Well I'm ready to go to work and I just looked at the forecast. It's 1 degree out now. The low for the night is -7 with windchills to -19. So I'm thinking I'm gonna freeze my butt off out there on break at 3:00 in the Morning. We smokers will be froze solid and they'll have to send people out to drag our frozen bodies back into the building to thaw. My little nose hairs will freeze which in turn will cause my eyes to water which will then freeze in little rivers to my cheeks. My hands will feel like lead. My toes will go numb.

Then I had and idea. A really great idea. Food! I'm gonna start packing it in and packing on the pounds! I'll insulate myself from the inside out! Oh this is great. It's the perfect time of year to start working on it. All those Christmas goodies just waiting to be devoured! I'll drop by the neighbors for a few pieces of fudge, a cookie or two. My sisters bake they'll love to have me come and sample some of their treats! I have 4 sisters! This is going to work out so good! People at work always bring in trays and trays of candies and cookies. I'll help them get rid of it. They don't want to haul it all back home anyways. The grocery stores always have free samples. I will hit them all !! I'm gonna end up like that very overweight woman on top of her man in the picture Topaz posted!! I have a goal !! I'll be warm ! Oh this is gonna be so great. I wonder what my husband will think? Oh who cares?! I'm gonna stay warm. He loves me for who I am right? Not what I look like. Yeah, thats right!! God I'm a genius!! I've got that bag of Dove chocolates in the cupboard right now. I gotta go get this plan in motion! Wish me luck!!

Annie leaned over and kissed her daughter goodnight. She breathed in deeply the sweet smell of her hair as she did so, and love overwhelmed her again. " Sleep tight Baby" she told her. She walked to the door and flipped the light off. "How many more goodnight kisses Mommy?" Claire asked sitting up in bed. "Three Claire, Three more goodnight kisses and then Santa Claus will come" Annie answered. "Now snuggle back down and go to sleep" "O.k. Mom, I love you" " I love you too Claire Bear" Annie blew her a kiss and pulled the door half way closed. Annie walked down the hall and into their small living room. She turned the lamp on by the couch and sat down. She pulled her wallet it out of her purse and opened it.
Inside the wallet she had thirty four dollars, her checkbook which she had figured earlier in the evening as Claire ate her supper, held two hundred and ninety five dollars and eleven cents. She thought to herself "Well the rent is paid until January 15th and I'll have enough saved back by then to pay that when it comes around again. But I still have to pay the utilities and the phone bill yet". The utility bill was ninety five dollars and the phone bill was forty five. God she didn't even have long distance. That left her around one hundred and fifty five dollars. She had to pay something on the doctors bill since she'd already missed last month. Twenty dollars. They wouldn't like it but it was all she could pay right now. She owed Grammy Helen forty five dollars for watching Claire before and after her preschool class.That took her checking account down to ninety dollars.
"Oh shoot" Annie thought "I forgot to pay the water bill!" Thirty two dollars and ten more for garbage pick up. Forty eight dollars left. Dang it she hadn't bought anything for her and Claire to have for Christmas dinner yet either. She had wanted to have cornish hens.Annie would buy them on special occasions, like when Claire started preschool and didn't cry when Annie left her there the first day. Claire loved them, "A little chicken all for me!". She always said. I guess it will have to be hotdogs and maccaroni and cheese Annie thought. She knew Claire wouldn't mind. It was her favorite meal. She had baked a few dozen cookies last month and froze them so they could have those for desert. I can get a few groceries with the forty eight dollars.
Annie looked around her small apartment. She had tried to make it as cheerful as possible. Grammy Helen had given them an old artificial tree saying it was to much work for her to put up anymore. Claire loved it and together they had worked for hours cutting and pasting together ornaments for it. She had bought a cheap set of lights at the dollars store and it really did look pretty good.
Grammy Helen and Claire made strips of red and green construction paper and glued them together for garland which Annie had hung around the faded curtains over the window. They had cut pictures of Santa Claus and Christmas trees from old magazines she had retrieved from the trash cans at the offices she cleaned. She had taped them to the fridge and windows and the front of the oven. She had bought some votive candles from the dollar store too and they burned brightly in their holders. It really did look nice she thought.
Annie was glad she had already bought Claire's presents. she mentally went through the list again. A plastic tea set, a baby doll that wet when you gave it water in it's plastic bottle. Annie had sewn diapers and clothes for it nights after Claire had been tucked into bed. She'd found a wooden doll cradle at the Goodwill store a couple of weeks ago and once painted it looked new again. She'd bought a few chocolate treats for Claire's stocking and a small box of crayons and a new coloring book. It wasn't much but she knew Claire would be happy.
God how did she get so lucky to have such a great kid like Claire? She was happy and healthy and what more could she ask for? They had a home and food,Grammy Helen,heat in the winter and she'd had enough money left to pay the bills. She was truly blessed. She turned the lamp off and blew the candles out and headed down the hall to her own room. She put her nightgown on and knelt beside her bed. "God " she started "Thank you for all the blessing You've brought into my life.......................

Whew!!! What a weekend. Tea with prince William. Yes ladies he's just as good looking in person. Gambling in Monte Carlo, Shopping in Paris, Skipped up to Nova Scotia to see the total eclipse of the sun.

Seriously, Sorry if any of you were worried. Just a busy weekend. Saturday I went shopping with my daughter and hubby. Ran all over town looking for a recumbent exercise bike for the mother-in-law. And other gifts. It was snowing heavy and the traffic was awful.
We got home in time to get ready for church, then met Miranda and Chris for dinner after that. I was so tired when we got home that I watched a movie and went to bed. We got up Sunday and went to visit at my sisters home to see my niece and her husband who were up from Florida.
Ended up getting a migraine last night and went to bed. Slept a lot today trying to get rid of the last of the headache. Thank God it's gone.

Now I think I have missed a lot. There are lots of little faces looking at me under my message box. Pioneer must have been busy to. Anything else new? I hope you all have been well. Everyone o.k? I missed you guys so much!

Thanks D. You make a difference in my life. I love you for being you and excepting me just as I am, flaws and all. My thanks to you Pup, and Ice. So many good friends here, it makes me feel so grateful to have found this place. And to have met you all. Pie

Good Morning Bloggers!!!
Happy Friday! It's a good day to be alive. This is the first day of the rest of your life. It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood. Smile God loves you. Don't worry be happy. Have sunshiny day.............. Don't mind me I got my year end bonus last night. Kind of put me in a good mood.