Thursday Ten: OH THERE’S MY CHRISTMAS SPIRIT edition

1. I think I’m slowly – oh so very slowly – finding my holiday spirit, and I’m glad about that. It’s been a difficult time of year for me because I LOVE CHRISTMAS and I have lacked the enthusiasm that I usually seem to have for the festivities. BUT, I’m finding it. And that’s a good thing – because coming up, I have to shop for the 12 Days of Christmas. And finish shopping for the family (My Mom is SO hard to shop for – usually she’s easier to shop for – this year, I’m roadblocked).

2. Tomorrow, I get to be the “Mystery Reader” at Pumpkin’s kindergarten class – which would be awesome but SOMEONE TOLD HER I’d be coming in. I’d hoped to be surprising her, and didn’t want her to know I was the reader until I walked in the door. I think the teacher’s aide spilled the beans. BOO TO HER, I say. I’ll be reading David Shannon’s Good Boy, Fergus! and Amy Krouse Rosenthal’s Spoon. We love both of these books – though, I have to say, I’m pretty much a fan of all of AKR’s children’s books. “Spoon” is the one that Miss Amy (as we call her here in our house) read to The Princess over the phone on her seventh birthday.

3. None of the Christmas ornaments are where they were when we started. I’m not that fussy about the Christmas tree – to a degree. These ornament clumps drive me a little crazy, though. Want to know why? Silly but here’s why: It makes it hard to take pictures when they are all squished together. And I LIKE TO TAKE PICTURES OF ORNAMENTS.

4.  I’ve lived in Michigan for twenty years and finally for the FIRST TIME bought a winter hat. I bought it at Target – it was three dollars. Figured the price was right since it won’t take long for the dog to find it and eat it. Or for me to decide it was making my hair too stick-uppy.

5. I am hoping to get to the movies this weekend because I desperately want to see “Black Swan” – the new ballet movie with Natalie Portman – it’s getting great reviews, and frankly I want to see something different than the slapstick-y holiday movies that seem to multiply endlessly this time of year.

6. I have had the worst time in guitar lessons the past two weeks – I think my brain has just been jelloed and not really fully functional (Shush. It’s not ALWAYS that way). I suppose actually PRACTICING might help, though. Need to do that more. Like, a lot more.

7. So, I was shopping for stocking stuffers for my mom for Christmas and ended up buying myself some nail polish. This is my MO when Christmas shopping. Last week, when shopping, I ordered for myself The Beauty of Different by Karen Walrond (@Chookooloonks on Twitter) – I’m still waiting for it to arrive. Last night, I finally ordered OPI’s Linkin Park After Dark – and that color is several seasons old – but I’ve always loved it and why shouldn’t I have pretty nails for Christmas? I think I may be doing this wrong. Or so very right.

8. As I type this, it’s nearly 2:30 in the afternoon and I’m finally getting around to eating lunch. A bowl of pasta. Like I’ll be running a marathon tomorrow. HUGE bowl of perfect al dente pasta. Do you have a favorite pasta shape? I do. I love penne – hate rotini. I don’t know why it even matters – the taste is the same, but somehow, I’ve tricked myself to thinking the shape is VERY IMPORTANT.

9. I was talking to my kids about the ballet, “The Nutcracker”. Since Barbie had her own little version of “Barbie and the Nutcracker”, I thought my kids would be a little more excited about it. But no go. Or as Pumpkin said, “There’s not even any good songs in it… like ‘Tik Tok’.” If you’re wondering whose five year old likes Ke$ha? I guess it’s mine.

10. Only one more full week of school before the kids are off for two weeks. Ack. {hold me} I love to get to spend time with my girls – but the work/life balance gets difficult during long holiday breaks. Going to have to schedule some activities, load up our Netflix Instant Streaming queue with some good kids movies, and arrange for some playdates (some at houses other than ours). Vacations are the most difficult times for me because I want to be a good mom and cruise director and keep being a good employee… Perhaps I’ll see how much vacation time I have left.

About sarah

Sarah is a book nerd, a music lover, an endorphin junkie, a coffee addict. Oh, and a goof ball. She writes, she tweets, and she sings off key.

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