My sincere apologies

A good number of the X-mas cards have gone out. But not all "intended" cards are going to make it this year as I still have not located my address book. (And frankly, I haven't even looked. My nights/weekends are so busy that just walking through that myriad of boxes down in the basement on my way to hurridly throw in a load of laundry so that Mary will have clean shin guards on time for her soccer practice in two hours gives me a sense of panic and urgency that I just can't bear.) So maybe next year, but for this year, I'm basing who gets cards on 1) addresses I have memorized (getting fewer year by year), 2) cards that have been sent to us this year--AND actually have return addresses on them, or 3) the return addresses from the stack of cards received last year that for some strange reason I DID find. I have two scrap pieces of paper somewhere in the house with hurriedly written addresses of family/friends that have moved within the last year. If I find those, those people will get THEIR cards, too. (Although I'm missing the now-too-small baby gift that was already packed and ready to ship for the new Shellenbach baby. Maybe I'll find it and can send it out when/if they have a second!)

Also, there are just a few of Mary's school pictures going out in said cards. We don't have enough pictures for all, and there are just no pictures of Keith and Izzy right now. Intentions were swelling; I even got Keith and Izzy's hair cut for the pictures for which they were supposed to be sitting. It just didn't happen. We're hoping to get some done post-x-mas craziness.

Speaking of the x-mas craziness: John and I split up the kids and took them shopping on Saturday so they could look for something for each other. John took the boy to Toys R Us, so I took the girls to Target. What a freakin' nightmare. The crowds, the navigation of the narrow aisles WITH the crowds, the trying to get your (almost) 7-year old to pick something for her BROTHER and NOT for herself. I still had a couple gifts to buy, but I'd had enough and got out of Dodge. Forget it. John's not getting ANYTHING this year, but the Guitar Hero thing we bought for the whole family! So sorry, honey! Buy yourself a CD at a later date! I can't take the pressure!!!!