The Year in Review:
All the best for 2007, internets! You all rock!
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If you want to rate this site on IrishBlogs click here ->
. You'll also see it on some of my other sites above ~ please feel free to rate them as well, whether you like them or not :-)
Thanks, lads!
Christmas Traditions Meme
If you're looking for Saturday Photo Hunt, please go to me Photoblog "ICL is at Home"
Stolen from Tug, she lives in HELL. No really she does. But it's uber cool there. She gets to say "when Hell freezes over" alot.
Where do you spend the Christmas holiday?
We usually spend every third Christmas away at our in-laws, otherwise we stay at home. We have spent a few Christmases in Florida with my parents as well, but sadly those days are gone.
Do your kids write letters to Santa?
Not anymore. My daughter works for a company affiliated with the post office and has written letters from Santa back to kids.
Do you hang mistletoe?
I hang MistleToad. No really, I have a frog called MistleToad which I hang.
Do you leave cookies and milk for Santa?
Yes. Sadly, this Christmas was the first that we have not. Things were kinda mixed up with being out of town. We didn't even stuff the kids stockings.
Do you open your gifts Christmas Eve or Christmas morning?
Morning, though hubby's family used to open them after midnight mass. I think that is more the tradition in the French Canadian families.
When do you put the gifts under your tree?
Family gifts go under the tree as soon as they are wrapped. Santa gifts go on the fireplace with the stockings placed on top of them.
Do you hang and stuff stockings?
Yuppers.
Do you leave the lights on your tree on overnight?
Usually, especially the first few days before and after Christmas.
Do you take turns opening gifts, or is it a free for all?
We try to take turns.
What is your traditional Christmas meal?
Turkey, rice stuffing, mashed potatoes, vegetables (usually broccoli, maybe beans, yams), trifle for dessert (my Mum used to make plum pudding with brandy butter)
Do you buy or make gifts for your pets?
Always buy gifts, even if it's only a can of tuna.
Do you have any other Christmas traditions?
Christmas morning, the kids wake us up with a big "Merry Christmas" to go and see what Santa brought, however, they're not allowed to wake us until 7 a.m. This was instituted when they were younger and they seem to follow it still today, even if the girls do need to drag their brother upstairs as part of the tradition. We usually buy the Christmas Crackers with the hats and prizes and wear these as part of the Christmas meal. This is something that my husband's family does not do. I think it's more of a British thing rather than a French thing.
If you celebrate a winter holiday other than Christmas, what are some of your customs and traditions?
Irish Church Lady , ICL
Christmas 2006 ~ Happy Holidaze
Hi Ho ... Happy Holidaze ... I'm back
I hope everyone had a great Christmas!
Just got back from my in-laws where we spent 5 days for Christmas. Here's a selection of shots. We were able to bring my FIL out of the nursing home for Christmas Day and Boxing Day for a few hours. I think he really enjoyed it. It was busy and hectic but a good time was had by all.
The kids enjoyed spoiling their Grandpa and giving him lots of love and kisses. I think he really enjoyed that too. Here's a mosaic of shots taken at the nursing home.
Oh yeah, and we were able to bring the doggies into the nursing home which was great fun for them and the residents. They were a big hit! I call them my therapy dogs now.
Today is recharge and veg out day to rest up from our trip and to psych myself up for a bunch of stuff I want to get done at home for the rest of the holidaze. I won't be blogging much so that I can focus on the task at hand.
Have a great rest of the week!!
The Reason for the Season
My Christmas wish
is that you experience
the peace and joy
in a different way
than you've ever felt before
this Christmas.
Hear ye Hear ye
Things to Do:
- Go here to fill ICL's stocking. I don't want much, but see if you can guess what I'd really like.
- Have a great Christmas Holiday, Internets!!!!
Hear Ye, Hear Ye!
I'm just startin' 3 weeks of holidays! Wooty Woot Woot!
Doin' the reindeer dance!
All the prezzies are now bought!
Saturday Photo Hunt - Lines
This weeks theme is
Lines
Photo Theme. Join the blogroll. Grab the Scavenger Hunt code.
~Brought to us by TNChick ~
3 days to go ...
Sorry I haven't been around visiting much internets. 'Santa's' been busy, plus she's been going to a lot of parties.
Here's her list of Christmas Things to Do, better check it twice.
- Start shopping ~ check
- Have Dad over for dinner ~ check
- More shopping ~ check
- Werk Management Dinner ~ check
- Finish shopping ~ checky, check, check~!
- Werk Department Luncheon ~ check
- Start wrapping ~ check
- Dinner & comedy club with family & local cousins ~ check
- Finish wrapping
- Sit and enjoy our Christmas tree
Don't forget I have laundry and housework interspersed amongst that stuff too so give a girl Santa a break mmmm'kay?
I would love to try to catch up on some this morning with me coffee.
The shopping malls were actually not too bad. I never had to line up for a long time at all to pay for my purchases. All the Christmas decorations were 50% off. I got some cool bells for great prices for decorating my relatives gifts with. (Me daughter's Martha Stewart tendencies influencing me there a bit!)
I also treated myself to a little white Christmas tree for my living room, which I have adorned with all pink ornaments. I will take a picture once I have finished decorating it. I still have some more to put on that I picked up yesterday.
OK my coffee has now arrived at my bedside (I am a spoiled girl, I know). So off I go a visitin'!
Toodles~
Irish Church Lady (ICL)
Thursday Thirteen
Get the T13 code or view other thursday thirteen players
Week #72 my 25th TT
Adages I can Relate To
- Time flies when you're having fun ~ Time also flies when you're busy and not having so much fun doing cleaning and shopping and wrapping.
- It ain't over until the fat lady sings ~ Christmas will be over on Dec 25th whether I'm ready or not. This is a comforting thought. After the 25th I don't need to do any more preparation ~ no more shopping, wrapping, baking (although I did none this year). Just get to lay around and eat after that.
- Money doesn't grow on trees ~ nor does it grow in my bank account at this time of year. It shrinks ... rapidly. Actually it kinda disappears. I hope it shows up again.
- I breathe, therefore I am ~ breathe deep, you'll get there.
- Early to bed and early to rise, makes a man healthy and wealthy and wise. ~ What about a woman? 'Cause I've been staying up really late, at least later than usual for me, this week because I am off work and because my son is home from school so it's stay up and blab time. Kinda fun but I'm in a little bit of a fog the next day.
- If it's worth doing, it's worth doing well ~ yes, I cleaned my kitchen from top to bottom, totally decluttered the countertops and it looks and feels so much better. I'm motivated to try and keep it up now. I relegated my canisters to the pantry. Maybe not as convenient but worth my piece of mind to have a kitchen that makes me feel better about it.
- Laughter is the best medicine ~ I've had some good laughs with my family this week and have been able to spend some good quality time blogging which has brought me lots of smiles, laughs and giggles.
- It's nicer to give than to receive ~ I was kind of dreading doing my shopping this week because I had left it all until now when I had some time off. I was worried about scarce stock, no ideas, no money. I've actually made out pretty well and have enjoyed it.
- Better safe than sorry ~ when you see something you really like for a Christmas gift for someone, buy it. Don't wait to look around some more and then go back the next day 'cause it may be gone :(
- Whistle while you work ~ or play nice Christmas music. It makes it more enjoyable, lifts your spirit and has you signing in no time.
- Penny for your thoughts ~ I heard that found penny's are thoughts from well wishers who have passed on. As I've been going about my business, I feel like my Mum is with me. Little things I see and find remind me of her, almost as if she is pushing them out front to my attention. This makes me feel good.
- Things aren't always as they appear or Looks can be deceiving ~ sometimes you see people who on the exterior look like they have everything going for them and have it so much better than you do. Look again.
- Make hay while the sun shines ~ when you are able to do things because you are healthy, rested, resourceful or reflective, take advantage of that and get things done so that when things are maybe not quite going your way, it won't matter that much if you miss a few beats.
Thanks for reading my Thirteen Adages I've recently lived through again or had reinforced.
Next week: Thirteen Things about Pool Boy
A-Z of me
Got this from Carol at The Turning Point. She's got a Virtual Holiday Cookie Scrap ... ah, er ... I mean Swap * goin' on at her place. Join in!
A - Available/Single? ~ Married to Pool Boy for 17 Years but I'm available ha ha. Pass the yogurt please.
B - Best Friend? ~ Piano Gurl, my BF since I was 4. Also my running partner (I haven't run since last Thursday ... boy is she going to whip my a$$ by the time Jan 8 rolls around!!)
C - Cake or Pie? ~ Let me eat Cake.
D - Drink Of Choice? ~ pass the caffeine please, Coffee!!! (followed by white wine, then Ricker's Red Beer, milk, Guinness)
E - Essential Item You Use Everyday? ~ toilet paper ~ I'd be lost without it.
F - Favorite Color? ~ mostly all ~ I'm a colour geek!!
G - Gummy Bears Or Worms? ~ Worms ~ you tend to be able to get them in the sour version which I like
H - Hometown? ~ That's rather personal isn't it? Okay I'll give you the airport code: YOW
I - Indulgence? ~ chocolate, boring. Something different, scallops or mussels.
J - January Or February? ~ February because it has Valentines Day and it's closer to the end of winter.
K - Kids & Their Names? ~ read "It's Time to Name the Kids"
L - Life Is Incomplete Without? ~ a soul
M - Marriage Date? ~ August 5
N- Number Of Siblings? ~ Tree *speaking in me Irish accent here*
O - Oranges Or Apples? ~ Apples, though me Mum loved oranges.
P - Phobias/Fears? ~ Big Fish
Q - Favorite Quote? ~ "You have to eat .6 kg of dirt before you die" by Irish Church Lady, not sure where the original saying came from "You have to eat a pound of dirt before you die".
R - Reason to Smile? ~ you don't need a reasonS - Season? ~ all of them on good weather daze!
T - Tag People: ~ ooouu, my precious, whom shall I tag?
U - Unknown Fact About Me? ~ that's really difficult because I'm such an open book on this blog. I'm not fussy about cabbage rolls. There!
V - Vegetable you don’t like? ~ oops, should have saved the last one for this. But I do like coleslaw....hmmmm....maybe parsnips but I do like all vegetables that I can think of right now.
W - Worst Habit? ~ Blogging, I fear. It consumes too much of my time that I probably should be using more productively.
X - X-rays You’ve Had? ~ back, teeth ... I think that's about it.
Y - Your Favorite Food? ~ Indian or Mexican or anything with some spice!
Z - Zodiac Sign? ~ Libra - I need to be balanced, when I'm off kilter I suck.
Oh and apparently I've done something like this before although I've slept since then.
Irish Church Lady , ICL , Irish
You Tubesday ~ fa la la la la
Stacie hosts You Tubesday were you post a video on your blog. She had trouble getting hers to load today but there's a few more linked on her site. Check 'em out. Here's mine. I would like to point out that it is my son's music playing starting partway through the video.
Sign me,
Proud Mama
Irish Church Lady
ICL
Irish
Still giggling ...
Found at Fleur de Lisa's
Dashing through the snow,
In an one-horse open sleigh,
O'er the ICL we go,
Laughing all the way.
Jingle Bells
from the Christmas Song Generator.
I'm still giggling. I think if I drink all the Tullamore Dew whiskey that Lifecruiser left in my stocking then this song will be very appropriate!!
How oft at Christmas-tide the sight
Of green Irish Church Lady gives us delight.
O Christmas Tree
from the Christmas Song Generator.
Bring me flesh, and bring me Irish,
Bring me pine logs hither.
Good King Wenceslas
from the Christmas Song Generator.
WHAT a HOOT!
My Elf Name ...
...is Cheerful Bubba Louie but according to Blogthings it is Trixie Helper. I think Trixie Helper is my third alter ego since she is always so helpful trying to add to my blog content.
| Your Elf Name Is... |
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Hey, what's up with Blogrolling? Is your's working. Mine's not ~ either that or no one is posting or pinging. Help a girl out. Tell me I'm not crazy.
Irish Church Lady , ICL
Blogging Survey Results
So here's the summarized results from my FREE !! blogging survey about blogging. Very interestink! You will be subjected to my interpretive analysis of course, through my commentary.
Frequency
Blog Update Frequency – How often do you post on your blog?
40% of the responders post mostly daily, and another 22% post daily for sure. WOW! I'm impressed! That's a lot of posting and a lot of reading to do. You guys sure aren't helping me on my blogging time management, ... yet.
Prime drivers for blogging
What are your main reasons for blogging? Please rank in order of priority.
64% chose personal journal as their prime reason for blogging and 34% picked creative writing / humour. Those two are the very clear top reasons of why people blog for those that completed my survey. I guess birds of a feather, do flock together. ha!
Second most popular reasons for blogging were photo sharing @ 29% and 'cheaper than therapy' @ 28%. OK this is very compelling data to support my thesis that many bloggers suffer from some sort of depression. Or maybe that was just me that day.
The only other stats worthy of note (>=25%) are:
- 37% of my readers do not blog for cause awareness. We know someone else out there is doing this for us.
- 25% do not blog to share information with family and friends. No no no, we can't have that. We want to be anonymouse except with our blogger friends. (Picture of anony-mouse at right) -->
- 28% are dorks and don't know why they are on this planet ... ah, er... I mean ... why they blog.
WOW! and knock my sox off! 82% said they like to read and write their blogs both equally. Oh ya and 13% were honest enough to tell us that they prefer to just write on their blogs. I guess they figure if they didn't visit others, they would never get any readers / comments back. Ya think?
2% divulged that they prefer to just read blogs. Those are the lurkers. Not ready to share their story (yet), or maybe never will but like living vicariously through the rest of us nutcases who blab our entire life history, sexual history, memories, faux pas, wishes, wants, tragedies, pets, families, post every photo we've ever taken and think that we're creating a legacy for our children / pets / families in case we die tomorrow. Did I say that out loud? I think I may have just taken blabbing to a new level. Gimme five!
Blogroll Please
How often do you try to visit your regular reads?
42% try to visit their regulars daily with 37% every few days.
About 18% allow real life to get in the way of their blogging. Sheessh!!
How many blogs are on your posted personal blogroll?
Wide variety here. The top being 21% with more than 50. YIKES! 37% have between 10 and 30 on their blogroll. The rest are spread around but 12% don't have a blogroll, they just read blogs from their favourites. Whoa!
Once you add a blog to your blogroll do you feel compelled to visit them regularly?
38% said that they kinda do so they don't usually add them to their blogroll until they're sure they want to have them as a regular read.
24% said YUPPERS! No doubt about it.
14% said no they can do what they damn well please with their blog and visit who they damn well please when they want and how they want (if they want to be naked when they visit them then so be it!) ~ well that isn't exactly what they said but you get the picture.
12% said that they add and delete from their blogroll all the time (guilty here)
Do you have other blogs you visit that are not on your blogroll? Check all that apply
60% said they are still in the interview process with the blogs that they visit that are not on their blogroll. Ah hah! You didn't know there was an interview process to be added to a blogroll did you?
33% said they just lurk on some sites, so I guess that's why they don't want to add them to their blogroll. Must be P0rn sites. It's okay, I know my readers well. Your secret's safe with me.
12% said they don't have their personal real life friends / family sites on their blogroll. Yeah and why would they? Otherwise we'd all go and torture these people with our comments and they'd say "Who is this freakin' loser idiot?"
Comments, comments, who wants comments?
What is more important to you, quality or quantity of comments?
51% said quality of comments is very important to them. Oh baby... come to Mama! That's exactly how I feel. 28% said this was important. 7% said quality of comments was not important at all. Oh those must be the ones with advertising who just want volumes of comments. Evil ... pure evil, I say. Whoops, ... I think I just lost a few readers.
35% said comments in general are very important to them. 45% said they are important. Well heck, why not? 5% said comments are not at all important to them. Oh why can't I be like that, just blab for my own sheer enjoyment?
41% said lots of comments is my goal and 39% said this is not important to them at all. We have a dichotomy here folks. What's a dichotomy? It's a relative of an oxymoron.
This one really gets me. Neither quality nor quantity of comments matters to me ~ 52% said this was not important to them. Does this mean it is important to them (i.e. double negative) or it's not? I think I need to go back to survey writing school.
64% said leaving comments on other sites is important, and 23% said this is very important.
So the bottom line is most people must want comments or otherwise, why do they say it's important to leave comments on others sites. I'm a frackin' genius!
Are you a lurker?
77% said they generally comment at some point on sites they visit. Bravo! A bouquet of flowers for you!
Do you participate in the following blog site tools / traffic generators? Check all that apply
Quite frankly I missed some important tools in this question as my internets pointed out I missed Bloglines, Site Meter, RSS Read Feeder. Blogrolling was the most popular at 37% (BTW I just joined as my lead up to my 300th post). Blogexplosion 30% and Blogmad 7%.
OK, that was all so interesting and fun. BTW, I got 50 responses, so I think that makes it qualify for a highly scientific survey, don't you?
Thanks for taking the time to respond, internets. The survey will remain open here if someone new wants to take it just for the heck of it. (pssst....Tell your friends) Click here to take survey
Oh and BTW, if I haven't told you lately
Christmas Stocking
Fleur de Lisa is a little slow getting her Manic Monday post up this morning so I'm going to post something I've stolen from her blog. (I get a lot of my cool toys from Lisa!)
How well do you know me? Do you dare to add to my stocking what I really want for Christmas?
How well do you know me? Do you dare to add to my stocking what I really want for Christmas?
| Xmas Stocking | |||||||||
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SOS - Sunday Only Speak
UPDATED:
Today is the third Sunday of Advent. We light the pink candle of the advent wreath today.
Not sure why it's the pink one today, and not at the beginning or the end. Do you?
Found out at mass that the third Sunday is for JOY. Our preparations are mostly over and we look forward with JOY to the 'reason for the season'. I also thought the following was cute from the Homily:
J = Jesus ~ put Jesus first
O = Others ~put Others second
Y = Yourself ~ put Yourself Third
Got a busy day planned, mass then brunch with the girls, then long dog walk, then dinner and spending some time with my son who came home last night for a short Christmas break.
Tomorrow is a big house cleaning day, though I don't think I will get it all done in one day. Tuesday is shopping. Wednesday is hair appointment, party at night and more house cleaning or shopping during the day. Thursday is staff luncheon and maybe comedy club at night ~ I got 4 free tickets at our IT Christmas party. That is Nurse-a-baby's last day of exams so she wants to go out with her friends. I want to take Pool Boy, Mr. Philosopher and maybe DQ girl since Nurse-a-baby has other plans.
It's going to be a busy but fun week!
Have a good day internets! You rock~!
Irish Church Lady , ICL
Saturday Photo Hunt - Annoying
This weeks theme is
Annoying
Photo Theme. Join the blogroll. Grab the Scavenger Hunt code.
~Brought to us by TNChick ~
How could this beautiful creature turn into something that is so much of a nuisance?
Like this?
Irish Church Lady
ICL
Like this?
Irish Church Lady
ICL
For Lifecruisers Crack me Up Party
I've got some jokes for y'all:
The Silent Treatment
A man and his wife were having some problems at home and were giving each other the silent treatment. Suddenly, the man realized that the next day, he would need his wife to wake him at 5:00 AM for an early morning business flight. Not wanting to be the first to break the silence (and LOSE), he wrote on a piece of paper, "Please wake me at 5:00 AM ". He left it where he knew she would find it.
The next morning, the man woke up, only to discover it was 9:00 AM and he had missed his flight. Furious, he was about to go and see why his wife hadn't wakened him, when he noticed a piece of paper by the bed.
The paper said, "It is 5:00 AM. Wake up."
Men are not equipped for these kinds of contests.
WIFE VS. HUSBAND
A couple drove down a country road for several miles, not saying a word.
An earlier discussion had led to an argument and neither of them wanted to concede their position.
As they passed a barnyard of mules, goats, and pigs, the husband asked sarcastically, "Relatives of yours?"
"Yep," the wife replied , "in-laws"
WOMEN'S REVENGE
"Cash, cheque or charge?" I asked, after folding items the woman wished to purchase.
As she fumbled for her wallet I noticed a remote control for a television in her purse.
"So, do you always carry your TV remote?" I asked.
"No," she replied, " but my husband refused to come shopping with me, and I figured this was the most evil thing I could do to him legally."
UNDERSTANDING WOMEN
(A MAN'S PERSPECTIVE)
I know I'm not going to understand women.
I'll never understand how you can take boiling hot wax, pour it onto your upper thigh, rip the hair out by the root, and still be afraid of a spider.
W O R D S
A husband read an article to his wife about how many words women use a day...30,000 to a man's 15,000.
The wife replied, "The reason has to be because we have to repeat everything to men..."
The husband then turned to his wife and asked, "What?"
CREATION
A man said t o his wife one day, "I don't know how you can be so stupid and so beautiful all at the same time."
The wife responded, "Allow me to explain. God made me beautiful so you would be attracted to me; God made me stupid so I would be attracted to you!"
WHO DOES WHAT
A man and his wife were having an argument about who should brew the coffee each morning.
The wife said, "You should do it, because you get up first, and then we don't have to wait as long to get our coffee."
The husband said, " You are in charge of cooking around here and you should do it, because that is your job, and I can just wait for my coffee."
Wife replies, "No, you should do it, and besides, it is in the Bible that the man should do the coffee."
Husband replies, "I can't believe that, show me."
So she fetched the Bible, and opened the New Testament and showed him at the top of several pages, that it indeed says.........."HEBREWS"
God may have created man before woman, but there is always a rough draft before the masterpiece.
Go visit LC's Crack me Up Party~ lots of fun ~ mmmmm'kayy?
Oh and don't forget to vote before midnight for The 2006 WebBlog Awards ~ Click here and vote for Lifecruiser as best diarist, or verbal diarrhea-ist.
Click here to vote for Steven Novak of My Brain Hates me but I Hate it More for best Humour Blog
Lastly ~ vote for my Christmas Tree over at Island Life if you feel so compelled. Today's the last day. You have to vote by leaving a comment. Thankee thankee!
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