I bet you are all sick of looking at that goofy pic of D and I. I know I am tired of looking at it. Yes, I compulsively check my own blog. I’m not ashamed.

I am working on a new banner since Christmas is officially over. It was a great Christmas this year, but I am ready to get life all back to normal. I took down the Christmas stuff (although it hasn’t quite made it into the attic yet.) And Derek took down the outside lights. We had a conversation about when outside decorations turn from holiday cheer to tackiness. I think thye would definitely need to come down by next weekend, but my preference is right after New Year’s. D doesn’t think it’s tacky until the end of the month! Am I the only one who thinks that is really funny? I think maybe he got accustomed to our neighborhood in California where it was quite normal to have Christmas decorations up year round. And it was also normal to have a huge wooden nativity scene on the roof because the yard is too small. And it’s normal to have graffiti spray painted on your house….ahh, the memories.

Anyway, life back to normal. Connor goes back to school tomorrow. There have been times when I couldn’t wait for him to go back, and also times when I thought I would really miss my boy. I mean, look at this cutie?

But let me just say that when he and D are involved in a power struggle lasting an hour and a half…he is not so cute. The past two days, there have been moments straight out of Super Nanny. Any prayers for patience and wisdom would be greatly appreciated. I don’t like to get on here and complain about Connor’s behavior much. Because we have times that are embarrassing and awful and make me feel like a complete failure as a mother. You know that book The Strong Willed Child? Yeah, I am reading it. For the third time. Strong willed doesn’t even begin to describe Connor at times. The older he gets, the more complicated he becomes. Just when I think I have something figured out, he changes. I start to even entertain the idea of possibly adding to our family in the future, and I have a day that reminds me I have a lot of work to do with the ones I’ve already got. I hate not feeling like I am doing a good job as their mother. It’s the most important job in the world. It’s the only job I’ve ever really wanted.

Anyway, enough about that.

For New Year’s Eve, Derek and I rented Little Miss Sunshine. It was so good! Sometime during our 11 years together, we started watching movies on New Year’s Eve. Maybe it all points back to New Year’s eve of 1995 when Derek said he loved me for the first time right in the middle of The Fox and the Hound. So sweet. Love that memory. Back to LMS. If you haven’t seen it, go rent it. It will make you laugh. And cry.

Two other movies that are now officially on my list of top movies are Love Actually and Garden State. I watched Love Actually 5 times this holiday season. The monologue at the beginning gives me chills. The first 10 minutes always make me tear up. I get giddy when the little boy runs through the airport to catch his girl. I love that movie.

And Garden State. Zach Braff. Need I say more? I can’t figure out what I like so much about him, but he is definitely my crush of the moment. I love him! What I love about Garden State, besides Zach Braff and Natalie Portman, and just the fact that it is funny and makes me cry too, is that every time I watch it I notice another little detail. I love movies like that.

So if you haven’t seen Garden State or Love Actually, go see them.
And have a happy Thursday.