It's almost Christmas!

I did it!  Christmas shopping was done for another year on Thursday, woo hoo!  I am so glad that I started early this year and spread it out.  My patience for crowded stores seems to have dwindled over the years and I’m pretty sure that, if I was only starting now, I’d probably spend Christmas in jail for stabbing somebody. 

The other benefit is that most of the gifts that I bought were well thought out and I spent very little time wandering the mall wracking my poor brain for ideas.  I have definitely impressed myself. 

Last Sunday, we had our second annual tree decorating party.  DJ Chick, and The Niece came over as well as The Boy’s new girlfriend.  She is a sweet, shy, little thing who brought me a nice little hostess gift of candy.  If they ever break up, I may just keep her and send The Boy packing.  She’d certainly be cheaper on my grocery bill, lol!    

Aren't they cute?

We had tea in my good china, paté and brie, pork roast from the slow cooker and finished off the feasting with Jello and homemade cookies.  Is there really any such thing as dieting at Christmas?  I think not….. 

There’s nothing like spending time with people you love eating, laughing and enjoying each other’s company.  As a bonus, I even have a lovely Christmas tree to look at now 

Whatever holiday you celebrate, I hope that each and every one of you get to spend time with the people you love and may all of your dreams come true

Kat

The little things

A few days ago, my bloggy friend Barb put up a post about enjoying the little things in life.  She found the following quote on Facebook that inspired her:

“Enjoy the little things in life…..
                  ….. for one day you’ll look back and realize they were the big things”

We’re all so busy just getting through our days of work, child-rearing and home care that we rarely stop to smell the roses anymore.  Sometimes, though, some normal everyday thing will happen that catches our attention for once and we stop to smile. 

Barb invited her readers to think of a list of their own “little things” that make them smile to share and I promised to think about it.  Here’s my list Barb!

-watching the sun rise.  I’m usually heading off to work when the sun is coming up and not quite awake but, sometimes I look up at just the right time and bask in that early morning light on my face.

-my first tea of the morning

-my kids’ dimples

-watching my cat try to stretch herself out thin enough to lie on the baseboard heater (it’s really a  process!)

 

-a fresh layer of snow on the landscape

-Sunday morning listening to the Trivia Show on CJAD  (Montreal radio station) with my tea and Facebook games.

-the feel of a new book in my hands

-dancing all by myself in my living room to my favourite music

-singing in my horribly off-tune voice while doing the above; hence the reason for doing it alone

-my co-worker’s laugh when she finds something amusing; you absolutely can’t help but laugh with her.

-finding money in my coat pocket when I thought I had none.

-a phone call from a friend

-Christmas lights

-the smell of baking bread

-a hug from somebody who I love

None of these things are BIG when taken by themselves but, added up, they make life better

Kat

Old School Blogging - Holiday Edition

Elaine at The Miss Elaine-ous Life and Kir at The Kir Corner are co-hosting a link-up called Old School Blogging – Holiday Edition.  Old school blogging involves answering questions about yourself to help your readers and the other participants in the link-up get to know you a bit better. 

 

 

So here we go -  

1. Christmas or Hanukkah? 

Christmas.  I am not a church-going person so I tend to celebrate this day as a time to be with those who I love and show them how much I appreciate them.  The free-flowing booze at the Christmas party is a good thing too  ;) 

2. Peppermint or Chocolate? 

Chocolate baby! 

3. Favourite Christmas Carol? 

White Christmas by Bing Crosby is my absolute favourite classic.  When I’m in the mood for a laugh, I listen to Bob and Doug Mckenzie’s 12 Days of Christmas.  How Canadian of me, eh! 

4. Favourite Holiday tradition? 

Gathering together Christmas morning with my kids, their dad and their step-mom to exchange gifts and have breakfast together.  It’s a relaxed time before the start of a busy day 

5. Favourite Christmas gift ever? 

There have been a lot of gifts that I have loved but probably the one that I’ve gotten the most delicious use out of is my Crock Pot slow cooker.   

6. Magical moment in a holiday movie? 

I know that it’s not a movie but I have always loved the moment, in the original cartoon of How the Grinch Stole Christmas, when the Grinch discovers the true meaning of Christmas. 

7. Who do you want to kiss under the mistletoe (anything goes)? 

David Beckham; doesn’t he just ooze sex from every pore?!   

8. Which gift of the 12 Days of Christmas? 

I’ll take the “10 lords a leaping”.  Imagine having ten men leaping for me! 

9. What inappropriate gift would you give as a Secret Santa? 

It says a lot about me that the first thing that leapt to my mind was “booze”.  Tis the season to pop the cork on some wine  :)

10. Decorating style? 

I don’t tend to go overboard with decorating but I do love lots of twinkling lights 

11. ONE word that defines the holiday season? 

Happy 

12. If Santa assures delivery, what is the first thing on your Christmas list? 

I would kill for a Kitchen-aid stand mixer! 

Kat

Beating the blues

In my post on Thursday, I talked about how the "winter blues" have been hitting me in recent years and how I'm hoping that getting back to/sticking with my blog will help with that this year.  It's definitely a good start but I think that other efforts need to be made too.

I've started by getting out my Christmas decorations.  Is there anything more cheerful than seeing decorations peeking out from your shelves and hanging on your door?  I think not!  The tree decorating party with DJ Chick and all of our kids is next weekend and I'm getting excited for it so I must get out a recipe book or two so I can decide what to serve.  Nothing lifts your mood better than planning a party.

The other thing that I've been thinking about is perhaps colouring my hair a nice, sassy red for the holiday parties.  I used to colour it years ago but came to a point where I was ready for my own natural colour again.  I think that it's time for a change again!  I know that hair colour is cosmetic and maybe I seem a little vain for considering it as a change in my life but I think that it's something that is more than "skin deep".  When you look in the mirror and like what you're seeing, it makes you feel good; you hold your head a little higher and smile a little more.  A small change can do so much for your outlook.  If you can get that boost from a box bought at the pharmacy for less than twenty dollars, why not go for it.

Between playing with my hair (yes, I'll post pics!) and the festivities of the holidays, I figure that I'll be good for the month of December.  January?  Well, that may take more drastic measures……..

Kat

One Year Ago

I’m back to Mama Kat’s Writing Prompts today! 

What were you blogging about a year ago today?  What has changed? 

The answer to the first question is easy – nothing!  I went through a period from June 2012 until April 2013 where I didn’t write at all.  I just couldn’t seem to come up with the words to share what was happening in my head.  It’s like I was in a holding pattern where nothing seemed interesting enough to talk about and the things that were in my head weren’t things that I wanted to share. 

This was especially true through last winter.  When I was younger, I was never bothered by the “winter blues” but the last couple of winters have been bleak in my head and, last winter, I really took a plunge.  I’m sure that part of it is the hormonal changes that are happening now that I am in my forties; those same changes that are making PMS more of a “thing” in my life.  Trust me; there are a couple of days a month when you don’t want to be near me!   

It’s more than that though.  My life isn’t entirely what I wanted it to be and I found myself dwelling on that a lot.  I guess that I had a different picture of where I would be at forty three and, for a while, I forgot to be grateful for where I actually was. 

What has changed?  Well, when spring came and I found my “blues” lifting, I jumped back into blogging.  This was a good first step for me.  Sometimes I come up with my own posts and other times I go to places like Mama Kat’s site for inspiration but the important thing is that I’m not letting myself stop.  I don’t have a huge readership but it’s something that I enjoy and hopefully it will be one of the things that get me through this winter relatively sane. 

I’ve also been doing little things to brighten my life.  I am cooking from scratch more rather than buying packaged foods and enjoying trying out new recipes.  My kids have definitely been winners in that enterprise.  I’m making bread and cookies more often too rather than buying them packaged.  We’ve also been ordering out less too – healthier for body and wallet.  My diet is still far from perfect but I’m taking baby steps. 

I also try to get out more even if it’s just out to the mall to window shop or get together with someone for a drink (or two or three….).  I’m trying to feel a little more “connected”. 

I still need to work on meeting a decent guy and doing something to make my job a little more exciting but these things will come (hopefully!) 

Hopefully, this winter won’t be so hard but, if it is, I’ll be sure to come here to complain about it instead of shutting up.  Does that give you something to look forward to or what! 

The season is upon us!

Kat

What am I reading?

Just recently, on a book-based blog post, a commenter asked me if I am on the Good Reads site.  This is a site for book lovers to connect and share their love of reading with each other.  I was on it for a while but found that I just didn’t visit often enough to keep up.  There are just so many sites that I can be a part of and keep up with and, with Facebook, Twitter, Google +, Pinterest and this blog, I’m pretty much at my limit. 

The idea that I’ve been toying with is making my current reading more a part of this blog and share it on the sites that I am already a part of.  I’ve toyed with the idea of book reviews here in the past so this isn’t a totally new idea but having just participated in NaBloPoMo, I’m feeling inspired to keep the momentum going.   

Not every book post will be an all-out review but, instead, sometimes just sharing what’s in my purse right now. 

Another commenter (that’s you Bouncin Barb!) agreed with my love of Stephen King and mentioned a few of her favourites.  One of them was The Tommyknockers.  I sat there and said “wow, I haven’t thought of that one in ages!” so, when I finished the book that I was on and didn’t have another new one to read, I scrounged around my bookshelves and found my copy.   

Now I’m enjoying revisiting a story that I haven’t read in a while and quite enjoying myself with this classic King tale.  Instead of a review, I’ll just give you the back cover synopsis: 

"Something was happening in Bobbi Anderson's idyllic small town of Haven, Maine.  Something that gave every man, woman, and child in town powers far beyond ordinary mortals.  Something that turned the town into a death trap for all outsiders.  Something that came from a metal object, buried for millennia, that Bobbi accidentally stumbled across.  It wasn't that Bobbi and the other good people of Haven had sold their souls to reap the rewards of the most deadly evil this side of hell.  It was more like a diabolical takeover… an invasion of body and soul - and mind….."

How can anybody resist that?!

Kat