Hate to admit it...

I love my new computer & wireless connection. It's fun to sit @ the kitchen table, or wherever I want, for that matter...instead of being tucked away in my bedroom. And I've always wanted a laptop. We got this one from Phil's brother & sister-in-law in CT. Ellen has an updated one & wasn't using this one any more. Greg offered it at Thanksgiving. Phil said he didn't want to seem too desperate. I said they offered & they wouldn't have offered if they didn't want to give it away...and I'm not above taking hand-me-downs!

Phil got my dad a wireless connection for "his" Christmas gift. It's really a gift for us, because it stays here at our house, but Dad appreciated being able to do his work at the kitchen table/counter while he was here. My Christmas gift from my very practical husband was a removable hard drive. It will not go down in the history books, because I would like to forget about it. But he redeemed himself (sort of) by getting a wireless card for this computer. Now for a new battery...maybe for Valentine's Day.

I'm all about celebrating life. I love to give gifts...and receive them. Ruthie made a "pregnancy survival kit" for me when I was pregnant with Grace & I fell in love with the concept - coming up with little, creative, cheap things & putting them all together in a way that says, "I care about you." Shari is going back to school & I had fun making a "college survival kit" for her. It's not complicated: Gardetto's for study food, Carmel Corn for stress food, Trident for making new friends, sparkly pens for feeling fun & young, erasers for when you make mistakes, mechanical pens because who really has time to sharpen anyway, and notepads to keep lists & life organized! Actual cost: $10; What it does for our friendship: priceless.

I married a pratical man. I knew that going into our marriage. It's one of the things I love about him. He shows me that he cares by playing with our kids so I can have peace in the kitchen while I make supper. He expresses his love by fixing things. He does a better job of picking up our house than I do! He stays focused & gets it done in 15 minutes. I get distracted & it takes me forever; multi-tasking has its down side. He cleans out the trash in my van...over & over again.

But he doesn't buy gifts...very often. Once in a while, he takes me by complete surprise. Maybe that's his game plan - keep her expectations low, so that when I do something, she's amazed. And I am...I hate to admit it, but I'm glad I married a practical man.