It's A(nother) Celebration!

Here at 2kids, 2dogs, we like to celebrate the little things. And this last week, I got quite a lot done. Granted, those sewing projects I swore were my top priority still exist only in my head, and I have yet to set foot in Michaels, but I did accomplish a couple of things I'm happy about.

For the last 12 Decembers, the Captain has been nagging me to create an angel topper for our tree. He had one growing up that he thought I could replicate pretty easily, and I promised I'd get on it...12 years in a row. Well, I finally got around to it. I'm ashamed to admit it only took about 2 hours in total to complete. It was a piece of cake, and now it sits atop our tree as if it had always been there. So, to reward myself (because when it takes you 12 years to complete one simple task, don't you deserve a reward?!), I made myself a pair of pretty beaded earrings with some tiny grey swarovski crystals I got on sale this past fall, using some tree ornaments I made as my template.

And in even bigger news, the Captain has something to celebrate too, other than his lazy wife taking 12 years to make him the only crafted item he's ever requested of her.

For those who don't know him, the Captain is a lot like Eeyore. He's perpetually gloomy. He also gets a little blustery when I share personal information about him on my blog. And when I say "personal" I mean terribly sensitive things like how his return home after months away might create a little short-term friction while we all adjust, or that he likes to grumble about things. Sheesh. You'd think I was telling the world that he likes to cross dress, or eat kittens for breakfast (he does neither of those things, just in case you were wondering).
So, he'll undoubtedly want to give me a lecture after I share this exciting piece of news, but it's no big deal. When he starts up, I will mentally retreat to a place he likes to call "Cut-And-Paste Land", where cards and beaded jewelry designs dance through my head until I become aware that he's stopped talking, and take the cue to nod solemnly and agree with whatever it was he was just telling me.

The Captain, being the Captain, isn't big on tooting his own horn. So it should really come as no surprise that he waited until days after his return home to casually mention to me that he finished his course this month with the notable distinction of being "Top Candidate". In the army, they like to rank people. It's an army thing. So being ranked number one out of 14 is like getting an A+. It means he worked hard and did an exceptional job. For most of us, it'd be fun, perhaps even a little thrilling. For the Captain, it's something he'd just like to keep under his hat. So, lucky for him, he has me to do all the shouting and celebrating, or no one would ever know.

In celebration, I will make something good for dessert. Something HE considers good. Something a pastry chef would make, that doesn't involve pouring melted caramels over Ritz crackers (I was not born in North America, but I have enthusiastically adopted the North American culinary tradition as my own, much to the Captain's food-snob dismay). The kids and I will attempt to sing "For He's a Jolly Good Fellow" as dessert comes out, and he will roll his eyes, grumble a little more, then dig in, wishing he hadn't told me anything, but hopefully at least knowing that we are proud of our Top Candidate.

We will undoubtedly find more to celebrate as the holiday season continues. We have a few friends dropping by for a meal and some fun tomorrow night, and my stylish (read: expensive--thank goodness for vision coverage) new Calvin Klein glasses will be ready for pickup on Monday. Stay tuned for my riveting musings on such topics as Santa, turkey-stuffing, new year's resolutions, and whether or not the Captain and I can break our 2-year streak of falling asleep on the couch by 11:30 on the 31st. Never a dull moment.