Carol's random babble

So, Christmas. It was pretty good. I had to work, but when I came home for supper, there were 10 other people in my apartment, eating enchiladas and watching "Elf." The enchiladas are a family tradition for special occasions. The last time I had them was when Cayla graduated from high school in May 2014. The 10 other people were Cayla, my sister Donna, Donna's four kids: Alex, Jessica, Suzanna and Richard, Jessica's husband Eric and their sons Noah and Eli, and Suzanna's boyfriend Chad. We ate, opened a few presents, had some laughs and I went back to work. When I got home, everybody had left except Cayla, who was in bed because she had to work the next morning. So, my big Christmas gift. There was a box, and it was big. I unwrapped it and the box said Pioneer Woman cookware, which was one of the big items on my Christmas list. But Cayla said, "open it," and when I did, I discovered a bunch of newspapers inside, and a banana. On the back ...

I have been making a Christmas list, just a variety of things I would like to have at some point. The prices of items vary, and to be honest, I'm expecting that whatever my family chooses to give me will be at the lower end of the price range. That's fine with me. So, here's my list: Sweet Stripes (a tub of these candies is about $5.88 at Walmart) Gel pens (I just won a set of 24 and I'm having fun coloring with them. They are cheaper at Walmart.) Right now I don't need any more coloring books, as I've got enough coloring pages downloaded to last for months. New pots and pans (I like the Pioneer Woman set, preferably turquoise, but red is good, too. $99 at Walmart) A Flip-Pal scanner (around $150, online. Totally not expecting this, but I keep it on my list because someday I will have one.) A gift certificate to Cato (maybe $20-25, enough for one top) A black sweater (mine is getting pretty raggedy) A fleece steering wheel cover (I had one of these awh...

So, yeah. It's been a very long time since I blogged. And the irony is that the microwave I bought last December to replace the one that quit working ... has quit working. Cayla was using it and it made a weird noise or something, and quit (I wasn't home at the time, so my description is vague). The whole apartment smells like burnt metal. I'm not sure at this point if I want to get a new one, as I have my eye on an apartment that comes with a microwave. I just have to enter my life story in triplicate to apply for it. Cayla is attending Iowa Central this year. Amanda is living in Ames. We have two rescued cats: Olive and Wee Jock. Wee Jock is short for No'-as-big-as-Medium-Sized-Jock-but-bigger-than-Wee-Jock-Jock , a character in "The Wee Free Men" by Terry Pratchett. Both of the cats have slightly dramatic rescue stories, which I may expand upon later. For now, enjoy this video of the cats: