Things, Stuff & Such

Well, it’s Christmas Eve once again and it’s a full house. It’s been nice having my brother, his wife and son, my two boys, my parents all together for Christmas. If feels a little like the Christmases from my childhood in Michigan. Something about having family around you on the holidays makes me feel content like no other time.

I’m writing this quickly in my room as my boys are getting ready for bed. Due to the higher than normal occupancy they will be sleeping in my room while my brother and his family take the spare room and I am on the couch. It has been a great week with the boys and now we are just about to the creshendo of the holiday season. After weeks of searching and shopping, buying and wrapping we have come to the main event. All that is left is to get everyone (aged 12 and under) asleep so stocking can be ‘hung’ and the tired adults can sleep. I really love being on the other end of Christmas!

Before i go:
I got a letter earlier today saying that my ex-wife is raising my child support again. Nice to get it on Christmas-F’ing-Eve!! I knew it was coming at some point though. Every three years the DOR reviews support cases and during the last go around she threatened that if did not agree to pay her $1000 per month she would have my support raised every three years. Well my lawyer and I figured that, according to state guideliness $800 per month was what was mandated. She agreed to the amount and kept her word to have it rasied three years later. But hey! It’s CHRISTMAS!!!! There will be plenty of time for scrooges later.

The boys should be here sometime next Sunday. Probably late in the day as their mother is driving down with them. Originally they were supposed to fly down the following week, as this is my year to have them on Christmas (We alternate visitation between Christmas and New Years), but their mother wanted to change the weeks because her husband could not get the week between Christmas and New Years off. I told her I didn’t have any problem with that since the boys would still be with me on Christmas eve and day. I had asked for the original week off from work a couple months earlier, but figured that if I couldn’t change weeks I’d just not use my vacation. They boys are old enough to be home by themselves for the 4-5 hours my mother would be at work. After all, their mother has not used a babysitter for quite a while and last summer they did great when I had to work for one of the weeks they were here. I’m pretty sure I can switch vacation weeks, but the important thing is the boys get here.

I’ve been very much in the Christmas spirit lately. I bought some new Christmas music last weekend: A Ray Charles Christmas CD (he does an awesome rendition of “Rudolf the Red Nosed Reindeer”) and Diana Krall Christmas CD which is great. Add this to my “Christmas with the Rat Pack”, “Christmas Now”, and Dean Martin and Elvis Christmas music and I am set!
Those ubiquitous Red Cross buckets seem to be thin this year. I have traditional put some money in the bucket where ever I heard that familiar ringing bell, but there absence has been conspicuous.