Politically Correct Christmas Song

No Subtle Hints!!

Cartoon from Facebook, by Todd Wilson, The Family Man

A public service announcement, edited and reprinted from October 2010:

Yes, it is that time of year again.  If you have any hope of getting something besides nail polish remover from the drugstore for Christmas, you've started dropping the hints!

You know the game.  You are almost out of your favorite (rather expensive) perfume.  So you say - in plain hearing of your husband, during the commercial of a football game - "Darn!  I'm almost out of my favorite perfume!"  You will comment on the shortage several times between now and Christmas.  "Oh, honey, sorry I don't have any perfume on tonight.  I completely ran out!  But I guess I won't buy myself any this close to Christmas.  We have gifts to get for other people."  And so it goes, until Christmas Eve.  Christmas morning, your husband hands you a nice little package with a big cat-that-swallowed-the-canary grin on his face.  You tear it open, ready to put on your new perfume, and it is - a purse-size tool kit for you to keep in your car.  Or nail polish remover.  Or a new drill.  "Oh, sorry, honey," he says.  "You don't think you'll use the drill much?  Well, I can keep it out at my workbench for you!"

You probably wanted something besides perfume for Christmas, but if you're married, you've probably played the game.  And you had the same thought:  "I practically hit him over the head with a 2 x 4, and he didn't get it at all!"

So if you are married, or engaged, or think you may ever get married or have any kind of a relationship with a man in the future, let me share a lesson with you that I learned from my good friend Pam in the earlier days of my marriage.  "Oh, I'm so excited!"  she exclaimed.  "Marvin is taking me on a real date tonight!  We are going to dinner at my favorite restaurant, and he made the reservations and arranged for the babysitter and everything!  I wonder what made him think of being so sweet?"  After a pause, she continued.  "Oh, it was probably when I said, 'Marvin, I need you to take me on a real date this week.  I need you to make the reservations at my favorite restaurant and arrange for the babysitter.  I need you to treat me like I'm special!'"  Marvin took the hint!

Yes, ladies, we often have to completely spell it out for them.  It's not because they are slow, or stupid, or they don't care.  It's just because men and women are different.  You know that.  You've heard it a million times before.  My husband will not remember anything I tell him during a football game.  When I think I am heavily hinting that I want a particular thing, he thinks I am mentioning something I saw in the store in passing.  Like, "Honey, I bought milk today, and I thought maybe I should get some chicken because the freezer is running low."  And he says, "Oh, OK."  My husband is actually wonderful about picking nice gifts, but alas, he cannot read my mind.

So I pledged that although I love perfect surprises, I will not expect my husband to read my mind.  I will not get upset when he buys a perfectly good birthday gift but forgets to get me a card, even though he knows I scrapbook and I love birthday cards to put in my scrapbooks.  I will not get upset when he goes shopping Christmas week or the night before my birthday because he forgot earlier.  And I will not leave "subtle hints."  When I want something, I will leave great big, screaming-billboard, colossal hints.  Several years ago I wanted a die-cutter for Christmas.  It was on sale at a local store.  So I cut out the coupon, cut out the ad, and put them on my husband's desk, saying, "If you are looking for a nice Christmas gift, here's one at this store.  Here is a coupon for it, and it is on sale until Friday."  Imagine my surprise when I unwrapped the die-cutter Christmas morning!

It was a surprise.  You see, I still wasn't sure he would pick up on my hint.  I might have been too subtle.

So girls, do your hubbies a favor this Christmas.  Don't make them play a guessing game.  If you'd like a little surprise, make a list of about 5 different things that you want, and he can pick one.  Make it easy for him.  You'll be happier, and he'll love you for not putting the stress of staying out of the doghouse on him.

Merry Christmas!!

Life-Saver Men Craft

Looking for some fun gift ideas for your kids to make and give to their friends?  One of the most popular crafts I've had on my blog was the life-saver men tree ornaments.  It's been five years since I posted it, so here it is again:

1) To make each set of arms and legs, wind about 20 lengths of red or green yarn length-wise around a six-inch ruler.  

2) Slide the yarn off the ruler, tie shorter pieces of yarn around each bunch near each end, and cut the ends so that all of the yarn ends are loose.  

3) Cut one long piece of yarn for each life-saver man and tie one end of it around the middle of the leg piece, forming two legs.

4) Thread the long piece of yarn on a long needle and push it through the center of the life-saver candy roll.  We used the large life-saver candy rolls, so we actually had to tie the yarn around a crochet hook or knitting needle to get it all the way through.

5) Tie the long piece of yarn around the middle of the arm piece, forming two arms.

6) Thread the long piece of yarn on a long needle again and push it through the center of the styrofoam ball for the head.  For this one, we used a plastic kiddie-needle for plastic canvas.  It was long enough to go all the way through and had enough of a point to go through the styrofoam.

7) Keep the long piece of yarn on the needle and push it through the center of a small shape cut from cardstock or felt for the hat.

8) Tie a loop for hanging in the top of the long piece of yarn.

9) Use markers to draw a happy face on your life-saver man!

Happy Crafting and Merry Christmas!

Kindle Freebies

A few minutes ago I posted some digital scrapbook freebies.  Here are some Kindle freebies, for those who prefer reading over scrapbooking!

Happy Reading and Merry Christmas!

Share the Memories Freebies!

I just love Christmas freebies!

Here are two new freebies from My Memories.  Click on the images to be taken to the downloads:

USE THIS CODE: STMMMS79285

 

to get $10 off the NEW My Memories Suite 7 Software! (in the US and Canada)

Merry Christmas and Happy Scrapping!

Pearl Harbor Attack

Seventy-four years ago today, the unthinkable happened.  The U.S. was bombed on her own soil by the Japanese.  This changed the world for that generation in a way that my generation could not understand until it happened to us on 9/11/2001.

The next day, December 8, 1941, the United States entered World War II.  

Also on December 8, 1941, my dad was born.  My grandmother always claimed that the stress of that news and the country entering the war caused her to go into labor early.  My daughter, born shortly after 9/11, shares that distinction with her granddad.  

See the Actual Telegram That First Spread the Word About Pearl Harbor

Click on image to see the article.

We teach our children our history in the hopes we will not repeat it, and so that if we do, they may draw strength and wisdom from the way their ancestors handled situations; 

or sometimes, to learn not to do what their ancestors did.

Christmas Photo 2015

The annual Christmas card photo got a little out of hand this year. . .

Merry Christmas!!!