I hate ice, but it works. I usually do 10 minutes once an hour for as long as I can bear the idea. I recently cleaned out my freezer and realized that about 20% of the space was taken up with various forms of ice gel packs. You might want to put a some compression on that with an Ace bandage when you go to bed.

I'm pretty sure anyone who's dealt at all with infertility should not watch tonight's Private Practice. I don't know much, and it seems eyerolly to me.

Thanks, Jesse.

My freezer is ice, alcohols, and an intersection of the two sets (so I can have v. cold moldable icepacks).

Okay. I do believe that today's ER visit has not resulted in the world ending. But the jury's still out on that one, so don't jack with any apocalypse-dependent tasks right now.

Cass, for icing, my Chiro recommended 10 on, 10 off, 10 on, 30 minute rest, repeat.

In other news, I decided to solve my too many ornaments problem by decorating a second tree!

Kitchen tree: [link]

Big tree (it only looks crooked, it's just unevenly shaped): [link]

I wonder if my parents are going to wait for me to decorate the tree. I get there the 20th.

I don't do my own tree. I don't want to. I only care as it is part of the family. My SIL and brother are building their own traditions now, and I don't begrudge that at all. If I can impart pieces of mine unto theirs, great. But I'm ok if that doesn't happen. But when the really sucky day, long time away, comes that I don't have my parents, I probably won't be doing our tree. It doesn't mean much without them.

There are some things that twinge when you aren't planning to have kids. One of those is losing the hanging of ugliest ornament ever and the of the silver cat rattle. I'll hopefully tell the nephs the stories, and hopefully they'll care. But when I actually have to do that ( A LONG WAY OFF!!!), maybe I'll be able to carve my own traditions into a new family, somewhere.

our giant house of misfit families!

It is my crazy dream that I will hold on to.

I only need one more family gift and shopping is done. WHEE!

A plan. A long way off, please. Unless you want to visit my parents.

I've done,,maybe 1% of my shopping. Crap.

I've done exactly 0%. And I kinda don't care. I'm so tired that I'm sick with it.

I've bought one thing, aside from the gift I had last April.

Question for Christmas-celebraters: Did you have your own ornaments as a child? I always did -- family members gave them to me over the years, I guess, and I had my own ornament box from way back. So when I moved out on my own, my mother sent my box to me (with a sappy note!), so those are the bulk of the ornaments I put on my tree.