...And a Partridge in a Pear Tree

It's early Monday morning, but I can already tell you that my first call of the day will be to the doctor.  My girl has been "working on" a cough since Thanksgiving Eve, and it seems to have become more than just a little tickle. Since nothing she's taken seems to have helped, we'll see what the doc has to say.

Luckily, our kids still have today off -- so perhaps we can get something in her system today that will kick this cough to the curb!

This has been an extreme fall for us.  We are not usually so sick.  I feel like the nurse must roll her eyes when she hears my voice on the phone.  But alas, we've come away with legitimate issues each and every time, so...

I thought I'd be far along on my Christmas decorating by now, but rather than decorate this weekend, we got some Christmas shopping done.  Nothing major, but it's a start.

There was other stuff going on too, like... my hubby repairing the dryer!  Hurray!  I am back on my usual laundry track!  There's nothing to throw a monkey-wrench into your week like not getting laundry done.  My hubby was fortunate enough to find a new motor on e-bay that saved us a lot of cash.  It's now installed, and I'm back in business!  I am blessed to have a handy hubby!

So, while I had hoped to finally get some decorating done today, I'm thinking that (realistically) it won't be until Wednesday.

This pretty dishtowel is one of my favorite things to put out each year, but I'll tell you a little secret.  It's only been used as a decorative flash of color, and NEVER for drying dishes.  Why?  It was a gift from a dear friend who passed away several years back, so I really treasure it... and, if I would actually USE it, I'd have to WASH it -- and I'm worried about that beautiful red fading, or worse yet, running/bleeding.

Do you have anything like that... that you baby along through the years?  It seems my Christmas decorations fall into two categories: ones with deep memories, or ones that were grabbed "on the fly" and hold no real meaning, other than to fill a particular niche at a particular time.

Last year, I tried to pair down my Christmas decorations, and as I sorted things to throw away or donate, I wondered if some day the kids would say, "What ever happened to that ornament...?"  But, they store their own collections of ornaments separately, and so I feel free to get rid of what I feel is excess.

What about you?  Have you started decorating?  -- or is today the day?