Relaxed!

My Thanksgiving break is winding down. It seems like we have been off forever! I am not complaining, but I am ready to get back into my work routine. It has been a very productive break. I got a lot of things done that were lingering over my head and stressing me out. I got my room completely cleaned and moved around. The four laundry baskets that were hanging out in there, got put away. All of my summer/spring clothes are put in tubs and in the attic. I think I am just about caught up on all the laundry that seemed to accumulate the past week. I forgot how much more it seems we have with our sweatshirts, pants, and sweaters.

My Dad came out yesterday and took care of my leaves. I stayed in and got my Christmas stuff down. The boys and I hung the tree yesterday afternoon. I decided to keep my Christmas decorations to a minimum. I thought of how pretty everything looked and then got kinda of sad realizing that AJ won't be here to see everything. He did call when we were hanging the tree. He got to hear the kids laugh and... fight.=) Brady kept hanging everything in one spot and kept taking all of the bells off of the tree that I would put on. At one point he was swinging my crystal bell around the living room. Ugh.. thought he outgrew that last year.

I did not venture out to shop this weekend. I have become a holiday online shopper. It is so much easier with the kids and I don't have to hunt someone down to watch them if I want to fight the crowds. I just like that I can compare prices and read reviews all while sitting in bed! I decided to buy a lot of things from Walmart, and then they ship everything to my store for pick up. We will see how that works out. I just couldn't see paying the extra 30.00 for shipping when I could just swing by and get what I purchased. I think I am just about done shopping!!! I got AJ a few things and just had them directly sent to him. We will see how that turns out.

AJ said his Thanksgiving was pretty good. He got to have dinner with his platoon. He said that the Commandant of the Marine Corps was there the other day. He said he got to ask a question. He is about at his point to re-enlist and there is no sign on bonuses for reservists. There is a ton of money for active duty to reenlist with added incentives as choosing duty station, etc. He asked him why there was no bonuses and how are they going to keep their senior staff in the Marine Corps. At this rate, the Marine Corps is going to loose a lot of their experienced Marines. He says it is not about the money.. but it always is nice. Afterwards, the Sgt. Major came over and gave them his card. He said they are working on this issue, and that they should give him a call next week in D.C. I was proud of him! I know after hearing of the 40,000 sign on bonuses the active duty were getting, that made him think twice about switching to active duty. But, I am convinced he will be happy with his one weekend a month gig when he gets back. We will see.

Well, my boys are up and I am going to try to sleep a bit longer. Also, if your reading this blog.. don't forget to leave me a comment. I sometimes feel like I am writing for myself. Which isn't a bad thing... a great stress reliever, but it is always nice to know who is staying in the loop!