We have candy and a tree!

8:00am brought about two little girls who were eager to play. We did so the best we could while trying to be quite enough for a sleeping daddy. He strolled out around 9:00 with a happy little Madeline squeeling "daddy, daddy, daddy". Kids always bring a smile to any morning.

Daddy was ready to start the day, so we threw on some clothes and were out the door. We had been alerted to a sale on pre-cut Christmas trees at Bachmans. Yes, the practice of buying a precut tree is against all that I hold dear about Christmas. Ever since I was very young, I have cut a Christmas tree (except for a few years in an apartment when we could not have a real tree). And, God forbid that I EVER, EVER have a fake tree. However, with schedules as they are this month, we would not get to go and cut our own until about the 20th. That would be no good. And this was a bit more economical, all things considered.

So off to choose our tree. They actually had them hanging from the ceiling so they at least LOOKED like they could have been there to be cut. We found a nice one and were out the door $38 poorer, but all the more in a holiday sort of mood. The girls had fun running through the faiser forest and so did we.

Ate some lunch and put a couple of reluctant girls down for an early nap. We had to get to candy making on time!

The girls woke up and we wisked them off to Uncle Brad and Aunt Beths house. Everyone from my dads side was there. This is a tradition that I just love - an awesome way to officially kick off the season. We dipped, covered and rolled a miriad of things. Everything from caramel to potato chips, from flavored center peices to peanuts. We have it all. Emma and Madeline were in hog heaven. They had all of their cousins to play with. Ranging in age from 7 1/2 to just under 1. Lots of little ones. What a great time!

When we got home, Jay got a wild hair up his ass and decided that we needed some christmas lights on our fence. Soooo, at 9:30 at night he was putting nails into the fence and hanging lights. I love how much he gets into the holidays. That has always been such a big part of me, so glad that it is also a big part of him. Love my guy!

I have been feeling really great! A very small amount of tingling in my fingers, but really not much anywhere else. If there was a way to will it out of my body, I am pretty sure that I did that. This disease picked the wrong chick to "F" with! Dr. Parry brought to light so many more aspects about this shit then most others had. No way is this the end of anything. As "they" say, there is a reason for everything. I am sure that I will find it.

A really nice day, a really nice family, a really nice life!