The little lights are not twinkling

Because they have been taken down!  Today, taking advantage of the reprieve from minus twenty degree daytime highs, my husband and I took the outdoor lights down.  Well, actually, he took the lights down.  I held the ladder and shuddered as little frozen bits of leaves fell from the eaves and got stuck in my hair.

I know, it’s not even January.  Around here, though, one must strike when the iron is hot, or when stepping outside doesn’t make one feel like one has been transported to the planet Hoth.  The fact that I just referenced the planet Hoth indicates just how much Star Wars talk has been going on around here.  Who am I?  What have I become?

My husband goes back to work on Monday, and I have a feeling he may be relieved to do so, since his vacation has mostly been comprised of building or helping to build various Lego sets.  To mix things up, we have also been playing Just Dance on the Wii with the children, and I will say this: I may be consistently twelfth out of twelve while playing Mario Kart, I may die instantly or drive off cliffs in racing games like I’ve never actually driven a car before, and I may be the source of much frustration and/or amusement to my children for every other video game, but I rock at Just Dance.  I don’t mean to brag, but you should see my routine for I’ve Had The Time of My Life.  No one puts Baby in the corner, is what I’m saying here.  I also consistently amaze the children at my ability to get four stars – almost five! – while dancing to California Gurrls.  That’s right, kids.  Watch and learn.

One of the many benefits to having a blog is the ability to go back through old posts and reminice about things that would otherwise be completely forgotten.  I am working on a 2012 year in review, and I have discovered that my New Year’s Resolution last year was to drink less coffee.  What the fuck was I thinking?  I don’t even remember consciously making this resolution, so obviously I did not keep it. 

Are you making resolutions this year?  A friend was telling me about the trend – which has apparently been going on for years, but which I have been hitherto ignorant of – about choosing a word and incorporating it into everyday life.  This strikes me as beautiful and brilliant, and so the word I will choose for 2013 is patience.  Patience not just for my children, but for dealing with other people as well. 

It’s a sweet idea, I think.  Although, I was just severely tested.  While I was writing this, one of my sons, who shall remain nameless, just talked AT me for twenty minutes about some godforsaken Pokemon video game, including every detail about the characters and levels that one could possibly imagine.  I am constantly encouraging my children to have normal conversational skills, and god bless them, they try.  They talk and talk and talk, stopping occasionally to ask ME questions about such topics as Pokemon or Star Wars or Mario Kart.  “Do you think you would like the Boulder Bash or the Togo’s Swing-a-long better?”  Um, I don’t know?  Whatever you think?  I think I really need more patience incorporated in my life, given that this conversation was the oral equivalent to sticking a pin in my eye.  Patience.  Patience.