Where, oh where, did all the time go blogosphere???
If you're like me, it passed by in a flash, leaving you whip lashed, but smiling.
Work is still insane, but finally starting to settle a bit, so I just may get back into the swing of things soon.
::crosses fingers and makes wish::
A few of my favorite things/moments about Christmas 2010:
*The snow! It's the first white Christmas I can ever remember having.
*Along with the snow, came snowman making with my little guy...a definite favorite of the holiday weekend.
*Having my entire family (all 9 of us) attend the Christmas Eve service at my church
*Catching up with old friends and their kids at my mother's Christmas Eve party
*Starting our own family traditions with the tot
*Staying in my fuzzy pants/PJ's for two days straight!
*Playing with all the kiddos toys! (he got some seriously cool stuff)
What about you? Any big moments this holiday that stood out?
AND am I the only one getting random Japanese spam comments???
"Twas the Night before Christmas" has lots of nice rhymes
But I fear that the tale doesnt fit modern times.
What is a kerchief? My dad wears no cap.
He snores the whole night, no way its a nap.
They tell me that Santa is coming tonight.
Hell be flying in here on a sleigh. Yeah, RIGHT!
When I was much younger I believed all that stuff,
Now that Im older I know its a bluff.
As this Christmas eve is going so slow
I sneak down the stairs to watch HBO.
Nothing is stirring, its quiet down here.
Securitys on so theres nothing to fear.
All of a sudden I hear the floor squeak
Someone is coming, sneakety, sneak.
And then as my heart leaps up to my throat
I see a fat man in a funny red coat.
He stands by the table and looks through the house
And takes from his pocket a tiny gray mouse.
He says, "Ho, Ho Ho, I truly believe,
There must be a mouse in each Christmas eve."
His belt buckle shakes as he laughs, look at that.
My gosh this jolly old guy sure is fat.
He looks up. He sees me and gives a big smile.
Says, "I came to see you. Lets talk for a while.
"You're one grown up child that doesn't believe
That Santa Claus comes on each Christmas eve.
You're a big girl. Your minds filled with doubt.
Its simple, without me the joy is left out.
"I remember the time you sat on my knee
A smile on your face, eyes sparkling with glee.
Don't you remember the thrill you felt then?
With a little belief you can feel it again.
"Santa Claus comes for each child at the start.
The rest of their lives I live in their heart.
If you are a youngster or wrinkled old guy
You still can hear sleigh bells ring cross the sky."
He turns as he says, "Will you please come out here?"
And there on the driveway stand eight cool reindeer.
They all nod to me and then snort in chorus,
"Who is this pretty girl now standing before us?"
I wave as I tell them, "I'm Anna May."
As the big burley guy crawls into his sleigh.
He says, "Its my new team, a real with-it crew.
I'll let Captain Cosmos give their names to you."
"Heres E-mail and Hat Rack, Cool Dude and Charley,
I'm Cosmos, theres Awesome, Brucie and Narley.
Head Cat is Santa, the North Poles his home,
We see him all year cause we hang out in Nome."
Then they take off and fly to the roof
Tap a short rap and give a "high hoof."
All turn and shout, "Tonight reindeers rule.
The eight of us wish you a crazy cool Yule."
Then Santa shouts, "It's true some things change.
But believe in the basics." As he speeds out of range.
Then I hear repeated, as my willing ears strain,
The words I now love, my favorite refrain.
"Twas the Night before Christmas" has some things outdated
But The Story, dear folks, is not overrated.
Throw open the window, and rejoice in the sight!
"Happy Christmas to all and to all a good night."
ALSO, before I go, my absolute favorite Christmas song, and in particular, Clay's version. I know what you're thinking, and NO, I'm not a Claymate. (Not that there's anything wrong with that at all, but not my normal taste in music...however, this version is just gorgeous and moving. I could listen to it all day.)
Apologize for the fuzzy video, but all I could find quickly.
I'm off to another long day at work!!! Hope you are all doing well! Sending you holiday thoughts, hot cocoa, and lots of warm hugs!!
Honestly - whether busy season or divine intervention, last night the number popped into my head and I CAN'T get it out of my mind!!! I've been thinking about it for 24 hours straight.
What's it mean? I certainly don't know. Possibly my overworked accountant brain on steroids? MAYBE.
Who knows. The number came to me in a random moment of consciousness. I didn't ask for it, it just appeared,begging to be heard. It didn't explain itself, tell me why it was here, what it was doing, what was going on, it just proclaimed itself.
Well, OK. Number 14,157 You have arrived. What do you want to do now? Huh? Have you thought of that?
Meanwhile, I think about LOST episodes and what the numbers "meant" to the survivors. What does this mean? Something? Nothing??
I don't know BUT that's not the point. Maybe the point is that I DON'T know.
Maybe I'm overworked. Quite possible.
Those of you that have not been informed, here's a typical day in the life of Kristi in the last few weeks:
*Get up at 5:30 AM - Hope that you showered the night before (you have decided every OTHER night will suffice for bathing)
*Get ready for work - clean face, put on respecatable clothes, makeup, shoes, and get in car
*Get some kind of coffee (whether from work or home- doesn't matter, only the fact that you have consumed caffeine of some sort)
*Work for 11-12 hours straight
*Come home literally at dark (like when you left) and call husband to let him know you're on your way
*Arrive home at around 7pm (toddler has already eaten and hugs you like he hasn't seen you in weeks, breaking your heart instantly, but making you love your spouse more than ever at the same time for being there when you can't)
*eat dinnner (even thought toddler has already eaten), watch Christmas movies like you're interested, snuggle appropriately
*Go to bed around 10pm (with toddler still awake but fading fast)
*Read book until you start to doze off with toddler in bed next to you (not because he won't sleep in his own bed but because you miss him while you're at work...and my favorite book by far is Crescendco!!!)
*Fall asleep, get up at 5:30 AM and repeat
HONESTLY, my last couple of weeks in a nutshell and why I've been blog MIA for awhile.
But, why tonight? Why the numbers????
Well, #1 - I had a work Christmas party tonight and am a bit blitzed (true story) and #2- I've been meaning to do this for weeks and haven't had the time.
SO, the big question in my mind is how does an ETERNAL OPTIMIST deal with soooooo much stress??? And it is BIG stress. And I think, during the holidays, we can all relate. Whether or not we are working 60+ hour weeks, we all have our normal jobs, plus buying and wrapping giftts, plus holiday parties, plus obligations, plus all the added stress that buying the PERFECT gift brings. (A type personalities I'm talking to YOU!!!)
Here are my answers:
1 - What other options do I have? (Honestly, what's the point in being angry or upset???? What good does it do?)
2 - Um, I work with AWESOME PEOPLE. And I don't just say that...I totally do. I could write a book on their awesomeness, but I'm an accountant, and let's be honest....dude, that TOTES wouldn't sell.
3 - MARY CHRISTMAS - Okay, so, I kind of stole this from my church's lecture series this month, but I think not only does it make me giggle with it's cleverness, but it's truth. Whether or not you are religious, this holiday is all about LOVE and GIVING of yourself to others, and if that doesn't give you the warm fuzzies, I don't know what does.
4 - Apparently the number 14,157, which I have no idea what it means, but one day I will!
5 - Ok, so I have a precious toddler at home that I use to de-stress, but honestly, life is good! It's a blessing! And so are you! Look around at what you have....find something to be thankful for, and focus on that! That's yours and it's SPECIAL. Appreciate life.
6 - Nothing HAS to be perfect. Give it up. Perfect is just an idea of how you think things SHOULD be. A type personalities (such as mine) get hung up on this. Christmas is this great holiday that is filled with traditions and perfect things that we need to reciprocate in order to be filled with the awesome. SO NOT TRUE. You know what? Know one who matters really cares what you buy them...they care about the fact that you thought of them and got them something. Quit stressing about the perfect gift and think about the person! Something thoughtful and handmade will often trump something expensive!!! It really is the thought that counts!!!
7 - Don't take advice from a drunk blogger! Maybe the best advice EVER!!!
ME? Tomorrrow AM I will be at work, coffee in hand, working without pause, wondering what in the world I was thinking the night, drinking all those drinks and laughing out loud? BUT you know what I was thinking??? That I love people and that they are each special and that I'm happy they are in my life. I'm proud of them all and that I'm part of a blanket of life that is weaved patch my patch into something greater. I'm part of the fabric...and happy to be a piece, if even for a night.
Before I get into this Wednesday's book review, I need to let you in on a totally unfun-not-really-a-secret secret. I know, tantalizing, right?
If you've noticed my recent blog absense, both from posting and commenting, I just want you to know that I promise to return to normal in January. The truth is, my full time job has a busy season that starts right after Thanksgiving and lasts right through to our deadline on December 31st. So, the 11 and 12 hour workdays have been leaving me dragging and tired, with little time for anything (not even writing...GASP!) but spending the holidays with my family.
Am I complaining? Okay, yes, maybe a little, but honestly, I love my job and what I do, so it's a necessary evil. But, I promise my darlings that I will be back to my peppy normal self come January and I will try to come around from time to time to say hello. But if you don't see me, just know I'm thinking about you!
Now, onto my latest book review...the good news is that no matter how busy my life gets, I always unwind before bed with a few pages of a good book. So, here's my latest.
First of all, I LOVE this cover and the title is full of awesomeness. I moved this to the top of my TBR stack for those two reasons alone, because I was totally intrigued.
But I'd be lying if I told you I wasn't a little let down by it. The story was good and it definitely kept me interested, but there was something missing for me that is a bit harder to describe. I never "lost" myself in this book. Throughout the reading I was reminded that I was indeed, reading. After reading so many GREAT young adult books, this one just didn't have the same flow and unputtdownableness of the others. Not to say it wasn't good, because it was, it just wasn't GREAT in my mind.
My favorite things about it? The creative storyline and the characters, Jem in particular. They were flawed and lovable, just the way I like my characters to be. The story was unique and interesting. The Shadowhunters themselves are very, very cool.
In summary, I would definitely recommend this book, it was fun and different. As a reader, I plan to continue reading Cassandra Clare's other books, because as an author, her creativity is superb.
Help Talli Roland's debut novel THE HATING GAME hit the Kindle bestseller list at Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk by spreading the word today. Even a few sales in a short period of time on Amazon helps push the book up the rankings, making it more visible to other readers.
When man-eater Mattie Johns agrees to star on a dating game show to save her ailing recruitment business, she's confident she'll sail through to the end without letting down the perma-guard she's perfected from years of her love 'em and leave 'em dating strategy. After all, what can go wrong with dating a few losers and hanging out long enough to pick up a juicy £2000,000 prize? Plenty, Mattie discovers, when it's revealed that the contestants are four of her very unhappy exes. Can Mattie confront her past to get the prize money she so desperately needs, or will her exes finally wreak their long-awaited revenge? And what about the ambitious TV producer whose career depends on stopping her from making it to the end?
I'm a short, annoyingly optimistic, over-sharing, YA book loving mother who enjoys reading, writing, chasing my toddler, and above all, spending time with my family and friends.
Hmm...a little about me perhaps? 
