"It's the Hap - Happiest Time of the Year!"

I couldn't resist.

Dixie

November

I can't believe it's December already!  What on earth happened to November?  After a quick look at the calendar, I discovered what happened to it:

1.  Christmas Shopping.  I love it when November 1st rolls around.  That's when I give myself permission to start Christmas shopping.  I have to admit though, I end up doing more browsing than shopping.  Each year I follow the same tradition:  Find the perfect gift, check every other store to see if I can find it cheaper elsewhere, decide the first place had the best price, return to the first store to purchase said gift only to find it sold out.

2.  Attending a Few Plays.  I have always loved live theatre -- especially musical theatre.  This month I saw two great plays.  Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat  and The Great Ice Cream Scheme.  Both were incredibly entertaining!

3.  Accomodating the Snow.  Taking vehicles in to have the snow tires put on, and shovelling the snow has also kept me busy.  (Though not quite as fun as going to live theatre or Christmas shopping.)

4.  Making Seminary Classroom Visits.  What a perfectly invigorating way to start your day -- leaving my warm house at 6:30 in the morning.  In the dark.  In the cold.  In a dress.  Oh, and the lessons are nice, too!

5.  Visiting With Daughter #3.  She came home for a mid-semester visit for a few days.  Always love having her around.

6.  Taking the Showbiz Kids on the Road.   Each year I have the Showbiz Kids put on a little program of old-time songs at a senior's residence.  I know the seniors love hearing those  songs, but it always surprises me to discover how "naughty" some of the words can be!  Not really appropriate for children.  So I spent a lot of time changing lyrics and writing new verses in an effort to "tame down" the songs.

7.  Helping With the Nativity Exhibit.   For the past 16 years, the last week of November has seen our church get transformed into a beautifully decorated showpiece filled with hundreds of ornamental nativities.  It's a lot of work to set up -- it takes three full days -- but the final product is so worth it!  For the next three days, we open it up to the public as our Christmas gift to them.  I love being able to help out.  It's such a nice start to the Christmas season.

8.  Vacationing in Arizona.  On a whim, The Mr. and I decided to take a short vacation.  We didn't really care where we went, but since we only had five days, it needed to be somewhere close.  I came across a vacation package to Phoenix/Mesa that was such a good deal, that even the booking agent said, "Wow!"  So we left and had a wonderful time.  The worst part was coming home to our cold weather - 40 degrees difference in temperature.

9.  Supporting Movember.  It was a little  harder than I thought it would be, but I really do like to support a good cause.

Dixie

The Second Row

Several years ago, my family and I attended the Broadway production of "The Lion King".  Even though our tickets were near the back of the theatre, we loved every minute of it.  A few years later, when this same production toured Canada, we purchased last-minute tickets.  By some fluke, we were able to get tickets on the second row.  It was amazing!  It was like a totally different show seeing things so close.  The facial expressions of the puppeteers for Pumba and Timon were hilarious!

I once had another second row experience, when my sister-in-law purchased Faith Hill and Tim McGraw concert tickets.  I had no idea we'd be seated right down on the floor beside the stage!  When Faith Hill walked out on the catwalk, everyone stood up to gather around.  We were so close, that if we wanted to, we could've reached out and touched her.  Being so close was incredible!  I could see every intimate detail of her face -- every trickle of sweat.

Last night, by another fluke, The Mr. was offered two free tickets to the CFR.  And wouldn't you know it, they were on the second row!  He thought he'd died and gone to heaven.  (Another chance to wear his cowboy boots, no doubt!)  

Being so close to the action was fascinating!  Too bad I wasn't quick enough to get any pictures.  But somebody obviously did (thank-you Google).  This is what we saw from the second row:

Second-row tickets are definitely pretty amazing!  As long as you can dodge the flying dirt clumps when the animals race by so quickly!  

And remember to keep your mouth closed.

Dixie

Only a Month and a Half Until Winter!

Several people posted this picture on facebook this morning.  Yes, it's true.  We were definitely dumped on yesterday.

• There were were 3-hour commutes to work normally 20 minutes away.  
• There were record numbers of car accidents.
• There were cars stuck in their own driveways.
• There were children stuck in the middle of the sidewalk on their way home from school.

But as I was talking with a friend, we decided that most Edmontonians like that about living here.  I'm serious!  It gives us something to talk about, complain about, or (in my case) blog about. 

Dixie

P.S.  I'd like to give a shout-out to the mysterious neighbor who snow-blowed my driveway last night, as well as several others in the neighborhood.  He (or she) will never know the good that did to my heart!

Gotta Love 'Em

Okay, so the pictures aren't the greatest, but these "Showbiz Kids" definitely are!

I wasn't sure if they would still show up for class on Wednesday, seeing as how it was Halloween.  But they were troopers and came anyway.   And even worked really hard!   I'm so proud of them.





This picture of my assistant and me was taken by one of the previously photographed munchkins.  Unfortunately, you can't see how awesome Emily's make-up was.





Thing 1 and Thing 2 thought it was only fitting that they should have their picture taken with the Cat In The Hat.  (Was I flashing peace signs, or giving those poor kiddos "donkey ears"?  I'm not really sure.  Apparently when I get in front of a camera, I get a little too excited for my own good.)

As I've mentioned a zillion times, I don't really care for Halloween, but these kids helped make the day a whole lot better.  Actually, they make every week a whole lot better!

And so does the younger class that comes on Tuesdays!  I love doing this!!

Dixie

This Past Month . . .

SNOOZE ALERT:  If you're looking for an exciting read, this won't be it.  If, however, you've been battling with insomnia, and in need of a decent night's sleep, reading this could be just the thing for you.


Yesterday, while attending church where The Mr. grew up, I ran into a friend from high school.  She surprised me by saying that she had stumbled across my blog and reads it occasionally.  (Hi Barb!)  She also informed me that she didn't like it when people started blogs, and then didn't keep up with them on a regular basis.  I felt like the wicked being called to repentance.   So in an effort to be a more regular blogger, here's what I've been up to:

• Hosted a TV-themed party.  We asked everyone to dress up like some television character and bring their favorite TV snack to share.   Of course all the games we played had a TV theme to them.  It was tons of fun.  Unfortunately I didn't remember to take pictures until most of the people were gone.  Here are a few that we did get:

 Major Frank Burns and "Hot Lips" Houlihan

 Charles Ingles and Laura Ingles

Curious George and The Man With the Yellow Hat

• Drove to Utah with The Mr. and Son #1B, picking up Daughter #3 in Idaho on the way down.   Highlights of the trip included  (1) Attending General Conference,  (2) Visiting 1B's Mission president and wife,  (3) Having supper with my niece and her husband and meeting their adorable baby for the first time, and  (4) hanging out with these cool cats:

(I think the pose is supposed to read:  "She's fawning all over him because of the cool (rental) car, but he's acting casual like it's no big deal."  Apparently he's used to women fawning all over him?)

• Attended the Calgary Temple Open House.  Kudos to the people of Calgary who did such an awesome job of running the Open House!

• Kept myself occupied creating a program for my Showbiz Kids to take to the Senior's Lodge.  I've had to find music, get the music recorded, and either switch up the lyrics or write entirely new ones to some of the songs.  It's amazing how many of the "old-time" songs have naughty innuendos. 

• Spent this past weekend in the Lethbridge area tagging along with The Mr. who was there for business.  Highlights included  (1) Getting together with friends for supper,  (2) Meeting up with Daughter #2 and her family,  (3) Shopping,  (4) Taking The Mr.'s parents out for supper and having some of his brothers and sisters and their spouses joining us, and  (5) Attending the Welling Ward for church services.

• Rounded out the fun by teaching a few early-morning Seminary classes, delivering Food Bank flyers in the freezing cold, falling down my front porch stairs, and discovering bed bugs in the hotel.

Dixie

The Doppelganger

A few days ago The Mr. flew to Calgary on business.  On his return to the airport, he noticed that the cab driver kept suspiciously looking at him through the rear view mirror.  The cabbie kept it up for quite a while to the point where it was making The Mr. a little self-conscious.  

Finally the driver said, "I'm sorry to bother you, but I just have to ask...... Are you Stephen Harper?"

The Mr. assured him he wasn't our Prime Minister, just a regular guy.  The cabbie wasn't sure he believed him. 

The funny thing is that it wasn't the first time someone accused him of looking like Stephen Harper.

When The Mr. told me this story I had to laugh.  But then I thought to myself, "Come to think of it, I never have seen The Mr. and Stephen Harper together in the same room.   Hmmm..... I wonder...."

 So I did a little sleuthing.  You decide.






Stephen Harper

The Mr.

Still not convinced?  Check these out.

Any thoughts?

Dixie

Elvis Has Left the Building

Earlier this week I read in the paper that an auction had been held to sell a collection of Elvis memorabilia.  Apparently his personal bible had fetched a good price.  A good price of $95,000.  I was impressed -- $95,000 is a lot of money.  I was also impressed that Elvis had a bible.  And apparently read it.  The newspaper article said that Elvis' handwritten notes of inspiration were included in the margins.  I have to admit, I wondered what kind of inspiration Elvis would have received as he read from his bible.  "I think a red cape suggests a little more "pizzazz" than a white one.... "    "If I used fake diamonds on my pants, instead of real ones, I could save a lot of money...."

But I digress.

Anyway, what I read next in the article was that Elvis' "unwashed and soiled" underwear did not sell.  Well, duh?  Of course no one would want to buy anyone else's used underwear.

Imagine my surprise when I next read that the only reason it didn't sell was because the highest bid was $1000 below the owner's asking price of $10,000!!!!!

So at least one person bid $9000!!!!!

!!!!!

I really can't think of anything else to say.

Dixie

Family Reunion

After waiting ALL SUMMER we finally got to have our little family reunion.  When I say "little" I really do mean it.  There were only 12 of us.  There should have been 13, but Daughter #1's hubby had to work.  A few years ago The Mr. and I decided it would be fun to start having family reunions every other year with just our little family.  This year it was the Labour Day Weekend.

We rented a really cool two-story cabin overlooking the St. Mary's River.  Okay, it was really more like a house -- five bedrooms, three bathroooms.  Perfect for us!

My camera is on the fritz, so I wasn't able to get any pictures.  Thank goodness for Google.   I was able to find some very authentic representations of our reunion activities.

The cabin.

To make sure no one person got stuck in the kitchen, we made up a meal schedule with everyone helping out.  

                          

One evening was spent trying to crack open the pinata made by Daughter #1.  Considering it was the first one she ever made, I think she did a really good job.

 We had a couple of family movie nights.

The Mr. enjoyed his time fishing with the guys.  They were able to catch a few little fish.

He even taught the grandchildren to fish.

Daughter #2 organized the 2012 Family Olympics.  We were divided into four teams representing Canada, China, Russia and Australia.  Following in our footsteps of our 2010 Family Olympics, we try to keep it light and fun, downplaying any competitive nature.

Team Canada -- the winners!

We followed up the Olympics with some instructions from her husband on how to ride a quad.  It was even more fun than I expected it to be.

I was amazed at how quickly I caught on.

Son #1B planned an awesome evening of geocaching for us.

We played a few table games.

Tubing down the river was a big hit.

Son #1A put together an incredible treasure hunt for us.  

By Sunday those of us who were feeling well went to church.  

Unfortunately a few people had to stay home.

Monday Morning was check-out day.  In an effort to get back our deposit, we made sure the house was cleaned up before we left.  Here I am tackling one of the showers.

I left the easier job for Daughter #3.

We even tidied up the outside area.

Overall I'd say the reunion was a huge success.  We couldn't have been happier!

I'm really looking forward to the next one in 2014.

Dixie