After today, only one more ornament to go on our little advent calendar! Sheppy was hanging out on the bookshelf this morning, where he seems to have made some new friends overnight.
Even though Emmie looks a little like she’s grimacing in pain, she was actually just so stinking excited because Meg & Bo pulled in right at this moment, so she was actually bursting with excitment!
So last week, I was taking short lunches to bank up some time, since I planned to take the day off on 12/24. But then the governor gave all State workers the day off for 12/24 & 12/31, so I was gonna be over my time. So last Friday, and all this week, I got to take long lunches, so that was nice. Today, I watched the 1994 movie version of “Little Women” on my phone, ate leftovers for lunch, painted my nails Christmas red, ate half a Snickers bar, and drank some hot chocolate. (Honestly, I got more emotional/teary-eyed over Amy talking to Jo upon their return about her marrying Laurie, than I did when Beth died, even though I obviously knew both were coming.)
On the way home, Emmie was singing, “If you’re happy and you know it…” but she was getting mad at me because I couldn’t clap my hands or stomp my feet while I was driving. So she decided to move on to “hooray!” But she wanted me to do it exactly like she was. Apparently I didn’t do it quite right, so she said, “I’ll give you a reminder badge so you don’t do that wrong again.” I said, “A reminder badge?! What’s that? Do they do that at school or something?” So she said, “No, that’s what police do.”
At 10am this morning, I was absolutely starving and craving a cheeseburger so bad. So I was already planning on where to go one for dinner tonight. I hadn’t told Jeff that, but when Emmie and I walked in the door at home, he said, “So what do you wanna go get for dinner?” I said, “A cheeseburger! How did you know!?”
I wanted a regular, classic, simple burger, so we ended up at VooDoo Dog, because they have some great ones. I got the regular cheeseburger (it was delish, but I could only eat half), and Jeff got the bleu moon burger (which he completely destroyed) we shared the two sides (the cheese fries were the winner), and Jeff couldn’t leave without ordering the VooDoo dog as well (it’s bacon-wrapped and deep fried! 
). And even though you’re not supposed to have hot dogs when pregnant, I couldn’t resist a bite or two.
), and we still brought home half my burger and plenty of mac & cheese. It wasn’t our first time there, but it had been a while since our last visit, but everything was just as delicious as always.
We had a small Walmart grocery pick-up order to grab on our way home; they were super busy, so we had to wait like 20 minutes before they brought it out to the car, but that was still way easier than going IN the store. As I was putting away the cold groceries, Emerson requested a cookie for dessert, but also wanted to know what non-sugar snack she could have. I listed a ton options like chips, cheese, bread, applesauce, etc, but she saw the leftover pizza in the fridge and asked for that, slightly warmed up.
So while we got ready for bed and read her bedtime books, she ate half the piece, then the sugar cookie Papa sent home for her the other day, and then finished off the entire rest of the piece of pizza (sans crust). This girl can EAT, people!
There were lots more hugs and kisses and giggles and tickles at bedtime tonight, and then she did really good with laying down and going to sleep. She called me back in there just one time after I left, and although I think it was something funny, and I’m made at myself I can’t remember what it was… But she’s sound asleep now, so that’s what matters.
After Jeff and I watched “The Man Who Invented Christmas” last weekend, I realized I’d never actually read “A Christmas Carol.” So I checked out both the Kindle version and the audiobook version, and read and listened to them simultaneously over the past few days. It’s technically a novella, so it’s pretty short, and it was finished in no time, with all the long lunches I had at work this week. And I loved it!
Excited to have the day off tomorrow for Christmas to spend some time with my little family, and wrap a ton of presents, and go to the candlelight service at church. I seriously can’t believe Christmas is almost here! Tonight, we’re going to start watching “White Christmas,” which is one of our favorites and we watch it every year, and every year I get misty-eyed at the end when all the army men come to the inn and salute their old General. Love it!