Welcome Winter!

Not a lot of time to sit down and sip Christmas tea today!  But I have sat in this spot a couple of times and enjoyed a couple moments of respite, a sip or two of tea, and a quickglance at the tree.  Packages need to be placed under the tree.  The neighbor grandkids have brought some gifts over and now they need to be distributed under and around the tree along with the ones that Woody and I have wrapped.  When I am upstairs, I have been trying to carry a gift or two down when I go back downstairs.

I have mainly cooked today.  I made the beef brisket (a new recipe) today...jury is still out on it...maybe it will be better after I make the Texas barbecue sauce and get some of that painted onto it!  I also made the potato salad.  So the fridge is filling up.  I think that the sick ones are doing better.  We don't think that Esther has the flu since she never felt bad after she went to the doctor.  She may have had a positive flu test due to the fact that she had had a flu shot.  We think that her problem was strep.  A couple of others are also being treated for strep.  If we can just keep everyone else well, Saturday should be a go.  Melany is feeling some better too and says that she will be able to come.  So onward and upward with our Christmas plans. I have done a little picking up...getting ready to run the vacuum.  I hope to go down and do that after I blog...but my back is protesting a bit.  I want to run the vacuum before I distribute all the gifts....and I would like the pile of gifts to leave our bedroom!

Woody did a little raking today since the leaf truck is back in our neighborhood.  It will probably get to our house tomorrow and it would be good to get rid of as many leaves as possible!  Kathy needed to go to WalMart and she still can't drive because she still has a boot on after her foot surgery.  So Woody took her so Nathan could continue on their 'remodel."  Nathan is getting very close to being finished...he is now working on the downstairs bathroom...potty is back in...next is some work on the water heater which is in that bathroom or replace it.  They said that they would have to disconnect the water for a while so would be needing to use our bathrooms and anything else that needs water while he is doing that phase!  Never a dull moment.  I know that they will be so glad when it is completed! Woody has been helpful on clearing counter space for me by washing up the dirty dish trail that I have left all day.  I loaded up the dishwasher just before coming upstairs.  Between the two of us there should be space tomorrow for me to make more cooking messes.  Woody walked four miles late this afternoon on what is the shortest day of the year!  Good bye Fall...Hello Winter!  'Tis the season!