Getting to Work

I dropped all the Thanksgiving things off to the kids yesterday -- glad to have that finished.  

Made a quick stop at the grocery store on the way home for some random things.  I was out of baking soda of all things (!!)  Grabbed some honeycrisp apples to make apple sauce (again).  I only make apple sauce when the honeycrisp are in season.  They don't need sugar -- cook down with water, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice and salt.  Blend until it's as smooth as you want.  This time I left it a little chunky.  Good stuff.

I'll do the Thanksgiving shopping on Monday afternoon or Tuesday morning.  No rush.  All basic stuff for cranberry sauce, mac & cheese and stuffing. 

Last evening I renewed the CE credit courses so I can do the 30 hours I need to renew my license.  Time to get to work today and start.  Once I start, I get going ... but that first one takes some motivation.  My license expires at the end of January and I usual wait until after the holidays to do it.  This year I want to get it off my plate early.

I also have to wrap a Christmas box for my bestie.  We still exchange Christmas stuff and I'm going to tell her this is our last year (I'll wait until next year to say something).  Her birthday is the end of September and to turn around and gift again for Christmas is hard.  We have different tastes now and I think both of us end up donating half the gifts.  She likes lots of little things so that's what we do.  I prefer one bigger gift -- but that's NOT what we do.  (Quality vs quantity thing.)  Time for me to speak up.  Frankly, I get a lot of little bits of junk that go straight to donation. I'm mailing her box early because I got a dog advent calendar so she needs to have that by December.

I'm noticing how often I take second fiddle or bend to what other people want.  I want one gift in our Christmas box so she should send me one larger gift.  She wants lots of little things so I should do that (which is what we do).  I suggested that Christmas be one bigger gift and she said no because she likes to open lots of little things.  Why did I agree to that?  Why is Christmas HER decision only?  Why doesn't she give me what I want (she said she also likes to shop for lots of little things -- good lord)?

I'm on a bit of a rant lately standing up for myself.  It feels a little bitchy because I've spoken up about how I feel and it's ignored (not just her) so now things are becoming a hard boundary.  

I'm also not completely over the birthday trip saga from this week (I thought I was).  I held the boundary about not rescheduling the trip (too much work, low commitment on her end) and she was EASILY able to reschedule her routine colonoscopy.  What the what?!?!  Why wasn't that the starting point?  Why was she going to put me through hoops?  And, after all the back and forth, never an apology.  The trip is still a big effort on my part given what's changed for my December plans.  My desire to make this birthday trip special is struggling hard.  Might need to take this to coaching.

Wow, this turned into another intense venting session.  I'm fired up this week -- more fired up with myself than anyone else.  Why do I accept this kind of stuff?  Do people only like me because I let them have their way?  Guess I'm going to find out. 

On that note, time to get today moving -- lots to do.  It's a stay-at-home work day to get some chores off my plate for the coming week.  Hope you have a good Sunday.  Later gators.