Thursday, December 26, 2013

Twas the Day AFTER Christmas

It’s the day after Christmas
And the house is a mess,
Littered with paper and dishes,
Cookie crumbs and a dress.

The dishwasher’s full
And more dishes to wash.
The fridge is overflowing
With leftovers to nosh.

Our presents are scattered
All over the room,
The glittery bows
Lifting the gloom.

Pine needles are falling
From our big Christmas tree,
Which now leans to the left
As if down on one knee.

The dogs are both sleeping.
Their ribbons, they’ve shed.
They ate all their turkey
And fell into bed.

The cat, for his part,
Is still hunting the mouse,
Who by now must be starving
Behind our oven – his house.

The kids have gone back
To their dad’s in the snow,
And I am so thankful
That I didn’t have to go.

Todd and I don our gifts,
Monogrammed terry robes,
And settle down with some wine,
Watching news from the globe.

We’ll eat some more food
When we’re hungry, with wine,
And reflect on yesterday’s
Celebrations, and good times.

Yes it was wonderful,
With parents, aunt and her son,
And no one got drunk,
And no clothes were undone.

We just ate till we burst,
And no drinks were spilled.
The dogs didn’t beg,
They just laid down and chilled.

And no one passed out,
And only one dog peed
In the house, downstairs,
Which I effectively cleaned.

There was joy, there was love,
Christmas music, and cheer,
We smiled and sighed,
Thank God it’s next year.


Tuesday, December 24, 2013

Twas the Day Before Christmas

Twas the day before Christmas
In our big blue house
Every creature was stirring
Including the mouse.

Me in my PJs
And Todd in his skivvies
I’m afraid the kids have
Clogged the privy.

It came fast this year,
This fine Christmas Eve,
Even though I’ve watched The Grinch
More times than you’d believe.

I worked all weekend
On my feet
And I’m still baking cookies
For us to eat.

The house is still dirty
There’s no time to clean
And one Christmas present
Is nowhere to be seen.

The tree is still standing
No thanks to the cat
And I’m hoping he won’t pee
On the guest bathroom mat.

The dogs are so stinky
They do need a bath
If they chew one more thing
They’ll suffer my wrath.

Today I must make
Some chocolate mousse.
It goes to a catering,
Not for Jeffrey and Bruce.

For me, just a drop off,
Where I don’t have to work.
Being the owner’s daughter
Is a really great perk.

Then I drop off the kids
To spend time with their dad.
They’ll open some presents
And get spoiled like mad.

This year it’s his job
To make reindeer food,
And spread it out on his lawn,
Cause I’m not in the mood.

We still have some shopping,
My husband and I.
We’ll drive around town,
See what else we can buy.

The presents aren’t wrapped,
It will be a late night.
But we’ll wrap and drink wine,
By the soft candle light.

We’re hosting dinner
Though we don’t know how many
I hope we have enough food
And someone brings the Balvenie.

But for now, I’ll have coffee
And try not to drink
Before laundry is done
And I’ve emptied the sink.

Don’t get me wrong,
I’m really quite happy
I took my medication
So I won’t feel crappy.

So tonight as I lie down
I’ll think of you all,
Wishing you a good night,
And some good bourbon balls.

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!










Wednesday, December 11, 2013

How Do I Love Thee?

In no particular order, you know, cause I'm not that organized with my thought processes.  Except for that last one, that one was intentionally last.
  1. Your artistic talent.  I love the subjects that inspire you, and the artwork by your hand that we have hanging on our walls.
  2. You don’t snore.  Except when you’re sick, which is okay, cause we all do it. 
  3. That you still sleep with me when I snore which, because I am forever suffering from sinus issues, is apparently all the time.
  4. You love my cat (admit it, you do), even though he pees on the bathroom rug.
  5. You can fix anything, from computers to dishwashers to broken down Mustangs.
  6. You have a Mustang.  C’mon, you know it’s why I married you.
  7. You can cook.  And not just frozen dinners.  No, you rock some awesome chicken and hot wings on the grill, and now – my mom’s chicken and dumplings.
  8. You take really good care of me.  And not just when I’m sick.
  9. You built a beautiful kitchen and addition with your own hands.
  10. You came with Pi and Sabra, a package-dog deal, who are an endless source of entertainment.  And I’m glad you know they smell.
  11. You love potato chips as much as I do, and you don’t finish the whole bag without offering me at least one.
  12. You are a teacher.  Yeah, it’s true.  Nothing sexier than an educator.
  13. You are so like my mother – her drive, her ambition, her tireless work effort, and her unconditional generosity.  (This is a good thing.)
  14. You are so like my father.   How could I not love a man so like my dad?  His affability, his joyful playfulness, and his wonderful sense of humor. (This, too, is a good thing.)
  15. Your sense of humor.  You are the only one who can make me laugh as hard as my dad can … and more.
  16. You get MY sense of humor.  Which, being so like my dad’s, is a little “off.”
  17. Your generosity.  You are generous to a fault, even to those whose luck should’ve run out long ago.
  18. Your mom and dad.  I love your mom and dad – the best in-laws a girl could hope for.  Really, if they had been terrible monsters, we wouldn’t be here today.  Well, okay, we would be, but they would be very VERY far away.
  19. You love my parents.  And they love you.  That’s HUGE.
  20. You’re not a homicidal maniac.  Because you have every right to be, after the last renter fiasco.
  21. You’re very spiritual.  Our upbringings did not separate us, but today have united us.
  22. You sacrificed your time, car, and sanity to live with me nearly 2 hours away from your job for over 2 years.
  23. You’re the only one whose sweet tooth may actually be worse than mine.  Well, not all the time, but that apple pie didn’t eat itself.
  24. You are thoughtful and kind.
  25. You look equally good clean-shaven or with stubble, especially now that the stubble is gray.  =D
  26. You are sensored and sensored and I love your sensored and the way you sensored.
  27. You value your friendships and you are clearly valued by them.
  28. You’re not a fighter.  Even though you may always be remembered for that fight in high school, you don’t solve your problems that way.
  29. You have an unfaltering work ethic.  You have responsibilities, and you never shirk them.  And you never call out sick when you’re not, and nearly never when you are.
  30. You are not a whiney sickee.  When you get sick, you take care of it and don’t lie in bed swearing you’ll die of a runny nose.
  31. You are a Prince fan.  By now I think everyone knows if it wasn’t for the matching Prince t-shirt, we might never have met.
  32. Your taste in music is sublime.  And you don’t sing Survivor songs to me.  Too much.  But when you do, I think it’s cute.
  33. You love to watch Scandal with me, and you don’t make fun of Grey’s Anatomy.  Too much.
  34. You have tremendous patience.  Where I would’ve surely gone off the deep end without medication long ago, you are stoic and calm in the midst of chaos.
  35. You care about my children.  It’s no easy task, to love someone else’s children, but you do it and genuinely care about their welfare.
  36. And by that token, you would make a wonderful father.  I’m sorry we lost that opportunity.
  37. You don’t sugarcoat things.  If it needs to be said, you’re saying it.  Even if it means telling me it might be time to wax.
  38. You let me be me.  You have never tried to change me, or criticized me for disagreeing with you or having a differing opinion.  You let me wander off at gatherings and get distracted by other people, without ever complaining about it.
  39. You never forgot me.  (That’s kinda important in the whole, getting-back-together thing.)
  40. You don’t get jealous.  Which, really, would be stupid and immature. Which you’re not. 
  41. You’re a big softie who isn’t afraid or embarrassed to express how he feels about the love of his life, on any social network.  (Even if it embarrasses me.)
  42. You make a mean cup of coffee, and a great turkey stuffing omelette.
  43. The gifts you give have meaning.  I have never received anything from you that made me wonder what you were thinking.  It’s always crystal clear that you know me from my soul to my skin.
  44. The way you smell.  You smell exactly the same as you did in back then, though I only get it in drifts when you kiss me.  But it is intoxicatingly the same, and unmasked by obnoxious men’s cologne.
  45. You are YOU.  Because you are the first man I truly fell in love with, the one I cried so many tears for, and the one who saved me and made my heart whole again.  There is no other man who can do that.  Not now.  Not ever. 
Happy Birthday Baby!  Here's to 45 more!!  <3 <3 <3