I think we are going to have to find a polite way to un-invite Val and her family to all future functions. She tries to be the center of attention at every single party, without fail. She proclaims her sex life, loudly for all to hear. She rips on people as a form of conversation. She is a gossip harvester. At every single event she attends, she hogs my couch and my actual family members have to sit on the floor. My mother never gets to sit on a couch, not to mention NEAR me, when Val is around. I am embarrassed at how she tries to claim my mother as her own and tries to get cutesy with everyone that she runs her mouth about any other day. UGH>
And yet I have like no other friends. She can only visit on a friday or saturday, when the weather is good and when she gets Doug's permission, not that he'd ever tell her no, she just somehow gets off on being "owned" by a boyfriend. She used to claim that Rick, her ex-guy, didn't want her to cut her hair or wear certain clothes. The guy never said anything about that stuff. He didn't care. He broke up with her 10 years before she realized it. She just weedles her way in and insists on having things a certain way until you think it was your idea. I HATE hugging people and yet she always gets a hug from me. Maybe because I feel sorry for her. She has this pathetic way about her. She even suggested that I get irritated with her sometimes because I'm jealous of her and Doug's relationship. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!
Anyway, we had our annual party and it was fun. I love having the party, but secretly can't wait until everyone is gone so I can stretch out on the couch, eat leftovers, and watch television. The weather was if-y for a week before hand. We canceled on the Duffords due to ice. Cindy was very upset. When I thought that we might have no one show, I had the opposite reaction; I was elated that I could spend the whole party alone on the couch with food watching movies. But the weather was pretty good for winter and we played all the games. Margie and Chucky left early. Like way early. When they had shown up, they had brought an entire bag of booze and were playing with the kids and thinking of staying.... and then suddenly they left. I asked Margie if we had offended her, but she insists it was just worry over the weather. But something must have happened. They had even gotten a dog sitter and Chucky was going to call off work... and then suddenly they HAD to get home. I have no clue.
The lead up to the party is always chaos. Its the worst stress of the year. It's anxiety over being poor and not buying the kids enough, even though both grandparents drown the kids in gifts. I swear we need a bigger house, already. No, seriously. Building the extension and maybe an awesome enclosed porch on the back would be a blessing. Anyway, there's the yearly worry that house isn't clean or organized enough. Justin makes fun of me, but inevitably, someone ends up in a closet or a cabinet that he told me, "No one's going in there, stop worrying!". Every God Damned Time. There's always the worry about food. Food is TIME CONSUMING. It took me two weeks to get baking done and then three days to cook everything as I volleyed between kids and appointments. The dog is a pain in the butt. I'm hoping he's more enjoyable in the summer because otherwise I'm calling dog ownership a DUD. He's expensive, chews everything we own, tramples the kids, barks and jumps, he's torn up the side yard and he's just a giant non-stop eating beast. All while I'm cooking and wrapping and organizing.
In the end, it was fun. Although I dumbed down my trivia this year and it was STILL way too hard for people. I may resort to just christmas carol lyrics from now on.
