What a wonderful Christmas we had! 

Our church service on Christmas Eve was so nice... it was called Candles, Carols, and Communion.  I love singing Christmas carols at church, and the kids looked forward to lighting our candles and singing Silent Night at the end.  Both of the kids took communion for the first time.  The pastor invited each family to go up individually and take communion, so we went up with the kids and I decided that Christmas Eve was a good time for them to take part for the first time.  I explained everything to them as we ate the bread and drank the grape juice.  They will still go to the children's program on Sundays, so they probably won't take it again for a while.  Either way, it was something special.

We were so abundantly blessed this Christmas!  We were able to sponsor some children this year, which is always fun for us and important for them.  We received so many wonderful gifts!  The kids were thrilled on Christmas morning, as we knew they would be.  At R's insistence, we baked chocolate cupcakes for Jesus's birthday and sang Happy Birthday to Him.  I actually did not get any pictures of that, though!

Here are a few shots from Christmas morning:

Santa came!

Toes wiggling in anticipation:

Smiles:

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas!

I decided to apply for a position at Examiner.com, and got it, so I am the official Hartford Homeschool Examiner.  :)   Remember that I'm writing directly to homeschoolers, so some of the articles may be in a slightly less diplomatic style than you're used to reading from me.  You are more than welcome to comment, and even to argue back if you want to!  That's part of the fun of Examiner.com, as far as I can see. 

If you are a self-proclaimed expert in something--anything, really--, and you might like to write for Examiner.com, go ahead and apply!  I would get $50 if you use my name as a reference in your application and you get hired.  If you don't want me to get $50, then apply anyway, and don't put anyone's name down.  If you would like to apply and use me as a reference, but don't know my name, then email me.  If you would like to apply and use my name as a reference, you should watch this video to be sure I get the credit for your referral.  :)

Okay, self-promotion over.  Enjoy what's left of the week!

All right.  I generally don't go off on a tirade about bad customer service, and I'm always sweet as pie to people who work in service-oriented positions, as I realize they have a big job to do and a lot of nutty people to appease.  With that said, I simply can not let the day go by without sharing my experience at the local Walmart. 

Last week, I purchased a Blu Ray DVD player for John.  They had just sold the last one at our local Walmart, so after going there and seeing that there were none left, I drove about 20 minutes to another Walmart and purchased the DVD player.  I brought it home (all factory sealed), wrapped it, and put it under the tree. 

This week, it turned out that another brand of Blu Ray was on sale, for $50 less than I had paid!  There were piles of them at the entrance to our local Walmart, so I knew they were in stock.  I took the Christmas wrapping paper off of the one that I'd purchased and brought it, along with my receipt, to our Walmart.  Their policy is that they will accept returns from other Walmarts, as long as they carry the item, and as long as you have your receipt dated within 90 days.  I confirmed this with the corporate headquarters.

I arrived at the customer service desk with my still-factory-sealed package, receipt in hand.  The woman at the desk looked at my receipt and said "you did not buy this at our store?"  I affirmed that she was correct.  She then opened the package, and took out the DVD player, unwrapping it from its seal.  She also unwrapped the sealed instruction packet, remote control, and various wires.  She pulled everything out and laid it on the desk.  It was at this time that she discovered that the back of the remote control was missing.  She called over a floor manager.

The floor manager asked me where the back of the remote was.  I told her that I had not even opened the box, and that everything was factory-sealed.  Apparently the company had neglected to include the battery cover in the package.  After hemming and hawing, she said that she would be unable to process my return.  Surprised, I asked her why not.  She said that since I did not buy it at this particular store, I would have to drive to the next city to return it.  When I questioned whether they would even take back the DVD player now that the packaging was mutilated, she said, "well, it would help if you could find that battery cover."

I went outside and immediately called Walmart headquarters from the parking lot.  The woman there was very nice, and explained the previously mentioned return policy to me.  When I stated that this particular Walmart did in fact carry the item and that I did in fact have a receipt, she advised that I go back and talk to the general manager.  I did so.  The GM told me that there was nothing he could do.

Irate, I drove the 20 minutes to the next town and returned the DVD player.  I explained why it was all torn apart, and they accepted my return.

When I got home, I fired off an informative email to the corporate office, expressing my disappointment with the store managers at this particular Walmart.  I also called the headquarters back to update my complaint, and the agent assured me that Walmart had broken the returns policy.

The assistant manager at our Walmart called me a few minutes ago.  He stated that the corporate office was incorrect about the policy, and that their policy is that if an item is missing a part (even though it was in its factory seal still), they were to insist that the customer return to the place where it was purchased.  I asked him what would happen if it were purchased in another state, and he coughed and had no answer for me.

I am disgusted with the customer service that I did not receive at our local Walmart.  While there is nothing they can do now (since I've already returned the item and purchased the on-sale DVD player), they have lost a customer. 

You know, I should have done this earlier in the season, but it just occurred to me, so I'll do it now:  In the right-hand column (right over there -------->), you will see some Amazon.com ads.  If you click those, and then proceed to order anything from Amazon.com, I receive an affiliate credit for a percentage of your purchase (somewhere between 4 and 6%).  I usually place links at the end of articles that I write that mention specific books, magazines, etc... but I've had a link on this blog for a while too.  So, if you are going to order from Amazon.com anyway, and you think of it, feel free to click on the ads (or simply click here for the Amazon.com homepage)!

Shameless plug over, carry on... I hope you're enjoying your weekend.  We have a busy weekend going on over here, and we're all having a good time.  :)

Our "mostly rain event" turned out to be the first real snow of the season!  Before the sun even came up, J was outside snapping pictures:

John is off from work today and I'm sure we won't make it to our regular playgroup.  Hooray for snow days!  (Now, no more until Christmas!)

We had a nice weekend, cutting down our Christmas tree and putting it up in the house.  We just relaxed today, for the most part.  We were supposed to have the first snowfall of the season last night, but it ended up only raining.  I saw a few cars out that had some snow on the roof.  Hopefully the snow holds off until Christmas Eve (after we get home from church, though), and melts the day after Christmas.  Ha ha!

My nose is feeling much better.  It's only tender on the more affected side if I push on it, and I'm not taking any more Advil, which is good.  I intensely dislike taking medication, but I have never been so eager to take antibiotics, Advil, probiotics, and vitamin C! 

We have a very busy week ahead.  We have two library programs, Bible study, playgroup, a doctor's appointment, a playdate here at our house, two Christmas parties, and a Hanukkah party!  I'm not complaining, though... soon enough, I'm sure we'll be inside a lot due to the weather!

Today I found out that the exchange student organization that we hosted with over the summer is bringing students to Connecticut again in April!  I called the coordinator and signed up to host a student named Kevin who is 16 years old.  This will be our first time hosting a boy, and J is thrilled.  I made sure to choose someone who had a younger sibling, to hopefully sway the odds that he likes kids.  ;)

I think that's about it for now! 

it was raining when we cut you....  (sing along!)

O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree,

Had to move the couch to fit you....

We cut some branches off your top

So that  you could fully stand up

O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree

We're ready now for Santa...

The kids helped me this afternoon, and we got the bookcase done.  Yay! 

Have a good weekend!  We'll be decorating for Christmas, and I'll be trying to continue to rest so my poor nose can heal.  :)

I know you've all been on the edge of your seats, waiting to see if I conquered the blue bookcase.  I have some of the books off, but the job is far from done. 

Last Sunday, I started having a weird, tingly feeling in my nose.  I figured it was a cold.  By Monday, it was sore, and by Tuesday, one whole side of my nose was really painful.  By the time I went to the doctor on Wednesday, I could barely touch my nose at all.  The nurse practitioner I saw said that she thought it was the start of cellulitis in my nostrils!  I'm on an antibiotic (and a probiotic to ward off side effects) now, and all but the one area where the whole thing started feels better.  That one spot still really hurts, so I hope that the antibiotic will take care of that within the next day or two. 

So anyway, between that and our regularly scheduled activities, plus whatever extra running around we've had to do, my Make Your Home a Haven week got cut short!  We are going to cut down our Christmas tree tomorrow or Sunday, though (weather permitting!),  so it will get done this afternoon after Lego Club or tomorrow morning. 

Prayers and positive thoughts that my nose will feel better soon would be appreciated.  I'm very thankful that I caught it early enough before it got severe, and that no one else is sick!

TGIF!

I got some of what I wanted to accomplished yesterday.  I didn't get to the shelf in our bedroom, so that's on today's list.  Here's what I did (you can scroll down to yesterday for before pictures if you missed them!):

The kitchen table, after:  (Well, it only looked like this for an hour... then R spilled juice on the tablecloth, and I had to put it in the wash.  But for that hour, it looked nice and Christmasy!)

Kitchen counter:

My bureau after (eeks, I need to wipe the fingerprints off of the computer screen!):

I put all of the laundry away, except for the sheets and blankets.  I need to see what I have room for now in the hope chest, now that we've put extra blankets on our beds!

Tuesday is our busiest day, but I did choose a project to work on in between Bible study and the library and ballet and karate classes.  The living room bookshelf, which I have not tidied up since the summer!    This is actually where our Christmas tree will go, so I need to take all of the books out and move it, and then put the ones we use back in.  The laundry basket full of books was in my closet... they are the overflow that we never were able to fit on the shelf in the first place!  As the weeks have passed with it sitting there, the kids have taken books from the shelf and simply thrown them into the basket instead of putting them back.  Some of the books are outgrown, so I think I'll need to make a donation to our children's library and/or the used bookstore of the church across the street from my church.  Anyway, here it is (and you can see part of our timeline on the wall to the left):

Have a good Tuesday!

Good Monday morning!  I am awake and coffee'd, and ready to start my busy day cleaning and tidying.  If you did not already know, I am Making My Home a Haven along with Monica from The Homespun Heart. 

We actually have a busy week planned, so I need to consolidate what we're doing into the time that we're home.  We're only doing the bare minimum for school this week to make time for our home-making.

My list for today, with before pictures for accountability purposes:

Clean off the kitchen counter:

Clean off the kitchen table (we were being crafty yesterday):

Clear off my bureau.  My bedroom is always the last room I get to, so it can get pretty bad.

Put away a mountain of clean laundry (the bane of my existence):

Tidy up the shelf behind our bed (this picture does not look bad at all, but it is dusty and there is more junk that is not in the pic to either side):

All right, I put it out there for the masses to see, so now I've really got to get it all done!  I'll post later with "after" pictures (well, if R does not lose my camera, which she's running around with....)!

Happy Monday!

In light of our busy week ahead, I've gone ahead and made our menu plan.  I really need to do better at this, and to do it every week!  Here it is:

Monday  Pasta with sausage, cut up raw veggies

Tuesday  John has class and the kids have ballet/karate, so I'll just heat up some leftovers

Wednesday  Shepherd's Pie, some sort of frozen veggie

Thursday  Pizza!

Friday  Steak, onions and mushrooms, rice, and broccoli

Saturday  Turkey pot pie.  I made up bags of pot pie filling with leftovers from Thanksgiving, so I'll just need to thaw, put in a casserole dish, cover with mashed potatoes, and bake.

Sunday  Pork roast, baked potatoes, and carrots.

Happy menu planning!

Today is the first Sunday of Advent.  The word "Advent" means "to come" in Latin, and we are waiting for the time that we celebrate the coming of the newborn Savior.

We have some fun activities and things planned, beginning with our "Make Your Home a Haven" week that is starting tomorrow!  We'll also put our change in a jar to purchase food for the food pantry, and I'm considering some sort of Jesse Tree activity... I need to think more about that, though (and quickly, since December first is only two days away!).

I hope you enjoyed your long Thanksgiving weekend.  Come back during the week, as I'll try to update with before/after pics at various points. 

Wow!  It's been a while since I updated.

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving.  We had a nice dinner at my grandmothers, then dessert with my mother-in-law, and a visit with my father-in-law.  John got a turkey from his boss, so he cooked that today.  Not only did I not have to cook (well, other than sweet potatoes!) for Thanksgiving, but we have our own turkey here for pot pies and soup and yummy leftovers.  Can't beat that! 

We ventured out for Black Friday this morning.  We arrived at Wal-Mart at about 6:45 this morning.  It wasn't very crowded (I think we arrived after the main crowd had left), but the items were just thrown around.  Bleh.  Surprisingly, Toys R Us, located in the city near our town, was not a mess, and was not very crowded at all.  I also bought a big package of scrapbook paper at Jo-Ann Fabrics, and John bought new sneakers at Sears.  Good deals, I guess, but next time I think I'll just stay in bed!

This coming week, I plan to participate in Make Your Home a Haven, which is being hosted by Monica from The Homespun Heart.  We will be cutting down and putting up our Christmas Tree next weekend, so this will be a good way to get everything in order before we take out the Christmas decorations! 

For this weekend, J has karate, and we will be mostly hanging out at home.  We will be babysitting little cousins tomorrow, and we have church on Sunday, but for the most part, we'll just be relaxing and enjoying the rest of the four-day weekend!

I hope you had a blessed Thanksgiving, and are ready to begin getting ready for Christmas!

I had the pleasure of participating in another one of Carrie and Monica's Sister Shoebox Swaps!  This time, the theme was "Noel," and my partner's name was Jennie.

The box that Jennie sent was chock full of great goodies!  She included homemade jam, a jar of peppermint bath salts that she made herself, an ornament, several cute notepads, a teddy bear garland, battery-operated Christmas lights (perfect for when I don't want the cord to show!), little hand-stamped snowflake cards, potholders, a dishtowel, and more!  Here is the pretty box that arrived:

And here is what was inside:

You can see more posts about what people received and sent out at the Show and Tell on Carrie's blog. 

I know I've been so lax about posting!  I have come to Homeschoolblogger several times, meaning to post, but having nothing to say.  All is well, the kids are doing great, and life is smooth right now.  I don't really have much of interest to write about (I didn't even do my weekly menu plan yet!), so I'l post a few pics from the past month or so:

R is now a big girl who rides a bike without training wheels:

The kids got new pajamas (and other clothes too!) from their grandma:

The boys in our homeschool group building a tipi at the park:

R played on the big arch at the same park:

The boys practiced hanging upside down on the bar:

Enjoy what's left of your weekend!

Last night was Halloween, and we all went out and enjoyed trick-or-treating.  It did not rain until we were just about done, and a good time was had by all.  We have waaaay too much candy.  Our  normal candy bowl was completely overflowing, so we had to start a candy basket, plus we have all of the lollipops just laying on the counter.  I need to find a container for them.

Here are the kiddos all dressed up.

R was Tinkerbelle:

And J was Megatron, who, if you are not in the loop, is a Transformer:

I did not dress up, but wore an orange shirt to show my holiday spirit.  I do not have a photo to show you, though.

I just uploaded some pumpkin picking pictures, so if you're not on Facebook and haven't seen them, scroll down to the next post!

Here's our menu plan for the week:

Monday  Breakfast for dinner: eggs, pancakes, bacon, apples

Tuesday  The kids and I will grab something out, because we are going to be out of the house all day.

Wednesday  Pork roast, baked potatoes, frozen vegetable.

Thursday  Whole chicken, stuffing, mashed potatoes, frozen vegetable.

Friday  Leftovers.

Saturday  Dinner with extended family.

Sunday  Spaghetti and meatballs, raw veggies.

Happy menu planning!

We went pumpkin picking in between all of the rain and snow (yes, I said snow) this weekend!  I was glad to have a nice day to go, though it was cold.  Here are some pics:

The kids waiting for the tractor to take us to the pumpkin field:

On the hay ride:

Looking for the perfect pumpkin:

Carving:

The three pumpkins that we carved.  From left to right, J's flame face, R's smiley face, and my little monster:

All lit up:

Foot Update:  I'm doing better... walking on crutches is harder than it looks!  I can actually limp around now without them, for the most part, and the swelling is down.  So I'm very thankful that I will hopefully be able to drive again by Tuesday for Bible study, and that I did not break my foot!

A Like List:  If anyone is interested in joining ALikeList, it's a fairly new website that has lists of places that people like and recommend.  I was invited by someone else through a writing group that I'm in, so I thought I'd pass around the word.  If you click on the link to it, I will get some sort of credit for having referred you... though I'm not sure for what!  I'll let you know if people sign up!  LOL

We've been mostly lying low and hanging out.  We made Halloween shaped sugar cookies this afternoon, and homemade pizza for dinner.  We played Yahtzee and made our own board game out of butcher paper.  I think that's about it!

Have a good weekend!