Anne Boleyn....we're ready for your close-up

Dear Julie,

I was in a store last night and I happened past those Willow Tree figurines. I prolly wouldn't give them much of a glance any other time, but since the (still) MIA Baby Jesus is a Willow Tree product, the display caught my eye. I fell out laughing when I saw this figurine. Perhaps this particular figurine will be a hot-seller amongst the Henry VIII afficianados out there. (Just as an aside...I think having my head chopped off by a dull axe would be way down on my Preferred Modes of Death list...)

I checked the Willow Tree website, by the way. It doesn't appear that you can buy a replacement Jesus. You can, however, buy walls for your nativity set.

What's the meaning of Christmas, Charlie Brown???

So thankful I have a camera phone,
Karen

Here's A Switch

Dear Karen-

So normally, we don't have a lotta love for the post office, right? Well today I just discovered the joy of buying stamps online! Who knew? I knew you could do your own postage labels if you had the proper scale and all, but just plain old stamps? Heck yes, I'll pay shipping for stamps! If it saves me from having to actually take my children into the post office...absolutely.

I am going to attempt to do some Christmas cards this weekend, so I figure by the time I get them finished, the stamps should be here. I quite liked the traditional Madonna and Child stamps, but then I saw these and knew it was fate:

You may have something with your chocolate/smoke break concept, though I'm not sure it would be quite as effective for someone like me, who is at home all day. Could be worth a try, though.

And just fyi, don't go to Target on Fridays during the month of December. I'm sure it's worse on weekends, but probably not by much.

When Christmas Explodes....and....Chocolates & Cigarettes

Dear Julie,

Remember how I was lamenting about my lack of Christmas cheer earlier in the week? I was assaulted by it this morning when I walked into our office on the Chicago campus. Someone apparently hijacked the floor and turned it into some kind of Christmas extravaganza. There are Christmasy things everywhere you look. And by Christmasy things, of course I mean crap. The only thing missing is the partridge and the pear tree (okay, two things). Here's the ironic bit: we have several Jewish employees and not a single dreidel or menorah in sight. I think we should all be representin' on this one.

I had a scathingly brilliant idea today. I was walking from my hotel to the office and I passed a woman who was shivering in the cold as she smoked a cigarette. So here's a thought for you: what if we had to go outside to eat chocolate??? We could eat as much and as often as we wanted, but we would have to go outside (regardless of the weather) and stand there while we consumed our chocolately vice. In the summer, we would stand there for all the world to see. And in the winter, we would stand there struggling to unwrap the foil-covered Kisses with our shaking, gloved fingers. Do you think this would change our chocolate consumption???

I'll leave you with that thought.

Love,
Karen

December?!

Dear Julie --

I can't believe we haven't written to each other since September. That's crazy! So tonight, as I stall longer trying to avoid putting up the Christmas tree alone, I thought it was time to get back into the habit.

I'm feeling kinda like Charlie Brown with this whole Christmas thing. I need an infusion of Christmas cheer. Barring any actual Christmas cheer, I would be willing to settle for an infusion of Mom's Christmas fudge. It certainly doesn't help matters that the Baby Jesus is permanently MIA from the nativity set. That just doesn't bode well, does it?

I've been on a mad cleaning tear this weekend. It feels really good to look around & not see cobwebs so thick they look like cotton balls. How on earth did it get so out of control? Oh yeah....all that traveling this year. But I've got enough shampoo samples that I could wash the hair of every child in Calcutta. (On second thought...maybe the adults -- none of the samples are tear-free.)

I've decided that perhaps I need a Dirt Devil. There's really not much joy in that kind of purchase. I'd much rather buy shoes or a handbag...

I hope you've had a good weekend. Tell the Sidekicks that Auntie Karen said hi.

Blog on, Garth.

Love,
Karen

PS: Here is an updated picture.