Now that the holidays are almost over I have some free time to devote to making an entry here. Phew, it was hectic while it lasted.

When we wrapped Kamalani’s gifts, we addressed them to names like, “Someone who doesn’t cry like a baby” or “To a NICE girl”, “Someone who listens”, “A girl who isn’t bossy”. All the things she’s not. Funny thing is that she said she was all of those things even though she knows she’s not. We did address the two smallest packages with her name though so she wouldn’t think she was on Santa’s NAUGHTY list. Heh.

Since my brother’s stroke, he’s not been to the movie theaters so he’s never seen Fantastic Four and when he saw the WalMart ad a few weeks ago, he mentioned wanting to purchase the DVD. That’s what I bought him for Christmas. We also gave him a new sheet set and a mink blanket to keep him warm in the cold winter weather.

For Megan, well let’s just say she pretty much thinks Christmas is any day when she comes home and leaves with something for her apartment. As for the boys and their families, we sent them money. I was pleased to hear they didn’t use it to buy more toys but instead they bought savings bonds for their children. That’s like a gift for me.

For me and hubby, well we treated ourselves to furniture for the living room. Imagine, we had gone without any living room furnishings for 6 months. We basically gathered in the dining room. We even have a small television in the dining room for when we gather there. Now that we have living room furnitures, we only sit at the dining table for meals. How cool is that, right?

Besides the holiday rush, there were a few things I had to do for my brother and Meg. For starters, my brother had to go back to the phyiscal therapist to do a test to see how far and how long he can walk. It’s a requirement that DSHS has in order to approve a motorized wheelchair for him. We did that today so I can check that off my “to do” list.

Another thing was Megan’s oral surgery. She had that done on Tuesday. She felt fine when we left the dentist’s office. They had given us the post op instructions and prescription for pain. By the time we got home, all Meg could think about was eating something since she couldn’t eat prior to the surgery. I dropped her off at her apartment and brought Kamalani home with me so Meg could rest. She was still fine when she left for work on Wednesday morning. By Wednesday afternoon though her face had swollen and she was in a lot of pain. I had to take her to the ER at 4:00 this morning. The doctor prescribed and antibiotic, pain medication and something for nausea. He said she should feel better in a few days and the medications will make her sleep. That was good news for me because at last I could sleep too … not for long though because Kamalani woke at the crack of dawn and woke me up to fix her some hot cereal.

On the up side … I got two deliveries today. One was from my son in Hawaii. He sent me poi, laulau and kalua pig for our New Year’s Dinner. I love that boy!!! I also got a package of foo chuk (sp?). It’s that dried bean thread that is absolutely delicious in soup. That came all the way from Boston, from my dearest loving cousin. I need to salt the salmon to complete the dinner menu. Oh yeah, and I already have vodka to ring in the new year.

So Happy Holidays to you all.

I’ve heard some people get depressed when the last of the lil birdies fly the coop. Why’s that??

Meg moved into her own apartment last Friday!!! I suppose if she had moved farther away I’d really miss her but she lives about a mile away from us and we see her everyday because we still pick Kamalani up from school and she picks Kamalani up from our house after she gets off work. The house is much calmer and cleaner since Friday. Since there’s just the two of us left in the house, my kitchen has been clear of dirty dishes. I don’t need to use the dishwasher anymore because I just wash our dishes by hand, dry them and put them away as soon as we’re done eating.

Our laundry room is clear of dirty clothes; so is the hall bathroom. There are no more toys left out in the living room and amazingly, all the DVDs are in it’s correct place in the DVD folders. The counter tops are semi-cleared of clutter but there’s still a stack of unread magazines that Meg subscribes to.

On Sunday, I told Meg to come over for Sunday dinner. I thought it would be cool to have them over once a week for dinner. I guess it’s my way of making sure Kamalani has something healthy to eat at least once a week. My brother lives between our house and Meg’s apartment so I told her to pick him up on the way so he can have Sunday dinner with us. I made Vinha D’alhos, Macaroni Salad, Aku Poke, Poi and a yellow cake with Chocolate frosting for dessert. Kamalani whacked the poi. She loves fish and poi. Everyone enjoyed the meal. After dinner, I had Meg blend us some smoothies with my new Magic Bullet and it was yummmmmmmy.

Before they left to go home, my brother went into the kitchen cabinet and brought out a new container of non-dairy creamer then told me he needed some for his coffee because he was out. Meg went into the kitchen drawers and took a box of foil and saran wrap. Then she asked if I had an extra mop and broom. I asked them if I looked like a friggen grocery store. They just laughed and packed up whatever they needed for their homes.

Maybe what they mean by “empty nesting” is that your stuff gets taken whenever your kids (and brother) move out on their own thereby leaving your nest empty!

Not the usual confused. This time I’m confused about why an oral surgeon isn’t licensed to administer general anesthesia. How ridiculous is that? When they became oral surgeons, weren’t they anticipating patients who might actually need general anesthesia? Well in the case of Meg’s oral surgeon this seems to be the case.

I guess it was my fault because I found this oral surgeon who is located 30 miles from our home. Silly me, I should’ve searched for oral surgeons 50 miles away to give me more options. That’s what I did today. I found an oral surgeon who is a participating dentist AND he’s licensed to administer general anesthesia. The only problem …. he’s almost 50 miles away.

Just another thing I miss about being back home.

We had snow today. Not enough to require those huge snow plows to plow our streets but just enough for me to get as excited as a kid in a candy store. Although I am deathly afraid of driving on the icy roads, I love looking at fresh snow covering the roof of houses and clinging to tree branches.

My brother was over today and we were outside smoking (errr) just outside (in case Lika is reading this) and I gathered some of the snow from the deck and made a snowball. It wasn’t a big one, in fact it was kinda pathetic looking but a snowball nonetheless. I gave my brother an evil chortle and before he could stutter the word “NO” …. swoosh, right on the back of his head. Lucky for him I didn’t pack the snow until it was hard. Actually, I think he might’ve tackled me by reflex alone despite his right side being paralyzed.

Meg was off today so she went apartment hunting with her friend. They found one that’s in town and just a few blocks from my brother’s apartment. This is a very small town so we’re all just blocks away from each other. Anyway, she called to tell me not to cook dinner because she was going to cook for all of us. I suppose she wanted to impress her new roommate. I never turn down an offer from anyone who wants to cook any meal for us. Anyway, her “meal” (if that’s what you wanna call it) was cheeseburgers. I was like … “This is it?”

Hubby’s a good sport, he actually ate his burgers even though she burned the buns. She invited another friend (who works in the mess hall) and he told Meg no one can mess up a burger. Boy did she prove him wrong. Not five minutes after he said that, the kitchen was smoking because she burned another hamburger bun. I swear the man she eventually marries had better have an iron stomach. She insists the man she will eventually marry will know how to cook because she’s not doing it. Her future roommate already decided she’ll be doing all the cooking and she’s banning Meg from the kitchen. That’s one smart cookie!