Friday, December 21, 2007

Holiday progress update...

I was reading over my last few blog posts earlier and so of course I came across my post from December 6th which included my list of things I wanted to get accomplished before Christmas. In reading over them, I decided I needed to update my blog to show which I've completed.

1. Bake some homemade cinnamon rolls. CHECK! Did this yesterday w/my mom and sister.

2. Finish making my Christmas cards. 1/2 CHECK! I've got them all made, I just have to get them mailed out.

3. Make some chocolate covered pretzels. CHECK! Made these yesterday also while my mom and sister were here.

4. Make my cutesie little Christmasy craft thingymajigga. CHECK! Totally cute! TOO!! I'll add a pic of it later.

5. Ward Christmas party. (tomorrow night) CHECK!

6. My families annual gingerbread house making party. (the 16th) CHECK! The kids had lots of fun and the food was good. I'll add pics of this later also...I think I got some.

7. Other holiday baking...making up cookie dough to freeze for later. CHECK! Yesterday! Although my sister actually made the dough.

8. Watch every Christmas movie that we own. Sorta CHECK! I mostly just get bits and pieces of them while I'm busily doing my other holiday stuff.

9. Drive around to look at Christmas lights on houses. CHECK! Although we didn't see anything super fabulous. Last year we drove by a house that had someone dressed as Santa, sitting in the upstairs window waving to passers by.

10. Go see the lights at the Temple. Not done. We might toss this in on Sunday night..."might" being very emphasized there.

11. Go Christmas caroling. ...like I said before-----><---this doesn't usually happen, but it's something that I always loved doing as a kid and keep the hope that someday it will be done again.

12. Get all the presents wrapped before Christmas Eve. The only things that are currently wrapped right now, are the kid's Pollyanna gifts to each other and the gifts Josiah's mom sent us. I fear we will be up all night Christmas Eve, wrapping!

13. Go to IHOP for breakfast on Christmas Eve and then to see a movie. Still on the "to do" list, at the top, in permanent marker!

14. Go get some GOOD Hot Chocolate. We went but I can't really check it because the hot chocolate was not exactly hot chocolate, and it tasted awful! (pull up a chair and some popcorn...) So Josiah had a Starbucks gift card that he'd gotten from work. We don't drink coffee, so when he brought it home, he asked if I thought he should give it to his friend at work. At first I said "sure" but then in my all willingness to save a dime thought, ....wait, I bet they sell hot chocolate! And since this was on our "to do" list, why not get it from there? So before going, I went to their website to check first that they don't put anything coffee-ish in their hot chocolate. I found that they use Mocha Syrup, which I wasn't positive what that was, but always assumed it was coffee related. Well, I figured if nothing else, maybe they'd be able to just leave that out of the mixture. So we head over. Before ordering, I of course ask, "do you guys put coffee in your hot chocolate?" The guy simply says "no." So I proceed to tell him that I saw on their website that it had this "mocha syrup" in it and wanted to verify that it wasn't coffee. He says, "no, it's a chocolate flavoring." So I reply with "oh, ok, we don't drink coffee, so I don't really know these things, and just always assumed that mocha was coffee." Him..."Well if you'd like I can just put vanilla syrup and steamed milk, to be on the safe side..." Me..."Oh, sure, that sounds good." ....Of course I figured he meant he'd replace the mocha syrup w/the vanilla syrup and steamed milk, to give it a creamy taste....not at all what he meant. I think he literally gave us "vanilla syrup and steamed milk"....by themselves. There was no hint of chocolate anywhere in it. It was definitely hot though. It seriously tasted like watered down hot milk. Totally gross. We had sat down inside before tasting it and thought that maybe we could drink a little bit of it. The kids started whining about how gross it was. We left, tossing our cups in the garbage outside, to avoid insulting anyone. Fortunately it was free. In hindsight, I should have gone back to the guy at the counter and just explained that this wasn't anything like what we were expecting and was there anyway he could fix us some hot chocolate without mocha?...but alas, I didn't. I know for next time. But next time, we'll go to the coffee bean where we know their hot chocolate is legit....although, now that I think about it....I've never looked up their ingredients....hmmmmmm

6 comments:

YogaNana said...

Online Dictionary:

2. mocha - a flavoring made from coffee mixed with chocolate

You -- 1
Kid at Starbucks -- 0

:o)

YogaNana said...

Also --- what in the world was he *thinking*?

Vanilla and steamed milk?

YogaNana said...

Wait, one more:

Comment on your Santa in the window thing. Once, many years ago, we were coming home from Christmas Eve someplace, probably Gloria's (Josiah's grandmother), and it was about 8 o'clock and all we wanted was for the kids to go quietly and soundly to bed so Santa could come, you know. Doubted it would happen, because it never had so far.

So we're almost home, on the edge of our little town, Merchantville, NJ, which was full of Victorian houses and really very very cute and quaint, and we're stopped at a stop sign or a stop light or something, station wagon full of kids, and we noticed a life-sized Santa standing in the bay window of the house there on the corner, apparently decorating the Christmas tree.

All the kids were young, I think Hannah was about three and Abby a toddler, so Josiah would have been about 7 1/2. Noah on the way, Micah 4 1/2, Amanda 6, Ethan 9, Jenna 10. Something like that. Young enough for this to work, anyhow.

One of them gasped, "Oh, my gosh, there he IS!!! He's already in Merchantville!" And because of course Santa will not come until all the children are in bed, we had kids almost in tears begging their father to drive faster, drive faster! We were blocks from home, and when the car stopped the kids poured out of it, trampled each other getting up the stairs and into their jammies, rushing prayer, skipping stories ... they were back up the stairs and there was not one peep out of anyone.

It was spectacular. :o)

The Santa was mechanical and just stood there with his arm out moving toward and away from the tree. But when you're little and it's Christmas Eve ...

Hannah said...

Oh my gosh MOM!! I was JUST thinking about this!!! It's one of my best Christmas memories. Although, I guess I had it a little mixed up. All these years I remembered it as Santa was in a car next to us and we were freaking out. I definitely remember being really worried though but also excited that I saw the real Santa.

I also remember playing with a clock puzzle that night in my bed.

Crazymamaof6 said...

wow! i would have gone for the powdered version of hot chocolate there which is just cocoa mix. next time get it and make it at home.

my friend Cara went to the temple lights at 4:30 this year and said it was heavenly! just a tip.

fun lights! we saw some in mesa off of Adobe between Val vista and Lindsey. They had probably 20 light up things on their roof! inflatables too. plus other lights! if you like tacky (i totally do) you would love this. I'm gonna drive by take and post pictures and an address for map quest tonight. i forgot to until now but we've driven by 3 times already. love it!

Jenna said...

How come I was the oldest and I have no memory of this????

I fear because I already knew about Santa. What a jip.