Tale of a Red-Nosed, Well-But-Slightly-Overdressed Reindeer

Last Christmas, Nana's dear friend Miss June gave Chaos a Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer toy.  You squeeze the ear on the toy and it sings "Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer."  Not really, but I wish.  Just kidding Mom and Nana.  You, too, Mommom T.  Really, just kidding.  Stop returning my Christmas presents!
Me, being the Scrooge that you all love and tolerate, tends to gleefully pack up any and all Christmas crap paraphernalia the moment I can pry it out of Jason and the kids hands, congratulate myself on surviving the holidays and swear that I'm going to Vegas next year.  Because of my need to pack up everything even remotely Christmas-related, Bree had forgotten about Rudolph and was tearfully reunited with this wonderous toy recently.  Hand to God, on my honor, not making that up.  It's a shame soap operas are dying out because my Bree can over-act like nobody's business.

Unfortunately for Rudolph, the reunion involved a make-over and a new name.  Rufus.  Seriously.  Bree has taken to calling the poor toy Rufus and no one is going to make her believe otherwise.  And Bree really likes to accessorize poor Rufus.  I have taken to calling him/her "Rufus, the-cross-dressing, perhaps-a-transvestite, reindeer." 

Jason has a more "Toy Story"-esque theory.  He thinks that as soon as Bree falls asleep, Rufus disrobes, heads downstairs for a Guinness, lights up a cigar and spends the rest of the night cursing about Bree to all of the other toys in a gruff, husky, three-pack-a-day habit-y sort of voice.  And trust me, according to Jason, he/she is NOT saying very pleasant things about Bree.  And you all thought that Jason was the "good" parent.

xoxo
Deb

Annual October Odyssey

October is a strange month for me.  It marks the beginning of my favorite season of the year autumn.  I realize that the autumnal equinox falls at the end of September, but that month always seems like summer’s last gasp to me. Not truly autumn yet.  No, October is autumn.

October marks the timeframe of a few of my most enduring blessings; the births of my beautiful Bree and my Michael, and the years-worth of candy I send my kids out to beg for each Halloween.  But October also brings some of my deepest sorrows.  I miss you, Dad.  Every day.  Every moment.  And you, too, Aunt Jules.  My world seems a little… less… with you both gone.

I suspect it’s how much I miss them that causes me to fill each October to the brim.  Unfortunately, Jason, the kids and the rest of you tend to get sucked in and dragged along on the mad dash I make out of each and every one of the thirty-one days.

This October brought me and mine no less than FOUR birthday parties for Bree (thank you to all who attended the various festivities), a trip on the Wilmington & Western Railroad, my goofy entry into the world of competitive baking (my chocolate peanut-butter balls rock!  ‘Nuff said,) a couple of Halloween parties, a Halloween parade, a Walk-a-thon and probably a dozen more things that I’ve forgotten.  And my second attempt at putting a slideshow on this blog.  Only took me two weeks.  And I "lost" the captions for the photos in the slideshow.  Which is a shame.  'Cuz the captions are funny.  At least to me.  And really, that's what matters.




xoxo
Deb