Figgy Does OMD Yet Again...At Home, Teleworking, Yet Again

This year I tried putting more new scenes together in with the elves.  I got a lot of the new items from The Dollar Store and attempted to incorporate old scenes with new scenes...kind of like a hybrid scene.  I even used some of my scrapbooking paper as backdrops for some of them.  I need to find a better table, so it isn't quite as wonky when I take pictures and post them to Instagram and Facebook for my fans.  I even have some ideas for next year already.  I need to start saving some cardboard for my one idea I have. 

This was my seventh year doing it and this year I started on December 1st and ended on December 23rd since that was the last day of the week before Christmas. I always put the scenes together the night before since they are difficult to put together in the mornings with kitties around.   Some scenes are more elaborate than others. 

Here are the ones from this year:

Instagram post:  They say if you mess with the bull, you get the horns but, in this case, you mess with the giant spider, and you get the web.  I am not sure how Figgy and Russ will get out of this bind they're in.  We will see tomorrow, if they survive. #elfontheshelf, #figgy, #russ, #omd, #spider, #tiedup

Instagram Post:  Well, these crafty elves managed to get out of their entangled situation with the spider.  Not sure how they escaped but I was sure surprised to find them free.  They just can't keep their hands to themselves though.  They got into the ninja turtles ooze and made a giant mess.  I am not sure what the repercussions will be, but I hope it's not too terrible. The turtles were not impressed by the elves at all and wanted them to leave their sewer and lab.  #elfontheshelf, #figgy, #russ, #tmnt, #secretoftheooze, #omd

Instagram Post:  Figgy wanted to celebrate a Coug bowl bid to the 2022 LA Bowl being played on December 17th. #GoCougs, #figgy, #elfontheshelf, #bowlseason, #goingbowlin, #omd, #christmastree, #cougchristmas

Instagram Post:  The one with the Elves.  Figgy and Russ are avid fans of Friends and took a recent trip to NYC to see the sights and have the Friends Experience. They enjoyed a visit to Central Perk and the Statue of Liberty.  They are pretty good friends themselves and will always be there for you each December.  #elfontheshelf, #figgy, #russ, #friendsmas, #omd, #illbethereforyou, #centralperk, #hugsy, #theholidayarmadillo, #ncy, #friends, #youremylobster

Instagram Post:  Figgy and Russ decided to take it easy today.  They busted out the grill and played a rousing game of horseshoes.  I think Figgy is winning.  #elfontheshelf, #figgy, #russ, #omd, #bbq, #chillinandgrillin, #horseshoes, #rnr

Instagram Post:  I knew the elves were up to something when I heard a ruckus in the kitchen.  They made a giant mess with the flour, but they did make up for it by baking us some cookies and muffins to say they were sorry.  They are always getting into mischief!  #elfontheshelf, #figgy, #russ, #omd, #baking, #kitchen, #cookies, #muffins, #kitchenmesses, #holidaygoodies

Instagram Post:  With the growing popularity of the back yard game, Corn Hole, Figgy and Russ decided to get in on the action to see what all the fuss was about.  They actually had a great time playing and might even consider joining the elf league.  #elfontheshelf, #figgy, #russ, #cornhole, #backyardgames, #omd

Instagram Post:  The elves and their co-worker, Sarah, were heading to a Christmas party when they hit a patch of ice and their car tipped over.  The presents dumped out, they got a couple of minor injuries and a bystander called 911.  Just remember that this time of year we could get snowy and icy condition and to take it easy or don't go out if you don't absolutely have to. Figgy and Russ want you to be safe this holiday season.  #elfontheshelf, #figgy, #russ, #holidayparty, #carpooling, #presents, #friends, #coworkers, #caraccident, #winterweathersafety, #winterweatherdriving, #omd

Instagram Post:  Figgy and Russ are home from the hospital and suffered a broken arm, leg and some cuts and bruises.  Sadly, Sarah suffered some internal injuries and could not be saved. This is a lesson to us all.  Please be safe on the roads during the winter time, always wear your seat belt and give yourselves plenty of time to get from point A to B.  Figgy and Russ will miss their co-worker, rest in peace Sarah.  #elfontheshelf, #figgy, #russ, #caraccident, #recovery, #winterweatherdriving, #omd, #accidentfreeisthewaytobe

Instagram Post:  Figgy and Russ decided to throw my sister, Erika, a birthday party in her honor. They had cupcakes, popcorn and soda and were surround by all of their friends.  Erika just started at L&I in October as a data consultant for Admin Services and so far she says she's learning a lot and getting to know her team.  Happy Birthday Erika!  #elfontheshelf, #figgy, #russ, #birthdayparty, #birthdaygirl, #omd, #cupcakes, #friends, #presents, #partytime

Instagram Post:  After some fighting and some bad shots from the Storm Troopers, Darth Vader finds Russ's lack of holiday spirit disturbing. This is the first year (since I've done this scene) that no movies are scheduled to come out this December.  Sad.  I do know Disney+ has come out with several TV series you could watch.  So far we've only watched The Mandalorian with Baby Yoda.  A Merry Christmas you all must have!  #elfontheshelf, #figgy, #russ, #starwars, #darthvader, #stormtrooper, #babyyoda, #chewbacca, #r2d2, #bb8droid, #omd, #theforce, #deathstar

Instagram Post:  Our trivia shark, Smalls, makes another appearance!  he's been pretty hungry since 2020, when we started teleworking due to Covid, but has been fed off and on when we get the trivia questions wrong.  Figgy, Russ and Jones, made sure Smalls was safe from the mean, bad shark who tried to eat him.  Figgy is a great shot with the harpoon!  #elfontheshelf, #figgy, #russ, #shark, #omd, #beats, #harpoon, #diver, #sharkattack

Instagram Post:  Hit me with your best shot!  Figgy and Russ battle it out in a super competitive game of ping pong.  They watched Forrest Gump over the weekend and got inspired to play.  They played for hours and hours.  I think Figgy has a slight advantage over Russ but Russ doesn't want to quit until he wins.  The elves are so stubborn but they are fun and so are their antics.  Let's bounce!  #elfontheshelf, #figgy, #russ, #omd, #pingpong, #pong, #letsbounce, #competition, #tabletennis

Instagram Post:  Figgy, Russ and their friend Duke, are up in the mountains celebrating a wintry wonderland in their igloo. I was really hoping to wake up to some snow but was seriously disappointed when I saw it was just wind and rain. I am crossing my fingers and hope that we get some sort of winter weather besides the gross rain.  Figgy, Russ and Duke wish you all a happy holiday season!  #elfontheshelf, #figgy, #russ, #winter, #snow, #igloo, #penguin, #smores, #hotchocolate, #mountains, #snowman, #presents, #holidays, # christmastree, #omd

Instagram Post:  Figgy and Russ decided to use some of our leftover bows to "Mission Impossible style" their way to steal ornaments off the tree.  I think Oliver and Wade (our kitties) teamed up and convinced them to do it.  Ben and I just can't trust the kitties or elves in this house during Christmas. #elfontheshelf, #figgy, #russ, #omd, #christmastrees, #stealingornaments, #teamworkmakesthedreamwork, #holidays, #holidayseason, #missionimpossible

Instagram Post:  Figgy and Russ decided to dabble in the art of cooking.  They must have watched Elf last night because they were inspired by Buddy the Elf's cooking.  You gotta stick with the four main food groups:  candy, candy canes, candy corns and syrup.  Elves love candy right?  Figgy and Russ went with their own mixture of candy:  M&M's, Pez, starlight mints and peppermint kisses.  They said it wasn't bad and might try another new mixture next year.  Figgy and Russ wish you a sweet happy holiday season.  #elfontheshelf, #figgy, #russ, #omd, #sweet, #candycooking, #candy, #elffoodgroups, #cooking, #omnom

Instagram Post:  Today is the last day with Figgy and Russ until next December.  They saved up all of their elf dollars throughout the year so they could go on a ski trip for the weekend of Christmas.  They left the other day to avoid all of the freezing rain, road and airport closures and bad drivers. they figured they need another few days of rest and relaxation before they prepare for next December's month of mischief.  They both wish you all a happy, safe and fun 2023! (I can't believe it's almost 2023!)  #elfontheshelf, #figgy, #russ, #snow, #skitrip, #omd, #winter

Next Adventure:  A Merry Christmas Four-Day Weekend and Some Snowshoeing

Christmas Cookies with Barlow, 2022 Christmas Ornament and Ed's Party at the Ram

It was getting really hard to schedule stuff because December was so busy.  I did manage to set aside some time to make Christmas cookies with Barlow at her house.  I also had a list of all kinds of stuff to get done while I had a few hours to get it all done.  December has gotten difficult to plan around because of so many birthdays and whatnot as well.  Those days usually get filled up for you.  Our calendar this year for December was literally off the wall!

Saturday, December 17th

That morning Ben went to shift, and I slept in until about 9:30. I ate a quick breakfast and loaded up the Escape with the recycle and my cookie baking stuff.  I double checked to make sure I had everything because I wasn't coming home after my errands.

I drove into Rainier to get rid of the recycle and called Mom to see if she wanted to meet me in Rainier to walk the trail.  Some of my caches were missing and I had to fix them before I got any more hate mail from cachers.  She said she would.  I didn't want to park at the trailhead behind the store because I had some valuables in the Escape.  Instead, we parked at the school and walked over to the trail.  I grabbed what I needed and realized I had forgotten my gloves once we were walking.  Lame. Now, my hands are going to be cold.  

The first one we had to check on was Rainier Trail Cache (GC8MCG5) because it was missing.  In fact, after some searching, it was missing.  It was a huge bummer because it is really hard to replace rock hid-a-key caches now that they are really expensive to buy and replace.  Now the cache is a film cannister and I hope it sticks around longer than the other one did.  It's annoying having to replace them all the time.  Especially, when it's a special container. 

We continued walking down the trail west towards Tenino.  We walked past a guy who was walking his dog and said hi to us. Since we were walking past The 507 Series:  Rainier, Wash. (GC3AMVX), I decided to check to see if it was still there or in the correct location.  It took me a while to find it because people moved it around.  I did eventually find it and only replaced the logbook.  I moved it to where I had hidden it originally. 

The last one, We Don't Do That Here (GC4ZT8D) was about a mile walk from where the Escape and Mom's Expedition was.  It was nice that we could get a walk in before the busy day started up.  In several of the logs people had said that the container was getting cracked in half due to the hiding spot.  No big deal, I had a new container and a logbook ready to go.  I just wished I would have remembered to bring my gloves with me.  We walked back to the school.  I thanked Mom for walking with me and told her how the rest of my day was going to go.  She went home and I drove into Tumwater.

My first stop was the cemetery.  This was the first time visiting both of them since Grandpa's passing in October and his funeral in November.  I brought them the wreath I made a couple years ago for Christmas time.  It was surreal visiting both of them at the cemetery.  I sure missed them.  I was very lucky to have them in my life growing up.  Not many people get to have their grandparents in their lives into their mid-thirties.  Grammie has missed so many important things since August 2018.  Grandpa missed a bunch of stuff but at least got to see that I was getting married.  I told them a brief summary of the stuff that was happening and how busy we've been in December.  They said they remembered being busy in December getting ready for the holidays all those years.  It would be my first Christmas without the both of them and it made me sad.  I told them I missed them and I would come back again to visit soon.

I got onto the freeway and headed to Celete's salon to donate the toys I got for the toy drive that I kept forgetting to give to her.  It was a quick go in, dump off and leave.  I drove up towards the mall and stopped at TJ Maxx for a specific item before they were all gone.  I found what I was looking for but the line to check out was insane!  People were really doing some crazy Christmas shopping.  The line actually went quicker than I thought it would.  Afterwards, I did some browsing at the Goodwill to see what kind of treasures I could find.  I found some cute tiny shirts to go along with Wes's birthday present.  

I was hungry and decided to go to Five Guys since it's been several years since I've been there.  I had forgotten how expensive it was.  I ordered the basic burger and small fries and got it 'to go' so I could sit in the Escape and eat it and drink my Pepsi Zero.  I chatted with Trish for a little bit to see what she was up to.

I wasted enough time and drove the short distance to Barlow's house.  I sat in the driveway for a little bit because I wasn't sure if they were home or not.  I texted her and she texted me back stating that they were home, and I could come in with all my stuff. I had to make several trips but Justin helped me.

We did a mini birthday present party, he got a bath and then went to bed.  Barlow found two cookie recipes and I found two prior to showing up.  The ones I picked were no bakes and mint chocolate chip cookies.  She picked peanut butter cookies and snickerdoodles.  I was over there until about 1:30 a.m.  We cleaned up, I took my stuff back out to the Escape, and I thanked her for hosting cookie night.

I got home, unloaded the stuff out of the Escape, put some of it away, took a shower and went to bed by about 3 a.m.  I was tired.

Sunday, December 18th

The next day Ben came home late from shift, and I got up around 9:45. I made breakfast, and we got ready for our day.

We had made plans with Walter and Wendy about a month ago asking them if they could make us an ornament stating, "Our First Christmas Engaged" and they agreed to do it.  I spend a few weeks making a mockup of what Ben and I would like to see.  We both agreed that it should contain mountains and trees because we got engaged in Leavenworth, where there are tons of mountains and trees.  I got a final version of it done and Ben said it looked awesome and to send it off.  This would be Ben and I's ninth Christmas together and each year we get a ornament with a year on it. 

I sent it to Wendy via email and she and Walter figured out how they were going to create it with their wood printer.  I checked in with them about a week later and asked when they would be available so we could visit with them and pick up the ornament.  She said, because it was almost Christmas, they were busy doing craft shows/fairs all over western Washington.  She said she was going to be in Eatonville in the middle of December and I told her that was perfect.  We could meet them in Eatonville and then drive into Puyallup for Ed's birthday party at the Ram.  Wendy said that would work.

We hopped into the Escape and drove out to Eatonville. It actually started snowing a little bit as we got closer to the Eatonville Eagle's building.  We parked and went inside.  There was so much craft stuff crammed into that room!  Holy cow!  We found Walter and Wendy's booth and looked at all the stuff they were selling.  They gave us our ornament and it turned out great!  Walter explained to us how he made it.  I asked him how much I owed them, and Ben and I each paid them for their materials and labor.  They even made us a keepsake box to put it in.  

We loitered around, got a picture with Santa and even looked at some of the other crafts people had made.  

We thanked Walter and Wendy several times for our ornament, gave them hugs and told them we needed to get going if we were going to be on time for the birthday party.  We told them, before we left, that we needed to hang out again soon.  They agreed.

We got back into the Escape and followed Hwy 161 all the way to Puyallup.  It snowed a little bit as we got closer to Graham.  We got to the Ram near the mall, found a place to park, grabbed Ed's present and went inside.  Of course, we were a little late and they were seated already.  I was upset at Trish because she didn't save seats next to her and Amy so we had to sit down at the other end of the table basically by ourselves with people we didn't know.  We were bored the entire time but got to watch Tom Brady lose to the Bengals so the night wasn't a total loss.  I had a chicken sandwich and Ben ordered pretzel bites and cheese and then a turkey club sandwich and fries for a meal.

Trish did come over and visit with us a little bit.  Ed opened his presents...we got him an Apples to Apples boardgame he wanted.  We thanked everyone for having us and we headed home.  We stopped at Walmart to pick up some shower curtain stuff for Doug since he cleaned the shower for the first time since he moved in October 2021, so that was progress.  We relaxed for a bit and got ready for the upcoming work week before the crazy Christmas holiday.

Next Adventure:  Figgy Does OMD Yet Again...At Home, Teleworking, Yet Again

Seattle Seahawks vs. Carolina Panthers

Randy asked us, about a month or so ago, if we wanted tickets to the Seahawks game on December 11th against the Carolina Panthers.  Of course, we do, I never say no to free tickets. He electronically transferred them to Mom, and she sent them to me so I could put them on my phone.  That meant, we would be taking the party bus up to Seattle.  I went and wrote it on the calendar so I wouldn't double book myself since December was starting to fill up fast. 

This was the first Seahawks game I've been to since November 2019.  Del had gotten rid of his season tickets when he moved with Nicole to Tumwater so we can't look forward to at least one of those each year anymore. He had offered them to Ben and I but it would quite the commitment.  We like going to one or two of them a year.  I was excited to go again, and Ben was super jealous he didn't get to go.  I explained that they weren't my tickets, they were Mom's. 

The night before I got out all of my Seahawk's stuff, my clear bag and, most importantly, made sure I could access our tickets from my phone. The day of, I got up and got ready and met Mom at O'Blarney's just before 10 a.m.  We found a place to park, made sure I had everything, and we found the bus we needed to be on.  We found our seats and made ourselves comfortable for the ride up to Seattle. This time we were better prepared for gambling and raffle tickets. Last time we were newbies and had no idea what we were doing. 

Both Mom and I brought enough money this time so we could gamble.  We pulled out of O'Blarney's parking lot and got onto I-5 north.  Meanwhile, a 10x10 grid was being passed around and we each got to fill in 3 squares, a dollar a square.  We pitched in $6. We were hoping that we were going to win at least one square.  Mom put in for the raffle.  We will see if we win a prize or not. 

We chatted about the game, the last time we sat in Randy's seats which was on Monday Night Football back in December 2018 against the Vikings.  We won that game 21-7 and made Kurt Cousins look really bad.  We merged off of I-5 and took 99 to the stadium...probably because it was easier for the bus to maneuver around.  We parked in the designated bus zone around 11:30 a.m. and sat there for a few minutes while he did the raffle drawing.

One of Mom's tickets was chosen, and she won a leather Seahawk backpack...kind of like one of those you can get at the state fair or bought at a flea market.  Either way, she won something.  We left it on the bus, grabbed our clear bag and walked towards WAMU event center and the stadium.  I asked Mom if she wanted to wander around Touchdown City for a bit and she said sure.  

We went through security, had our belongings checked and then grabbed my phone so they could scan our tickets.  They never used to do it here and anyone with or without a game ticket could come into Touchdown City, but they changed it for some reason.  Not sure if it's because of security reasons or because of Covid.  

We walked in, saw where everything was and what kinds of activities were going on.  We spent a few minutes watching some of the games that were already going on and checking our Fantasy Football stats.  I saw they had a face paint booth and decided since we have a while until the game we could stand in line for a bit.  We found the end of the line and waited.  Two people behind us asked us if we wanted their extra rally towel and I said sure and thanked them.  

We got to the front of the line, and I asked them to spray on a Seahawk logo and the chevron shapes, they called them "feathers".  Mom got a tiny 12 painted on her face. They asked if we wanted glitter, of course we wanted glitter!  I threw in a couple bucks as a tip.  Then we went over to the AmFam booth so we could get a gameday picture and a free clear bag -- Mom wanted one. 

We wandered around for a little bit longer and then I asked Mom if we were ready to go into the stadium so we could get some Ivar's.  She said yes.  We went up the stairs and into the stadium.  I continued to hope that the weather would hold up because it was iffy.  We walked up the ramp up towards our seats.  I asked Mom if we wanted to get food now or in a little bit.  She said now.  We found an Ivar's and stood in line.  We both got a 3 piece with fries, she got a water, and I got a Coke Zero in a cup.  We found our condiments, napkins and a place to stand undercover and eat our food because it was starting to sprinkle outside.  The weather said it wasn't going to rain!!

We finished our food and walked back to our seats.  It had stopped sprinkling.  We sat there waiting for the game to start.  The Seahawks were the clear favorites that afternoon after not knowing how this season would turn out after the giant blockbuster Russell Wilson trade last spring with the Denver Broncos.  We all had our doubts when Geno Smith was named the starting quarterback at the beginning of the season.  By mid-season, we were actually doing okay and could possibly make playoffs somehow. 

Our first play of the game was an interception that lead to a Carolina field goal.  That interception kinda set the tone for the rest of the game it seemed like.  We did not look comfortable at all against a struggling Panther's team.  The NFC South was the worst division in football and sadly, four of our losses were against all four of the NFC South crappy teams.  Why?  It's because we were not consistent throughout the season and played down to their level.  

The end of the first quarter we were down 10-0.  We just couldn't get anything to happen on offense.  When we did well on defense, we would let them run the ball after getting them stopped for a 3rd and long, then they would get a whole new set of downs.  Darnold has got to be one of the worst quarterbacks in the NFL right now and just about the entire game he did not dare throw the ball, I think he attempted throwing it a few times and each one almost got picked off.  He settled for handoffs because we just could not stop the run.  It was so frustrating to watch!

The second quarter we finally started to figure it out on offense and managed to get two touchdowns to their touchdown and a field goal. Unfortunately, an obvious offsides penalty wasn't called so Smith thought he had a free play that resulted in a really bad interception that destroyed a great drive.  We were on the Panther's side of the field too.  When halftime approached, we were only down 20-14.  This was still winnable if we came out with a purpose and stopped the run in the second half. 

It was very back and forth in the third quarter and nothing substantial happened.  A lot of three and outs on both sides but we managed to get a Jason Meyers field goal out of it.  At the end of the third quarter, we were down 20-17.

We had several chances to take the lead in the fourth quarter, but we couldn't find that offensive rhythm that came easy earlier that season.  We held our ground most of the fourth quarter on defense but let them have another touchdown and a field goal.  We nabbed ourselves a touchdown and a field goal during garbage time to make the loss look less bad.  We lost 30-24 to one of the worst teams in the NFC and the NFC South. 

The positive side of it was that we were still in the running for the playoffs, and we were still above .500 with our record in the standings.  We had four games left and I saw us coming out of it with a 2-2 record.  We will see though.

Mom and I, with the rest of the crowd, made our way back down to the lower level and left the stadium to head back to the bus.  We sat there for a while waiting for everyone to get back.  Two people didn't get to come back with us because they were really late, and we needed to get back to O'Blarney's at a decent time.  I did not hear what ever happened to them.

About halfway through the bus ride home, we did more gambling, Mom and I did not partake in the pull-tab game because we didn't know how it was played, so we just watched and were entertained.  They figured out who won each quarter on the grid game and Mom won $25 for the fourth quarter square.  She would have won another square if the Hawks would have scored a touchdown in the second quarter.  But still, we came away with money and a prize this time!

We got back to O'Blarney's and we got into our vehicles and went home.  I told Mom to call or text me when she gets home because she had further to drive.  I headed home, got cleaned up, watched the rest of the Sunday Night Football game, ate some popcorn and worked on my blog for a while. It was nice to be able to go to a Seahawks game again...it's been way too long.  I just wish we would have gotten a win out of it though.  Oh well.

Next Adventure:  Christmas Cookies with Barlow, 2022 Christmas Ornament and Ed's Party at the Ram