A 4 day week? Okay, I’ll take that!

We got up Sunday morning and decided to put up our Christmas decorations. We were off school to celebrate the Prophet’s birthday. Since we will be leaving for Sydney in December 12, we wanted to get as much enjoyment out of our Christmas tree as possible. The kids called Grammie and Pop and spoke to them for nearly an hour. We then started watching Christmas Vacation (don’t judge) and decorating the tree. 

Stuart put the tree together and fluffed it. I putthe lights on and the kids hung nearly all of the ornaments. 

All three of them put the star on the top. 

The kids attempted to get the dogs to wear Santa hats. They were relatively successful. 

After the tree was up, Stuart and I sat and watched the rest of Christmas Vacation. The kids went upstairs and had a good old wrestling match which always ends in tears. 

Jack eventually went to Ian’s while Millie sat and watched tv with us. Cathy came over after taking her cat to the vet and finding out that he might need a very pricey surgery. Ugh! She was crying and needed us to pep her up. While she was at our house she got a call from the vet and he said Ollie might not need the surgery after all. Time will tell. She LOVES her cats, so naturally she was upset. She stayed at our house until she had to take Claire to the doctor for a check-up. When she left, the kids and I bathed the dogs. They were terribly stinky and needed to be freshened up. It’s an exhausting undertaking which results in a shower for all once the dogs are clean. 

Everyone was clean and smelled? Well, I smelled good, the dogs just smelled like wet dogs. 

The evening was filled with a lot of nothing. Stuart made dinner and turned out the lights so that all we could see was the lit Christmas tree. Oh how I love Christmas!

Around 6:30 pm it dawned on Jack that he had a football match at school the next day. He was told if he didn’t have shin guards he wouldn’t be able to play. We had promised him we would get them over the weekend. However, we didn’t. So, in order to be true to our word, I said I would get dressed and go get them. Jack apologized, saying, ‘It’s my fault because I didn’t remind you.’ To which I said, ‘Jack, we promised we would get them this weekend and we didn’t. So it’s not your fault.’ I headed upstairs to get dressed and then heard Stuart say, ‘I’ll go get them. I’m already dressed.’ So kind of him! Plus, he knew what to get. I wouldn’t have had a clue. 

Stuart returned after Millie had gone to bed. He got socks and shin guards for Jack. He also stated he had forgotten how scary it was out in traffic after dark. So true! We really don’t drive after dark. People are nuts on the streets. 

Monday at school I wrote reports most of the day. At the end of the day Jack came into my room and reported there would be no football match. I called Stuart to tell him not to bother coming down to school. We got home and Stuart went to training while the kids and I chilled on the sofa. It seems everyone was a bit worn out and somewhat under the weather. 

Tuesday Stuart dropped Jack at Brian’s around 4 pm and then came to Millie’s dance demonstration as well as her gymnastics demonstration. She loves her dance class and plans to continue. She’s also going to add an art class on the same night. She’s shown some potential in art, which is totally foreign to me considering a stick person is the extent of my artistic talent. 

She’s quite bendy. 

After her demos we headed to the club to watch Jack’s last touch match and they tied. It was fantastic. He was so pleased. 

Wednesday I had a meeting at the club regarding hosting a Latin dance night in January. I ordered food for Cathy, Stuart and myself and took it home after my meeting. Stuart went to training and then joined Cathy and myself around 8:30 pm. Jack had actually gone off to a training session in Abu Dhabi with the New Zealand rugby team, the All Blacks. He was over the moon with excitement. It was a unique opportunity for sure. 

He didn’t get home until just before 10 pm and needless to say he had a lot to share. Thursday morning would be fun. 

School was exciting for Millie on Thursday. She was awarded a certificate for skipping rope the most times in 20 seconds for all of Year 2. She skipped 31 times. It amazed me how many students were unable to skip rope. Their coordination was absolute crap. She was also given the Star of the Week for her class. She was on cloud nine. 

Thursday morning it finally dawned on me where I had left the kids’ health cards. So after school we stopped by the dentist’s office and picked them up. I’m not sure why they wouldn’t have called me to tell me they were there, but oh well. They were back with me now. When we got home Stuart was starting scotch eggs and cole slaw. Once we were in the house Millie started crying. I went to pick her up and she was hot as a pistol, clearly not well. I took her upstairs for a bath and then she returned to the sofa in her cozy leopard onesie. She pepped up a bit after some Tylenol and a snack. 

She and Jack watched the Santa Claus while Stuart, Cathy and I ate dinner and discussed what we were going to make for the Thanksgiving dinner that would be at Brian and Lara’s the following evening. The kids were in bed by 8:30 pm and the night ended for us around 10 pm. 

Friday morning we got up and headed to the grocery store. We then threw the dogs in the car and went to our vet clinic for their open day. The dogs played in the sand and with other dogs. One of the dogs was a bit too ‘loving’ towards Duchess. However, she took care of him in a growling sort of way. 

Once we were home the kids just lounged around while Stuart and I watched television. I made pigs in a blanket and then around 5 pm we went to Lara and Brian’s for Thanksgiving. It was a stellar night. There were a ton of people there and the food was delightful. We stayed until just before 10 pm. Millie wasn’t terribly well, but she hung in there. 

Saturday morning we were up and I was prepared to take Millie to the doctor. But, she seemed to rebound and wasn’t feverish at all. Instead, we sat and watched movies. Lara had said the kids could come hang out at their house while we did our Christmas shopping. Saturday was our only available day to shop before we left for Australia on the 12th of December. We were very productive and got everything purchased. We even managed to have lunch at a new Italian place in the mall. 

Once we were home, I took a slice of apple pie to Lara when I went to get the kids. Stuart had swiped the pie back from the Thanksgiving celebration the day before. It was kind of funny. He’s not much of a sweet eater, but he did enjoy that pie. Once I was home, the kids played upstairs and I made a batch of toffee. Cathy came over around 4 pm and brought soup for dinner. We had bought some somosas and egg rolls for our frying oil that only had one more day use. 

Stuart ended up going to the club to watch England enialate Australia in rugby. Cathy stayed and we watched the Christmas special of Miranda. It is always good for a laugh. Miranda Hart is an English comedian who used to have her own sitcom. Cathy and I laugh hardest when we watch her show. She’s nuts! 

Cathy left and I showered. I sat to watch television and then Stuart was home. As often happens on a Saturday evening, I fell asleep on the sofa and woke up at 10:30 only to head to bed. It was a great weekend, but it was time to face the music of another week.