Happy Freakin' New Year

Thanks, Trevor.

Don't forget. I know you've been running nonstop since the week before Thanksgiving, but you need to plan your New Year's Eve party, as well as some resolutions to make you perfect in 2009.


No pressure.


I'm not a big New Year's Resolutions person, I probably only do it every 2-3 years and I'm careful to only set practical goals that are really important to me. Here are the resolutions I'm considering this year:


1. Take a nap at least once a week. Yes, I am serious. Like most of you, I am chronically sleep deprived, as we've discussed before, and me napping would be a huge benefit to my whole family if I could just make it happen.


2. Go to the beach more often.


3. Pretend I am 20 years older, and I've been granted an opportunity to come back and do my life over for a year. I am 35. This means that I must pretend I am 55 but I get a chance to be 35 again, with my little children, my husband, my self at 35. I love this idea, I know it will help me be more patient, loving and happy, but how to make it practical? (btw, I'm borrowing this idea from this essay, from a site that I like which is targeted towards working moms)


2009, here I come. To nap.

Candy House Heaven

The Bossy Sisters would like to thank all the awesome readers who made gingerbread candy houses and sent their pictures.
It was very fun to see so many candy houses and happy people making them! Here are our favorites!

Kim's Gingerbread House is awesome. Check out the detail of the shingles, icicles, the scarf on the snowman, sled loaded with presents.

Very Christmassy in only red, green and white candy.

Chiska's train made us happy, she wrote that she's never done this before and that it was fun for her.

I love everything about this train, but especially the smile.

The Green Bomb family of the Blog Mafia made this complete subdivision (with a high train-per-family ratio, there must be a lot of commuting going on there).

Love the action photo of Ellie, and everyone loves Gramma Pamma.
Paige sent me this picture, so that means it's okay to use it, right?

And Paige's Bea wins for downright cuteness.

100% adorable.

And with that, Christmas is almost officially over. (Of course, I'm keeping my Christmas tunes around for another 2 weeks.)

You Say It's my Birthday?

I got the most thoughtful email from my Father in law this week. He wished me a Happy Birthday, and told me how sorry he was that my birthday was the day after Christmas. What a sweet man he is. (No really. I just re-read that and it might sound snarky, but he was commenting how I can get lost in the shuffle of Christmas and young kids... it was thoughtful.)

Throughout my *cough cough* 25 years I have heard sympathy about my timing coming into this world almost as much as I've heard Happy Birthday! The thing is, A Christmas birthday is the best! I've always thought I was so special to be born the 26th. What a great time to celebrate. What could be bad about never going to school on your birthday? The whole world celebrates with lights. There are always delicious leftovers and yummy treats! Plus, shopping after Christmas sales on your birthday? Cool!

I think all the credit for my loving a December birthday rather than feeling gypped goes to my parents. Mom made a cake. Even when nobody wanted anything sweet, she'd make a cake. Dad made sure to wrap things in Birthday paper and to give me a gift even though they just had showered me on Christmas day!

I think it is great to celebrate birthdays. Share with me what makes YOUR birthday special. What do you do to make your kids birthdays Special?

Christmas Movies

One of our favorite Post-Christmas activities is going to a movie. We saw "The Tale of Despereaux" and I give it 4 stars out of 5. The baby mouse is so cute. And I cried at the end. I loved that it was about loyalty, honor, and forgiveness. My teenagers liked it too, but they wanted to see "Yes Man" instead so they made snarky comments here and there.

On our list to see:
Bedtime Stories
The Day the Earth Stood Still
City of Ember (now at the dollar theatre)

What movies have you seen this Christmas? What movies are a "Must See In Theatre" and what movies are "Wait For The DVD"?

What was the sleeper hit?

MERRY CHRISTMAS! Hope it was flawless.

So, how are you handling the Christmas let-down?

What was the "sleeper hit" gift at your house? This is the gift that didn't seem like a big deal, but was surprisingly well received.

Merry Christmas Eve!

by Emily


For the Fun:

Instead of being a time of unusual behavior, Christmas is perhaps the only time in the year when people can obey their natural impulses and express their true sentiments without feeling self-conscious and, perhaps, foolish. Christmas, in short, is about the only chance a man has to be himself.
-Francis C. Farley


Nothing's as mean as giving a little child something useful for Christmas.
-Ken Hubbard

Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful.

-Norman Vincent Peale

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house Not a creature was stirring,--not even a mouse: The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there.

-Clement C. Moore

Oh, for the good old days when people would stop Christmas shopping when they ran out of money.

-Author Unknown

Christmas is for children. But it is for grown-ups too. Even if it is a headache, a chore, and a nightmare, it is a period of necessary defrosting of chilled hidebound hearts.

-Henry Vaughan

There is a remarkable breakdown of taste and intelligence at Christmastime. Mature, responsible grown men wear neckties made of holly leaves and drink alcoholic beverages with raw egg yolks and cottage cheese in them.

-P.J. O'Rourke

I do like Christmas on the whole.... In its clumsy way, it does approach Peace and Goodwill. But it is clumsier every year.

-E.M. Forster

For What Brings Peace and Hope:

For the spirit of Christmas fulfils the greatest hunger of mankind.

-Loring A. Schuler

The time draws near the birth of Christ: The moon is hid; the night is still; The Christmas bells from hill to hill Answer each other in the mist.

-Lord Alfred Tennyson

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

-Luke 2:13-14

Great little One! whose all-embracing birth Lifts Earth to Heaven, stoops Heaven to Earth.

-Richard Crashaw

Boss me Please, I need advice.

I need tips on enjoying Christmas morning.

• How do you manage all the loot?
  
• How do you enjoy the unwrapping and the thrill?
  
• How do you keep track of what was sent by whom?
  
• How do you make sure you don't toss important small pieces?
• How do you keep from feeling stressed by the chaos?

Remember, 5 kids 9 and under.
Please advise.

Last call for gingerbread house photos!

Send your gingerbread house pictures to bossysistersatgmail.com by tomorrow night! (Monday, Dec 22.)

We'll feature the best (and maybe the worst).

Paige, Lenore, Ellie and Celia's gang creating their masterpieces.

Need ideas? Read our previous posts here and here.

Do it for FHE. You know you want to! Merry Christmas!

Winner - Yay!

We have a winner for our fabulous Scentsy bar .... Hilary! Congratulations! Hilary has a darling blog at http://hilaryshappiness.blogspot.com/. You should check it out. She is a very active and on-top-of-things mom. You can tell from her blog that she loves playing with her kids. So fun to read! Hilary knows the Bossy Sisters because she and Emily were roommates in college.

Congratulations Hilary! I will email you and find out what scent you want.

That brings me to a shameless plug for a fabulous product...SCENTSY!

Four years ago a good friend of mine started a wickless candle company called Scentsy. I am now an independent consultant for this company and I love it! In fact, Melissa is also a Scentsy consultant! All my sisters and mom have some Scentsy products and I've only heard fabulous things about the products. No fire danger, over 80 very high quality scents to choose from, and beautiful decor for your home!

If you want to learn more about Scentsy, check out my web page, here. Or, check out Melissa's web page here. You can order directly from either of our web pages, and if you are looking for a great business opportunity, this is it!

That's it...shameless plug is over.

Smitten...

There are many things that bring feelings of happiness to me... sparkly untouched snow under a bright moon, the warm spot on the carpet where the sun has been shining, waking up to a child singing, but really the thing that makes me the happiest is my kids doing what they are supposed to do.

Yesterday was a stinky and fabulous day together. I was frustrated with one of my children and concerned about him and his choices, and my other child...well, he cleaned the entire downstairs - thoroughly, without being asked. He is helpful and cheerful and loves to spend time with me. At one point I thought almost at the same moment "What a crappy day!" and "Could this day be any better?!" Talk about an internal conflict.

Last night I went up to my son's room and sat on his bed with him. He was texting friends and I just sat and we talked just a little, about nothing really. Over about 20 minutes he mostly quit texting his friends, although I never said a thing about it. Then he started talking to me about some good things going on. Some great lessons he's learned in seminary, and a favorite talk from the Christmas Devotional. Then we started talking about some of the things that are concerning to me. We cried a little, we laughed a lot, and in the end I'm not as worried as I was.

Confession here, I told him how I really feel. I told him how deeply I love him. I explained that the words were usually used to convey a romantic love, but really, they just mean all consuming. I told him that the moment I found out I was pregnant with him I was in love with him. And that even still, I am in love with him, I am smitten, I adore him. I can't wait to see him and talk to him each day. I told him I feel the same way about his brother. That they are the very best of me, the best accomplishments I have, and the only ones that matter at all to me. They bring me the greatest joy in my life, no other joy even comes close. I told him again...I am smitten.

Smitten...he smiled at that, and got teary eyed. It is important. Now he knows.

Smitten, I tell ya....Smitten.

Great Expectations

I have been dreaming of the most amazing Christmas light display for my house. Something like this:


This is what I got instead:
I think one of the tricks to holiday happiness is having realistic expectations.

Bossy's Own Melissa is Featured Today at Groundhog Day with Celia Fae!

Here's a quick bossing:

Check out Melissa today at Groundhog Day with Celia Fae! (Still the best blog name I've ever come across--and an equally great blog to go with it. Enjoy!)

8 Days Till Christmas: A Gift Idea for Kids/Families

by Emily

I just, just, ordered gifts for my extended family. I knew for several months what to give them (this isn't always so, but this year...I had good ideas!)...but still waited until the last minute to order them. I have a hard time committing.

If you still need to do this, may I recommend Amazon? If you order by Thursday, most likely your gifts will still make it in time for Christmas with their regular standard shipping. Even better, spend $25 and get free shipping! (to make sure your purchase qualifies, it should say on the banner of the page of each item you're perusing if it qualifies for "Free Shipping")


Here is a suggestion for kids/families: "The 7 Habits of Happy KIDS" by Sean Covey, with an Afterward by Stephen R. Covey. My parents-in-law gave this to us for a birthday, and it has (to my surprise) been a big hit with Ruby, who is only 3 years old. I thought it was more appropriate for 5 or 6 year olds (at the youngest) when I opened it, but we gave it a read, and Ruby loves it.

The stories are successful on many levels. They have interesting illustrations and dialogue, and the values they teach are AWESOME. At the end of each story (there are 7 stories, one for each "habit") is a "Parent's Corner" with suggestions for conversation, questions to ask your child, things to hint at or suggest about the story. It is great. I think that ever book could have this--I feel like it is a parenting "cheat sheet".

May I give an example? Tonight we read "Bored, Bored, BORED!" Ummm...is this something you can relate to? Ruby doesn't usually say, "Mom--I'm bored!" Instead she says, "Mommy? I was thinking...maybe we could watch a video?" But, it pretty much means the same thing.

Sammy Squirrel is...bored. (Habit #1: Be Proactive). The story is very interesting to Ruby. She loves the illustrations and examples of the other characters. Most of all, she loves how Sammy comes out triumphant at the end. I can see a spark in her eye when Sammy solves his own problem. It is like a victory for her!

Sample questions from the "Parents' Corner": Why was Sammy bored? Whose fault was it that Sammy was bored? Sophie's fault? Pokey's? Lily's? Goob's? Or somebody else's? Do you ever feel bored? What can you do about it? Who is in charge of the choices you make: you or somebody else?

This book has successfully taken a very common parent-child back-and-forth frustrating and annoying habit ("I'm bored! Can I watch TV?) and made an attractive story out of it that teaches the underlying principle/solution, and it's prize, victory, success, or whatever you want to call it, is contagious.

Thanks Mom and Dad. We LOVE this book. (I think I like it more than Joe.)

Another great book specifically for those of you who love the magic of Christmas: "Letters From Father Christmas" by J.R.R. Tolkien. There are several editions of this book. The most fun is the HarperCollins/Houghton Mifflin 1995 edition with illustrations and actual envelopes from which you can physically remove a letter (it can get lost--so keep this book on the top shelf to be read with Mom and Dad) from Father Christmas. The book is out of print, last I checked, so you will have to buy a used copy on Amazon or elsewhere.

The letters are amusing, short, illustrated, a little cranky, funny, and down-right honest. I mean, that is, they feel honest. It is magical.


Amazon is great--I can't recommend it enough, especially if you have to ship gifts to far away places.


A new BIG (unrealistic) item on my wish list is a Step 2 Kitchen. It rocks. Melissa has it at her house, and Ruby LOVED it. I'm not sure where we'd put it, but we'd make room. Also, to go with the kitchen, Melissa & Doug (brand) pretend food (wooden food velcroed together so that you can cut through it and it makes a cutting sound, though all you're really doing is sawing through the velcro with a wooden knife about as sharp as a door knob).

hint, hint. ;-)

Winter Fashion.

It is comical that I am posting about Fashion. Laughable actually. However, I have been noticing something lately.

I am 35 (almost). I am on the fringe. (and so punny, fringe, scarves, get it?)

I have little ones, so I go to playgroup with the "Young Moms" and I have an almost 10 year old so I can hang with the "Older Moms" as well. In fact, it is a touch of a pickle to be in, or rather it would be if I cared. I'm kind of odd man out in both groups. In some ways, I'm on my own island, I like my island, so all is well.

Anywho, back to fashion. Scarves. There is a definite difference. The Moms with kids Michael's age wear them the way I always have. Wrapped around, you know, the way Grandma showed you how?

The Moms with kids Lily (3) and Henry's (1) age wear them like this.

So, update: Be Young. Wear the scarf the new way. It will take Years off. Years I tell you! Years. When did we make the change anyway? I must have missed the memo, How many years have I been out of the loop? (Get it, loop? oh, I crack myself up!)

Gingerbread, gingerbread, gingerbread rock

Just a reminder that if you have made a gingerbread house, of any kind whatsoever, send us a picture (or a lot of pictures!) at bossysistersatgmail.com. If you need some inspiration, you can read Robin's original post about the bossy sister gingerbread house tradition, or my post about how ours worked out this year. It is fun and your kids will LOVE it.

Send your pictures by Dec 22 and we will pick a winner to be featured here at Bossy! Happy decorating!

Pretty enough?

by Sally

Why?

Is Faith Hill not pretty enough?

The blurb on the cover says: Faith & Tim: What's normal about them (and what's not). Come on! Anything that is normal about her has been photoshopped out. Also, and this is just a side note, but take a sec to read all the headlines on the Redbook cover. Then notice the Redbook tag line: love your life. Really?

I don't usually read Greek men's magazines, but I thought the contrast in photos was interesting.

Did you photoshop your Christmas pictures? I am thinking I could give it a try and be 25 again. My children will have perfectly straight teeth.

The problem with this, of course, is that we (and our husbands, teenage daughters and sons) see these pictures and begin to believe that this flawless quality of appearance is normal. It's not. Faith looks great in the second picture. She looks like a real person who actually lives. Like a friend you might run into at the grocery store.

Another interesting example is here. If you have a teenage daughter, you should show her this.

After I wrote my first draft of this post, I was at Target. Walking past the magazines, I couldn't help but look a little more closely at the covers, and it made me sick. Next time you are in a store, take a look at the covers and the photos--the airbrushing and photoshopping is unreal. Literally.

And now for something a little less depressing:

How did the ocean say "hi" to the beach?

Gave it a little wave!

Sock It To Me

All we really want at the end of the day is a little respect. Just a little bit. Just a little bit.

Right now, at Christmas time, I am willing to bet that you have spread yourself pretty thin. As Melissa said, we have lists of lists. So here is your bossing for the day, or actually for the rest of Christmas, respect yourself. Drop some things off that ridiculous list. And play this song. It's not really a carol. Make sure you have an audience because you won't be able to stop yourself from grabbing a Christmas decoration and turning it into a microphone as you dance around the house. Your family will be delighted.

Re-re-re-re-spect!




Music Appreciation Class (pushes glasses up nose with finger):

Here is a little known fact. Most people think the song says "Take out the P-E-C". Not so.

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

Find out what it means to me

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

Take care ... TCB

"TCB" is an abbreviation that was commonly used in the 1960s and 1970s, meaning Taking Care (of) Business, and it was particularly widely used in African-American vernacular.

My Christmas Favorites! (and a give-away!)

There's no place like home for the holidays!

(This was taken at the house we sold a year ago)

There are really too many favorites to name. Right now, my very favorite Christmas thing is the song, "O Holy Night" by Josh Groban from his "Noel" album. Oh my gosh - it gives me chills when I am listening to it cranked up loud in my car with no other competing noises. Try it...it will amaze you!

My favorite Christmas food is licorice carmels that I learned how to make - oh so yummy! I will post the recipe when I find it. (I will have to call someone because I'm pretty sure I wrote directions on the back of it and then threw it away - ooops!)

My favorite Christmas scent is Scentsy's "Cozy Fireside" mixed with "Hearth and Home" or maybe "Snowberry", I can't decide. Visit my other blog if you want to order these... click here.

My favorite decorations? Well for that, I need to show you pictures!

I love the cheerfulness of this wall hanging. And bonus, it's glittery!

This is my olive wood nativity from Jerusalem. I love it.

Robin has a "Here comes Santa" just like this one. We made them at a "Super Saturday" together many years ago.

I decorate this mirror exactly the same way every single year. The little red long johns were once Rocky's. Now he's all grown up! I also made the bushy bearded Santa.

I decorate the bookcase pretty much the same way too each year. Some of my favorite things in here are all my Christmas books, my Russian Santa (from Sally) and my white porcelain nativity (which I always get glass slivers from because I like to display it on angel hair {spun glass} with lights underneath).



Finally, and maybe our favorite of all, is Randolph, the reindeer. Randolf was acquired the year I learned to snowboard (he is a skier though), and he tends to just stay out all year long because we all love him so much!

What are your Christmas favorites? I will choose one winner from everyone who comments (you are welcome to send us pictures as well to bossysistersatgmail.com) and they will receive one of my favorite Christmas Scentsy Bars! This will go until this Monday, December 15th, so tell your friends!

What is Wrong With Me?!

by Sally

This is how my evenings go.

I get the kids to bed as early as possible, usually by 7:30 they are all down and out. When the house is quiet, I realize how exhausted I am from just doing my day. Then I walk into the kitchen and look around at the mess with despair (and a little self-pity), and decide to do some cleaning. Then, because I need to relax, I decide to either watch TV or surf the web. And suddenly it is 11 PM. That is when I think: What is wrong with me?! Why am I still up? Why have I been staying up late wasting time with nothing to show for it? You know. You do it too.

When my husband is home, he doesn't help. Those evenings our conversations go like this:

Me: I am so tired. I have to go to bed.

Him: I know, me too. I am exhausted. I'm so tired. We should go to bed.

Me: Yeah. I'm going to bed in about 2 minutes.

Him: No, let's just go to bed now. But first let's watch The Office and 30 Rock.

As I climb into bed, every single night, near or after midnight, I have the same conversation with myself:

Self. This is ridiculous. Tomorrow we are going to bed at 9:30.

Why do I do this? Why? Why don't I finish with the kitchen/dishes, then go upstairs and read Newsweek until I'm tired, and go to bed well before midnight, like a sane person?

Why don't I do something productive, like write in my journal, read a great book, or make photo albums for my family, instead of flipping through Tivo or reading blogs of people I will never meet? (no offense, strangers, but you know what I mean.)

It's not like I'm 10 years old, hating bedtime. For heaven's sake, when I put my kids to bed at 7:00 I am totally jealous. Ooooh I wish I could go to bed right now! Newsflash, me: I could go to bed right now. I really could. The dishes can wait. Tivo doesn't need me. The blogs and everything else on the internet will go on without me.

I'm not a napper. I just can't/don't, it doesn't work for me. So I am walking around in a state of constant sleep deprivation, like every other mom I know, and I am tired of it. So why do I want to turn on the TV right now and veg out for an hour?

This should be me. At 9:30.

4 Ingredient Comfort Food

By Emily

Did you know that Homemade Macaroni and Cheese is really easy, and higher on the yum factor* than Mac-n-Cheez in a box? FOUR INGREDIENTS! That is all.

I didn't really know this until a few years ago when I started to pay attention to recipes my mom and Joe's mom made. This came up again in conversation with Lauren--hence this post. Thanks Lauren.

Anyway, here is a simple recipe from Joe's family cookbook, perfect for those days when you need a homemade meal, but can't muster up the energy.

For me, this was today. I have just gotten over a bout of food poisoning (or intestinal flu--who knows) and am trying to ease back into normal food. Still passing on the citrus fruits, but past the BRAT** diet. This fit the bill.

Maybe calling it Macaroni and Cheese will confuse your children when it comes out of the oven nothing like the box variety--you might want to make up your own name*** for it.

Also, this recipe is hard to mess up****. You can play around with the cheeses, the kind of pasta, the measurements, it will still turn out delicious. Today I used Rotini, since we had no Macaroni. But Ruby said, "Oh no, mommy, I don't want it that Spanish word. I want it Macaroni and Cheese," so I guess calling it "Rotini-and-Cheese" was a no go.

I'll include some variations below. With this recipe, you can follow the rule of 2, or 3, or 4, depending on how much you need to make. You'll see, check it out:

Homemade Macaroni and Cheese

Makes: 4 large servings

Bake: 350*

Time: 20-40 min (depending on how hot and crispy you want your topping)

3 C macaroni, cooked (let's not count this as an ingredient, so then we can call it a 4 ingredient recipe, okay?)

3 T butter

3 T flour

1 1/2 C milk
3 C shredded cheese (set some aside for topping--however much you want, it'll turn out delicious)

1. Boil pasta until done. Drain. Set aside. (I did this at lunch time while I was in the kitchen anyway)

2. In a sauce pan, melt butter, add flour and stir continuously, add milk still stirring (like other white sauces). Add cheese and stir until well blended and melted.
3. Toss sauce over pasta, put in a buttered baking dish and top with remaining cheese.
4. Bake at 350* for 20-40 minutes

________________________

Variations:

• Mix up the cheeses! I ran out of cheddar, so I used part Parmesan--gourmet!
  
• Top with bread crumbs instead of cheese (toss the bread crumbs with melted butter first, then top)
• Top with sliced tomatoes for added color and nutrients
• Add salt and pepper to sauce for flavor
• Toss in a dash of mustard (the dry spice kind) with your sauce making to add a little zing
• Make it spicy with peppers
  

*My original thoughts on Homemade Macaroni and Cheese were, "Why would you bother, that is a box food," but that was before I learned how easy it was. I would bet that, aside from the baking time, the actual prep time is the same as a box of mac-n-cheez.

**BRAT diet: Banana, Rice, Applesauce, Toast (this is for upset stomach, stomach flu, etc. mild foods that won't aggravate your tummy--especially kids. Sometimes I'll top the toast with applesauce--not too appealing, but when you can't keep much else down, and you're supposed to avoid greasy food among others [butter on your toast] it can be a small comfort)

***Other names: Pasta Bechamel, Cheesy Pasta Bake, Creamy Cheesy Pasta, Mario and Luigi's Favorite, etc. Why make up other names for it? If you say to the kids, 'HEY! We're having Macaroni and Cheese tonight!" What do you think they'll expect? I think appropriate expectations help foods succeed at the dinner table with kids. So prepare them, have them help you make it (Ruby "greased" the baking dish with a stick of butter, and sampled the cheese), then they'll know what to expect--and maybe don't call it Macaroni and Cheese if they're used to the box kind.

****How much can you fudge the recipe? If you only have 2 C of cheese instead of 3, it'll still be fine. If you want to add more pasta and less sauce, still delicious. It is pretty hard to mess this up.

Laugh, and the world laughs with you

There is a radio commercial where Sally Field tells us that she only has one body so she takes Boniva (makes me think of cows for some strange reason – bovine?).

When I hear this commercial I realize that I only have one body too! Sally Field and I have so much in common. I better take care of it! I promise myself that I will back off the sugar, increase the exercise, blah blah blah. But by the time I get to where I am going, the commercial and subsequent resolutions have been forgotten.

Here is something you can do for your one and only body that doesn’t require you to forgo goodies or sweat: laugh more. Have a sense of humor. Studies, done by real doctors, have shown that people who have a sense of humor are not only happier, they are healthier. They have a stronger will to live, fight off disease better, have fewer heart problems, and have a better quality of life.

When you don’t feel like laughing, fake it. If you fake it for a while you will start to feel it. I can trick myself into thinking that I am having fun, or that an otherwise stressful event is funny. For example, I sometimes get the giggles when my teenagers have a full blown fit about something like cold cereal or people chewing with their mouths open.

It's not like life is a piece of cake at my house. Believe me, we have more than our share of drama and distress, but I have to laugh at myself. If I don’t, things will get ugly real fast. Its bad to take yourself too seriously. When I laugh at myself enough, I can actually get people to laugh with me. It is very rewarding. Especially if my husband and kids laugh. I find if I laugh before anyone else has time to yell or cry, often I can completely change the outcome of an entire situation.

There have been times, in my life as a mom, that I have resisted the urge to laugh because I wanted to nurse my anger, my sense of injustice. I regret those times.

So, I double dare you to laugh when you normally would freak out or get grumpy. You’ll feel better and so will everyone else.

Laugh, and the world laughs with you; weep, and you weep alone.

I am thankful for laughter, except when milk comes out of my nose. ~Woody Allen

Dad always thought laughter was the best medicine, which I guess is why several of us died of tuberculosis. ~Jack Handey, "Deep Thoughts," Saturday Night Live

Stay Healthy and Happy.

Anybody else feeling the effects of December yet? I am. Yesterday during church I ended up with "events"/Obligations for 4 evenings over the next 2 weeks, in addition to the normal stuff. There will be a band concert, a Scout Party, oh, and Robin talked me into hosting a PARTAY-onetimeonly Christmas Book Club....
You know the drill, the days start to fly by, everyone gets the sniffles or worse, and you wonder what is happening to your visions of sitting by the fire, snuggled with your children and husband, eating popcorn and watching Jimmy Stewart.
Here are my ideas on how to fix the problem, feel free to add your own in the comments.

Stay Happy

• Laugh. It really is the best medicine, find the humor in things before you get angry or frustrated.
• Let Go. Perfection is overrated. Enjoy what is in front of you!
• Say No.
  
• Be Grateful. Keep a journal!
• Sing. Loudly!
• Plan on your plan being tossed out the window. story here: Last year, we went to Cancun the week before Christmas, and company coming for the holidays the day after we returned. Newborn baby, 4 "big" kids, I had lists about my lists. My 5 year old landed in the hospital with a 107.something fever and pneumonia just days before we flew out-- Crash Course in prioritizing and flexibility

Which leads us to---

Stay Healthy

• Drink lots of water
• Carry that Hand Sanitizer in your pocket and USE IT OFTEN.
  
• Wipe down the shopping cart handles, it is so worth it, even if people look at you funny.
  
• Eat your Holiday Colors. Fresh Fruits and Veggies are your friends.
  
• Sleep! You deserve to be rested enough to ENJOY the season.
• Move! Even walking at the mall is better than no exercise.

Christmas Morning Yum Yum

What are your Christmas mornings like? Do you have a tradition? Do you just dig in and amaze yourself with the bounty? Or, do you savor it slowly, one gift at a time? Do you take time to eat, or just munch on the goodies your find in your stocking (including the orange at the bottom)?

I'm not going to go into our whole tradition, but I will boss you a little and tell you to take time to eat a good breakfast on Christmas morning. This is what we do... feel free to copy.

After we go through our stockings we take a break and head into the kitchen for a nice breakfast. We always have breakfast casserole (which turns into lunch and dinner as well) and cinnamon rolls (Thanks to Mrs. Rhoades). We wash it down with milk and/or orange juice. So yummy. We sit and talk and get excited for the rest of the day. And the best part is, I only have to get up about 10 minutes before the boys to make this happen. I just put the food in the oven first thing, then enjoy the stockings and Santa gifts until breakfast is ready. Yum Yum!


Christmas Morning Breakfast Casserole

1 lb breakfast meat cooked and drained - bite size (I like Little Smokies cut into thirds - I can do this a couple days ahead if I want)

8 slices uncrusted bread - torn into smallish pieces (about 9 pieces per slice)

8 eggs

2 Cups milk

2 Cups shredded cheese (cheddar or colby jack is best)

The night before, mix the sausage and bread, and about 1/2 the cheese in the bottom of a GREASED 9x13 pan. Mix the eggs and milk and pour over the bread and meat mixture. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top. Cover with plastic wrap and put in fridge overnight.

In the morning bake for 45 min - 1 hour at 350 degrees. ( Check center to make sure it is done and not soupy). Let cool for about 10 minutes.

This is delicious served with tomatoes, and sliced fruit. Also, you can add diced onions to the egg/milk mixture if you want --- so yummy!


Mrs. Rhoades Cinnamon Rolls

The night before Christmas put the number of rolls desired into a greased pan with some space between them (to let them rise). Cover and put in fridge. In the morning, if not raised enough put on counter top. When fully raised, bake, frost and eat!!! (Good for a late morning snack if they are not ready when the cassarole is done. This has happend to us a few times, just depends on the temperature and how quickly they raise).


Sounds simple, doesn't it. It is and it is one of the traditions we look forward to. I think it just helps us all slow down and be happy and thankful for what we have, instead of anxiously opening gifts hoping we got what we wanted.

What are your Christmas morning traditions? Please share!

It's December 6, do you know where your gingerbread house is?

As Robin already told us, making gingerbread houses is fun and easy. It's a great way to celebrate with family and friends, while creating something decorative and giving you an excuse to buy and eat tons of candy, too.

And I mean TONS of candy.


The front and back of my wonderful MIL & FIL's house.

As I always do, I obeyed Robin's bossing and after hosting 17 people at my house for Thanksgiving dinner, we made gingerbread houses. Which really should be called candy houses, because they are mostly made of candy with lots of frosting and a few graham crackers and absolutely no gingerbread. And in fact, calling what we made "houses" isn't really accurate since we ended up with 3 houses (one with turret, very handy in the suburbs), a ship, and a bridge.

The Golden Gate Bridge, my BIL Matt's contribution. Apparently SF sold the GGB for advertising for honeymaid graham crackers. Also pictured is the Candy Caine Mutiny, by clever punster and famous sportscaster BIL Rick.

Adorable cottage by BIL Jordan and SIL Ashley. We call them Jordash.

In my family, there is very little competition and mostly a lot of cooperation. Which is why we all work together to make one big house. This year I hosted my husband's family, some of my favorite people ever, and I knew without a competitive hook there would be little or no participation from the men. So we had a competition of sorts, with each couple making their own structure.

Mine. It's now sitting on my fireplace mantle. My husband helped too. Thanks honey.

This is how it went:
I spent a small fortune on candy.
We cranked up the Christmas music (too loud at one point, made the babies cry).
We stayed up ridiculously late.
It was really fun! Until we had to clean up.
I had enough leftover candy to feed an army. Well, to feed them dessert.

As you may recall, Robin bossily told us to send pictures of our houses, so I dutifully took lots of photos.

Our impressive creations.

What I will do differently next time:

• Go to a drugstore for creative candy options. Even Target didn't have a great selection of colorful candy.
• Still buy tons of candy.
• Instead of every couple making their own houses, I will either pre-make small houses for everyone to decorate (see below), or just make two houses--women against men (drawing on an idea from Robin's Par-tay post).
• We will not do the decorating in the formal dining room, even though it's the largest table surface we have. Instead, we will go to Hawaii and do it on the lanai. Or at least go to the kitchen or the backyard here at home.
• Start before 8 PM so we can go to bed before midnight.

So what did I do with all the leftover candy? Eat it? Of course. I mean of course not! We made more gingerbread houses! Yesterday I invited some of our little buddies over to make little gingerbread (candy and graham cracker, really) houses. The houses I made ahead (if you do this, make them a full day in advance so the frosting is dry and strong enough to withstand 3yo decorating pressure). Set out the leftover candy on the backyard table, give the moms some frosting, and let the creativity flow.

The houses. Pretty simple.

This is about 1/3 of the leftover candy.

One of the finished candy houses.

The four houses with enough structural integrity to survive the decorating process. I sense a sunday school analogy here.

There was a little demolition, and a little licking of the houses, but mostly very satisfied guests. It was really fun and not too messy.

Candy joy.

Have you made your gingerbread house yet? It's fun! Try it! Then send us a picture to bossysisters@gmail.com by Dec 22 and we will pick a winner to be featured here at Bossy! Also send your worst, wreckiest pictures, and if we get any bad enough we will do a cake wrecks-style Gingerbread House Wrecks award. Happy decorating!