Wanna know a secret?????

Every year my family asks "MOM! What do you want for Christmas?"
And...for years - every time they ask... I have the exact same answer!
Last year my kids started the question like this... "Mom, what do you want for Christmas... AND DO NOT SAY A CLEAN HOUSE!"














So now you know... just what I want for Christmas.... and my kids do NOT like that answer....

For Mothers day for YEARS I've been saying almost the same thing... Only it goes more like this...

"Dear Mr. Hubby,

I've done a lot of thinking... and this year for Mothers day I would really like for you to take the kidos and yourself and have an enjoyable weekend... go stay with grandpa! He would LOVE it!... and leave me here... at home... I want nothing more than to be here... all alone...in our house.... so I can CLEAN ~ really CLEAN! BY MYSELF! I want to go through EACH room, clean out closets and drawers, get RID of clothes, shoes, toys... EVERYTHING that is no longer needed... things I CAN'T get rid of when EVERYONE is around... because.... the minute they see it in the garbage can... they take it out... and here it comes ... right BACK IN! I want to clean out cupboards, wash walls and mop boards... even CLEAN THE GARAGE! I want to clean to my hearts content!

















And... I don't want to have to stop to FEED anyone, REFEREE a quarrel, STOP to fix a scrapped up knee.... (although I thoroughly enjoy ALL of this the other 362 days of the year!), I don't want to answer the phone or the door.... I just want to CLEAN... alone! And when I am done, (IF that should happen) I would LOVE nothing more than to sit on the big, fluffy, comfy chair, wrapped with my blanket, with my favorite book in hand and maybe even a SLURPEE too! And just SMELL the CLEAN.... LISTEN to the cobwebs cry as they are packed and moving on down the street.....
It's really OK for me to be alone on this weekend...
it really is.

Love, Your Mrs."

(and yes! I have even given it to him in letter form SEVERAL times....it still has YET to happen... (they all think that I'm CRAZY!) that was 5 kids ago, we are now down to 3 at home...and not one of them are close in age... at all!... it's been a LONG time on my WISH list!)

SO.... the ONE thing that makes me the most irritable for the holidays is...
MY HOUSE!
I just never seem to get to CLEAN it the way I EXPECT, WANT, DESIRE, and DREAM of... I ALWAYS have such GREAT intentions! GREAT ambitions... but as you all know... LIFE HAPPENS and it CHANGES my plans... ALWAYS!

So, I have budgeted into my Christmas BUDGET a SPLURGE for me!

I know - I'll probably stress over it and end up canceling it... but I really just NEED to do this!


I WANT A MAID FOR THE DAY!!!!

















I've stressed about it....
I've priced them...
I've dreamed of this....
I've stressed BIG over this....
And... I've stressed even more...

BUT! I think I'm getting use to the idea...
I know... in the long run it will be the BEST gift I can give to my family! :) TO MYSELF!

I LOVE to have parties!
I LOVE to have people over!
I LOVE IT!

BUT... I hate that I'm so CONSUMED in all the "prep" work that I don't get my house "DEEP CLEANED" and then I stress... then I cancel the function...or I'm just plain MISERABLE because I KNOW that my house isn't CLEAN, although it may "appear" to be, then I get in my GRUMPY-



















GRINCH mode..



















and NO-ONE likes to be around me for a couple of months!
It's just sad... I don't even like to be with myself!



SO! I'm SPLURGING!
I so hope I don't talk myself out of it before it happens! OH I HOPE I DON'T!