Wednesday Hodgepodge Vol 7-Making spirits bright

Nobody is busy are they? Surely you came here today just looking for something to do. I have a day today so I may not get around to reading the linked posts until tomorrow but I'll do my best.

Wishing you and those you love a very happy Christmas!

1. Share your Christmas Eve traditions.

We have our big meal which is an early dinner, followed by church. When we get home we open one present and it is always pjs or a robe or something related to sleepwear. Grown up boys get nothing. Sounds harsh, doesn't it? It's really not...the men around here are happy to dive into the Christmas cookies while the girls open their Christmas Eve gifts and little boys do get pjs or maybe some other early Christmas present. Once the Christmas Eve gifts have been opened we all run upstairs and change into the new stuff and take a picture. Then we'll snuggle up on the couch while hubs reads The Night Before Christmas to his girls and any parents and siblings nieces and nephews who happen to be hanging around. And he always gets a lump in his throat because that's a neccessary part of the tradition carried over from his childhood.

2. What was the best book you read in 2010? (we're not going to include the Bible here)

The Help by Kathryn Stockett....loved it!

3. Do you have pets and if so do you allow them on the furniture?

Yes I have a dog and no she is not allowed on the furniture.

Okay, 'technically' she is not allowed on the furniture. We have a club chair she claimed as her own the minute she was big enough to hop up on it and I finally held up the white flag on that one. She also has another parent, one who may or may not share my views regarding animals on the furniture. The 'other parent' has been known to try and coax our pup onto the couch or into our bed until I shout and grumble that she sheds too much, is too big, and is way, way too slobbery. He reluctantly makes her get down but not before telling her he loves her best and this just proves it.

4. What event in 2010 are you most thankful for?

I have two...Daughter1's university graduation of course but also, my mom's 80th birthday...I'm lucky to still have my mom in my life.

5. What did you do in 2010 that you'd never done before?

I reached the half century mark. I think we can all agree I talked about that enough when it happened.

6. Brussel sprouts...friend or foe?

These days I'd say friend. As a kid they were my worst enemy. I despised them and tried to come up with clever ways of getting them off my plate and into the trash when my mom wasn't looking. They're one of my favorite vegetables now though and I especially love them cooked with a little pancetta, garlic and chicken broth.

7. Who would you nominate for man/woman of the year?

The Chilean Miners. Hubs actually said it first and I'm stealing his answer. They were a group of imperfect, hard working people thrown into a perilous situation and they rose to meet the challenge. In fact they more than rose~they triumphed. For a moment, the whole world was united and hopeful, moved by the power and resiliency of the human spirit.

8. Insert your own random thought here.

In my blog post Monday I mentioned that hubs had taken the pup, who was wearing an antler headband, for a ride in the MG. I had a few comments about the fact that there wasn't a picture so here you go...

Merry Christmas!