE!

Do some Around the House routine stuff.  Special emphasis today needs to happen on FACE and Holidays, and PAPER PILE that is threatening to eat our kitchen.
Items to do if at home:

1. Pop a load of laundry into the washer.  DONE! 
2. Empty the dishwasher and dish drainer.  (Or run the dw if hasn't run the night prior.)  ~ DONE
3. Put all dishes in the sink or dishwasher.  DONE!
4. Pick up all scattered laundry and put it in a hamper.  DONE!
5. Sweep floor.  DONE
6. Quickly put anything which belongs in a different room in a box or hamper.  IN PROGRESS
7. Throw away any obvious trash.  IN PROGRESS
8. Do a quick swish & swipe of the main bathroom.
9. Pick one Weekly Home Blessing task (Flylady) and do it.  (I do these one at a time rather than all on one day at one time.  Mostly because I work.)
1. Change sheets.
2. Take out trash.
3. Vacuum rugs.
4. Mop.
5. Dust.
6. Clean glass/mirrors.
7. Throw out outdated magazines.
10. Paper Pile -- pick one:  DID 10 MIN
1. Throw away 27 papers.
2. Spend 15 minutes sorting through per Stephanie Winston's TRAF:
1. Toss
2. Refer
3. Act
4. File
11. Exercise!
12. Pick one
1. Zone decluttering (Flylady) -- look up current zone on Fly site, and declutter in it for 15 minutes
2. Do one room my way (see older Cleaning posts)
13. FACE -- this it the $ stuff, based on Flylady but my way of doing it
1. Updating budget book with current transactions.
2. Paying due bills.
14. Dinner -- 
1. What is for dinner?!  Start anything you can right now (thaw, marinate, crock pot).
2. Plan what time to start cooking and make an appt w/ myself.
15. Holidays -- work the lists

At 10:30 a.m., go run errands.  (Prepare for these now though.)

1. Need to purchase Operation Christmas Child things to go to the preschool when I pick up kiddo #3.  DONE! DELIVERED!  YAY!
2. Need to purchase items requested by #2's  teachers (to send in tomorrow). DONE!
3. Need to drop off letter/check/form at school for #1 to stay for extracurricular. Forgot that!  Again!
4. Get movie from Redbox that I promised Son #1. DONE!
5. Pick up more hot chocolate.  And some shoes for Son #1 who has busted his clean through the soles and they are now leaking rainwater.  (How does he do this so fast?!!!!)  GOT SHOES< FORGOT HOT COCOA

So, here I go -- work with me and post your progress!  I'll aim to work 3 fifteen-minute sessions, then relax (and drink some water ) during each "fourth quarter"!

2:45 update:  I gotta get back on the stick.  Ran errands, picked up #3 from preschool, and then my mom popped in for a nice chat so I'm just now getting back to work.  Gonna pick up where I left off.

Morning Routines/Afternoon Routines

So I guess since some days I'm at home, some I'm at the office, and some I'm driving preschool carpool and am out and about, I'll have a sort of "menu" approach to routine planning. 

First things first, all mornings:

1. Get up and wake kids 1 and 2.  Oversee their getting ready for and off to school.
2. Get kid 3 up, ready, and off to school (no matter who is actually driving him).
3. Get myself dressed including shoes.  No arguments.  (Flylady thing.)
4. Brush teeth. 
5. Take meds.
6. Eat breakfast.  Must be quick and nutritious.  Think: bowl of cereal, not toaster pastry or McDs.

Items to do if at home:

1. Pop a load of laundry into the washer. 
2. Empty the dishwasher and dish drainer.  (Or run the dw if hasn't run the night prior.)
3. Put all dishes in the sink or dishwasher. 
4. Pick up all scattered laundry and put it in a hamper.
5. Sweep floor.
6. Quickly put anything which belongs in a different room in a box or hamper.
7. Throw away any obvious trash.
8. Do a quick swish & swipe of the main bathroom.

Items to do if at the office:

1. Check all phone messages and return calls.
2. Check all email and return some.
3. Open any mail waiting for me and act on anything I can do in 2 min or less.
4. Start projects and actions.

Items to do if out and about town:

• Consult list of errands and run them. 
• Bank? 
• P.O.? 
• Library?
• Grocery? 
• Pharmacy? 
• Target/Walmart?

Larger items around home:

1. Pick one Weekly Home Blessing task (Flylady) and do it.  (I do these one at a time rather than all on one day at one time.  Mostly because I work.)
1. Change sheets.
2. Take out trash.
3. Vacuum rugs.
4. Mop.
5. Dust.
6. Clean glass/mirrors.
7. Throw out outdated magazines.
2. Paper Pile -- pick one:
1. Throw away 27 papers.
2. Spend 15 minutes sorting through per Stephanie Winston's TRAF:
1. Toss
2. Refer
3. Act
4. File
3. Exercise.
4. Pick one
1. Zone decluttering (Flylady) -- look up current zone on Fly site, and declutter in it for 15 minutes
2. Do one room my way (see older Cleaning posts)
5. FACE -- this it the $ stuff, based on Flylady but my way of doing it
1. Updating budget book with current transactions.
2. Paying due bills.
6. Dinner -- 
1. What is for dinner?!  Start anything you can right now (thaw, marinate, crock pot).
2. Plan what time to start cooking and make an appt w/ myself.
7. Holidays -- work the lists

Get My Act Together Day

Today is Wednesday.  I'm off work and it's time to get my act together. 

I went to bed at 7:30 last night!  It was inadvertent, but it happened.  I laid down for a few moments, passed out, and pretty much woke up this morning.  I have sleep apnea, also another topic for another post, but although I'm being treated with a CPAP, I still struggle with fatigue.  It got the best of me last night.  Thank goodness my husband is terrific and understanding and was willing to take care of everything while I was AWOL.

So here I am.  Kid #3 has just left for school, and it's soooo tempting to crawl back under the covers.  You would think that 11 hours was enough sleep, but apparently not. :( 

I have the usual goals to attend to -- not much progress the last two days as I worked both in the office and also at home doing some freelancing work.  (I do freelance articles for extra $ sometimes.)  So I'm kind of back where I was on Sunday evening, with the additions of cleaning up the messes we made Mon and Tues and also taking care of some other things which have cropped up.

Is anyone else exhausted and overwhelmed, or is it just me?

Before I list out goals, here is what I'm struggling with.  I'm off-kilter.  I could attack this many ways.  Do I (a) sleep as much as I can until I'm not tired anymore so I can knock out sleep debt, feel better, and get back on top of things around here? (b) really buckle down on diet and exercise as a way to increase energy and health and then worry about these tasks? (c) continue to concentrate on really pushing myself doing the freelancing, which I do enjoy, in order to make more $ and alleviate some pressure from the bills, and then get back on top of things?, or (d) just cut to the chase, do the things which need to be done around here, and then hopefully gain energy from the momentum, and also start sleeping better, etc.

What would Flylady say?  Definitely not A.  She says to go to bed at a decent hour to get rest, but to get up in the morning and make the bed to avoid crawling back in.  B?  Not to the exclusion of getting things done.  I'm such an all or nothing person, it's always This OR That, never both, but I think Flylady advocates the "jump in where you are" method, and doing what needs to be done but working in eating nutritiously and also "loving movement" or exercise.  As far as $ goes, same thing.  She had a system called FACE that deals with money, and making extra bits of money, but not at the exclusion of everything else.

So I guess the answer is complicated -- and it's not to go back to bed.  That's a tough temptation to overcome. 

I feel a post coming on about structuring time around here.  Do any of you have pretty decent routines you stick to?  I fight them by nature, but with a family of little kids, it's much healthier, although monotonous, to keep to a routine, I think.

Sigh.

Where's the fun in that?!

So I guess the answer to my morning is to do my morning routine.  I probably need to design two of them -- one for days when I work at the office and one for days where I do not.  There's just so much to be done -- I had even thought of going to the office this morning in preparation for some things due tomorrow. 

Can you say o-v-e-r-w-h-e-l-m?!!  With an ADD-er like me, that so frequently spells paralysis. 

I will not get stuck still.  I will not get stuck still. 

So my answer: create a quick, decent routine which incorporates food, exercise, a plan for writing, and the things I have to do today, then have at it.  I'll do this in another post.

Thanksgiving Recipes

All right, Thanksgiving Dinner.  Let me post these recipes to satisfy the Thanksgiving part of the Recipes list in the holiday planning process.

Scalloped Pineapple

1 can crushed pineapple (20 oz or 2 ½ cups)
¾ cup sugar
2 T cornstarch
2 eggs, beaten
1 t. vanilla
¼ c. water

Mix all ingredients and pour into a buttered 1 quart casserole dish.  Sprinkle with cinnamon and dot with butter. 

Bake 1 hr. (or until firm)  350 degrees

Libby’s Pumpkin Pie (from the website)

Level: Easy

·         Prep: 15 min

·         Cooking: 55 min

·         Cooling time: 2 hrs cooling

·         Yields: 8 servings

Ingredients

·         3/4 cup granulated sugar

·         1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

·         1/2 teaspoon salt

·         1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

·         1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

·         2 large eggs

·         1 can (15 oz.) LIBBY'S® 100% Pure Pumpkin

·         1 can (12 fl. oz.) NESTLÉ® CARNATION® Evaporated Milk

·         1 unbaked 9-inch (4-cup volume) deep-dish pie shell

·         Whipped cream (optional)

conversion calculator

Directions

MIX sugar, cinnamon, salt, ginger and cloves in small bowl. Beat eggs in large bowl. Stir in pumpkin and sugar-spice mixture. Gradually stir in evaporated milk.

POUR into pie shell.

BAKE in preheated 425° F oven for 15 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350° F; bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until knife inserted near center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack for 2 hours. Serve immediately or refrigerate. Top with whipped cream before serving.

Mashed Potatoes -- The big debate.  We're having the plain kind, on page 5 of this pdf.  (This is where I got the idea to keep them warm in a crockpot.)
 http://www.leanneely.com/Free_Thanksgiving.pdf
I love Leanne Ely's Saving Dinner recipes. 
Here's her personal site which has a ton of Thanksgiving leftovers recipes:  http://www.leanneely.com/category/holiday/thanksgiving/
Here's the Saving Dinner site.  You can buy all sorts of menu plans with shopping lists and recipes.  (I love the smoothies!) 
http://savingdinner.com/go-shopping/

And for grins, here are the potatoes I like but I'm not making this year.  These are either Leanne's or Flylady's -- I got them from the Fly site (http://www.flylady.com/) one time.  They're to die for!

Easy Party Potatoes
Serves 12

5 pounds potatoes -- mashed
1/2 pint sour cream*
1 8-ounce package cream cheese*
salt and pepper to taste
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
2 tablespoons butter
Paprika for garnish.

*using low fat varieties of these products happily does not change the end result!

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

To the mashed potatoes, add everything and beat until fluffy (be careful not to go too far with the beating or you will develop glutinous, wallpaper paste textured potatoes).

Place potato mixture into a lightly greased 2-quart casserole dish and bake for 30 minutes or so.

Garnish the top with paprika and serve.

Progress Toward Goals

Hello -- It's Sunday evening and I took it pretty easy today.  I went to church with the family, then went out to lunch with my mom and a friend and my husband and kids.  It was a lovely, leisurely lunch and the kids (mostly) behaved so all was nice.

I came home and wrote and submitted a couple of freelance articles, and kept one eye on the NASCAR race.  (The hub is a big fan.  Me, not a sports fan, but I'm usually in the room on my computer if a race is on so I chat amiably about it in a very limited fashion.)

House goals left undone as of last night, updated with today's progress, are:

Random ones:

1. Get that laundry basket from the family room into the washer. -- I have other wash I need to do -- two other loads -- so I'm nixing the family room basket this evening.  Bumping until tomorrow.
2. Keep the family room picked up so it still looks decent. -- Wellllll, we've all been in here quite a bit today hanging out, so it's not pretty.  I won't lie.  But I think I could whip it into shape in about 5 minutes, max.  Will do after the kids are in bed in awhile.
3. Work some more on holiday stuff. -- Will be in another post.
4. Get some sort of physical activity -- anything, at this point! -- in today. -- Sadly, I have not done this.  I really have to make it a priority.  Please comment below if you have any terrific insights on making myself do this... I procrastinate every day and my health is starting to show it.

Kitchen ones:

1. Empty dishwasher and drainer. -- DONE TODAY BY DH
2. Put all dirty dishes in the dishwasher. -- DONE TODAY BY DH and ME
3. Throw away as much trash as possible including obvious things from the fridge. -- IN PROGRESS
4. Put "Elsewheres" in a basket. -- DONE
5. Wipe down counters and appliances.  SOME
6. Empty crumbs from toaster.
7. Sweep floor. -- DONE
8. Mop floor. -- I really despise mopping, but it's really bad.  And I have an almost-solid, verrry light colored floor.  Agh.  And Son #1 especially is a big spiller.  (Yes I do have them wipe up as often as I can, but he's a hurricane.)
9. Wipe out a shelf or drawer from the fridge (at least). -- The fridge is in very bad shape.  Deplorable.

Favorite Books about Bipolar Kids

Here are several of my go-to books on juvenile, or early-onset, bipolar disorder. 




This is the definitive guide, the one that the child psychiatrist asked us to check out as he was making the diagnosis.  There's also a website.
Bipolar Child website














This one -- a book by a mom with bipolar children who cowrote with a medical expert -- has an easy-enough format that even when I'm panicked over some situation we're in, flipping madly through the book trying to find some help, I can find it. 

It has grids about different levels of the illness and how to parent each level.  I really really find those helpful.









This one is a great over-all about the illness itself, not specific to parenting bipolar kids but very helpful.

"I Want, I Want"

I have to figure out what to do with my kiddos. They have everything they need, material-wise, and lots of what they want. Yet it's a constant bombardment with Scholastic fliers, going to stores and restaurants, vending machines... They are not nasty, but I will say that my oldest is especially fixated on things. Time to disclose to y'all that my oldest son has bipolar disorder -- which I'm sure I'll blog about a lot in the future. Anyway, he is up, he is down, and he obsesses a lot about a lot of things and is generally more difficult about things when he is not as stable in his mood.

He's the ringleader of the I Want I Want parade.  I typically will tell my children to list things they see and like on a wish list which we (and their grandparents) will use at birthday and Christmas time. In the past, this was sufficient.  Increasingly, though, it's been an endless parade of see-it, want-it, and generally not being grateful for what they do have.

How to stamp this out?  We've had a lot of talks about how fortunate we are, and how you have to be grateful for what you have.  I'm not sure what to do.  I know I need to have them volunteer and do some service projects.  I will.  But what to do now?  What to do w/ the ten-year-old who is soooo obsessed, for instance, with a movie he wants to rent that he asks us about it, harasses us, really, many many many times a day.  (And he just got his screen time back today over some poor choices he made earlier in the week!)

The Kitchen (my nemesis)

I clean and clean this room and I never get anywhere.  We just keep using it.  Ha.  I neglected the kitchen yesterday so I need to whip it into shape today. 

Self-care, first:

1. Eat something decent. -- DONE AND DONE AGAIN AT LUNCH
2. Take meds and get something non-caff to drink.  (Prob also caff!) -- DONE
3. Take a shower, for goodness sake! -- DONE
4. Dry hair and put on going-out clothes-- IN PROGRESS

Other little goals:

1. Get that laundry basket from the family room into the washer.
2. Keep the family room picked up so it still looks decent.
3. Work some more on holiday stuff.
4. Get some sort of physical activity -- anything, at this point! -- in today.
5. Go to a holiday craft show at church w/ at least one kiddo -- GOING IN AWHILE

Soooo, the kitchen. 

1. Empty dishwasher and drainer. -- DONE
2. Put all dirty dishes in the dishwasher. -- DONE
3. Handwash anything else and put in drainer. - -DONE
4. Throw away as much trash as possible including obvious things from the fridge. -- IN PROGRESS
5. Take trash out to bin outside. -- DONE
6. Put "Elsewheres" in a basket.

Then cleaning:

1. Wipe down counters and appliances.  SOME
2. Soak carousel plate from microwave.  DONE
3. Empty crumbs from toaster.
4. Sweep floor.
5. Mop floor.
6. Wipe out a shelf or drawer from the fridge (at least).

Decluttering (for another day):

1. All cupboards -- these are jam-packed and awful
2. Top of fridge (where all the Halloween fall-out is living)
3. Mail counter (horror beyond words)
4. Inside the bench

Decorating (for another day)

1. Someday I'd love to get a nicer sink faucet, maybe a gooseneck one.
2. Think about different lighting.  We have two halogen ceiling fans which give off good enough ambient light but there's no task lighting over the sink, for instance.
3. I'd love to put a microwave over the stove and free up the current microwave counter.  Not sure though -- gonna be a long time.
4. Consider taking the bench by the door out.
5. Paint the pantry cabinet.

OK I'll be back in awhile.

Advice on Home Cleaning & Organization | eHow.com

Advice on Home Cleaning & Organization eHow.com

Fun Easy Activities for Kids | eHow.com

Fun Easy Activities for Kids eHow.com

How to Combine Electronic Organizer With Paper | eHow.com

How to Combine Electronic Organizer With Paper eHow.com

How to Mix Country Decorating Styles in the Home | eHow.com

How to Mix Country Decorating Styles in the Home eHow.com

Storage Shelving & Organizing Bins | eHow.com

Storage Shelving & Organizing Bins eHow.com

Home Organization Help | eHow.com

Home Organization Help eHow.com

Good Chores for Kids | eHow.com

Good Chores for Kids eHow.com

Some Favorite Books About Home Stuff

I love this book.  I have an earlier book by these authors and really loved it -- it's listed below.  This one is literally 30 days of projects around the house, and each has a sort of beginner step and then an "extra" sort of step.  I need to revisit this old favorite.













Here's my old favorite.  Very thin book, very concise, excellent pointers.















Here's the Flylady herself.  This is a good one, and in my opinion, much easier to start with than the website is, although I'm a fan of the site too.  (http://www.flylady.com/)












This one is so funny and lighthearted.  Marla Cilley took this system and finessed it when she came up with Flylady.  Pam and Peggy are the original deal.  They're all terrific.












This book is a tremendous help.  Must I confess that the last time I returned it to the library, it was ironically very overdue?!!

Elsewheres

OK now to the part I dislike.  :)  I need to take this couch full of stuff and send it off to whence it belongs.

My preschool son picked up all his trucks and stashed them on the couch so he could vacuum. Time to send them to his room. I have some other items which are straightforward - they go to kids' rooms.

Then there's Sockland. I have a big Lands' End tote full of odd socks. My daughter calls it Sockland - and now we all do. Someday I mean to have the kids actually go through and match up socks, and then discard what doesn't have a mate. However, right now, it just gets brought out, dug through, and pillaged for socks. (We have a big issue keeping up with everyone's socks! It's dreadful.)

Finally, I have a full basket of items which do not go in the family room but do not go in the bedrooms. These represent trickier decisions. For instance - there's a pair of blue jeans with holes in the knees. I keep thinking they could be cut-offs. I hate to waste things. However... then there's an old backpack, a vacuum cleaner wand, some clothes that don't fit the kids.

These are the crux of the issue.

We have three purple bins aka "The Purple Baskets" which sit on the couch. Kid #1 has one, #2, and #3. I toss things in there as I come to them and they periodically take them to their rooms, put stuff away (or cram it under the beds) and bring back the empty baskets. At least they bring them back when I threaten them.

However, the basket of random items... not so easy. What is really the problem here, I wonder? There's a flip flop that doesn't really fit, is b-ugly, and I don't know the location of the matching one. There's a small pile of linens.

I guess all of these things represent either messy areas I don't want to face (i.e. the linen closet) or they represent guilt and procrastination (such as the hole-y jeans).

Time to decide now about the contents. I know, I'll look at frequency of use.

1. Back-up backpack. Keeper. My oldest kid loves backpacks and will dump his school one out on the floor and use that for play or travel if I don't keep a spare. Frequency? Not weekly. Probably monthly or every few. For now, I'm pretending every few -- winning it a spot in storage in the basement with the luggage. Ding ding ding.
2. Flip flop. Eh. Kid likes it. Might grow into it. No longer flip-flop weather - will stick in w/ swim clothes/toys for now. If mate shows up, will put there too.
3. Shorts. It's November. But they still technically fit the kid.  But he's four. They won't fit him next year, right? Or will they? OK I'll store them wrapped as "#3's Summer Clothes" and put the year on the bag. Likely they'll be donated.
4. Two shirts which have stains even after laundering. I love love love Shout stain gel. I'll take them to the laundry, pretreat them, let them sit, and launder them again tomorrow.
5. Vacuum wand. Once again I will put it on the vacuum. Hopefully Kid #3 will leave it there. (Ha.) We did have a discussion about that.
6. Firefighter's dress-up outfit. I think I will keep all kids' dress-ups in the playroom. Need to hang hooks but for now, will just store in closet there.

I'm off to scatter things.

Planning Lists, Part I

Based on this list of lists, LOL, I'm going to do some holiday planning.
Here's the link, because this is word for word:  Additude magazine: Planning for the Holidays by Marla Cilley

List 1:  Holiday Traditions -- I need to ask the kids and the hub what they all love about Christmas.  Since I ask them every year, I'll just take some guesses right now.  Also, need to explore Turkeyday.

Thanksgiving

1. Eh, it's all about the dinner. 
2. Every year, I think I'm going to have the kids help me make little packets of Blessing Mix and give them out to friends and family, but we never do.  Maybe this year?

Christmas

1. Going to church on Christmas Eve.
2. Giving everyone cocoa and cookies, blasting Christmas music, and driving around to see the lights.
3. We gift-wrap a bunch of Christmas storybooks and open one and read it each day starting Dec 1. 
4. Gotta make candy/cookies at some point.  Musts:  mint-brownies, fondant pinwheels, buckeyes, fudge...

List 2:  Holiday Menus and Recipes --

Thanksgiving

1. Turkey -- we have a 5-person family and usualy only have 2 guests.  I like to have some leftovers but none of us love love love brown meat and even though it's nontraditional, what works out best is a cooked turkey breast.  My favorites have been the Butterball ones that come in the bag that you cook them in -- the boneless ones with gravy.  (Pausing for the outcries against this.)  To salvage the presentation, I've sliced it and put it on a platter.  It looks nice that way -- nicer still with some good garnish.  (I've done all kinds of turkeys -- my favorite-tasting one was the Rachael Ray recipe with the herbs under the skin.)
2. Mashers -- I like the kind w/ sour cream and cream cheese and butter mixed in.  My better half prefers plain but would not say so until pressed.  I'll do plain.  I like to do them early and keep them warm in the crockpot (on low) w/ a lot of butter and a buttered crock.
3. Green beans -- best ones were fresh, steamed and then seasoned.  We'll see.
4. Carrots -- my bro-in-law loves these.
5. Scalloped pineapple -- a warm pineapple-y casserole.  My family has it for Thanksgiving and Christmas every year.  Must have.
6. Rolls -- I've accepted that either the frozen dough ones or the Sister Schubert ones are the way to go.
7. Pumpkin Pie -- for the hub and his daddy-o.
8. Chocolate something-or-other -- for the rest of us.  :)  I've done apple pies, pumpkin choc chip cheesecakes... but we might just do something different and all chocolate this year.
9. Standard Issue Ocean Spray Cranberry Jelly -- we all love it.  All of us. 
10. Beverages -- assorted

List 3:  Gifts

1. I'm making my list and checking it twice. 
2. Do you really think I'm going to post this on here?  People would know what they're getting!
3. Every year I do make a spreadsheet w/ a code name (stop peeking people) and list the budget for each person, then put in what I plan to get and then mark when I get it and deduct the price from the per-person budget so I stay within it and keep track of gifts.  This is the only way I can manage it.
4. One year I had all my shopping done by Dec 1.  One year.  Every other year?  Up into the wee hours of Christmas Eve.  And even if I have it bought, it ain't wrapped.  Goal:  Change that.  It really wrecks me to do that last minute.  And then have to call my sister surreptitiously to borrow extra wrap because I run out.

List 4:  Dates To Put on Your Calendar

1. Neighborhood party -- TBD
2. Christmas pageant at church
3. Christmas program at preschool
4. Last day of school for everyone
5. Thanksgiving days off for everyone
6. Time off from work!
7. What dates family is visiting
8. Any dates friends are visiting
9. Plus-one's office party -- TBD
10. Any dr. appointments in December -- I always forget those!
11. Any haircuts -- those too!
12. What am I forgetting?