[I] Wish[ed] You a Merry Christmas...

...And a Happy New Year!

Okay, so I'm jumping the gun a little bit on the new year thing. But let's face it... It's right around the corner :). And with my track record, I probably won't blog again before then :). So, Happy New Year a couple of days early!

December has been a whirlwind of a month. In more ways than one. Some of it was messy. Most of it was good. Pretty much all of it went fast! And I failed to blog most of the big events :). So, here is a December re-cap, in a nutshell. And with pictures!

One night in December, my mom watched Desiree and Emily for Christina so Christina and Nick could go out on a date. Desiree and I took a picture together. She's such a sweetie. This was the same night she asked me, as we walked downstairs to my room, "Aunt Hila, did you think I was so beautiful on Thanksgiving?" And you know there is only one answer to that sweet question: YES!


Emily turned one, as I mentioned in a previous post. So here are three pictures of her on her big day. There are more in the photobucket, if you care to click and see them :). That is one sweet baby.

*Well, I had pictures of Emily up here, but photobucket took them down, I guess because she was only wearing a diaper? I don't really know. So, I'm not going to worry about the hassle of trying to put them back up after cropping them. That's the only thing I can figure was wrong with them, but in case that wasn't the problem... I'll just leave it alone. Just know she was way cute :). It really is a shame there are such sickos in this world that even innocent 1st birthday pictures can be misconstrued as inappropriate in case some pervert out there finds them and uses them in such a way as that.

The following day was the last day of volunteering for the year (2009), since the school went on Christmas Break starting the 18th. I already blogged about the chocolate truffles and the poinsettia that I got from the librarian I'd been helping at the high school. Such a sweet thing. I've been sharing those truffles at work. They are very rich. And very bad for you! But definitely good :). Just like everything that is bad for you...

On Friday, the 18th, we had our work Christmas Party. We had BBQ catered in. Now, this was decent BBQ. Maybe not like the really good one in Dothan (Larry's, I think?), but definitely good by Washington standards. And I love their macaroni and cheese! They put chopped up jalapeno in it. And it reminds me of a jalapeno popper. Which I love, by the way :). We had a really good turnout, and we had a lot of laughs and a lot of fun! We played Dirty Santa -- a game I'm not all that great at, because I never want to take anyone's gift away from them. I'd feel bad. But some people really got into it, and it was pretty funny. There were some pretty cool gifts there, and there was a $5 limit, so really, that was pretty cool. Here's a shot of the group. There are other pictures in here.


After the party and the clean-up, Mary and I hung around a bit longer and watched My Musical, an episode from the 6th season of Scrubs, which I had gotten in the mail that day (unexpectedly) as a Christmas gift from April, Greg, and Courtney! I was very surprised. And usually, I don't open gifts before Christmas, but since I didn't even have a clue what it was that I was getting in my name from Amazon, I went ahead and opened it and found that inside! Thanks April, Greg, and Court! A totally fabulous gift! And Mary and I laughed and hooted, in the dark, in the funeral home, all by ourselves, at 9:30 at night. Hahahaha....

That weekend I worked with Mary, and those weekends are usually way fun. It was a pretty quiet weekend, and so we all pretty much hung out in the boss's office, since he was there too, discussing all sorts of stuff. Thankfully a bell would ring everytime a door opened, so I could tell if someone came in, and I could go inspect. After work, I stopped by the Dollar Tree and then headed to Brad and Tarylyn's to watch Saria, Samuel, and Benjamin so Brad and Tarylyn could do some last minute Christmas shopping. We watched part of Spiderman, and snacked on junkfood, because that's what Aunt Hilas are good for.


When Brad and Tarylyn got home, we popped in an episode of Arrested Development, and also one of the volumes of The Best of Will Ferrell, which I purchased from Wal-Mart (both volumes) because they had a really great deal on them, and I've been wanting them for a while. Man oh man did we laugh! Because watching Will Ferrell as George W. put everything under the sun (including math) in the "axis of evil" is absolutely hilarious. Then I headed home and probably wrapped presents or something. I don't really remember at this point... I think I put together at least one goodie plate to take to church to Heidi the next day.

On Sunday, after church, I went by Christina's to help Nick with a resume. I stayed there for several hours visiting and playing the with the girls. I also added a few Christmas songs to my Zune, to include Do They Know It's Christmas, The Little Drummer Boy/Peace on Earth, Breath of Heaven, and the Hannukah Song (because this counts in my book since it's during the same season :)). Those are among my favorites. Then it was back to the house to finish up the goodie plates for people at work :).

Monday I mozied into work whenever I felt like it. I don't know when I got there. Probably around 10. I do love flexibility :). Work was about the sameold sameold for the week. It was a shorter week, of course. But things went well. We got stuff done. I made the mistake of doing some shopping during the week. Ick. My goal for 2010 is to buy gifts throughout the year. That way I have the opportunity to get really awesome gifts for people and not have to break the bank to do it :)!

On the 24th, we closed the funeral home at 2:00. My mom and I went by Brad and Tarylyn's to take them their gifts, since we didn't all get together this year. We spent some time with them and watched them open their gifts. It was a lot of fun to watch :). Here's me with the sweet kiddos:


And here is Tarylyn opening one of my gifts to her:

This is a wall hanging that is sarcastic. It says, "Don't Get Your Tinsel in a Tangle." I got several different ones for different people. They were very sarcastic -- right up my alley! I even kept one for me that said, "Naughty or nice, I still get what I want." Hahaha... Some of the others that I got said, "What happens under the mistletoe stays under the mistletoe" and "Some of my best friends are flakes." Those things sold out really fast -- and eventually they never had anymore. Which bummed me out, because I had wanted to get one of each for me... But I guess I need to learn my lesson and get a whole slew of them when I see them!

Anyway, I digress... Here are a couple more pictures of the kids opening. And one of me and Brad :). And of me and Samuel.






On Christmas morning, my mom and I went to Ben and Michele's to drop of their presents. Ben had to work in the afternoon. We had a really good visit and laughed and reminisced a bit. I will tell you more about the gifts that mom, Grandma, and I got from Ben and Michele in a bit. But Michele really put a lot of work into them, and they are really neat!

Christina, Nick, Desiree, and Emily came over to the house in the evening to do presents. My aunt and uncle also came over. So here are a few pictures:








Now, that dress Desiree is in is one that Michele made. Desiree was very excited to be able to wear it. It's really really cute. Emily has one too, and Christina had brought it to change her into, but she fell asleep before we got around to it. So luckily it's big, so she can probably wear it next year! Of course, she can probably wear it still now, since it's still winter ;). Emily was exhausted, as I indicated, and she fell asleep on me. So sweet! I always like to hold her when she sleeps. Christmas was very good and we all enjoyed it.

In addition to everyone I was able to see here in Washington, I also got to talk to Julie, Le, Elka, and my dad. Plus I got a text from Annie :). So it was, all around, a gerat Christmas :)!

Here is a picture of most of my gifts. And below it is a rundown of what's what:

• The complete series of Wings from my mom. Such a great tv show back in the day :). I used to watch this show in one of my monitors at UA while I worked in the other monitor. Hahaha... That's why I got the dual monitors. And I found all the episodes on youtube. Anyway, so this was way cool. And my mom was so excited to give it to me :). My mom's so awesome.
• Warm turquoise colored pj's from Aunt Sue and Uncle Ernie. They are soft and like the red ones I got last year, which have really gotten their wear -- and will continue to! They keep me very warm!
• A New Moon calendar from Aunt Sue and Uncle Ernie.
• A calendar from Germany, a German license plate replica that has my name on it, and a Christmas tablecloth from Germany from John, who was over there for 2 1/2 weeks with the Reserves.
• Scrubs season 6 from Greg, April, and Courtney, which I mentioned above :).
• Cry-Baby on DVD from Christina, Nick, Desiree, and Emily. A way cool movie from my teenage years :). I need to watch that soon!
• body lotion and almond roca from Christina (at church) who is my visiting teaching companion.
• a 20 dollar gift card to Wal-Mart from my grandma
• a 25 dollar gift card from Mary with instructions to use it for another season of Scrubs, since I listed off the seasons I still needed too fast for her to remember (and for the record, I used it already -- I got season 3 of Scrubs and also season 9 of Everybody Loves Raymond, and I just spent $10 out of my pocket for the acquisition of these two awesome things :)).
• vanilla-scented bath stuff from Ben, Michele, Sean, Tony, and Royce. Now, two great things about this... I love vanilla! So I'm thinking Michele probably knew this from my blog title :). But also, Michele made the two soaps and the bath salts she included in the set! Way cool! Michele is a woman of many talents.
• A double picture frame (for our 1999 and 2009 pictures -- I have now put in the 2009 one, the 1999 one will have to wait for that ephemeral day when I move out and can get to my garage stuff...), a little Smurf, a Precious Moments friend frame with a sweet saying, The Office pens and pencils, and a Yankeetown Coast Guard t-shirt from Julie! Such fun stuff :)! The Smurf speaks to my love of all things 80s, of course :). And the t-shirt is so cool, because it's a reminder of a huge part of Julie's life and where she's been :).
• Oh, and the wall hanging in the middle is the one I bought myself that I told you about.

Not pictured is a whole bunch of Land-o-Lakes hot chocolate (the kind they only put out at Christmas that is soooo good!), 2 LED flashlights that are very bright. One is small enough to put in my purse :). An ornament, goodies, chocolates, more bath stuff, and a card to use in the county here that allows me to get discounts all over the place.

I have to say that I do love this time of year when everyone seems to be a little bit nicer. And part of the greatest joy I get out of the Christmas season is the giving. I realize that it's very commercialized, and even as I purchase gifts to give, that's part of the commercialization. But there is just a joy that I feel when I find the perfect gift. And then when I watch the person open it. It's always been one of my favorite parts of Christmas. I probably need to work on the spiritual side of Christmas more and do better at focusing on our Savior and His birth. For that is the real celebration. He came for me.

So, now it's time to start settling back into the routine. We will work every day this week except Friday. But that's fine with me. And then it will be a new year. How crazy is that!?! 2010. By the way, that tv show Wings came out in 1990. Which means it's about to be 20 years. And that is a frightening thought that makes me feel old ;).

So, I failed to wish you a Merry Christmas prior to Christmas, but that didn't mean didn't hope you had one! And, so, to make sure I wish you a Happy New Year... Consider yourself wished it :)!

Evolution of the Game...

...at least according to Nilla :).

I am not an avid video game player. I never have been. I'm not saying I don't ever play video games. And, honestly, I don't even know what the difference is between video games and computer games, or even if there is one. So, since I haven't done a memory lane post in eons... I figured I would do this one :).

My older brother is 9 years my senior. This means that he was into video games long before I was old enough to even know what they were. And that also means we had a really cool (but now-antiquated) game system in our home called an Atari. By the way, I'm convinced to this day that that is the awesomest game system ever! I don't care if the graphics weren't realistic. I don't care if it wasn't interactive with you or other people across the globe. The Atari was cool. And it had really fun games. We had several games, loaded on those ginormous 5 1/4-inch black floppy disks (the ones that really were floppy :)). One that we always played (and it was 2-player, so I usually played with Ben or Brad) was Joust. In case you think it sounds familiar, but can't really picture it, this is what it looked like:

Now, I have played that one more recently. It was also an arcade game, and I guess, somehow, it was finagled to be able to be downloaded and played on a computer. So back in the days when Heath and I were dating, we played this game on his computer. It was still as fun at 21 as it was when I was like 8.

The one I remember the best (and one of my all-time favorite games) is one I have never seen since. And that is Jumpman. I don't even know what it was about this game that I loved so much. It just required a little white stickman to run and climb ladders to collect all these "blobs" and not get shot by the bullet that you would be clued into (but you never knew where it was coming across the screen) by a shot sound. Anyway, I've had this picture of Jumpman saved in my email since I left Tuscaloosa. So, it's about time that I use it :).

This is a game I wouldn't mind playing again.

But of course, time passed. Technology advanced. New game systems came out. We got a Nintendo one year. We played the usual games, like Super Mario Bros. I remember, if the game didn't want to load, we'd pull it out and blow into the bottom of it to blow off the dust and hope it would work :). My favorite Nintendo game was Super Mario Brothers 3. I don't think we ever owned that one, but my friend Cathleen did. I just liked that Mario could fly.

And we can't forget Battletoads!!! At least I think it was Nintendo! Either way, that was one of the rockin'est games EVER! Or maybe what was so great about it was the memories I have of singing "I Am Woman" while beating the everliving snot out of Brad's character with my big toad boot or my big toad fist in the game. Or maybe it was the memory of smacking Brad's toad around with the sword in the Wookie Hole. Either way... This game holds fond memories for me :). And the music in it was pretty cool too.

Plus, answer me this: how can anyone not love a game where the 3 main characters are named after skin blemishes: Rash, Zitz, and Pimple. Hahaha... Classic.

Then next step for video game evolution, at least for me :), was the Sega Genesis. Largely, this was Brad's game system. However, we were all allowed to play it. The two games I got into most were Sonic the Hedgehog:And the other was Toejam and Earl:

Now hopefully, by now, you have seen a pretty common trend in all these games. They are all 2-D. Of course, perhaps at this time in Nilla History (circa 1994), they didn't have video games that were all 3-D and stuff. But trust me, as you will learn in a few short minutes, 3-D video games and I do not get along... But back to Sonic and Toejam and Earl. I think I beat Sonic. I don't know how long it took me. Long enough. But I did enjoy that game. Toejam and Earl was just hilarious. I think we would purposely make them eat bad food just to see their reactions. I don't even remember it all at this point. I remember they would arrive on each new level in an elevator. A la Bill and Ted. Only in alien form ;). Yes, another great game from my past, Toejam and Earl.

After this point, I wasn't all that in to video games. I don't even remember at which point my family upgraded to a newer system. I think we owned a Playstation at some point. Yeah. Something that you could play Echo the Dolphin. That was Christina's game. I never got into that game or that game system, really. In fact, I didn't really do much with video or computer games until I started dating Heath. But at that point, we pretty much made up for lost time. While we dated, we played several games. Clanbomber (which was way fun -- I was always the penguin). Tron (also fun -- but I usually lost). But the two that we played almost religiously were Worms Armageddon:

And Toy Commander:

Now, Worms was, and maybe still is, one of my all-time favorite games. I'm not even sure why. I mean, you get four little worms on your team, and through strategy, you have to try to take out the other player's four worms. And you only get a turn with one worm at a time. And after you finished your turn with one worm, then it's the other player's turn with one of their worms. Okay, so it might sound silly. But it was an addicting game. Which can also be said of Toy Commander. Now, I'm pretty sure that was for the Sega Dreamcast, but I could be wrong. All I know is it was fun. It was the one 3-D game that I thought was fun. But perhaps that was because I was always the tank, who really only moved in 2-D... I tried being an airplane once. Let's just say it didn't go well. I pretty much crashed the whole time. It's a wonder I can function in the real world (which, by some strange twist of fate, happens to be 3-dimensional ;)). Anyway, as you see in the picture above, it shows the tank. The coolest "toy" you could possibly be in this game. It was also well-armored (as tanks generally go), so it was a pretty hearty little fella.

After married life began, the video gaming continued to an extent. Especially in the very beginning when we lived in Ashford. We had a ritual... We had to play Super Smash Brothers every night practically before bed. And if Heath didn't win, we had to keep playing until he did. There was no sleeping until he won. It was just too funny. And, really, in his defense, I did win a lot, but it wasn't "fair" as most men see it. Because I would just randomly push buttons for my character (and I always chose Kirby while he always chose Pikachu) and I would inevitably win. Meanwhile he'd spend time learning the buttons to push to officially do the special moves of the character and still lose. My Kirby brick could really do some damage! That really aggravates men, apparently. It used to irritate Brad to no end when I used to just push buttons like crazy and then beat him. So, here is a shot of Super Smash Brothers, and, as luck would have it, you can see both Kirby and Pikachu in this one!

The other two games we got into were Tiberian Sun, which was another strategy game where you would build up your army and then go attack the other person; and BZ Flag. Now, I believe both of these were games that could be played on the internet with people in far away lands. But with Tiberian Sun, anytime I played, we just played the two of us. We didn't get online to do it. However, with BZ Flag, it was a different story. The two of us would join a room, and so would Julie's husband Jon. And we'd all play from our respective computers. And that one was addicting. And I have to say... You know how there are phrases that will remain in your head forever, just from one little thing? Well, this game started one that I will forever have... If you care to, click on this link and listen to this song by Peter Gabriel. Anyway, there was an ability during the game where you could turn into (or get the power) to be a steamroller and then you could flatten the other tanks if you got close enough to them to roll over them. So, anytime Heath would get that ability, he would sing "I wanna be... Your STEAMROLLER!" And that stays in my head and so everytime I hear certain phrases or this song, I always hear that in my head! Funny how that works. Anyway, here's a shot of that:

And, actually, I think BZ Flag was also 3-D. But again, I was a tank. So it wasn't like flying an airplane. I only went straight in a 2-D sort of way :).

So these days I'm back to not really playing video games. Every once in a while, I might pull up Zuma. Which is also an addicting game. But other than that, not so much. But it was fun to remember all these games! Funny what you forget until you start remembering :). This was a great walk down memory lane. I should do it more often :).

I Can See Clearly Now

Though the rain's not gone :). Here's the song.

Literally, the rain is not gone in Washington. Actually, we hadn't had rain in over a week until today. There is still talk of snow, but so far, it hasn't happened. Which is fine by me! I've done the white Christmas thing once, and that was good enough for me ;).

But, with the passing of days, things get better. You feel llike you can conquer the next big trial. You wonder why you had a meltdown only a couple of days ago. And it's just better to be in a happier state of mind. And so, figuratively, the rain is gone ;). I guess life is just full of ups and downs and we have to just get through both of them. And, in the end, we are stronger for it. Plus, having those bouts of extreme "down-ness" does help me to realize how wonderful it is at all the other times (and the other times are always more plentiful, which is good). It also helps to remember that there are so many less fortunate than I am, even though I do have struggles and trials. I still have so much for which to be grateful. And I also know that my struggles are uniquely mine. They are the things that will help me grow and learn the most. Does that mean I'm totally psyched for trials? Nah. Who is? But it helps to get through them and gain perspective.

So enough of that...

Yesterday my mom and I went over to Christina's to celebrate Emily's first birthday. She turned 1 on Friday, the 11th. I cannot believe that a year ago, she was just getting ready to come home from the hospital -- a brand new baby girl. Now she laughs and smiles. Eats cupcakes. Stands by herself. Waves. Would rather play with cameras and cell phones than open (or even look into) her birthday presents... Yes, she is entering toddler-hood. She is walking a couple of steps at a time. Nothing major. She does a lot of knee-walking. She has decided she doesn't like baths right now. But she gets through it. Like Desiree, she is a very easy baby. It's just such a joy and a blessing for me to be able to be close to these little angels and watch them grow. That has been one of the biggest blessings about being here in Washington, in spite of the things that haven't worked out according to my plans... I am near all my nieces and nephews, and I have the opportunity of knowing them and watching them grow and change and having them know me. There are few sadnesses that can't be cured by a hug from a little boy or girl who genuinely loves you and is excited to see you. Or a baby who reaches out to you because she wants you to hold her. So yes, Emily is one now. And I'm so glad I was able to celebrate with her for her birthday, even though we didn't do a "party" for her. Next year, when she's a little older, that'll probably be what happens.

My mom and I made oreo truffles yesterday. Wow! I think I'm sick of oreo truffles! I mean, they are fabulously good and all that. But doing the dipping of them is kind of tedious. It actually went pretty well yesterday, though. Every time we make them, we try a different approach for the dipping part. Yesterday we used a melon-baller.

Oh, and just for the sake of remembering this... The other night, while my mom and I were making pumpkin bread, we had doubled the recipe. However, she quadrupled the baking soda. I guess this was to go with her previous statement of the evening that "all measurements are approximations." Hahahaha... Something always goes awry when my mom and I bake together. I'm not sure why that is. But it's pretty funny. By the way... Some of you will be receiving pumpkin bread in the mail. Trust me, it is still yummy.

I have spent the last several nights watching all of season 1 of Scrubs. That show is so great. I need to work on obtaining all of the seasons. But I have a good start. I have 1, 2, and 8.

Oh, and I think I've also forgotten to mention that I am now volunteering at a middle school instead of a high school. The middle school librarian doesn't have an aide or anything, so she had tons of work that needed to get done, including cataloging, covering books, adding barcodes, etc. She is really nice, as was the high school librarian and her aide. In fact today, when I got to the middle school library, I found that Lisa (the high school librarian) had brought over a poinsettia and a huge box of fancy chocolate truffles to say "thanks" and "Merry Christmas." It was super nice of her. I took in some pigeon poop (the food stuff, not the real stuff ;)) and a few oreo truffles to share, but I felt so lacking when I saw that she had given me something so nice. I didn't expect anything at all. But wow!

Well, I suppose it's time to post this and get on with other things. :). Sorry about the boo-hoo post from Saturday. I guess I kind of want to keep the blog "honest." Life isn't always all roses. And so, if this blog is about the Nilla Life, I should probably be keeping it real ;).

Nilla-Waferus Eruptus

You ever had one of those weeks where things just pile on and pile on and pile on, and you finally can't take it anymore? Well, this was one of those weeks for me. Yesterday was a bad day. And I finally lost it.

This link will take you to about 6 minutes of a clip that pretty much summed up how I felt this past week.

Joe Blows

Yes, yesterday was one of those days in a week that was one of those weeks. And I suppose we all have them. At least I hope we all do, or else I am incredibly weak. I wish I had a life more "ordinary." A life less temporary. Most days I am able to just put on a smile and deal. But there are those days where it just gets to be too much. I hope I don't have many of those in the days... weeks... months... years ahead.

The Cold Sets In

As promised, I am including the Thanksgiving pictures :). First off, here is the Thanksgiving Feast we enjoyed:


Here are most of the cute kiddos, ready to eat:


And here is everyone who was there (the problem with being the camera-button-pusher is that you have to run into the photo and you usually look disproportionate to everyone else...):


And here is a picture taken a week later. Of Emily standing alone and Desiree eating. Emily wouldn't stand with any level of confidence or for any length of time on Thanksgiving, but by this past Thursday, she was an old pro at it ;).


And check out her cute, but messy, face. She enjoyed eating mashed potatoes and gravy. She also enjoyed sharing with her great-grandma.


Anyway, so I did some shopping this past week. I am almost completely done with Christmas shopping, and that feels great :). Which is also good, because I have to send about 1/2 of the presents to far destinations... Like Alabama, Florida, and Oklahoma. So now I must start on the business of wrapping presents. I started last night and got 3 or 4 done. A good start, if I say so myself :). We also need to get to work on baking goodies. We have lots of baking to do, so we need to start now, and we'll just freeze them :).

It's funny... As I go through the week, I usually think of a million things that I can blog about. And then, when I get down to it, it all escapes me. Mostly I spent the week working. I found some issues in the park that required immediate attention. I guess that's what's bound to happen when you are dealing with 60 years of paperwork. Stuff gets overlooked. Mistakes get made. It will be nice if there ever comes a day when everything has been sorted out and fixed. And truthfully, this is really rewarding work. I enjoy what I am doing, and I can see a finished product.

As for the volunteering thing... I'm still doing that. I have moved over to the middle school library, because there is more work for me to do there. I am helping her process some of her books by adding them to the catalog and getting EZ-covers on them. I see so many books I want to read. I will never have enough time! But in good news, I'm plowing through the 6th Harry Potter. I am 2/3 of the way done and am hoping to finish it this weekend. Then it will be on to something else. I do love to read. Wish I had more time for it...

So yeah, wow. I don't even have anything interesting to say! I just wanted to blog and keep up a little bit :).

Oh... There is the cold weather to report :). If it was overcast and raining, it'd be snowing. The roads were icy by 9 p.m. last night. That's how cold it is here. And tonight is supposed to be even colder. Just so long as I can drive and not get trapped, I'm fine with it. Clear skies and cold weather are like Alabama winters. I can totally go with it. The snow is what I can do without!