Our Yearly Christmas Tradition

Today’s blog is part of the Comfy Cozy Christmas, hosted by Lisa and Erin. Their blogs/websites can be found in the above graphic. By going to their sites, you will be able to read Christmas themed blogs by other participants.

I have probably mentioned in past blogs about this tradition, but have never devoted an entire blog to it. At the encouragement of one of our hosts, I am doing that now.

If you were to do a search on ‘things to do when visiting Michigan,” it is often recommended that you stop by Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland. The world’s largest Christmas store.

It truly is an amazing place. You could easily spend a few hours there finding the perfect Christmas ornament. We are lucky that we don’t live very far from there.

Our tradition was actually started by Sam before we were even dating. She and I do the same work (sleep technologist) and that’s how we met. When she graduated from the program, she bought an ornament for her tree. There are no real “sleep tech” ornaments, so she went with one that had scrubs on it.

The idea was that she wanted to have an ornament on the tree that was a reminder of the “big event” of that year. The following year was the year that she bought the home we currently live in.

Sam and I were just friends when she bought her house. Soon after, we began dating and fell in love. She changed my life and I couldn’t imagine life without her. I proposed Sweetest Day weekend while in a horse drawn carriage in Frankenmuth. She said yes less than a mile or so from Bronner’s! That year’s “event” was our engagement.

It goes without saying that when we were married a few months later, that was to be the big event of that year. There were plenty of wedding themed ornaments, but we liked this one best.

The bigger bulbs like that make it so easy for them to personalize.

Our first year of marriage brought about our first fur baby. A cat that sadly is no longer with us named Moe.

We’ve talked about getting some sort of ornament with the other pets, but each year after had bigger events. At some point I suppose we’ll get around to it…

In 2019, Sam was expecting. She was 7 months pregnant at Christmas. One of my favorite pictures is of her standing in front of the tree showing her baby bump. I just loved the “You, Me and Then Baby Makes Three” ornament.

The year 2020 brought COVID to the world. The world shut down and almost every Christmas tree had some sort of ornament that had surgical masks or toilet paper on it! For us, however, we welcomed our first child together, our daughter Ella.

I loved this ornament because they were able to put her name, birthday, weight, etc.. on it. One Christmas later, when Andrew was born, we went back and got the same ornament… In blue.

We try to go before Thanksgiving to get our yearly ornament. After that, it tends to be extremely busy at Bronner’s. When we went last year, there really hadn’t been any “big event.” We decided to get a plaque to hang on the main entry door.

After our trip to Bronner’s, tragedy struck as Sam’s sister Grace passed away. Her presence is missed daily. I decided that I wanted to do something for Sam and her parents. So I went to Bronner’s on my own and had a memorial ornament personalized with Grace’s name for both of them. Ours hangs near the top of the tree.

We’re a bit behind this year. We’ve had so many medical appointments and such with Andrew that we have yet to go to Bronner’s. I suppose the big event is getting our puppy, Daisy. I would imagine that they have some sort of ornament that will fit that event.

Sam and I will probably take our tradition and change it up a bit next year. I’d guess we’ll continue to get that one “event” ornament, but we think next year, we’ll have each kid pick out an ornament for themselves to hang on the tree. I have a feeling that will be something they will always remember.

I’d love to hear about your annual traditions!

Busy, But Thankful

I hope this blog finds you enjoying the remainder of the holiday weekend. My weekend, which was supposed to be very relaxing, wound up being full of the unexpected.

Wednesday afternoon, I got a call from my wife. Her dad had passed out at the doctor’s office. His blood pressure was up and down. They rushed him to the ER, and admitted him for a couple days. No heart attack, no stroke, and they didn’t find any blockages. There were a few things that neurology is going to look into in more detail. He is home now and relaxing.

My mother-in-law was at the ER for Thanksgiving and when she told us that she was going to drive through McDonald’s for dinner, we told her to go home and I’d bring her a plate. I packed up turkey, mashed potatoes, mac and cheese, and rolls. Andrew and I drove over to bring her the food. At the end of their street is a guy who goes all out with holiday lights. Andrew loved looking at them.

That’s not even his whole set up!!

Ella and Andrew haven’t been feeling all that great and when we woke up Thanksgiving day, we all felt a bit under the weather. We spent most of the morning and early afternoon battling fevers with Motrin and Tylenol. We watched a disappointing Detroit Lions game and had dinner. After that is when everything got scary.

Ella did not look right. Her nose and eyes were watering all day and her fever spiked again. She was far from herself. There was enough going on that I packed her in the car and made the trip to the ER.

They checked her out and said it was viral, which we kind of knew. It “has to run its course.” So we weren’t there too long. I was just relieved it wasn’t pneumonia. Her cough was awful.

We were supposed to go to the Detroit Zoo for their Wild Lights, but we were all under the weather. Thankfully, they had my order and were able to switch days for us. I’m grateful, because I would have hated to have not been able to use them.

We got our Christmas photos back and there were more good ones than bad ones. We sat with them and picked the ones for our family Christmas card. This is one of my favorite family ones:

Being inside has been driving the kids crazy. Sam had bought a few games on Amazon for Ella’s birthday, but decided to bring them out to help keep them (and us) occupied. It’s been a while, but I can honestly say that I still can’t win playing Hi-Ho Chery-O!

Today, I had to take Daisy to Puppy Training. I swear, I gave her a bag of treats during this class. We worked on Sit, Watch Me, and Touch today. The trainer started off the class with what was going to happen over the next 6 weeks. All the pups were given a bone to chew while she went over this. Daisy, of course, broke off a tooth and probably swallowed it. She was bleeding on the bone.

As embarrassing as that was, at least she didn’t pee during the class. Another dog, however, peed like three times. As the class drew to a close, Daisy started to get antsy and began to bark at the other dogs. She was pulling and trying to get off the leash. She was happy to finally leave and get in the car.

I put it on after I took this picture, but I bought her a name tag at the store. They engrave them there for you. It hangs off that loop where the leash goes. It hangs down a bit and “clangs” when she walks. It is making her crazy. It is funny to watch her try to chew at it.

The kids are feeling a bit better today, and I hope that continues with more rest. I’m hoping for some rest too!

Hope you had a blessed Thanksgiving!

Turkey Week

The turkey is in the fridge thawing out and should be ready for the oven by Thursday morning. We always cook it in a bag, and it usually comes out ok. I’m looking forward to a simple Thanksgiving holiday.

I’ve always loved this picture of Redd Foxx and Demond Wilson from Sanford and Son

I follow Joe Lennon Cartoons on Facebook and he’s had some great cartoons on his page. He did a whole month of Halloween themed cartoons and he’s posting Thanksgiving themed ones now. Two favorites:

I was sad to hear of the passing of a Detroit Tiger great – Willie Hernandez. He was part of the amazing bullpen that helped us win the 1984 World Series. He had just recently celebrated his 69th birthday. He was so fun to watch! Rest well, Willie.

We had some Christmas photos taken last week. The kids were crazy! They would hardly sit still. Ella, who went to the doctor today, may have been at the beginning of her illness for pictures. She was not her “smiley” self. They should be available for download by tomorrow, but a couple preview pictures wound up on our photographer’s Facebook page.

Can’t wait to see the rest of them. I pray we got at least one good family photo for Christmas Cards!

Speaking of Christmas, I was reminded by my wife that after Thanksgiving, the Elf on the Shelf has to make her return. Last year I really struggled to come up with fun ideas. I don’t even know what to do this year! I guess Sam bought some Elf shirts for the kids that “Twinkles” will bring with her when she returns. I probably should have been planning for the month of Elf stuff long before now….

Friday Gratitude

I’d like to begin by thanking each of you who reached out either in the comments, via email, or text offering support after yesterday’s blog. I truly appreciate it you.

Today ends with more emotions – anger, sadness, confusion, and helplessness. I truly cannot wait for my appointment this week. Something has got to change. It is affecting me and those around me.

Enough of that. I want to share one of the highlights of my day.

Poke

Ella and I went to the doctor so she could get her flu shot. I needed to go to the lab in the same building to get my blood drawn. Before we walked in, Ella asked if she was going to “get a poke.” I told her, yes, but “it’s only a little poke.” She began to tear up and I told her that I’d be there with her.

I told her that I had to get a “poke” too and that she could help by being with me when I got mine. As we sat in the waiting room, she observed and announced everything!

“That guy must have gotten his poke, daddy.”

“Look a that little baby, daddy. She’s wearing small shoes.”

“Daddy, that lady is wearing pink lipstick.”

There was a guy who was just sitting with his eyes closed across from us. Ella announced, “Daddy. That guy must be tired because he is sleeping right here in front of everyone!” He smiled and opened his eyes. “Oh, he’s awake now,” she said.

“That lady has two babies!”

“Did you see that girl’s Paw Patrol shoes!?”

It was nonstop. She brought many smiles to the folks in the waiting room. When they finally called me back to the lab, they had me sit in the chair. She was next to me. The tech but that rubber thing on my arm and began to feel for a vein. She had no luck on one arm, so she tried the other. She then asked me, “Do they usually have a hard time finding a vein on you?” I told her that usually, it is no problem.

She kept feeling around and then asked her other tech, “Would you use a smaller needle on this vein?” The other tech came over and began to feel around. She had me drop my arm down and a vein popped right out. I guess that was the key. Anyway, they apologized for taking so long. They said, good thing you are not afraid of needles, or the wait would have made it worse.

Ella piped up right away. She looked me right in the eye and said, “Don’t worry, daddy. It’s just a little poke!” This brought smiles and laughter to all the ladies in the lab. She was showered with more stickers and a sucker.

Thank you, Ella, for being a ray of sunshine on a very hard day.

Holiday Decor

I mentioned yesterday that my coworker gave us a tree for the side porch. It went up surprisingly easy today after I got home from the doctor.

Sam had me put it in the corner on the side porch. I can’t wait to see what it looks like when I get home tonight.

I blogged about the arch that Sam bought for the front yard this week. She left the lights on and I was really impressed at how beautiful it looks at night. Those LED lights are bright. She did a video chat last night and I got to see it on her phone, but seeing it in person was so much better.

Engage!

I’m listening to a new audiobook in the car.

I’ve always liked Patrick Stewart. He is such a great actor. His one man show of A Christmas Carol is something that I listen to every holiday season. He reads it, and even though he has aged a bit, his voice is still strong and he is so expressive with his reading. I’m only about 10 chapters in, but it is very good.

With all that is on my mind, it helps to get lost in a good book on my drive to and from work.

Family Christmas photos tomorrow.

Thursday Thoughts

I’m forcing myself to write today. I have some funny things to share, and these are the type of things that have kept me going the last couple weeks.

Feeling … not right

When I got the diagnosis of ADHD recently and began the new medication, I had hoped that I would start to feel some things change. They did, but not in the way I expected. Now, I’m told that it takes 4-6 weeks for this new med to really do what it is supposed to do, and I have only been on half of the dose for a month. They are supposed to up the dose the next time I see them. I have an appointment with the place where I got my diagnosis this week, so I hope to get things sorted out.

I should not be feeling more depressed than I was before the medication, but I am. I am supposed to have my yearly physical next week and I am embarrassed to go in. All the weight I lost is back. Bad choices and emotional eating are to blame (ok, I am to blame, too!). There is no motivation. I have tried to psyche myself up to no avail. There is a program through work that I just stopped doing because I wasn’t feeling like myself and didn’t think it was helping. I have to go get bloodwork tomorrow and I always fret about what that is going to show.

I’m not saying meds are the answer, but something isn’t right. Here’s hoping that we figure it out.

Vet Visit

Daisy had a vet appointment today. She is 21 pounds already. The vet seems to think she will be bigger than we anticipated. “At least 100 pounds” Sam said.

She is totally puppy and chewing everything in sight. Housebreaking remains a challenge, but she starts her “Puppy Obedience” classes after Thanksgiving.

Ella went to the vet with Sam. When they got home, Sam says, “Hey Ella, tell daddy how they had to take Daisy’s temperature.” Without skipping a beat, she yells, “They used a butt thermometer!”

She’s still giggling about it.

Holiday Decor

While Sam and Ella were at the vet, Andrew and I put together the 8 foot arch that we got for out front. It wasn’t as difficult as I anticipated and I was able to get it up in about 30 minutes. Each bulb and the Merry Christmas sign have LED lights, so I cannot wait to see how this looks at night.

With the construction finally done, and our yard being semi-put back together, I need to get out and get some of the leaves out of the way. They have that hay with the netting all over the lawn so the grass will grow back, so I’m not sure just how much I can actually rake.

The majority of the holiday decorating is done, however, there are still a couple small things I need to do. I have those light nets for a couple of the bushes I need to get up and some lighted garland that I will put around the front door. Normally, when that is done, I am done. Not this year.

Sam wants to put an artificial tree out on the side porch this year. We didn’t want to buy a new one, so we kept an eye on Facebook marketplace for one. I asked a coworker if she knew anyone who was getting rid of a tree and she actually said she had one that had been sitting in the garage since they got one from her parents. At some point this weekend, there will be another tree to decorate.

Grades

Over the past two weeks, I finished up three tests for my Bible classes. This semester, we are in the books of Romans and Matthew. We are also in an Old Testament Survey class and a Preparation and Delivery of Sermons class.

I aced all three tests. They were tough. I plan on using my lunch break at work daily to watch the classes and take tests. It’s a nice, because usually no one is in the building, so it is uninterrupted.

Brotherly Q & A

My brother, who has written a couple times for this blog in a “guest” role contacted me and said he really enjoyed it. So he thought it would be cool to think of some holiday themed questions to ask each other. He sent me his, and I was surprised that I had a lot of the same questions on my list. I combined the two lists into one and we’re going to share with each other. Some of the questions are more personal or family oriented, but I may share those answers here. We’ll see.

Thanks for reading!

It’s That Time of the Year …

Followers of this blog know that my wife can listen to Christmas music all year round. She will put her Pandora stations on shuffle when she is in the shower and Christmas music will play often. Well, this week Sirius XM launched quite a few Christmas music channels. I thought I would jot them all down for her so that she program them in her car.

Last night when I got home, I sat in the driveway and just punched from channel to channel writing down the Holiday channels. As I did this I stumbled on stations I didn’t know existed. To be fair, I have all my stations preset and have been listening to more books in the car so I haven’t really channel surfed in a while.

One of the stations I found has the potential to make car rides more pleasant. It is called Moonbug radio. It is basically nothing but toddler songs. The Wheels on the Bus, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, and Rain Rain Go Away are all songs that Ella and Andrew love to sing along with. It isn’t something that I would listen to, but if the kids are in the car – I will be putting it on!

As I continued to surf, I came across another channel that was cool. It is Disney Hits.

It plays songs from Disney movies and Disney shows. As a matter of fact, I heard a song that my older boys and I used to love from the Phineas and Ferb TV show – Gitchee Gitchee Goo. They sang that all the time when they were younger. I actually sat and listened to the whole thing and smiled as it took me back to days on the couch watching the show with them.

I may have to go back and watch those shows again. It was SO good.

Anyway, the holiday channels are programmed now and I will tune in when I am ready to get in the spirit. It’s never too early, right?

Halloween Pain Train

Aunt Margaret called us this week and invited us to join her and her family at Crossroads Village and the Huckleberry Railroad. The Ghosts and Goodies Halloween theme has been going on all month and it is such fun. They do up the whole town in spookiness and the family gets to trick or treat from building to building.

It was such a treat to see so many kids dressed up in their costumes. Costumes are optional, and my kids didn’t dress up. We rode the train first. They have all kinds of wonderful things along the train route for the kids to see. Pumpkin rock bands, Skeletonville, aliens, and so much more.

The steam engine that pulled the train was build in 1920. All of the train cars have all been restored and some date back to the late 1800’s. We had the windows up and the kids were looking outside. Because of the age of the train and the cars, the windows don’t always stay up. Sam and I each held up the window where the kids sat. For one brief second, Sam let go of the window and it came down on Ella’s arm. It had to really hurt! I was worried she might have broke it, but thankfully, she just has one wicked bruise!

After the train ride, we grabbed our bags and began trick or treating. Each of the buildings was done up in Halloween themes. We were there during the day, and I am sure it has to look even cooler at night.

Midway through trick or treating, we passed the carousel. This is the fastest carousel in Michigan. It is FAST. You have to really hold on. I’ve taken a spin on it a few times, so when Margaret informed us that we were all riding it, me and Uncle Walt found a bench to sit on!

When we got done with the carousel, and the dizziness subsided, we went outside and there was a kiddie ride. Ella called it a roller coaster, but it was just a mini merry-go-round with horses and buggies.

Ella did fine, but Andrew was hanging on for dear life!

After we finished trick or treating, we got to go to the cafeteria where everyone got donuts and cider. Ella loves frosted donuts, so she wasn’t sure about the cinnamon sugar ones. Once she tried it, however, she loved it. She also stole a piece of Aunt Margaret’s pizza!

It was a perfect day to be there. It was a tad chilly, but sunny. We probably would have stayed a bit longer, but Sam had to go to work that night. Memories were made and there was a lot of smiles and laughter. Thank you Aunt Margaret for sharing such an amazing day with us!

They will be doing a Christmas train this winter, and we hope to be back for that, too!

Man’s Best Friend

The above text is how it started. My wife saw some puppies for sale and she texted me to ask if we could get one. Those of you who follow this blog know that not too long ago, we took in a dog on a temporary basis to see if she would be a good fit. She bit one of the kids and my sister in law took her in.

Both Sam and I said we’d wait until the kids got a little older before getting another dog. When she called to ask about puppies I told her that I would have to think about it. A few minutes later, Ella video chatted with me asking to get a puppy.

You already know what happened. We built the fence around the yard so the pup could run (and poop) around. The puppy (who Ella named Daisy) came to her new home on Friday. I’m not going to lie, I’m loving it.

We had dogs growing up and I forgot how fun they are, especially puppies. I also forgot how you really have to watch where you are walking, because there are plenty of accidents with puppies! However, we she jumps up on your lap and snoozes on you, it makes it all worth it.

The kids have plenty of toys that need to be picked up so that Daisy won’t chew on them. We have to make sure that the shoes are put away, too. Daisy loves to go into Ella’s room and grab her stuffed animals to play with. The other night she had been playing with one and then fell asleep. Picture perfect pose:

Tonight she went over to my in-laws house. They have a golden retriever. They hit it off pretty well.

All in all, she is a welcome addition to the family and I think she loves the kids as much as they love her!

My Anxiety Needed a Paint Shirt

Maybe you share this memory. At the beginning of my first 4 years of school, my dad would send me to school with an old shirt of his. It was usually an old dress shirt, but I want to say that one year it was an old T-shirt. This shirt became my “paint shirt” for the year. Any time we used paints, the paint shirt went on.

That being said, I want to briefly remind you of a time recently where “messy” play raised my anxiety level through the roof. That particular incident involved beans and noodles. Read about it here:

Macaroni and Beans!

It is interesting to re-read that now, since getting my ADHD diagnosis. They said that I do have some obsessive behaviors. Anyway, on to the payoff from the setups of this blog…

Today, the lady from Head Start was at the house. She brings various activities for the kids to do. She works on fine motor stuff, they have little projects to do, have a snack, and stuff like that.

Today, she said to the kids that they were going to paint. As soon as those words were out of her mouth, my anxiety began to rise. I really don’t understand why.

As a kid, I made a ton of messes! I played in mud, I rolled in dirt, and got stuff all over me. So why should it drive me crazy when my kids do stuff like that? The only thing I can think of is that I don’t want to clean up the mess, or I’m afraid they will ruin something. I really don’t know.

It started innocently enough. Ella and Andrew dipped their fingers in the paint jar and began making dots on the paper. Then they began to smear it on the paper. Then in a blink of an eye, Andrew had dumped the jar of paint on his paper and was smashing it all over the place!

Kids do this! They like this! They love making messes! This kind of thing should NOT be a surprise to me. However, it took my anxiety to the brink! I was literally almost shaking!

Sam and the Head Start teacher got a chuckle out of it. Sam knows this drives me crazy. It is the beans and macaroni incident all over again. I did everything in my power to stay in control or myself, but I must not of did that good a job, because Sam saw through me right away.

Midway through the project, both Sam and I went to separate sinks to wash hands and such. We did however, get some nice art work.

I wonder what the project will be next week…

Monday Mish Mash

I suppose I could take each one of the following items and make them into a separate blog, but I decided to put them all in one. Short blurbs, of course.

Daily Dad

One of the hardest jobs I have ever been handed is that of being “dad.” I cannot remember who suggested this book, but I had it in my Amazon cart for a few weeks before finally ordering it.

I have only had it a couple days and the introduction in this book would make a fantastic blog in itself. It is very powerful.

Like a daily devotional, it is organized to feature a thought every day. I am glad that I bought this and look forward to making it a part of my day. I want to be the best dad I can be and teach my children life lessons. I want to raise them right. I hope to use what I learn with my older children, too.

Daily Devotional

I have been a lot better as of late in reading my Bible every day, or at least watching a Bible lesson from pastors I know. I stumbled on this daily devotional quite by accident. A fellow believer had a small picture of it on her Facebook page and I was able to nab a copy of it.

This isn’t set up by date, however it does have 366 devotionals so you can read it in a year. Again, I’ve only had it a couple days and I have really enjoyed this. The pieces are not too long, but loaded with solid information.

Other Reading

My wife has been telling me about a book for some time. I kept putting it off because of the other books I had from the library. I have started it and am progressing slowly, as my time to read physical books isn’t what it had been.

My oldest son has Asperger’s Syndrome, and so does the main character of this book. It is described as a crime thriller, a lesson in motherly love, a primer on Asperger’s syndrome, and a heart stopping trip through the legal system. So far, it is very good.

In the car, I am listening to a very unique story. It has quite an interesting premise.

In a nutshell, Evelyn Hardcastle will be murdered at 11:00 p.m. There are eight days, and eight witnesses for you to inhabit (yes, you become each witness). We will only let you escape once you tell us the name of the killer.

The main character wakes up each day as a different person, reliving the same day and it is his job to find out who murders Evelyn Hardcastle. So far, it is really good. The audio book is like 17 hours long!! I am about 4-5 hours in. I’m hoping it doesn’t disappoint.

At home, I read a chapter about one of my favorite characters of all time and a different case.

Great book by a fellow Columbophile!

The Biggest News of the Weekend

I’m not sure who is responsible – my wife or my daughter – but come this weekend, we’ll have a new addition to the family.

I’m not sure if that puppy is spitting her tongue out at me or is looking at a bone. I am sure that she is coming to our house on Friday.

It started with a text from my wife. “I want a puppy.” That was followed by a video call from my daughter telling me why we needed a puppy. Then my son chimed in, too.

We housed a dog for a while, but she bit one of the kids, so she went to live with my sister-in-law. Because of this, I was apprehensive about even entertaining the thought of getting another dog, let alone a puppy.

Sam decided to send me pictures of the available pups. Then they picked a couple (of the 9 pups) that they liked. Then the owner allowed us to go look at them.

It became very obvious which one liked Ella and which one Ella liked. So, she will be ready for us to pick up this weekend. Many names were thrown out by Sam and me, and Ella shot most of them down. We did talk her out of naming the puppy after her pediatrician!! Anyway, it looks like “Daisy” will be very welcomed in out home.

Puppy Project

When we had the previous dog, it didn’t go far and stayed in the yard. However, I know puppies. I don’t want to be chasing it through the neighborhood. So my father-in-law (my project manager) and I worked this weekend setting posts for a temporary fence. Pardon my amateur art skills….

Our backyard is huge. So my father-in-law and I mapped out how we were going to give the pup it’s own area. There is an area up near the back of our house where we can run fencing from the back of the garage to the chain-link fence of our neighbor. Then we can run some fencing from the house to the garage and add a gate. This will give the pup a nice little area to play (and poop) in for the next couple months.

Once the snow melts in the spring, my father-in-law and I are going to buy chain link fence and run 100 feet at a time and finish fencing the entire yard. For now, this will work.

Be ready for plenty of puppy pictures (probably of stuff it chewed up!).

Thanks for reading!