It's beginning to look a lot...

...more organized in the Mackey house!  And a lot more like Christmas!  A very productive weekend leaves me feeling more organized and Type A, you know, like normal!  I am so pleased with everything I accomplished this weekend!

The stockings were hung by the chimney on the fireplace with care:

Santa's plate and mug are on the fireplace, waiting for cookies and root beer on Christmas Eve:

My nativity set found a home on a shelf in my new entertainment center:

Charlie, our Elf on the Shelf found a spot on a top shelf.  If you don't have a 'Charlie' of your own, I would highly recommend getting one.  Charlie watches your kids during the day and reports to Santa every night if your kids have been naughty or nice.  Every morning, Charlie is in a new hiding spot and the kids race to find where he is hiding.  A great family tradition!

My Department 56 villages (wedding shower gifts) found a spot on the entertainment center as well:

I added a splash of red to our tree this year with new berries I found at a craft store this weekend:

The toppling, unorganized piles of Christmas gifts around the house are all wrapped and organized under the tree:

My Christmas cards are stuffed, addressed, stamped and sealed, ready to be mailed out this week:

My outside lights are also up, much less Griswald-y than my neighbors well lit homes (which my kids aspire to be like), but nevertheless, it adds a little splash of color on our front entrance!

I'm tired just thinking about everything I accomplished this weekend, but what a great feeling to be done...and it isn't even December yet!  Time to enjoy the holiday season with my family - I can't wait!  How about you...are you feeling ready???

Jewelry

I am fully caught up with my holiday orders (can I hear a 'YEAH'?)  Only a few days remaining on orders and then it's time to kick back and relax for the holiday season (well, not really relax, I have kids, remember?)  Kick back and relax from my 'jewelry work' that is and truly enjoy the holiday season! :)

 

This bracelet is for a special friend of mine.  She is a neighbor that took care of Ryan in her home for the first 15 months when I went back to work.  She has 5 children herself and is one of the most giving peole I know.  Almost a year ago, she went in for a 'routine' surgery.  Complications from that surgery resulted in extensive nerve damage in her left leg, leaving her unable to walk.  She spent 4 months in the hospital, nursing home, and Courage Center in rehabilitation before returning home in May.  She is a fighter and so determined!  I saw her last week and she was walking on her own - she had a brace on her leg for support, but she was walking.  There is a lot to be said about determination and willpower.  I am proud to call her my friend and can't wait to surprise her with this bracelet! :)

Thanksgiving 2010

We spent Thanksgiving Day at my cousin Kim's house in Rochester.  We had a great day together - thankful we could all be there, despite the weather predictions for snow and ice.  The roads were pretty good until we got on the back roads by their house, but all in all, not too bad.  Ha - I say that as I was lounging in a reclined chair in the back, eyes closed, while Evan drove.  At least they told me the roads weren't too bad! :)  We have so much to be thankful for!  We are blessed!

Post Its

I was home alone with the boys this weekend and had many jewelry orders to complete.  Ryan asked me today if he could use 'a' post-it note from our kitchen drawer.  I agreed, to buy me a little time to work on jewelry.  Low and behold, Carter joined in when he woke from his nap and by the time I finished with jewelry, my house was covered in post-it notes.  Wasteful?  I think not - it bought me 2 solid hours of creative time on my jewelry...and in the meantime, I was playing 'number crunchers' with Ryan, restaurant where he was taking our orders and writing them down, and we were  also practicing spelling words and numbers.  I like to think of myself as 'multi-tasking'!  Have a great week, everyone...and let me know if you would like to borrow my kids to practice multi-tasking! :)

The Turkey Run

My neighbor and I ran The Turkey Run around Como Lake in Saint Paul today.  Despite terrible weather conditions - freezing rain and ice, we managed to improve our time from our last 5k race on Halloween in Anoka.  We had a great time, even watching our footing every step of the way.  The course wasn't too bad in most areas, but a good 1/2 mile stretch on one side was glare ice as were many of the corners.  But, we did it and I am very glad we finished.  I didn't bring a camera (everything I brought had to be put in a Ziploc bag to stay dry - we were soaked by the end of the race!) so I don't have any photos...next time! :)

Busy Jewelry Weekend!

I had a busy weekend working on jewelry orders, made a little busier being alone with my 'helpers'.  I did manage to complete 13 orders with their help!  Just a reminder that all holiday orders are due by Wednesday, December 1!  Thank you!

What's Up, Zak?

Kyle had his fall program at school tonight, titled "What's Up, Zak?"  He had a small speaking part and did a great job.  The programs get better and better as the kids get older!  This program was for 4th-6th grade and the first program since the school changed name/ownership to Legacy Christian Academy.

Wild Suite

My team from work went to a Wild game last night.  We had a great time!  Work has been stressful since the teams merged so it is fun to be able to go out and socialize and see my coworkers outside of the work setting!  And...the 5 of us that stayed until the bitter end of overtime saw a great Wild win! :)

Jim (Laura, my job share partner's husband) and Karl: 

AJ and Karl:

Jane and her husband, Jeff:

A few members of our team watching the game (there were 20 of us there in total):

Wild score to win in overtime!!!!!



Snow

We went outside after naps to play in the snow today.  We decided to build a snowman and then the snowball fights started.  That's when I decided it was time to go inside and warm up! :)

Monster Jam

The boys and I headed to the Metrodome for Monster Jam.  This was the first time they had ever been to it and I think their expressions were as much fun to watch as the trucks themselves.  They absolutely loved it.  Carter seemed mesmerized and Ryan was his usual animated self.  Their favorite parts were watching Grave Digger win the races and the tricks on the four wheelers.  It was a pretty amazing show and I am glad we were able to go.  I have a feeling they will be talking about it for a long time!

Arena prior to the trucks racing:

Ryan getting excited as the show is about to start:

The boys favorite truck, Grave Digger - he won the race!

US Air Force:

Grave Digger mid-air:

Blue Thunder:

Mohawk Warrior (the driver sported a full mohawk):

After the monster trucks raced, smaller trucks came out to race:

Ryan getting excited as the demolition derby cars start to race (and crash): 

The derby cars:

One car flips, driver got out and was okay:

The boys loved the four wheelers that jumped and did tricks mid-air:

Somehow I can see this in Ryan's future (I hope I'm wrong, but doesn't he strike you as a future stunt man)?

Two four wheelers did tricks simultaneously:

One crashed, but again got up and walked away.  I have to imagine he is a little stiff and sore today:

The trucks came back out on the freestyle course:

This was even better than the racing:

Backdraft didn't have a lucky night, but again, the driver emerged unharmed.

What a great night - I can bet we'll be back next year!  :)