The Queen's Rambles

So Christmas happened. Whew! Kids had fun. Elsa got a little car we can push her around in, so she's happy. I'm not so happy when Erik has the controls–"Hey mom, look at this!" he shouts as he has the thing popping the biggest wheelie ever with Elsa almost hanging upside down. At least she's going to be a tough one since she has an older brother.

Erik got everything he wanted from Santa–the second LEGO Harry Potter Wii game and a pair of camo sweatpants. Mike got Mario Galaxy in his stocking and Erik loves it way more than the HP game. I think we would all like the HP games better if they weren't so danged dark. You can't see what you are doing, which significantly cuts down on the fun. Don't those silly wizards know how to make a magical lamp? Or tap into muggle electricity?

Christmas Day ended up being pretty nice. We spent most of it at home, watching the kids play with their new toys. We didn't go over to our friends' place until late afternoon. We hadn't seen them since Halloween, so the kids were really excited to be reunited and I don't think the boys fought at all. Every year we play a crazy little gift exchange game that involves a timer, dice, and a whole pile of dollar store trinkets. Erik's favorite thing from the game: a purple compact with a pop out brush. I explained that people carry a compact so they can look in the mirror and make sure they look good. He's been explaining that to everyone he meets and showing off his very snazzy purple teddy bear compact. It's hilarious. I should take a video to show him when he's 15.

I shouldn't be surprised that he loves it. He loves looking at himself in the mirror. The day I observed his kindergarten class I noticed that his chair was perfectly lined up with the only mirror in the room. He was spending more time staring at himself than listening to the teacher.

Mike and I have a big plan for this year: save money and replace most of the furniture in our house. This is Mike's way of getting my spending under control since we don't get to buy new things until we hit a certain savings level. We started saving in October, so are ready for our first purchase. We've spent the last two days at furniture shops, sitting on hundreds of uncomfortable couches. Things were either super cheap quality that would last five minutes from stores with terrible reviews or way, way out of our budget.

Ethan Allen cracked me up. They had some nice stuff, but were clearly out of our league. They had serious smelly candles burning somewhere, trying to influence our mood. The saleslady was very kind to Erik and let him do some furniture design. I LOVED the idea of having complete design control over the furniture, but did not love the prices. Erik loved designing, period.

I spent hours scouring the internet for furniture store reviews. The problem in this area: stores take your order, promise delivery in 4-6 weeks, take all your money and you never hear from them again. This happened to us when we first moved to the area. I used to be fairly meek and mild, so surprised Mike and myself when I went into Marlo and had the biggest shit-fit in the history of adult temper tantrums right in front of their customer service counter. We did get our full money back. It seems like some of these stores don't even give you your full money back when you go in months later and demand satisfaction. They keep 25% as a restocking fee, even though there is nothing to restock. What a complete scam. I wouldn't believe this was even possible if it hadn't happened to us.

I finally found a store that had all good reviews and was in our budget! Hallelujah! It is a small, family owned store off the beaten path. They have lower overhead because they don't have a huge showroom. You sample different styles, then pick what you want from catalogs. We finally found couches that were comfortable to sit in! And didn't totally break the bank! Woo-hoo! We ordered a couch and a chair that should be delivered in 4-6 weeks. We only put down a 25% deposit and they seemed really committed to making us happy. I am so thrilled to have found a furniture store that was more to my liking. I don't need all the glitzy frills. I need good quality, good customer service and a decent price. I hope everything is delivered as promised and I don't have to eat my words.

I just felt bad that we took Erik with us. He was obsessed with the idea of designing, so the saleslady gave him this magnetic board with all kinds of furniture to re-arrange. Then she gave him some paper and a marker, so he drew a whole catalog. She taught him how to name his furniture and how to set a price. He was over the top excited and driving me completely crazy. I don't know if that means he was driving her even more crazy because she's not related to him and doesn't have to love him, or if she was finding him amusing because she's not related to him and doesn't have to deal with him on a daily basis. He's a really good kid, but very intense.

I had my little Leftover Holiday Cheer party on Tuesday. It was a major fail. Almost everyone RSVPed yes or maybe, but then everyone got sick or didn't get back to town, so I ended up with two guests–my new Pakistani neighbor and Mike's British buddy. Mike thanked me for throwing a soccer party for them. My Pakistani neighbor was embarrassed for me. It didn't turn out as planned, but I'd honestly prefer that people keep their germs to themselves. I didn't realize so many people were traveling for Christmas since that is never on my agenda. Next year I'll know better than to plan a party that close to Christmas. I was pretty proud of my table setting, so I'll have to post a picture. I put all the Christmas candy in a Christmassy box, but it looked silly so I turned it over and had the candy spilling out. I thought it looked cool, but Erik was mortified that it looked so sloppy. He's also mortified if anyone ever sees his belly button, but likes to be pantsless so his opinion is less than meaningful.

And now for a little country music humor. I love country music, but I am often less than impressed with the lyrics.

Here are some really dumb lyrics from a song called "Bait a Hook." The narrator's girlfriend broke up with him and is now dating a "sissy." I'll take the "sissy" any day of the week. Here's a sample, with my analysis.

I think the hick guy has a lot to learn about what women really want. Alcoholics who are gone every weekend and refuse to be responsible for their belongings are not really high on anyone’s list.