mudslides, sink holes and christmas decorations

** This post was written a week or so ago when I was having problems getting pictures to post on the blog...so just pretend for a second that it's the beginning of December for a second - hey more shopping days! yahoo! just kidding, that's not real, this is just pretend.**


We have had so much rain in the past week that I think the entire contents of the Pacific Ocean have been dumped on our heads. Literally.

No, not literally.
I rarely step outside, therefore MY head is not wet.

The good news is that most of the mudslides haven't affected anyone other than the shoulders of the road have some heaping piles of dirt now.  The sink holes, on the other hand, are something else. We've had a few nearby but haven't affected us ~ thankfully ~ because those people that have the sink hole right in front of their houses, can't use their toilets. ew. (On a side note the sink hole was said to be caused by debris in the creek - a dresser and the kitchen sink were pulled out of the creek.  I laughed so hard at the news person for showing us the kitchen sink. This is one of those instances where you can't say that everything was in the creek except for the kitchen sink.)

Back to the good news.

The good news is that when it rains 10 inches in 3 and a half days, you don't want to go outside (well we were the crazy people to go to Costco in the middle of that, but sometimes we just love to live on the edge, and we also were in dire need of toilet paper ~ that, my friends is living on the edge times two.)  Enough of the toilet talk...let's look at the Christmas decorations.  Feel free to sing your most favorite Christmas Carol right now... (or join with me - right now I'm listening to Sarah MacLachlan's song the River, not one of the traditional tunes, but still a good one.)

[1st Christmas with stockings!] 

via The Company Store - who was so thoughtful they called to make sure I spelled my name right and then told me to tell my parents that they are very creative. Gotta love a Midwestern company and their kindness!

[her perch] 

[this picture was taken just after she attempted to unwrap one of Mike's gifts.  Apparently someone really is excited for Christmas to come!] 

Anywho, our Christmas decorations are up.  Our entire apartment is decorated, and we are ready for Santa.  I have also made it my mission to watch every possible Christmas movie I can get my hands on. God bless ABC Family for giving me my fix of Home Alone and The Polar Express.  Netflix has also helped out with The Nutcracker and currently we have Miracle on 34th Street.  (You might think I watch a lot of tv.  But please reread the paragraph above.  We are in a never ending monsoon.  I am not going outside, non-negotiable.)