ho ho ho

the cards are sent.
ordered last mail order gift.
tree still isn't done.
where did I put the tree faces last year when I took them down?
& will I find The Grinch & Christmas Vacation so I can watch them?
does Katie want to bake cookies?

x-mas card blip

Merry Christmas from the Dailey’s!

Koren started the New Year off with a bang, with Cody proposing at midnight. She traveled to London, Chicago, & Colorado, was presented with a Scholastic Key from Missouri Western State University, & graduated Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelors degree in Psychology. In August she moved to Oak Grove to be an assistant manager at the new Walgreens. They have set a wedding date-October 24, 2009, in Colorado.

KJ is a junior. He was inducted into National Honor Society, & participated in HDC band, District Music Contest, Academic Team, track, & the school play. He is now a licensed driver.

Katie is in 4th grade. She was interviewed on KAAN radio about the Band Carnival. She started jazz & tap lessons, 4-H, adopted a Great Pyrenees dog, played pee wee softball, & bridged from Brownies to Juniors in Girl Scouts. She was in a tap dance duo that won FIRST PLACE in the Mercer County Fair Talent Show!

Kevin had surgery in February on the ankle he broke last August. He went back to work in May.

Deb applied for a different job. She didn’t get it, of course. 13 years in a hog barn- but who’s counting. She also hit her first deer & totaled the Monte Carlo.

And a partridge in a pear tree!
2008

happy holidays

did a thanksgiving dinner at the in-laws, held a thanksgiving supper for my parents, went to a family dinner at my parents, then the Brown Family Christmas at Trenton.
I start shopping early, which was very good this year since I totalled out a car & wouldn't have had $ to even start now. Have a gift or 2 left for Katie & will be done.(?) I kind of wanted to get a family Wii & new tv for the 'family' room this year, but will have to put that off.
the big & small trees are up, the reindeer on the front porch, the stockings on the wall, the nativity on the entertainment center, the snowflakes in the window. still decorating the tree. we've even had the first real freakin' snow.
planning the girl scout xmas party, took off work to volunteer in the craft room at the school xmas party. kevin & I selected xmas cards at Wal-Mart. Have already rec'd my xmas card wallets from Snapfish.com.
I plan on ordering the new Clue game for us to play this holiday season.
kate needs snow boots that she will consent to wear. no luck at Wal-Mart...
do I have all my bases covered?

Re: Halloween

it is a tradition in Mercer for pumpkins to be stolen & broken all over the square on Halloween, they'll burn an outhouse if they can find one. Koren was dancing on broken pumpkins on the square when she was in 6th grade, I think, & fell & broke her arm.
One of the girls we were trick or treating with pointed out several huge dead rats on the sidewalk while we were walking...they were on different streets. Her theory was someone killed them because it was Halloween. I was thinking they were coming up out of the sewer because it was Halloween....
today was the traditional pick up trash day...the entire school spends an hour at the end of the day picking up the after affects of the holiday...

Halloween Finally Came...

& boy, was it fun! We celebrated by throwing the annual Girl Scout Ghostly Gala, working at the Elementary Fall Festival, & Trick-or-Treating. Tomorrow will throw Katie's Halloween Birthday Bash, then the holiday will officially be over.
The Junior class has penpals in 2nd grade, so they walked in the costume parade with their penpals. KJ's pal is Sydney. She was an Indian & KJ wore his leather jacket & slicked his hair back. KJ is pretty much a stay-at-home kind of guy, but Corey, Cassie, & Josh drug him uptown to trick or treat.

xmas update

I never did find the Roman Holidays cartoon series for Koren...just that old classic movie that I can't bring myself to watch.
I ordered Koren & Cody matching beer hoodies from a catalog with a beer bottle shaped kangaroo pocket to keep their beer cold.
Katie thinks she'd like a mini fridge for her room.
Kevin is getting a Chiefs hat & 2 vintage Chiefs t-shirts.
have 2 toys so far for Miss Cuddles.

the wonderful company I work for has announced recently that there will be no Thanksgiving turkey or Xmas ham...a wage freeze...my barn is being de-popped for prrs, rumors are flying that we won't get filled back up...

Ho! Ho! Ho! Merry Christmas!

back to xmas shopping....

saw an ad on tv today for Pushing Daisies Season One dvd & Katie's eyes just lit up, so ordered it for her today.

a shopping we will go....

got on amazon.com & found The Critic Complete Series dvd set for me, & season 3 of Home Movies for KJ.
maybe I can find Roman Holidays for Koren---she loved it as a kid, the last time I looked for it I couldn't find it, but could try again...I am on a roll!

X-mas

the date has been set for Katie's Xmas recital---December 6th. They will wear Christmas pajamas.

rec'd an email that KJ's TNA game will ship. (his first xmas gift, since he told me he couldn't wait till xmas to get the Madden game.)
ordered Kevin 2 Chiefs t-shirts & a hat from ESPN sport catalog.
Kate still insists she doesn't want or need anything for Xmas.
Usually I have made & revised my lists & have most of the shopping done by now.
I don't even know what I want for Xmas this year...maybe I've finally outgrown my impulsive outrageous shopping habits...that would be the best Xmas gift Kevin would ever get!

Halloween

is still a ways off, of course, but Katie's costume arrived from Costume Express yesterday, she is a Dark Angel, with her own added touches of skull clips for her shoes, a skull choker, vampire earrings, & a coffin clutch...she tried it all on, & she looked AMAZING! when we do the ghoul makeup & the messy upswept colored hair do....Tyra Banks would pronounce her FIERCE & give her a picture & congratulate her on still being in the running for America's Next Top Model. (I'm addicted to that show...)

my favorite time of year....

is approaching...Halloween! Katie has pondered over costume catalogs, then finally got on-line to find the perfect costume & accessories...she will be a dark angel
with goth makeup, skull choker & shoe clips, vampire earrings, & a coffin wristlet. We'll get red, blue, & black hairspray & give her an upswept messy do.
This is a big decision at our house every year...
Kj was almost always a super hero of some type...Power Rangers, Annakin Skywalker, Batman, Spiderman, Ash Ketchum from Pokemon...with the exception of 6th grade, when he wore a BB jersey & a dread wig with attached hat to be a rapper.
Koren & Katie have both done witches, princesses, Disney heroines, pop stars...

first present of the year...

one of Kevin's favorite shows from the past came out on dvd--(Evening Shade, season one.) It arrived today & is bowed & wrapped. Haven't decided on this years gift tag theme yet....