Christmas is a-changing

Can you imagine that there was a time that you could buy a special Christmas package carton of cigarettes to give away as gifts to your friends and family? Wow, learn something every day.

 Fred and I talked with the girls a few weeks ago about how we want to change the meaning of Christmas in our home. In light of the economy and how the extra money in the budget can be put to better use, we are not exchanging Christmas gifts anymore. Starting this year. We will still celebrate Christmas! We will decorate and we will have a great meal and all that comes with the holiday but we are not giving gifts. The gifts of Christmas are for children, We are not children anymore. When the time comes and a grandbaby comes into our lives, then that will of course change.
 Everyone is basically on board with it. I am not changing my mind. It feels kind of liberating! I do not have to stress out over what to get whom. Are they gonna like it? Will we have to return it? Oh god! So and So got us a gift and we didn't not get one for them!!
Yeah, I do not want to do that anymore. The Christmas commercials will have a new meaning for me now. They wont tell me that I am a bad person cause I did not go out on Black Friday and buy that huge assed TV for $300. It will not taunt me all month to BUY BUY BUY! I will just ignore it. Because I can.
  Natalie just had a birthday. Fred and I were born in January and Chelsea was born the day after Valentines. None of us is going to have to wait very long before or after Christmas to get a gift and have our day.
  Have you ever thought of doing this? Just not giving gifts.
I would never do it if the kids were actually kids. It will be fine now. I wont be able to do the kind of shopping that I do anyway because of the surgery.  So that is that.

 I finished the windows in the living room. Took me hours. I hate being sick. You do something, you rest, you do something, you rest. Sucks ass!
 It is getting colder here. God, I wish I could turn the furnace on. You do not know how badly I wish I could. It is gonna get cold in here tonight. I bet you on that one. I have two heaters going though. Well, actually three. One in living room and one in dining room. There is also one in my bedroom and one in Chelsea`s bedroom. I bought a bigger one that is on layaway right now. It will heat the downstairs alone. Then I will not need the two running down here. It is basically to keep us warm now then it will supplement the small amount of heat I will allow to come out of the furnace. Oil is $4 a gallon right now. That is more then last year! Every year it gets more and more expensive.

  We do not have money for a gas furnace. And how would we be able to anyhow. I have read assholes telling people like me that if we gave up our *luxuries* then we could afford to buy a generator for our house for future storms. One of the guys that was spouting off was on FB and I outed him cause his wife is an ER nurse (not around here) so he is preaching to poor people when he probably is living very lovely. But the things he was saying mimic what a lot of the 1% and others in their money tier are saying. Things like: Okay, You should give up internet, cable, and cell phones. That should help pay for having what you need in life. If you cannot afford xyz, then you should not have those things either. Then I spouted off and said: Well, we can also have one lamp with one bulb that we have to share around the house. No Netflix. Wash dishes with cold water.  Read books with a flashlight. Only eat stuff you can get at the Dollar Tree. Get rid of the animals because that food money could be used for something too. Keep the heat on 50 so the pipes do not freeze and walk around the house in a winter coat.  The guy never answered me.
 But these are things I think about. We used to have money and now we don't. Like many many others. Should I be doing more to lessen what we spend? Heck yes I should. I already got rid of the gym and the house phone. Now what?
So this Christmas thing is because of the economy of our household. Plus, we are all too old to be opening up 3-4 gifts each on the holiday. We aren't kids anymore.

Skinny Saturday..I wish!

*264*<---WooHoo!

    I am doing something right. Ever since I have been taking the correct amount of insulin, keeping my sugars down, and wanting to keep them down..the weight has gone down bit by bit. I know that if I can get fired up about going to the gym, it will drop like sweat off a fat chick`s ass. oh yeah, that`s me! Natalie has noticed that I have been eating much less. It is called the Recession diet. You eat less so that there is enough food for everyone else. I know that sounds bad to some of you that live way above MY means (you know who you are), but this is a fact of life for many Mom`s out there now.  You give the biggest portion to hubby/wife or the main worker cause he/she is working hard and needs the calories, then you have everyone else get their food with the warning that they can only have so much cause others have to eat too. So Chelsea and Fred get the largest portions and then Natalie and Raymond and then me. I get whatever is left. There have been times were I have gotten 1 chicken wing and some sides for dinner. I did not complain though. I am losing weight from it and my sugars are doing well. It will hopefully get better once I start working. That stipend will make a difference.
  Today I am going to work on the livingroom. Carefully pull out couches (do not want to bust another disc) and clean underneath. Anything that I deem garbage has to go. All the curtains need to be taken down and washed. I do not dry them. I was taught to hang them in the windows wet. Then you do not have to iron them.
 The weather is absolutely gorgeous. The dew point is low and there is a nice breeze. Good time to wash the windows also. I know. I know. I sound like a damn freak cause I like to wash windows. I actually kind of do. I WISH I had newer windows though.

Oh well. No biggie.

Sunday is going to be a cooking day. I have some cucumbers that I bought at the Farmer`s market. I am going to make a few jars of bread and butter pickles. There are not a huge amount. They were charging $2 a lb! That is a lot when you need many cukes to slice for each jar. I guess I will have enough to make a personal batch for the family this year. I was hoping to make some to send to friends but I don't know about that right now. Maybe I will get some more next week. I have no idea what I am cooking for Sunday dinner yet cause I am waiting to get some grocery money. I hate life sometimes. It is all about hurry up and wait.

Hope you all have a nice Saturday and a cool breeze on your face.