Wednesday Hodgepodge

What is the one new holiday tradition you'd like to establish, or one you've established recently, say in the last year or two?

I would like for Kyndal and I to get up on Christmas Eve morning, now that she is an adult living on her own, and spend a few hours doing some last minute bargain stocking stuffer shopping and have breakfast together. I think that would be a neat tradition to start with her. We can add the other girls when they become "women".

It's the second week of December. Have you sipped a cup of eggnog yet this month? Wrapped a gift? Opened a gift? Kissed someone under the mistletoe? Lit a candle? Eaten a Christmas cookie? Seen Santa in person? Watched a Christmas movie or special? Read scripture relating to the birth of Jesus?

Eggnog ... No, but I did almost buy some. I decided to wait until next grocery trip.
Wrapped a gift ... Yes, if you count putting them in gift bags. They were gifts for our niece and great niece who live in Oklahoma.
Opened a gift ... Yes! We received some homemade cranberry bread and peppermint bark from our best friends in Oklahoma.
Mistletoe ... No. We don't have any and haven't seen any. My grandma used to always have some hanging in the doorway between her kitchen and living room on Christmas Eve. I haven't kissed under any other mistletoe.
Lit a candle ... No. I don't really use candles anymore now that I have my Scentsy warmers.
Eaten a Christmas cookie ... No, but I did eat some of the yummy peppermint bark made for us by our sweet 8 year old friend, Maggie.
Seen Santa in person ... Yes. We went on our annual trip to Oklahoma this past weekend to see Santa at Bass Pro Shops. Eli even got birthday swats from him! It was great!
Watched a Christmas movie or special ... Um, yeah! It's not the Christmas season until you watch Christmas Vacation. We did that on December 1st. Check. (Of course we will watch it a hundred more times between now and Christmas.)
Read scripture relating to the birth of Jesus ... The kids and I are doing an Advent study from Focus on the Family's "Thriving Family Magazine" called Journey to the Manger. We read scripture every day leading up to the birth of Jesus.

(btw .. Eli is holding a candy cane there, not flipping the bird.)

Do you think it's better to be an adult or a child at Christmastime? Explain.

Definitely a kid. (See above picture.) There is nothing like fully experiencing the wonder of Christmas. I have such fond memories of decorating the tree, eating dinner at my grandma's on Christmas Eve, trying to stay awake way too late, and then sneaking into the living room early in the morning to see what Santa brought (and then going back to bed to sleep in). I loved going from house to house to visit our family on Christmas Day. Now doing all of those things feels like a lot of work. I do enjoy creating traditions for my kids, because they love traditions. But I miss just sitting back and letting Christmas happen.

It's often said, 'Good things come to those who wait' ... agree or disagree?

I think so. We have become such a society of instant gratification. We are a microwave society. We want what we want right now! We will go in debt to get what we want before we can afford to get it, then we pay for it (literally) for long after we actually still want it. But by waiting and saving and delaying our gratification, we sometimes figure out that we never wanted it anyway. Or we find that by waiting we are actually able to get something better. And by waiting and working for it we learn to appreciate it more.

What's the last sweet thing you baked? Did you keep it, take it to a party/event, or give it away?

For Thanksgiving I made salted caramel apple mini pies. They were good! I took them to my parents' for dinner, but with all of the other desserts there I brought several home. And, I ate them all over the course of the next week. Darn. I really hated to have to do that.

This question comes to us courtesy of Jhona who blogs over at The Red House at the End of the Lane.

Everyone hop over and say 'hi' to Jhona this week! Here is her question ... I heard an actor talk about how he makes a conscious choice to talk to people in elevators. He chooses to connect, make eye contact, and converse. Do you talk to people/strangers when you're in an elevator or any other place where you might have to wait together? Why or why not?

This is a funny question because I am that person who gets on a plane, prays no one is sitting next to me, and puts her face in a book immediately just in case someone is. I don't want to talk to strangers. I do not like small talk. My husband, on the other hand, says that he is the guy I do not want to sit by on the plane. He talks and talks and talks. On our way back from California this summer Rick was sitting a few rows ahead of me. I heard him talking to the woman he was sitting by the entire flight. They were laughing and carrying on. I asked him if he had fun with his new girlfriend. It was funny. So, no, I would not strike up a conversation with someone in an elevator. But my husband absolutely would.

Are you on the naughty or nice list this year? What put you there?

I feel like I am on the naughty list every year. I am a tough critic of myself. But, Santa keeps getting me gifts anyway. I'm glad he loves me no matter how naughty I am.

Insert your own random thought here.

This is the third week in a row that I have asked for prayer for the passing away of someone I know. On Friday night the husband of a friend of mine from Oklahoma was shot to death by a 78 year old transient man they have allowed to live on their property for the past 10 years. The man was disoriented and didn't recognize him no matter how hard he tried to make him understand who he was. He was shot and killed in front of his son. Please pray for the Kelley family. What a tragedy.