fond thoughts of the library

This month I have been spending every evening sitting by the twinkling Christmas tree, Christmas music, a book or laptop.....   It has been one of my favorite places.


Another favorite place of mine is the library.  You could leave me for days there.  I love being surrounded by all the books, all the thoughts that people put down on paper and were fortunate enough to have published.  So many thoughts and ideas, so much knowledge.

I just love to wander through the aisles and browse.  I can spend forever in the fiction section, piling up a giant stack that I will never be able to finish in the allotted one month time period I will spend with them.  So many stories, I will never live long enough to enjoy them all.

The nonfiction section is its own little wonderland.  I can completely feed my thirst for knowledge there.  I wish there was a way to absorb it all more quickly.  One section leads to another and another..... so many things to know and explore.

I love to find a quiet spot in the library to sit and read.  It is so very peaceful there, which is an amazing respite in a supercharged world. 

I always preferred to study at the campus library when I was in college.  I just could feel the vibe of knowledge buzzing around me.  Sitting in the coffee shop among people on the same quest was so energizing.  Finding a quiet cubby up in the stacks was where I did my best cramming.

I haven't been lately.  It has been way too long.  Especially considering I still have that stack of fiction books.  I did finish them all this time, but I will definitely be making my annual contribution to the library fund when I take them back!

christmassy quiz

Let's get in the spirit with a little Christmas meme.  It's been a while, right?

1. Have you started your Christmas shopping?   I shop year round.  If I see something that fits a person, I buy it.  Problem is, around now, I forget what I have and duplicate my efforts.  It's time to get everything out and see what I have.

2. Tell me about one of your special traditions.  We always get a tangerine in the toe of our stockings.  Nobody really even eats them in this household, but the tradition predates me in this family, and it hasn't stopped yet.  One of the girls was looking at the stockings on the mantle, and pondered aloud, "I wonder if we'll be getting a tangerine this year?"  I'm quite sure we will.  And I am also quite sure we will pull it out and exclaim, "Ooooh!!! A tangerine!!!!"

3. When do you put up your Tree? As soon as possible after Thanksgiving, but not too soon that we are just left with a dead stick on Christmas day.  Usually 2-3 weeks before.

4. Are you a Black Friday shopper?   Ok, here's how it goes down.... we spend weeks talking about what's going to be on sale, and saying we are going to get in line the night before, and circling the ads, and making lists, and asking each other if we are in line yet.......  And then on Friday we wake up at like tenish... throw on some clothes, leave the children with the men (they don't really notice - they are watching football), and head out, stop for coffee, miss all the good sales, pick up wrapping paper, walk slowly through the stores, laugh at all the maniacs, and go home and shop online for what we really need.

5. Do you travel at Christmas or stay home?  We used to travel like maniacs, but now we stay home if I can help it, or end up at my parents, where we park it for a few days.  No more running around.  The kids want to open their stuff and play.  It should be a relaxing day.

6. What is your funniest Christmas memory?   I lost my wedding and engagement ring set.  I was devastated, and knew we would not be able to replace them.  It really tore me up.  DH surprised me with a replacement wedding band on Christmas.  I cried.  It meant so much to me!

7. What is your favorite Christmas movie of all time?  Elf  really cracks me up.  I can watch that over and over.  But my all time favorite is It's a Wonderful Life.  You know, because it is.

8. Do you do your own Christmas baking, what’s your favorite treat?  I love baking Christmas cookies.  I think our family has the best cookie recipes.  They are all my favorite, but I think our sugar cookies are the best I've ever had.  Mmmmm!!!!!

9. Fake or Real Tree?  Real.  We get out there like troopers and cut our own.  It is always a blast.  We spend forever out there because I am indecisive and picky.  We always say we are not going to get one that is too big for the living room, and we always end up with one too big for the living room.  And it always smells divine and looks beautiful.

10. What day (as a mom) does the actual panic set in to get it all done?  I don't really panic about it.  I am particularly relaxed about it all this year.  But if there is going to be a panic, it is on Christmas Eve, right about the time I send DH and sis to Walgreens for something.  (Yes, every stinkin' year.)  Thank goodness for 24hr Walgreens.

11. Are you still wrapping presents on Christmas Eve? Always.  It is such a bad habit! 

12. What is your favorite family fun time at Christmas?  All of it.  The past few years we have been together with my side of the family, and we laugh every minute until it's over.  I can't wait!

13. What Christmas craft do you like the best?  I scrapbook a Christmas card every year.  I make a scrapbook page on paper, scan, and print as photos.  I love putting it together.  I hope people enjoy receiving it.

14. Christmas music? (Yes or No) If yes, what is your favorite song?  Nonstop.  It's a sickness.  Favorite song is O Holy Night.  Just about any version of it.  Sooooo beautiful that song is.

15. When do you plan to finish all of your shopping?   Hmmm.  Hopefully by this week or next.  Since I do most of it online, I really need to take stock and finish up while there is still time for shipping.  Oh - and of course that last minute Walgreens item on Christmas Eve.

christmas dork

This is my favorite time of year.

I am a total Christmas dork.

It's not everyone's thing to get all excited about it and to get in the spirit, but I just love it.

Not being employed and starting to feel better has allowed me to be more on top of my game this year.  DH and I keep commenting to each other how well we are doing so far.  I made and sent out my cards, we put up the lights Thanksgiving weekend (come to think of it, not traveling that weekend gave us some extra Christmas prep time too that we are not used to having), we put up the village, and cut down and decorated the tree.

I've been listening to Christmas music nonstop.  I finally found the radio station that plays the more upbeat songs.  (That first one we were listening to was like Christmas on too much Prozac....)   I asked my youngest if the music was getting on her nerves.  She told me she would like hearing it even if it was July.  (She might just be one of us!)  She has alternate lyrics to all the songs.  Some of them are pretty hilarious.

My oldest put on the tree skirt like a real skirt and twirled around the living room.  She does this every year.  She wears her Santa hat around the house pretty frequently.  (She too may be one of us.)

DH put out the nativity and told the story like he does every year.  The funniest year was when he pulled Joseph out of the box and he was headless.  He said, "Well, that's a new twist to the story.  It's more of a horror story this year!"

The lights on the house are ridiculous, and I think they could probably guide space shuttles back to Earth with them.  I love them anyway.  The kids can see them from school.  Haha!

The new kitten has left the tree alone so far, but she keeps jumping in the village.  I am trying not to kill her.  Daughter calls her Catzilla.

We found a thing that goes in the tree that tells you when it is out of water by playing music.  Turns out there is not an off switch, so it doesn't stop until you get the water into the tree stand.  O Tannenbaum is starting to make us a little jumpy.  But we still laugh every time.  Even when it went off at 4am.

I've done most of my shopping online.  I have boxes everywhere!  I put a bin out on the porch for deliveries, and the delivery people never use it despite the LARGE sign on it stating what it is for.  Sometimes they put it on top of the bin.  We're getting closer.  They will probably get the idea just in time for Christmas day.  It's a long training process.  I need to make sure soon that I have something for everyone.  I keep feeling like I am forgetting someone.  I should make a list I guess, but I am just winging it.  I hope everyone likes what I found or made for them.  I try hard to find the right gifts for people.  It is one of my love languages.

Merry Christmas to you and yours!!!

nonsense

I have been to various doctors' offices about a dozen times in the past several weeks.  And it's not over yet.  Sometimes I get real tired of all this nonsense, but I really need to get better, so I am pushing on.

The kitten is snoring.  I've never heard her do that before.  The older cat snores all the time.  Weird.

My neck hurts.

I was gluing a craft project, and now I have a headache.  I think I needed to get away from the glue sooner than I did.

The car needs gas.

I am going to WalMart in the morning, and I don't think I've been there in a while.  I made a list.  I hope I stick to it.  When I go into stores like WalMart I walk up and down all of the aisles, and I don't have time for that.

I need car snacks and table snacks for the trip.  I can't remember if we will have a refrigerator or not.  I don't think we do.

I bet I laugh super hard all weekend long.  I can't wait for that.

I haven't been home enough from my last trip to be leaving again.  I am going to miss my family a ton.  And I'm even going to miss being at cheerleading.  Never thought I'd say that.

My husband did the laundry because he is awesome.  He knew I needed clean clothes for the trip.

My favorite road trip food is twizzlers.

The last time we went there we got all kinds of lost.  And I think we were using GPS.

I appear to be GPS challenged.

I have like ten overdue library books.

Maybe I will go out for breakfast tomorrow to motivate myself to get out and get my errands done.  Maybe Kelli has the morning off and we can go see Teresa at work.  Which is a nonsense idea because I don't have time or money for all that.

My neck REALLY hurts, and I need to go take something for it.

It is so quiet and peaceful in here right now.

I have so many things I am worrying about right now.  Soooo many things.

I'm trying to write more.  Are you reading more?  Please comment more.  I like that.

My blog post titles are never capitalized, which I guess I do on purpose, but I have absolutely no reason for doing so.

If you're still with me, thank you for following along and reading all this nonsense.  That is the third time I used the word nonsense in this entry.