My Christmas Elf and Further Adventures of the Intrepid Ms. G.

Christmas Eve Day was very long for me. I left my house at 7:30 am and did not return until well after 10:30 pm, and by that time had driven well over 180 miles after working half the day. Little did I know that Ms G had received a visit from a very sweet elf, who planted handcarved wooden kitties all around my house for me to discover with delight upon my return home! The first one greeted me on the dining table.
The second in my bathroom
The third was perched on my Bose radio
A fourth on the shelf in the kitchen
and so on......that sweet little elf is the man I love!! He knows how much I love little surprises and he had such fun creating this fun for me.
The next morning, I was up very early to start the dinner, and each time I looked at those little kitties, I smiled and LM's desired effect was working.

Meanwhile, Ms G was resting up in her favorite spot on the bed (the electric blanket was still set on low).
Soon her boyfriend would arrive and have some last minute wrapping to do, which of course would involve paper, ribbons, and TAPE....her most favorite thing. Not sure if I have mentioned before, but she has a penchant for tape of any kind - anything crinkly with an adhesive - she will work for hours trying to open the drawer where I keep my roll of tape. Anyway, LM had a lot of help wrapping his gifts, and then we had to shoo her away as the help was way TOO involved!!

So, she adjourned to the living room to check out the table and I had to repeatedly shoo her off the table, as she was attempting to abscond with the napkin holders. She would wait until I was watching from the kitchen, hands in water or cooking, then make her move. This went on for quite awhile but ended when the first guests arrived. She was a bit thrown off by the number of people who invaded HER space and was not seen all day. I did catch LM laying on the floor beside the spot where she was hiding under the bed....he had to give her a little TLC. He loves that girl.

Before the first guests arrived we did present a gift bag which had arrived from Jason and Alison for Ms. G. She put on her best smug little look and said "I am not stooping to your level and rifle through that bag".....

That idea didn't last long, as she no doubt got a whiff of the catnip which was buried in the tissue. There was also a very cute stuffed squirrel with a pouch which opens to contain the catnip. That squirrel has been the hit of the season for her, and this morning at 5 am she galloped across my sleeping body to bring me said squirrel. Thanks, J & A! Even this hilarious Christmas card from LM had kitties on it, and contained a very beautiful message of love to me. There are some happy kitties here today!!.....just more silly cat stuff from the world of Ms G.

In other news.....Dad is doing well today, after sleeping through Christmas Day and having us a bit worried.....same old, same old in that department. Forgive my snideness here. He is just amazing.

On Christmas Day my toaster oven and my crockpot gave out, fortunately, not before they had done their job for me one more time. They have served me well and are important tools in my very small, but functional kitchen. Today I made my way to Hyannis to look for replacements and hit it just right at Macy's. Considering that there was nary a spot to park at the dreaded mall, I was very lucky to be in and out of the store in 15 minutes with a kind young man in tow who brought the large boxes out for me! Great service. The new things are home and in their respective places. I got a really nice Kitchen Aid Toaster/Convection oven which is quite attractive and working well already. Not the best picture, but my kitchen is so small that I cannot back up far enough to get a good shot!!After that little jaunt, I visited the ailing LM....he came down with a nasty cold just at the end of Christmas Day....and then we made a short trip to see Bob. Two more days, and counting, until Bob is back home. Kind of sad not to be with LM all weekend, but it is OK. It is giving me some extra rest which I really need and I may take myself to the movies tomorrow afternoon to see "Milk." I love Sean Penn and remember the story of Harvey Milk well. It will be 60 here tomorrow, I am also planning a walk.

All in all it was a nice Christmas. As always, though, I am left with the feeling that I just did not do as much as I would like, did not see everyone I wanted to, and guilt reigns. Hate that part of the holidays. I know it is self-imposed, nonetheless, the feelings lurk. I will be happy to meet Januray 1. There were opportunities to do different things with the usual people which was nice....dinner out with Sam and Trish, and my sweet visit with J & A on Christmas Eve. Lovely memories!
EEEEK......I got up a second ago and stepped on the squirrel....and Ms G is running around with her fur all blown up and acting like a wild critter. The barometer is falling, I think!! Life is never dull!