Just so mad that I'm trying not to cry

First, we finally have received mail. And, our trash and recycle has been picked up. But, the Christmas presents that I ordered online still have not arrived (except for those shipped through the post office). I am just so angry that the shipping carrier, Fedex, can so cavalierly tell me that they have no idea when the item that I paid two-day shipping for will arrive. NO IDEA!!!! Oh, and they get to keep my money which I wouldn't mind if they had made the slightest effort to deliver to me today.  Heck, they could have tried on Saturday when the roads were plowed.

Then, they give me another number to call but not tell me that the office at that number closed 2 hours ago. I just hate that "you don't matter" feeling of helplessness that I have right now. Nothing that I can do but call during their limited hours and hope that I can convince someone that this is wrong. And, I can't help thinking that their business customers took priority whether they paid for it or not.

Two packages from UPS are supposedly in transit, but I doubt we will see those either tonight. Brian is expecting some packages as well.

Yeah, I know. Hormones aren't helping either. I just wanted to yell on the phone and say nasty things, but I know that does not get anything done and the satisfaction is short lived.

I guess it just feels like those packages are never going to arrive, that they were lost somehow. After all, you don't know that they weren't lost until they show up, right?

Christmas cards

Yes, we're sending them out this year. At least, that's the plan. We picked up the photo cards from Costco on the 23rd and would have picked them up sooner if I could have driven to Costco. Now, I have them in the envelopes. I still need to address them. Not to mention finish the annual Christmas letter, print, copy, and stuff. Hopefully, they will be sent out by the end of the year. Won't it be fun to receive a late Christmas card? Hope you think so.

Snowboarding in Redmond

---This post started yesterday, but I had issues loading the vid. The snow has finally stopped.---

Amazingly it is still snowing. Some of yesterday's snow melted, but Mother Nature has decided that we need more. This morning a light slushy rain started, but now it's dumping again. I wonder when I will next receive a newspaper, mail, or Christmas packages. Sigh.

Below is the video that I took of Brian snowboarding down our street on Christmas day. Please excuse the shaky picture. It's not an earthquake just my own ineptitude.

A Merry White Christmas

It's even been in the national news. The Pacific Northwest has been hit with the biggest snowstorm in almost 20 years. For over a week, we have enjoyed and battled the snow. Yesterday, we awoke to fresh snow that continued to dump throughout the day. This morning we awoke to it snowing again, and we have now lost count of how much we have had in two days, definitely more than 18 inches. So much snow that Brian was snowboarding down our street.

Because of all of the snow, we haven't had any of our scheduled UPS or Fedex deliveries for over a week and no USPS (basic mail) deliveries since Saturday. We will be having another Christmas when the rest of our gifts arrive.

On Tuesday, we ventured out as a family to do some Christmas shopping and go to our latest pre-natal appointment. The doc loved meeting the kids and was happy about Finn's progress.He's an active boy. She also gave me the sugar drink to test for gestational diabetes. I'll do the actaul test on the 5th when we have our next perinatalogist appointment.

Shopping that day was hard.  This was Meg's first chance to do her Christmas shopping, and because of the appointment, we didn't have a lot of time. Our first stop was lunch, and we went to Ruby's Diner, one of Meg's favorite places. The wait was long but the food was good. After that, she really wanted to go to the T-Mobile store. Why? (This is the sweet part.) She wanted to use all of her savings to buy me the new G1 Android phone from Google. I did not know this, of course. We had to do some fancy footwork to convince her not to spend $180 on me although it warmed my heart that she really wanted to.

After the appointment, we drove out to Issaquah for Target and Costco since Meg was going to buy Sean's (her best friend) Christmas present and we had decided on an Xbox 360 for our family. After Target, we walked to Justice, a clothing store for girls, and that's when Meg lost it. We wouldn't buy her a Webkinz seahorse, and all that she saw was injustice. And, it didn't help that she had had little to no protein all day. It was a struggle to love her, stay strong, and fight for her instead of with her. She recovered by the next day but was disappointed that she never finished her shopping. Because of late deliveries and extended Christmas, she is ok with finishing it when we can leave the house again. During times like that, I wonder how we will deal with a new babe.

Speaking of how to deal with a new baby, one this has been apparent to me these last few weeks. God's timing in adding an addition to our family is perfect. Both kids are independent and much more confident. A year ago, Jake would have struggled more with Mommy being occupied with a little one, and Meg would have felt like she lost her status in the family. Now Jakey loves to explore on his own and play on the computer without help. Meg isn't intimidated by my attention being averted and is looking forward to helping out. See, perfect!

In case you were wondering, the kids loved Christmas morning. Jake was entranced by the keyboard that we bought for him. It plays 100 songs and the keys light up to teach you how to play them. Meg is playing Xbox Lego Indiana Jones with Brian and loved her assortment of toys and clothes. This year Brian and were able to shop for all of the kids' presents together which was really special.

The snow continues to fall, and I tear up thinking about the truth and sacrifice behind today. For us, God sent his son, not as a fully grown and mighty warrior, but as a helpless infant. Jesus experienced all that we have experienced for us, for our hearts. The God of the universe sacrificed so much because he loves us, not to prove his goodness or worth (they don't need to be proved), but to prove our worth. Not that we are good, but that we are loved. You are loved.

Enjoy your Christmas! Feel his love for you.

A Christmas devotion

Most of the time, it's hard to believe how much God truly loves us. His love and commitment to us seem only an example of His greatness instead of an example of His deep love for us. And, again, we miss what He has for us, for each of us.

John Eldredge says it best: A Christmas Devotion.

A real snow day

Yesterday schools were closed in anticipation of a big snow, and we did have a bit. By 9:30, the dusting that we had was completely gone. Today we woke up to schools closed and an inch of snow with more coming down. By 9:30, we were up to 2 inches and snow still coming down.

Ok, Western Washingtonians sound like wusses. We close school with just a few inches of snow. Out here in the Pacific Northwest, it's not the snow that slows us down but the steep hills covered in snow and ice. That and the limited number of plow trucks and sanders. Buses don't like our hills on sunny and dry days let alone icy and snowy days.

Jakey was very excited about the snow and insisted on getting dressed and going outside to play. Because of his idiosyncracies, he will not wear gloves or a hat so our time was short but fun.

It's almost 10 now, and the snow is slowing. All of the cedars are laced with snow. Peace and calm permeate the air.

Well, since it took a little while to load the images, conditions have changed once again. The snow is coming down harder and the local kids are using our steep street as a sledding hill. Meg will probably join them soon which means that I have to find her snow gear and be prepared to go outside myself.

First snow

This weekend we received our first snow of the year. Since we are only at 500 feet and not quite at the foothills, we received a bit less than an inch, enough to cover everything. Today was lovely, though, sunny and cold with a thin layer of snow.

And, it's very cold ... for the Northwest ... in the 20's. It may be this cold all week which "they" predict will break 20-year-old records. The roads are icy, and since the kids' schools are closer to the foothills, we have to stay posted to see if their will be a school delay or alternate meeting place. Usually the buses pick up the kidlings at our driveway, but the drivers hate going up or down our hill in good weather let alone icy weather. We'll know by tomorrow.