Missing Monday

I feel as if I've been away forever. A week has gone by and I don't have much to show for it. The week of Christmas started out well enough. The hubster and I picked up my daughter's girls around noon on Sunday and took them with us to the annual family Christmas party which was held in Ann Arbor this year. My son was able to come and bring his little girl also. It was a lovely day. Little Miss 3 fell in love with the 14 year old dog and carried him around everywhere, diaper and all.

I got to hold the newest grandchild in the family for quite a long time. She is beautiful! The little Miss 7s were put in charge of the white elephant gift exchange and did a great job. The food was delicious. 

We kept the girls overnight as planned as their Mom had to work until 3 pm on Monday. I had a bit of last minute shopping to do and decided to take the girls out to lunch before taking them home. When I was about half way into town, my cell rang and it was my daughter. I told her our plans and that if she would call when she got home I would bring them to her. That was when she told me she had been sent home from work and was sick. She just wanted to go to bed. I told her we would have lunch and do our shopping and then we would stop by to see how she was doing.

The girls and I had lunch and then did a bit of Christmas shopping for the hubster and then we went to Michael's where I told them we could browse to our hearts' content and that they each could pick out a small art item. We had a blast!

When we got to my daughter's house she was under two blankets on the couch. I asked her if she would like to come to my house and I would take of her, but she said she didn't feel as if she could get up at all. So I took the girls home. Later that afternoon my son took her some chicken soup and checked on her. She felt awful.

On Tuesday morning she called me around 8 am to ask me to take her to the doctor. She had an appointment at 9:30. I went to her house quite early in case she needed help. She was in the bathtub and asked for help washing her hair and getting out of the tub and dressed. She was really sick.

We waited way too long in the doctor's waiting room before finally being called in. She was running a fever of 103º and had strep throat. No wonder she felt so bad. I ran by the pharmacy to fill her prescription and then took her home to my house and put her to bed. I made some of her favorite soup and tried to get her to eat. She pretty much slept on and off in my bed until Wednesday morning. The hubster and I took care of the girls with him sleeping on the couch in the living room and I sleeping with the girls on a daybed and trundle bed pushed together in the guest room. 

Despite all that we had a pretty good Christmas celebration on Tuesday, my son's birthday, as planned. We sure missed DD, though. The girls Dad picked them up late on Wednesday night. On Thursday, after making sure DD was okay and getting her packed up and back home, the hubster and I drove to the UP to spend a couple of days with my Mom.

I must say we had a lovely time there. But I came home with a cold and stomach woes. I slept in until 10:30 yesterday morning and didn't get up until after 8 this morning.

So here I am finally writing to my blog and all I have to say so far is pretty much negative with just a sprinkling of positive.

Now I will share with you some more positive things. I received these 3 ATCs from a swap I participated in earlier in December. It was called Water, Water Everywhere.

from B Baird in Canada

from P Mackenzie in Australia

from P McVay in Washington

I really enjoy getting art in the mail and besides joining the Sketchbook Challenge, I think I will make it a point to join more swaps through ATCs for All in the coming year.

I did a little bit of sketching last evening while I was sitting around feeling sorry for myself because I didn't feel well. They aren't much, but I really need to push myself to draw more often and I need to develop the habit of carrying a sketchbook with me when I am out and about so I can practice a wider variety of subjects.

This post is getting really long, but I do want to share my son's little Miss 7s art from last evening. She is quite creative and loves all things art.

The two extra lips on her cheeks are evidence that she was kissed by two boys according to the artist.

Don't you just love the colors in this one?

My cupboards are bare and I don't feel like going anywhere, but am hoping to get around later this morning so that I can make a pot of soup later today. I also need to clean out the refrigerator and do some housework - the bathrooms in particular. Maybe the Christmas things could be put away as well. It is so much easier to clean house without the tree in the way.

I am hoping to approach the New Year in better health and with my family happy and healthy. I will try to have some art to share with you as it approaches.

I hope you had a wonderful holiday week and that you are planning for an artful 2011.

xoxo