Countdown To Christmas-Day 17

Today was the day I almost lost my Christmas Shizzzz.

I planned to package up all the gifts going to MA and GA and MN. I figured if I started at 10am, I could get it done and get in the post office line by 11:00am. I discovered at 10am that I had  no....

 PACKING TAPE!!!!

Deep breath....I could skip the shower and the second cup of coffee, run to CVS, run home, pack up the gifties and get to the post office by 11:30am.
At 11:15 I realized I couldn't get all the packages wrapped and get to the post office by noon.

Deep breath...I decided to pack up the two gifts that had the farthest to travel.

Mission accomplished. The remaining gifts that have to travel to GA can get into the mail on Monday and make it there before Friday.

Today, Mr Sunshine had his Double 5 birthday. Like many close-to-Christmas babies, he usually gets lame birthday gifts, but this year was different. He left work early due to a power failure that wasn't going to get fixed until 6pm. He ran into a Birthday/Christmas Elf in the aisles of W-Mart. The elf whispered in the Birthday Man's ear and this is what is now in our bedroom...

It's a 40 inch Sony flat screen with Media Streaming Capabilities!!!!!! He's happier than a Sports Nut with a big TV in the bedroom!!! Now I can watch Netflix movies in bed!!!

I'll let you know if we start eating our meals in bed.

A Trio Of Dad Stories

My Grandfather: Mom's Dad lost the use of his left arm at the age of 13. It was broken and through the malpractice of a doctor back in 1923, it never healed. It wasn't paralyzed but the fingers were permanently folded into the palm and frozen in place by atrophied muscle.

He lived until he was 92. I never, ever saw him ask for help with anything...from eating to yard work to giving himself insulin when he became diabetic. He could drive and he worked as a delivery driver for a professional laundry company

My Dad: The thing I have missed the most about my Dad these past 17 years is his sense of humor. We "got" each other and could make each other laugh when no one else thought the situation was funny.

When I was young, chocolate syrup came in a can, like whipped cream. It was called "Big Shot". One day I hit the nozzle and sprayed the chocolate up onto the 15 foot kitchen ceiling. No one can remember cleaning it off. Every time I moved to a new house, Dad would look at me and say "did you remember to clean the Big Shot off the ceiling?"

The second to last conversation I had with him was to discuss the GIANT pile of poop he found on his front lawn. We were trying to determine if one of his neighbors had gotten a Great Dane...or perhaps a new pet horse! That sent us into a fit of laughing and it still makes me chuckle and puts a little lump in my throat.

Mr Sunshine: I'm not sure how to describe the love he has for his kids. It was definately "on the job training" for him....no one taught him how to be a good dad. He has been an amazing Dad to both kids, but seems to be especially protective of Sorority Girl. She was a very sick baby and he spent a lot of time sitting by her hospital bed and sending me home to sleep or visit my parents and spent her first Thanksgiving sitting by her while I had dinner with my family.

My most vivid memory is the time she was standing against the baby gate in the upstairs hall and it gave way. She started to tumble down the stairs and he leaped over her. He caught her in mid-air and I don't think she hit one single step. I knew then that he would always have her back and try to keep her from getting hurt.

Happy Father's Day. I hope you have good memories of your Dad, or someone who has been like a Dad for you.

I Was (Christmas) Gifted! UPDATED!

I must have been a good girl this year. The gifts I got for Christmas were so thoughtful that it made me a little teary.

Cape Cod Kid arrived with a new addition to my snowman collection. It's Frosty! He sings and dances! I have probably worn out his batteries watching him sing and dance since the 25th.

 My sister makes gorgeous scrapbooks. She taught me, but mine are so amateur looking compared to hers. She sent me a scrapbook she started that is supposed to be all about me. That concept will be a little difficult for me to pull off. Each page has a pocket and one of them held this photo of my sister and I that was taken in 1960. I'm on the left, she's on the right. I was 3 and she was 2. We thought that rock in our grandmother's backyard was HUGE!

Sorority Girl has worked at a clothing store for about 4 years. She puts together great outfits. Before this year I usually wore baggy clothes to cover my 2X sized body. Since I've lost weight, she has been telling me I need a shopping trip for cute clothes. She bought me this beautiful beaded blouse and a cute sweater that will show up in a future post.

 My best friend (of 30 years) sent this paperweight to let me know that even though we have only lived in the same state for about 7 years of our friendship, I am always in her heart.

This was a gift from Mr Sunshine. I spend WAY TOO MUCH time sitting under my laptop. This computer was passed on to me from my darling husband when my power port died for the 3rd time and he was able to get himself a new laptop. This one runs a little hotter than my old one and I was developing a chronic first-degree burn on my left leg. This little cooling pad is awesome and I can finally stop frying my thighs! UPDATED!!!!!
MR SUNSHINE LEFT A COMMENT BECAUSE I FORGOT THAT SANTA BROUGHT US WICKED GOOD TICKETS FOR WICKED GOOD SEATS TO SEE WICKED!!!

On top of all this, I got a Barnes and Noble giftcard from Cape Cod Kid, $$ from my MIL that i used to buy a Shiatsu Massage Pillow and a Target gift card from my Mom that she got me after a discussion about how badly I want to do a closet makeover in January.

I apparently have a "good girl"  reputation to uphold in 2011!!

Sugar, Sugar

Little Miss Sunshine State needs to take a break to deal with a little issue called
Mr Sunshine State in the ICU. Something (not so little) is going on.... Diabetic Hyperosmolar Non-Ketotic Syndrome. Something we had never heard of until 2:30 this afternoon.

There's also a rumor that Peanut Crack&M's will be hereby banned from the Sunshine State Treehouse.

He'll be fine. I left him watching Last Comic Standing and joking with the night nurses.

This Is Dedicated To The One I Love

I'll always love you for the rest of my days

You have won my heart and my soul with your sweet, sexy ways

You gave me hope when I needed someone near

You bring me happiness every day of every year

I'll always love you for all that you are

You have made my life complete. You're my lucky star

You are the one I've been searching for

You are my everything, tell me who could ask for more

And I'll always love you, this will never end

I need you by my side, Honey, you're my lover, my friend

My friend

You gave my world a thrill I've never known

And filled my eager heart with a love to call my own

And I'll always love you, you must know how much I do

You can count on me forever, and I will take good care of you

I'll always love you, I'm so happy that you're mine

I'll always love you, yes, til the end of time

~I'll Always Love You by Taylor Dayne~

How We Celebrated 30 Years

Yesterday was our 30th wedding anniversary.

We decided not to go for the candlight, flowers, special dinner routine. That's not really "us". Our idea of romantic is to just spend a whole day together. It doesn't really matter what we're doing.

Our honeymoon was spent at DisneyWorld and Busch Gardens. Our 15th anniversary was the week of my Dad's funeral. For our 24th anniversary, we went to eat at a place called the British Beer Co, then we went fishing. Last year, we spent the day at the beach.
This year, these tickets came in our mail. The theme parks will occasionally reward Florida residents.

Hey! The media turned out to report on our anniversary fun!

Not really. They were there for the media's first sneak peek at the new Harry Potter land they're building. If you would like to see all the details, check out the coverage from the Orlando Sentinel:

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/travel/attractions/orl-bk-wizarding-world-of-harry-potter-open-spring,0,399138.story

We did not eat Green Eggs and Ham

We did not eat them, Sam I Am.

We did ride the Seuss land trolley. And the Simpson's ride and Shrek 4D and Spiderman and Jurassic Park water adventure.

During Poseidon's Fury, there is a part when the lights go out and you are in COMPLETE darkness. I reached for Tom's arm and it was exactly where I expected it to be.

He's always right where I expect him to be. That's much more romantic than candlelight and flowers.

He's NOT 53!!

Here's the Birthday Guy. He was supposed to be a Christmas Baby, but his mother scheduled his birth for the 17th.

This is what our dining room looks like most nights of the week.


This is THE GIFT.

It's an Ovation. I had nothing to do with the choosing of the gift. Usually I choose something from the Christmas gifts. The past couple of years, he has chosen his gift. It's usually a guitar and now it feels more like a Birthday Gift.

He thought he was turning 53 this year. I had a SURPRISE!!! for him.

HAPPY 52nd BIRTHDAY MR SUNSHINE STATE.

I Changed the Name of the Post

It was called He's So Romantic but I changed it. He read it and thinks people will think he's a jerk because he didn't get me flowers and chocolate.

He knows that when you spend 34 Valentine's Days together, the everyday things are just as special as the "special occasion" things. I don't need flowers and chocolate. He makes me laugh every day. He gives me zero crap about anything. Whenever I want or need anything, he asks "will it make you happy?"

If I'm away visiting my Mom for the weekend, I come home to a clean house and freshly baked chocolate chip cookies. He's happy with dinner whether it is a gourmet meal or tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches.

There's about another 1000 things on the list of what I think is romantic. One of them is that I hope we have another 34 Valentine's Days together.

Better Than Chocolate and Flowers

Ignore the mess in the corner of Sorority Girl's room. Focus on the awesome Valentine's Day swag. The one between about a boy (never seen it) and A Knight's Tale (so sad about Heath) is Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

Our coffeemaker passed away during the night. It HAD to be replaced. We just don't function around here without morning coffee. And DUNKIE's coffee is not so easy to get around here. There isn't a DD on every street corner like there is on the Cape. But they did have it at Target today.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!! I LOVE YOU DUDE!!

Do I Look Like A Barista?

(A little background here) I have a crapload of crap that's wrong with my body. Occasionally it involves waking up numerous times during the night. Last night it was muscle spasms in between the ribs on my right side. I tend to be cranky and non-sunshiny in the morning.
Remember Eeyore from Winnie-The-Pooh? That's what I sound like. I'm fine. Thanks for asking.

(A little more background here) Mr Sunshine State gets up before me in the morning. It takes me a good 2 hours to get moving. He feeds the furkid and makes the coffee. Because the Bible says Hebrews. After I shuffle myself to the living room and fire up the laptop he brings me a cup of coffee. With the PERFECT amount of fat-free half-and-half and Equal.

Today he overslept. This was the conversation that ensued:
Mr S.S: HONEY, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?
LMSS: SITTING ON MY ASS.
Mr S.S: CAN YOU HELP ME?
LMSS: DOES IT INVOLVE GETTING OFF MY ASS?
Mr S.S: PLEASE FIX MY COFFEE?
LMSS: I SEE YOU STANDING 12 INCHES FROM THE COFFEE.
Mr S.S: BUT I'M IRONING A SHIRT AND I WOULDN'T ASK YOU TO DO THAT!
LMSS: (silently.....not if you want to live)
LMSS: I'M TRYING TO BE FUNNY HERE.
Mr S.S: I'M TRYING TO BE SERIOUS.

Little Miss Sunshine State hauls her ass off the chair and shuffles to the kitchen. More conversation ensues.
Mr S.S: WHILE YOU ARE HERE, YOU CAN FIX ONE FOR YOURSELF TOO!
AND DON'T PUT THE COVER ON THE TRAVEL CUP SO I CAN
DRINK A LITTLE BEFORE I LEAVE.
LMSS: IT'S NEXT TO THE LEMON TREE
Mr S.S: WE HAVE A LEMON TREE??

Little Miss Sunshine State did not take a Sharpie and write his name on the cup.
Little Miss Sunshine State did not throw the cup of coffee on his freshly pressed shirt.

I'm fine. Thanks for asking.

A Love Letter to Mr Sunshine State

( A little background, here) We met in 10th grade. We started dating about a year and a half later. He asked me to marry him 3 months later, while we were slow dancing at a Christmas party. I said yes. Then we waited 5 more years. It was a L....O.....N......G 5 years. We had our 28th wedding anniversary in Sept.

He has held my hand and my heart through a crapload of crap. Most especially my dad's death and my chronic illnesses. He makes me laugh pretty much every day of my life. He worked up to 70 hours a week when my health made it impossible for me to work any significant amount of hours a week.

Dear Mr Sunshine State,
Hi Honey. I'm sorry I gave you the Cold From Hell. I'm sorry you had to sell the Mustang.( and we both know you'll get another one someday). I'm sorry I'm staying at a minimum-wage job because it's about all I can handle. And you know I REALLY am sorry about these things even though you aren't mad about any of them.

I suspect you are cooking up a Christmas Surprise for me. If it is what I suspect and it involves the Cape Cod Kid, it will be the BEST CHRISTMAS GIFT EVER.
I've tried not to cry in front of you, because you would cry, too.

You sort of slipped when you said you were taking care of the Kid's gift. The stuff in the bag was just stocking stuffers and you said you would mail it and take care of his real gift for me. All I was doing was writing a check, so, HUH??? I said "What are YOU doing about his gift????? You said "You'll find out when it is Christmas."

I don't dare hope. But if that's what it is.....I will make your lunch and iron your shirt every day until you retire. I will not talk during football games or sports-talk radio for the rest of my life. And I'll think up some more super-impressive goodies. Because you will be the BEST HUSBAND IN THE ENTIRE WORLD.