--I spent the last two hours stringing popcorn for our Christmas tree. The reason? This year's tree is much bigger than previous trees, due to having more house to "fill", so the ribbon we've always hung on our trees is not quite enough to do the trick; I thought popcorn would be an inexpensive and fun way to fill in the gaps. Sometimes my good ideas become rather time consuming. This would be one of them.

--If each of you could hear Bronwyn say, "Uh oh, uh oh, uh oh!" in her repetative and adorable way, your day would be instantly brighter. She really is one of the prettiest little girls ever. (The amazing thing is how she daily becomes more of a girl and less of a baby.)

--Between my love for chocolate and need for hot drinks, I have consumed far too much hot cocoa in the last few days. At least once every twenty-four hours you can find me heating water on the stove and preparing my mug. I can take it with or without milk and with or without mini marshmallows--just make sure it has plenty of cocoa.

--The mold that had grown all over the crib bumper (don't ask--it's a long story) is almost completely faded. For a brief two days I thought I had lost $150 to carelessness, and it seriously did bring me to tears. That crib bedding is the one thing Daniel and I have really splurged on in our married life, knowing the crib would be well used. But all is not lost. In fact, the mold is completely dead (between laundry detergent, oxy-clean, RIT and hot water, I'm confident of that!) and barely visable until you get up close. Perhaps at some point in the future I'll replace the bumper since the fabric is a bit faded now, too, but for now, what we have will continue to serve our babies.

--I kind of like the story of St. Nicholas, and I definitely like folk-art Santas. Personally, the jolly fellow doesn't offend me. I just don't like how most Santa stuff represents the ridiculous commercialization of Christmas.

--It has been several weeks since I last read a book. Today my mom was helping the girls with their school and I found myself struggling to remember the answers to the questions she was asking. When I visited Jamie at PHC and sat in on his class, I was completely lost the entire time. The worst thought associated with homeschooling my children is having to re-learn Algebra so I can teach them. But I can make a mean PB&J and I'm a pro at changing diapers anywhere. What can all this mean?!?!

--To hang icicle lights or not? That, my friends, is the question.