Oops, didn't post this

OK, at some point the grocery bill needs to mellow out. This last one was HUGE. Part of that, I think, was due to the move, but more so because of the holidays coming up. I am grateful that we won’t have that again for a while. We are going to smoke our turkey, whose name is Bocephus (sorry Hank). Ms. Lala and Bubbles got the girls into naming their turkey’s, so we decided we would have a redneck turkey. No real reason why, but it was kind of funny to listen to the naming process. Do you know how many hick names for guys start with a B? It’s weird. Try to think of a non B hick name for a guy. If you come up with a good one, let me know.
We are also going to do the ham (which is especially important in case Bocephus doesn’t turn out well). Along with the standard holiday fare, I expect to have a nice meal. We are hosting one of the single people from work also, so that will add some variety. Unfortunately, he has no idea how crazy it will be. Oh well, I expect it will be fun. We will break out the board games and the Wii and stay up late. Of course, the kids will have their new toys and stuff, so they will be in hog heaven I imagine. I have the week off as well, so I intend to use it to work on a paper for class, and to work on getting the house cleaned up. I need to find a place to stash my photo albums as well. I have a LOT of photo albums.

I have completed most all of the requirements so far for the online instructor course. I am hopeful that I will be teaching by May, if not sooner. I expect to be graduating with my Master’s in Security Management in March, so that will bolster my prospects as well. I also found out that Derek can take classes at the school for a reduced rate if I am accepted. He even mentioned the possibility of working on a Master’s. No, he hadn’t been drinking. I can also pursue another degree, if I choose, for reduced rates. I am waiting to find out if that also applies to my children. That might be a good way for the kids to get some college done. It would allow them to work and take classes at home, though I am not sure I want them to stick around forever. Still, it would be nice, and so much cheaper. (Note – family also get the reduced rate).

We went to see Alvin and the Chipmunks this weekend. The girls, Derek and I wanted to see I am Legend, but that wasn’t a good one for Mercedes so we compromised. I was not disappointed. It was a cute movie and I laughed a lot. I want the soundtrack too. It was a definitely worth going to see in the theater, especially for the kids. We also went out to eat at IHOP which most of us were happy with. Mason was flirting (outrageously) with a little girl who came in. It was adorable. Micah got to eat grits, which was not my first choice for him, but he seemed to be alright with that, oh and the pancakes I let him have. It was how we spent our Christmas money from Grandpa. We thought that would be the best way to do t. We all got something out of it and it got us out of the house. Right now, that is a big deal.

We saw a play at church yesterday morning. Christmas According to Scrooge. It was pretty well done, though there were the usual problems. Overall though it was a good message and made the sermon so much easier to listen too. I think, overall, we are still feeling this church out; however, it’s got some nice amenities like children’s church and a nursery for the little people. If we keep going, I am going to have to volunteer in the nursery to help with the little ones since I have two in there. I think I can deal with that though. I don’t mind holding babies, or playing with little people. I am just too busy or tired most of the time to enjoy it.

I now have a pretty good idea of what I need to do to pass my PT test. I need to add another 10 crunches, 5 pushups, and take 2 ½ minutes off of my run time. After the first of the year, I will be getting up two mornings a week to get on the treadmill and work on the run part of it. I also have PT 3 days a week with the squadron, so that should help also. The situps, I think I can work those in before bed or before I take a shower in the morning. It’s not going to be fun, but it’s necessary to get where I need to be. It would be stupid of me to screw my career up because I didn’t do something relatively simple. Granted with all of the other things going on its not going to be easy, but I will just have to make sure I do it.

We went to Alexis’ band concert recently. She really hates the uniforms. It would be funny if I thought they weren’t too bad, but, well, they are awful. It would be alright if it at least fitted her, but it doesn’t, and that just makes it worse. She’s saying that next year she would like to be in jazz band, which I think would be great. She also wants to be on the newspaper staff, so we will see how that goes. I think it would be neat for her, but I want to know what the outside commitment will be. Everything here requires a LOT of time on our part, and we just don’t have that much.

I think we are doing alright overall. I think the Christmas holiday will give us a chance to unwind a bit and enjoy some family time (I hope).