National Newton's Christmas Vacation

Okay, so I took a little break over Christmas. Mainly because I was stressed about getting home (with the blizzard) and just having a lot to do overall. Let's start with the trip home...it was wonderful. However, our flight was scheduled to get in in the middle of a "historic Christmas storm" according to the Weather Channel. Work was nice enough to let me have Wednesday off so I could catch an earlier flight which was wonderful. However, I still managed to break down in tears the Monday before we left because Delta told Dave we couldn't catch an earlier flight unless we paid a LOT of money. I called my Dad to see if he'd make me feel better, or maybe offer to pay for it?? Haha...not really, but the thought did cross my mind. Instead, this was his response, (as I'm trying to talk to him through my sobbing) "Sarah, are you at work?? Pull yourself together!!! 99% of the s**t you worry about never happens." He was right...they pushed off the blizzard until Wednesday evening, we caught an earlier flight, got home at noon, and only ran into rain. But then it went downhill from there....(please refer to pictures on facebook.)

We were snowed in for 3 days...Christmas eve was spent out at my Grandma's and Grandpa's. What normally would last until 1am following midnight mass, ended around 9pm after church services were cancelled and roads were drifting shut. On our way home Dad some how thought that when he could no longer see the road in the white-out conditions it would be a good idea to speed up to get through the drifts. I was yelling at him and praying all at the same time. This is what I don't miss about Nebraska....the driving conditions.

Overall, we spent a good amount of time in front of the TV, chatting, sleeping and eating. It was the life. :) We had a great time, and didn't really want to come back....except to get Oscar from the dog nanny.

That brings me back to before we left...we took Oscar to the nanny's house. (She's not really a nanny, we just call her that) She kennels dogs out of her home and gives them lots of love and play. I, of course, cried the night we took him out. I packed his blankie, bed, food and one treat for every day--- Dave thought I was crazy, but understood my tears. It broke our hearts to leave him. I did call to check on him once while we were back home; I just wanted to make sure he wasn't a social ri-tard. (Have ya'll seen The Hangover? It's pronounced ritard.)

Turns out he made friends, and he was so excited to see us when we came home. He hasn't left our side since. I think he's emotionally scarred.

Anyway, next subject! I think I ate something wrong Sunday at the airport. I've narrowed it down to a fish sandwich or a stomach bug that some how no one else caught. I went to bed Sunday night not feeling great, but attributed it toward eating so much crap at home. However, I was up all night having liquids come out of places that liquids should not be. (Sorry if that's too much information for some, but it's true.) Dave the next morning says, "I didn't even know you've been sick." Ooooh honey.....I'm glad that your sleep was not disturbed, because I sure did not sleep well.

Our plans for New Year's are very uneventful. Dave is on-call, but his sister is actually on her way down right now with her boyfriend. (They're driving.) So I'll have someone to hang out with which will be great. I was just planning on drinking by myself, laying on the couch in my PJ's and watching the ball drop. I'd probably just count the eastern time zone drop as ours, because I doubt I make it to midnight. Anyway, that's all for now! Hope everyone had a great and blessed Christmas!

I've been lazy....

Sorry, I haven't posted in over a week....and where to begin?

This past weekend we had quite a few Christmas parties, however, Sunday we had to miss one because I had some sort of stomach bug or ate something wrong. I woke up at 2am with my stomach trying to evacuate itself from both directions. Wasn't pleasant. My main concern was to not wake the puppy or Dave so I wouldn't have to worry about him biting my ankles when I was trying to breathe through the nausea (the puppy that is.) Yipes.

I'm still not as much in the Christmas spirit as I usually am. It's sad really, and I don't know why I can't get into it. I think it's because I'm not home. I feel comfortably here, but I don't have a big tree up, or a ton of decorations, so it just ruins it.

I do feel very accomplished this Christmas season by not being at the mall once since Thanksgiving...until last night. I've done all of our Christmas shopping online, and Dave did the rest. (Which consisted of Target gift-cards.) The only thing worse than going to the mall between Thanksgiving and Christmas is going on to the mall on the WEEKENDS in that time. So I refused.

Well, that's all for now.

Football Saturday in the Newton Estates...

Well this was an eventful sports weekend. Michelle came over for the weekend because we went to the Chris Tomlin concert...her friend Audrey Assad sings on his Christmas CD, so we also got to see her. It was a great concert, and Audrey's voice is a-m-a-z-i-n-g, it brings tears to my eyes.

So Saturday was our day of football. We had some friends over to watch the SEC championship. It was funny, because none of us were from Alabama or Florida. Our group consisted of 3 from Mississippi, and 1 from North Dakota. I was of course rooting for Alabama, so I was happy with that game's outcome. Unfortunately, there then was the Nebraska game...... I'm here, and cheering for Alabama, but it's not nearly the same.

This is how our living room looks when the Nebraska games are on (and Michelle got to experience it first hand): Dave is in the rocker, and I am on the couch. Dave will get up and jump/pace with good and/or bad plays. He knows not to cross into my visual line of the television, because I stay seated on the couch and cheer more with my arms...and he will endure the wrath of Sarah if I miss something. We've tried sitting together on the couch once....but that may lead to a divorce. I'm always silent. Do not speak to me in clutch plays, or speak in general. (Sorry Michelle!)

So last night was a great game, and I'm just sick that we lost. Well, our defense played wonderfully...and I wanted to win it just for them. Sometimes I wonder, do they get along with the offensive players? Maybe the offense has to always buy the defense their 2 am meals at Taco Bell or drinks every night because they repeatedly save their butts!! I'd make 'em.

So anyway, I'm heartbroken, but there's always the bowl game, and of course next year. Maybe we can find a quarter back in the off season. Other than that.....OH, WAIT! We got our first snow Friday night!! (See, it was so uneventful that I nearly forgot!) It was about a trace...but they had been forecasting it all week. I laughed. So I was up at 6:30 am with Oscar Saturday, and it was really pretty on all the trees, (I'll try to put up some pictures on facebook.) But Oscar was beside himself, he sniffed it, decided it was too cold (at 32 degrees) and came back in refusing to pee. Dang southern dog....he's going to have a rough adjustment if he visits Nebraska some winter!

So what did I do that Saturday morning? Well, I normally refuse to go to Walmart....just hate shopping there, but I needed a lot of things, and that was the only place that was open. I figured I would be the only one "crazy" enough to get out in this trace of snow, so Walmart would then be tolerable. It was...there was no one there. The roads were only damp...it only stuck to the grass. Oooh, Alabama. Okay, that's really all for now. Hope all is well!!