It was a long time coming, but we finally got our tree up.

Getting the tree was not a problem. We went to the FFA sale at our local high school. A very cute and very earnest freshman helped tie the tree to the roof of the car. It didn’t slide off during the short drive home, but it was close.

Getting the tree in water was not a problem, either. And James didn’t even have a hard time convincing me to wait a day to decorate (the branches were a little smooshed still, so it made sense).

The problem came when it was time to put on the lights.

For my first on-my-own-I’m-an-adult tree, I bought three strands of red and white lights. I love these lights. I’ve never seen trees with red and white lights, other than my own, of course. When I decided I ought to buy a few more strands, just in case, I found they were not plentiful. As far as I can tell, only Target sells them. Last year I bought two or three strands to stock up.

When I decorated the outside bushes this year, I used the “new” strands. One, of course, died on me, so the bushes are very lopsided, with two strands on one side and one strand on the other. But I wanted to save my “good” lights for the tree.

I plugged in the “good” strands to test them and only half of each would light up. I got a pair of pliers and started trying new bulbs, hoping to fix them.

Three broken bulbs later, James and I are fighting. I’ve got tiny shards of glass all over the living room and am no closer to working lights. We finally decide to run out to CVS and just have boring multicolor lights. I’m quite upset, but figure any lights are better than no lights.

But Sunday was, of course, the ice storm. The car was completely coated in ice.

Resigned, I decided the decorating would have to wait.

But it’s lovely, now. And for more holiday spirit, here’s the revamped mantel decoration:

And to top it off, reason #56 why I love James:

Isn’t he cute?

We have been flat out all of November and December isn’t looking much better.  James has been ridiculously bogged down at work and was handed a side project he couldn’t say no to ($500 right before the holidays?  who can pass that up?).

So while he worked all weekend, I cleaned all weekend.  With the craziness of NaNoWriMo behind me, I went a little nuts, doing all the things that have been on my nerves since Nov. 1.

I put away all the detrius of our Thanksgiving travel then cleaned just about the whole house.  Then I got out the Christmas decorations and had fun with that. I’ll have to take another pic of the mantel.

I also made ginger snaps for James, since he was working so hard.  And cute candy train ornaments with the youth group (I broke mine, and then our pastor broke it again, so I don’t have one to show off; they’re supposed to go to the people at the nursing homes we carol at, anyway). It was not a very relaxing weekend, but I was happy to get as much done as I did.

This week I look forward to writing more on this novel and figuring out the ending.  James is still sloshing his way through his projects.

Shaffin at the Wake Robin wants to sit down and discuss stuff  over drinks.  I’m thinking we might be able to do that next week; sounds like fun.  We owe another big payment before the end of the month.  It’s sitting in our money market account, but I’m loathe to part with it.  I love watching it earn interest.  We’ll be below the minimum balance for good interest once we make the payment.

No news on the car yet, though I did talk to the adjustor this morning.  He was supposed to make it out to Sharon Auto Body today to check it out.  Hope it’s fixable.  I can’t imagine having to get a new car now.  It would not be pretty. 

I looked up from my work at about 5:20 last night and thought, “Where is James? I thought he wanted to leave early?”

I do a quick search and can’t find him, so I play on the Internet until he comes back to his office. We talk about going home. He says he has one more thing to do, then he’s ready.

I return to the Internet.

Next thing I know, he’s out the door. I frantically start shutting down things on my computer, grab my coat and bag and head outside. To see his tail lights as he pulls out of the parking lot.

He forgot me.

I come back inside and the few coworkers who remain tell me stories about how their husbands left their kids places. Or how they were left places as a kid. A couple offer me rides home, and soon I’m on my way.

I get home. James’s car is there, but mine is gone. And the house is dark. I thank my coworker for the ride and head inside. I try James’s cell phone, but it’s off.

If his car hadn’t been there, I would have just assumed he turned around to come get me. But where did he go with mine?

After about 10 minutes of nailbiting, he pulls in, in my car.

The windows in his car were fogging up and he couldn’t get them clear, so when he got home and realized I wasn’t there, he took my car back to come get me.

We haven’t yet discussed a suitable punnishment, but I think he may be doing the laundry for a while.

I was going to do a big post about my trip to be in the studio audience of Rachael Ray’s talk show, but I may be writing that up for the paper. When that comes out, I’ll link to it. If it doesn’t, then I’ll post the story here.

A close family friend died last week and it has been very hard the last day or so.

I was caught up on my novel, but then life happened.

Maybe it’s the beginning of winter, but James and I have been doing a lot of holing up in the living room with computer games, books, TV and fires. Neither of us is motivated to do much more.

Heather, my maid of honor, seems to be the only one motivated to work on wedding stuff at the moment. But it will get better once we go to Virginia and I get to drag Carolina, James’s sister and a bridesmaid, out to look at dresses.

I meant to write this yesterday but election ate my brain.

Yesterday was the 10-month mark. No save the dates. No immediate plans (see above re: election ate my brain).

Maybe something of substance tomorrow night or Friday morning, after Connecticut brides take over Rachel Ray tomorrow.

We really haven’t done anything on the wedding planning front this week. With Halloween and NaNo, our free time has pretty much disappeared.

James and I have both started novels, though I’m a bit farther in than he is (I have 3,398 words to his 357). He’s gotten more compliments on his excerpts than I have, though.

In an idle conversation, James asked me how I would feel if his novel was published and mine wasn’t. I said I’d be thrilled for him and I meant it. He thinks he is an awful writer, and that is just not the case. Yes, his work needs polishing, but whose doesn’t? That’s why God created editors.

I would probably have a pang or two of jealousy if he published something before me, but I really would be thrilled. I love to see him happy in a project, and I know that, were he to publish a book, it would be a happy project for him.

It struck me that this feeling, knowing how happy I would be for him, is an important one. It makes me know that I’m marrying the right person. I really love to see him excel.

I’ve been meaning to post this picture for a couple of weeks now, but see below re: busy.

We bought a screen for our fireplace and have been enjoying fires. It’s very cozy.

All we need is a rug to go in front of it.

I have been MIA for a week or so and I appologize. I have just been flat out lately.

Work has been piled up. I’m not quite sure why, but by the end of the day, my brain has leaked out my ear and I go home and stare at the wall until it’s time to come back to work.

Also, this freelance proofreading project will never end. I mean, I’m happy to do it as long as they’re happy to pay me for it, but they keep telling me the project is over. And then sending more files.

I’ve been pretty good with the exercising, getting out the door only 5 or 10 minutes late. I did skip yoga last night because I was just that tired (and I had a pile of proofreading waiting for me at home).

But today is my birthday and I woke up in a good mood. I haven’t been looking forward to this birthday like I usually do, so I was glad to be happy (if that’s not too convoluted).

Someone advanced a theory that when things are good in life, you don’t mind getting older or dread the future. That’s a happy thought.

But work doesn’t stop for your birthday.

I got in and had to update my story on the high school volleyball team (No. 1 in the league!) and then write a profile of a prominant civil rights attorney who died this week. In the middle of that, James asks me to do him a favor. I blow him off till I’m done writing (and I swear, I have never heard my phone ring so much!) and ask him what he wants. He asks me to get something out of his glove box. I say fine, secretly wondering why he can’t do this himself, and go out to his car. In the glove box is a card and a packet of peanut M&Ms. I think my silly grin lasted about an hour.

And I just have to record, for posterity, the poem on the card:

I love your face —
I love your feet —
And all the rest.
My life’s complete!

We stopped at CVS at lunch time to pick up the rest of my antibiotics (stupid insurance would only give me three pills at a time — the prescription was only for five pills!) and as we’re walking out of the store, we pass an older woman struggle to reach something on the top shelf.

James stops and says, “Can I get something for you?” and proceeds to retrieve the item from the shelf for the woman, who was very grateful. James continues out of the store, thinking nothing of the exchange.

“What?” he says in response to my big grin.

“I love you,” I say.

I’ve been hearing from some people that they are reading this blog regularly, and James put in a new stats counter and is telling me of all the hits I get, so now I’m feeling pressured to update more than once a week.

I’m trying, really!

This week has been hard. I’m getting over a urinary tract infection that made my kidneys ache (yay for antibiotics!) and James is sick with some illness or another, so there isn’t a lot of left over energy. We haven’t even gotten around to adding more things to our registry.

We were talking the other day, though, about maybe setting up a registry at Sears so that we can get some tools. The drapes I bought for the living room are hidden in the corner behind the recliner because we keep forgetting to borrow the screw gun from work to get the rods up. We have an amazing dearth of tools.

But at the same time, I can’t really imagine adding anything else to a registry. We’re already got so much stuff! Who is going to want to look at all this stuff, much less buy it for us?

My new strategy on the weight loss front is to hang up photos of beautiful brides all over the kitchen to remind me not to eat so much. It was working well, until James asked me to bring him some potato chips last night because he wasn’t feeling well and wanted comfort food. I think I ate most of them. Sigh.

The weather has been dreary lately, too, which doesn’t help with the low energy levels. I’ve just decided to take the week off and start fresh next week.