I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday. My husband and I both commented that this Christmas seemed especially nice—low-stressed and pleasant. It doesn’t hurt when the weather is sunny and the temperature hovers around 60 degrees. No, I don’t miss the Midwest in the winter.
Writing my blog around the holidays was difficult since I couldn’t wax on about what I’d found shopping or the gifts I was eager to give, but now I can. One funny incident happened at a music store while shopping for a keyboard stand for my son. Right by the cashwrap was a small pink drumset. My daughter had already said that she’d like to have a pink drumset, a pink guitar, and a pink microphone that wrapped around her head like Hannah Montana. I knew I was doomed. I told the guy at the register to look out. As my daughter finished walking around the store, she approached me and saw the drumset. “Perfect!” she squealed, bending down to inspect it more closely. “Told ya,” I said to the guy behind the counter. He just laughed. Luckily she forgot about it soon afterward.
For me, books are always a favorite—to give and to receive. This year I bought my husband, “101 Things You Should Do Before Your Kids Leave Home,” and for my son, “101 Things You Should Do Before You Graduate.” I’m hoping they’ll find them inspiring.
For my other son I bought “Doodles: A Really Giant Coloring and Doodling Book,” and my daughter loved an Angelina Ballerina book we hadn’t read before. I bought my mom an audio version of “A Christmas Blessing” which she enjoyed listening to while she sewed. My mother-in-law reads voraciously and doesn’t mind their being pre-read, so I bought her a box of books from a little used book store I love. My sister scored a gift card from Half-Price Books from me since she reads so much I could never keep up with what she hasn’t read. And I gave my friend Jennifer a Paula Deen cookbook and “Blue Christmas” by Mary Kay Andrews.
I bought a Jennifer Crusie book for myself and yesterday bought a second. I had never read her books since I don’t read romance, but I found “Bet Me” to be a fun read that was a cross between “The Wedding Date” and “How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days.” It kept me up past 2 a.m. the other night because I had to see how it ended. Lots of fun. Now I’m reading “Faking It” which is about an art forger and a con-man.
So, what did you get for Christmas that had you squealing, “Perfect!” or at least made you smile? And what are you reading that you love? By the way, a new author I discovered when I queried her agent is debuting her first book in Feb. Advanced free copies are being made available through Ballentine while supplies last.
2 comments:
We have a tradition in our home where we draw names and have to come up with a "meaningful" gift to that person. Some past gifts have been: a letter to me from my husband telling me what I mean to him, a star named after one of my daughters, a cat made out of a sock and christmas balls, etc.. This year my daughter bought a flock of chicks to be donated to a family in a different country through Heifer International. It made me feel that maybe I've done something right by that child, that she would give such a wonderful gift in my name.
Jennifer
The best gift I received this year was a truly wonderful time spent with my husband's family. Past years have been stressful for many reasons, babies, toddlers, family deaths, distance--so many things that seem to coincide with Christmas. This year, we all came together under one roof and it seems each of us,in our own way, decided to put the issues of the past aside and concentrate on the moment. Instead of picking at our differences we looked to what we shared, the babies are teens and enjoy each other's company, we all lost the same loved ones and miss their presence and at least for this one year we are not at a distance.
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