At the beginning of 2018 I set goals for myself as opposed to making resolutions. I even have categories for these goals that I'll continue to use for 2019.
Personal Projects
This is more a "throw everything that doesn't fit into the other categories" category.
My biggest accomplishment for this category was completing the baby books Michele made for me for Violet and Lincoln. Don't count the years it's taken me to complete these handmade books. I know how old the kids are...geesh! I must admit I went a little overboard with the stickers and embellishments but what I have is better than any Etsy or Pinterest baby book currently on the market. I also finished the entire 46 book "In Death" series by JD Robb. There's actually a 47th book but I'm waiting for the price to go down before purchasing.
Also in the category not finished but put on the list for 2019 is finishing the Christmas books for 2016 and 2017 and now 2018 and scrapbooks for Michael and Melissa of their school years. I tried putting together the terrarium Melissa and Jamie got me last Christmas. In my defense on this project I had no idea there were live plants in the box. So when I went to put the terrarium together several months later...well let's just say the plants didn't make it. I also didn't keep my blog updated in a timely manner but I did update my digital photo frame and switched the cable boxes in the office and the bedroom.
Home Improvement Projects
I hit a home run in this category. My kitchen got a complete remodel with new tile, countertops, sink, lights, blinds and appliances. The living room is now a more modern up-to-date color along with new lighting fixtures. You could park a fancy new car (which, by the way, I also got) in my pristine garage and I shouldn't have to worry about painting my house for another 10 years. I didn't get the basement wall touched up, the coat closet painted or my bedroom ceiling crack repaired.
Diet & Exercise
I like to call this category "What were you thinking?" I had the usual "lose 10 pounds" at the top of my list but I didn't do very well. In fact, I think I have 12 pounds to go for 2019! I also didn't play as much golf as I wanted nor did I take the much needed golf lessons but I did get my great looking golf bag holder installed in the garage.
I set a goal of walking 2,000,000 steps. I can proudly state that I walked over 3,100,000 steps and earned at least 4 Fitbit badges. I also walked 700 virtual miles on the Appalachian Trail and walked one 5K Color Run. I attempted the River Walk at Adventure Oasis and took 10 Zumba classes. I start, think and organize many more diet and exercise activities than I actually complete. I believe my family is trying to tell me something with their gifts of exercise equipment and anti-aging facial products. Call me crazy but for 2019 I'm going to set a goal to walk in three 5K runs and compete with Bruce in weekly Fitbit steps attempting to beat him 13 out of 52 weeks (trust me, that's a lot)!
Crochet Projects
I made three afghans for my house (changing my mind on the living room after the paint job), a winter scarf for me, slippers for Violet and Melissa, a new mimi for Lincoln and 3 baby afghans for friends. I might have to cut back on the crocheting for 2019 as it's starting to flare up the arthritis!
Travel & Concerts
I'm changing the category name on this one next year to Travel, Concerts and Major Events. My goal is to do something extra special each month. For 2018 my goal was 2 concerts - I actually went to 7 - James Taylor, Rod Stewart, Billy Joel, Hall & Oates, Train, Bob Seger and the Trans-Siberian Orchestra.
I also set a goal of going on 2 vacations - I took 5 - Chicago, Las Vegas, Florida, the outlet mall at Osage Beach and the outlet mall in St Louis (I'm counting the malls as vacations).
Social Activities
This category was a complete disaster. I had grand aspirations of going to weekly happy hours with friends during the Spring, Summer and Fall - didn't happen. For 2019 my goal is to have lunch, dinner or drinks with friends, old and new, at least once a month.
And there you have it. Not quite the exciting life I'd like to be living but way more than what I thought, especially when you put it in a list. I continuously add to my goals list throughout the year. I know there are more things I want to accomplish before I turn the dreaded "65" in 2019. Stay tuned!
Michele thought it might be a good idea for Courtney to get together with her Godparents while she was in town. Michele set up breakfast with Roger who is Bruce's cousin. I met Roger many, many years ago when I was a freshman at Mizzoo.
Oh the stories Roger and Michele told of the things I did as a dumb kid. (Now I'm just a dumb adult!) I swear I didn't do half the things Michele and Roger said I did. Talking with Roger was like taking a walk through my past - at least the part I remember. Let's put it this way, I'll never be able to run for political office!
Michele, Courtney and I went to the Trans-Siberian Orchestra at the Sprint Center - my 7th concert for 2018.
Michele has seen them before but for me and Courtney, it was our first time.
This is a very interactive orchestra with the guitar and violin players coming into the audience and playing above the crowd on lifts. Add the fire spurts and this really was a "rock opera". Courtney and I were wondering who introduced the "hair flip" to the choreography. Just something we giggled about. Those girls - and boys - better be careful or they could catch some of that hair on fire with the way the flames lit up on stage.
Christmas is always a little hectic so I try to find ways to minimize the confusion. Instead of the traditional ham or turkey dinner, I plan a barbecue feast with baby back ribs (compliments of Harrah's), pulled pork (made the night before), brisket (provided by Teresa from some barbecue place in Concordia) and simple side dishes.
This way I don't have to be slaving away in the kitchen while everyone else is having fun in the living room. Violet and Lincoln managed to coerce Courtney into playing trains while waiting until after dinner to open the mound of Christmas presents.
After my buffet style dinner (which, by the way, was delicious) we all gathered around the Christmas tree to open presents. Violet and Lincoln are way more intent on getting all the wrapping paper off all the gifts before totally exploring each and every one.
It's also a great time to get those family pictures to add to my digital photo frame to be enjoyed throughout the year.
Jamie and Lincoln got the most unique gift this year - unique but oh so very true.
So Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night! Now let's get this Christmas tree down and put away in it's proper place!
Michael and I went to Melissa and Jamie's new house for Christmas Eve. While I cooked a turkey and dressing, mashed potato and gravy dinner, Melissa watched and took notes so she'd be able to do it on her own....some day! I've been making Grandma Eddy's turkey dressing for so many years that I wasn't able to "tell" Melissa exactly how to make it over the phone. I had to show her. Even though the turkey was somewhat dry, the dressing was great as was the entire meal.
While dinner was cooking, Trish dropped by with presents for Violet and Lincoln.
After dinner it was over to the tree so we could all open a few pre-Christmas packages.
I've been getting Violet and Lincoln toys and games like the ones Michael and Melissa played with as kids. Violet got Lite Brite (which she dearly loves), Connect 4 and a Spirograph. Lincoln got transformers, dinosaurs and Peppa Pig.
After Michael and I left, Violet and Lincoln got ready for Santa's arrival. They set out cookies...
and scattered reindeer food for Rudolf and his reindeer pals.
Even Khloe was mesmerized with the smell other new bones and didn't want to wait until Christmas morning. It's almost the end of the year and I'm already starting my Christmas list for next year. Let's hope Violet and Lincoln can stay on the "Nice" list with a new baby coming.
I didn't keep VioLin as active this year. Violet and Lincoln came over a few times and I quickly found a new spot for VioLin to hide. What I thought was a good hiding place, Violet would find her as soon as she walked in the room.
I was talking on the phone with Melissa one time and Violet asked what VioLin was doing. I quickly threw her on the counter, took a picture and sent it so Violet could see VioLin was helping me bake cookies.
I was going to give VioLin to Melissa for next year but she had trouble handling two elves let alone three. So VioLin may stay at the North Pole next year and help Santa!
Violet and Lincoln were so excited when they got their letters from Santa.
It gets harder and harder each year to get pictures of the letters before they get ripped apart.
With my help, Violet read me her Santa letter. Next year I'm sure she'll be able to read it all on her own.
I promised Violet I would take her Christmas shopping to get gifts for her Mom and Dad.
Both Violet and Lincoln were anxious to shop and picked out gifts for the new house and Jamie's garage.
Except for a slight meltdown from Lincoln, the shopping trip was a success especially when you bribe the kids with candy from the checkout line!
I've been craving cheesecake for the past couple of weeks so when Melissa suggested taking me to The Cheesecake Factory for my birthday, I jumped on it.
Today not only was my birthday but The Cheesecake Factory was running a promotion with DoorDash (a delivery partner) for a free slice of cheesecake. It's pretty bad when the headlines read "Free cheesecake offer results in chaos"! The crowd was so bad I had to get out of the car and stop traffic so Melissa could back out of our parking space. I just noticed in this picture that I'm standing next to a handicap parking sign. How much abuse can an old woman take!
I snapped a picture of myself after getting dressed this morning to commemorate my special day. Notice to all my friends and family. This is my last birthday. I'm staying 64 forever. I refuse to turn 65 and admit that I have Medicare!!!!!
I almost forgot the beautiful flower arrangement I got from Trish. I swear, this smells just like winter. Thanks Trish!
VioLin is still running around the house finding different places to hide each day.
Michele accidentally touched VioLin while she was here. We quickly researched the internet to remedy this situation. All you need to do is sprinkle a little cinnamon next to the Elf and the magic returns. Now Violet can sleep at night knowing VioLin didn't run back to the North Pole too early!
As you get older, you run out of things for people to get you for your birthday. Mainly because by the time you reach this age, you've got everything you'd possibly ever need. Or when you want something, you just go out and buy it.
Playing to the organizational side of my brain, Teresa got me a Rubbermaid FastTrack rail and hook system to hang AND organize the few garden tools and brooms I have.
She also hung the rails for my golf bag holder and Jamie carpeted my garage steps. Notice how the carpet matches the walls and my car! Now I have the prettiest garage in the neighborhood.
Michele, on the other hand, always has to put in the dig for exercise. These are exercise dice with one die showing you the exercise to do and the other showing the amount of time to do the exercise.
While we were laughing about this unique gift, we had to explain to Teresa what a plank was. She didn't think it was that difficult so we had a contest to see who could hold a plank position for at least 60 seconds. Teresa has amazing arm strength. She lasted the longest. I barely made it to 15 seconds. It's sad that this is the best entertainment we could come up with for a Saturday night. What I really want for my birthday is cheesecake - forget the exercise!
VioLin, my Elf on a Shelf, arrived for another year of mischief.
She started out by hiding in the Christmas tree with little gifts for Violet and Lincoln which they will get on Christmas Eve. VioLin then hid in my plants and today, climbed the window to look at the snow. I hope my brain can come up with enough ideas to last until Christmas Eve.
It started yesterday around noon and didn't stop until 7:00 last night.
The blizzard dumped almost 6" of snow and the 35 mile an hour winds didn't help save Gina the Giraffe from tumbling over. She's in the garage right now thawing out until I can put her back together. Unless the temperatures rise and this snow melts a bit, Gina may spend Christmas in the garage. There's still a chance she'll rejoin the gang. On Saturday, the day before the blizzard, it was 50 degrees outside. Kansas City weather - who can predict what will happen next.
One more concert under my belt for 2018. This time it was Bob Seger.
This concert was Bob Seger's "Final Tour". I don't think he's been recording any new songs because most of the songs he played were the oldies but goodies and ones I recognized. I couldn't believe this concert didn't start until 9:00 - that's p.m. For a 73 year old man, you'd think he's start the concert at a decent hour, like maybe around 6:00! Great concert and great company even though I didn't get home until midnight!
For the past several years, I've decorated the Christmas tree with stuffed animals so Violet and Lincoln wouldn't bother my Hallmark ornaments.
This year I decided to put up the good stuff. I've been collecting these Mom, Son and Daughter ornaments since Hallmark starting making them in the year 2000. Since then I've added the Granddaughter and Grandson ornaments. I've got dated Hallmark ornaments all the way back to 1987 but after putting up over 100 of these ornaments, I decided this was enough. The stuffed animals were much easier but not as pretty.
This is the second year for my train and I hope it makes it to next year with Lincoln's obsession with trains. I need to remember to stock up on batteries!
I still have my menagerie of stuffed animals around the tree.
I haven't added anything new for quite some time. I saw this Santa climbing a ladder and carrying lights on his back at Target one day. I looked all over Target's Christmas decorations and couldn't find it. Now Trish is sending me the link to Amazon where she found it for sale. Do I pull the trigger and get it? I'm still debating but don't be surprised if it shows up around my tree in the near future!
Lola and Khloe turned 7 years old today.
I had Melissa send me a picture of them as puppies but I don't see much difference between then and now. This was taken when they were about a year old.
And this is today. Lola didn't want to cooperate and get in their new bed. But then Lola has always preferred the back of the couch to a dog bed. You've got to give Lola credit. She has "sort of" accepted Khloe, Violet and Lincoln into her home although she'd much prefer being an "only child". I wonder who's going to break the news to her that there's another one on the way! Happy Birthday Lola and Khloe!
No cooking a big Thanksgiving dinner for me this year. When you have kids who don't work a normal 9-5, Monday through Friday job, you make adjustments in holidays.
Jamie and Michael both had to work so Melissa took the kids to the holiday feast at the fire station and I took Michael to the steakhouse at Harrah's. I might not have any leftover turkey to make a sandwich tomorrow but I also don't have any dirty dishes to deal with tonight.
With a couple of warm days, Jamie was able to get my Christmas lights up.
New to the group this year is Dinomite the dinosaur. I add to my group but I also take away. I had to say goodbye to Santa and the snowman. I shed a few tears and bagged them up for the trash man to haul away tomorrow. Happy Thanksgiving!
