Merry Christmas!

I have been on my vacation since Monday and I still feel like I should be doing something. Not that I'm just sitting around, I've had plenty to do. But this break feels a lot more like an actual break than some of the ones in the past. I don't go back to work until the 5th (followed by jury duty on the 6th), and school doesn't start up again until the 20th! WOW!

It's the morning of Christmas Eve, and the festivities are starting. I am headed out to buy A LOT of seafood for Cioppino, our meal for tomorrow. Every year we try to do something different and this year is no different. It's a Sicilian seafood soup that has had RAVING reviews. It only takes about an hour, prep and everything. I'm excited to try it. You can check out the recipe most similar to ours (we've made it our own) here. For some reason I can only get that to link to the Food Network homepage, but if you look up Giada De Laurentiis and Cioppino, that's the recipe.

I have to go find or make a dessert for my potluck/gift exchange with my "sisters" and their family. I'm thinking that there is a reason the stores overstock on desserts on Christmas Eve...so that people like me can continue to procrastinate!

Around 5 we're going to hop on the New Mexico Railrunner, a train system that runs North to South and that has just opened its route to Santa Fe. We will head into Santa Fe and stroll through Canyon Road. This has become a Christmas Eve tradition for us (my sisters and me) and if you're ever in NM for Christmas Eve you should try to make it there. It is the quintessencial Christmas scene; shops with lights, carolers, hot cider, bon fires, snow(!), it doesn't really get any better!

We'll be back in town in time for me to go to 11:00 service and then head to bed and get ready to spend Christmas day with my family.

I hope you all have a safe and blessed Christmas and that you find many things to be thankful for!

I HATE drama!

Why did God wire women to create or insinuate drama?? I don't understand it, but I truly loathe it. I'm not saying that I've never been guilty of it, but do people not realize that it's only hurtful in the long run. Eventually someone will have to deal with the repercussions of the drama and that's NEVER fun. Ok...done with the soapbox for the evening.

Totally cute aprons...check 'em out!

One of my fellow "Bods" has a friend who is starting to sell the adorable aprons that she makes. She's kicking off her new business with a giveaway...check them out here!

Enjoy enjoy!

Light at the end of the tunnel...

Well, I have to say that taking 3 classes while working and living is suddenly much harder than it has been in the past. I'm trying to figure out if it's the classes, the promotion, or just me getting older! I'm pretty sure it's the promotion. Although I was doing a lorge part of this job before the promotion, there have definitely been added responsibilities. Not to mention the fact that I have been out of town for at least part of 8 of the last 10 weekends...there went my school catch up time!

So, I have completed one of my two final papers, just finished one of my three final exams, and am off to finish the second paper now. I wish I knew why I insist on procrastinating until the very last minute to write. It's obvious by the length of my posts that writing, and especially BSing, is certainly a strength of mine! And yet here I am...24 hours away from turning in a 7-10 pager, and I'm posting instead of writing my paper. Could someone please play psychoanalyst and tell me what the heck is wrong with me?!?

OK, I'll stop wasting time and get to the nitty gritty.

Point of this post...2 classes will be my maximum load from here on out. And I need to light a fire under my butt when it comes to large assignments. One of these days my gift for BS isn't going to cut it and I will pay for the procrastination!

Hope you are all doing well!

A new venture...and a healthy one at that!

I have joined an online community called The Bod Squad. I am so excited about this group. There are 12 ladies who have made a commitment to change their lives to be healthier, and often thinner and more toned. There is so much more to it than that though...this is truly an emotional journey. Anyone who has ever struggled with weight loss can attest to that. Having 11 accountability partners, strong women who aren't afraid to tell you to get your act together, will be an incredible asset to my journey. And I hope that I can be just as helpful and encouraging to them. Although The Bod Squad is at it's capacity of "original" members, this community is an incredible way to gain encouragement on your own journey. Check it out!

If you get to this RIGHT AWAY...I'm not yet up there. Give me until the 7th to get everything to them so they can post it online. But I'm certainly not the only one...in fact, if you already know me, you probably already know my story. Check out everyone else's. Have a great day!

My new Advent tradition

Yesterday I was given an Advent calendar. I had never really had one, but had always enjoyed the thought of the tradition. As I was driving home with the piece I started to think. I certainly didn't need a piece of candy every day, and I didn't think grapes would last. Suddenly something popped into my head. It's entirely possible that this is not an original idea at all, but I'm really excited about it and I wanted to share. If you are looking for a way to celebrate the season other than empty calories...give this a try!

I ripped up 25 pieces of paper and wrote the names of people in my life on each. I folded each of them up, and tossed them into a hat. Then I pulled them out randomly and without peeking I put one in each of the 25 days of the Advent calendar. Each morning I pull one out and say a special holiday prayer for the person or people listed on the paper.

Like I said, no guarantees on the originality, but if anyone is interested in joining me in this new tradition of mine, you are SO welcome to!

Thanksgiving Update

Just wanted to let you all know, because I know you're on pins and needles, Thanksgiving went great! My greatest accomplishment was my shoo fly pie...I haven't had a good one since I was in Pennsylvania. I was SO excited when it came out right! I also did quite a bit of baking...Pannetone, Challah, and Tomato Herb Rolls. The succotash was great, and the salads were tasty tasty. The turkey brine did just what Alton Brown said it would...even the white meat was moist! The only thing that didn't exactly turn out right was the Herb Stuffed Artichokes. The artichokes were great, but the stuffing can be best compared to sand. I guess that's what you get when Weight Watchers tries to turn something sumptuous into something healthy... In all fairness, many of the other recipes were Weight Watchers, and they turned out great. I hope you all enjoyed a feast and a time of Thanksgiving!