What a Christmas Break is Made of

I thought I'd share a little of what I've been doing to keep myself busy during my break from school and work.

First of all, it's been glorious to sleep in. As one who never sleeps through the night, having a few extra hours to catch up on the time I've lain awake in the wee hours is blissful.

There were some household items that simply had to be checked off the To-Do list:

• laundr-o-mat all of our large blankets

We have an inordinate number of blankets. The problem is, I love them all, and I cannot get rid of any of them. Even the hand-me-downs. Quincy, also, loves all of our blankets and part of the laundry mat piece is to keep all of that cat hair out of our washer and dryer (gross, I know, but what can be done? He's hairy. Super hairy). 

• sewing projects

These always get left in a corner until there's some free time. This week was it. Makes me happy to have the skills to fix my own repair projects. Thanks, Mom!

• filing of important papers and receipts

We had months' worth piled in a corner (we have lots of corners piled with stuff). It's all now nicely filed away in the closet. 

• create music playlist for a friend

I haven't done this in years, it was very therapeutic. So good, I think I might keep the list around and listen to it myself. 

• massage

Ok, so this was a personal pampering, but it was lovely and needed after all the stressfulness of the last deadlines. 

• clean the kitchen, no really CLEAN the kitchen
• dust the house (sad that it makes the list as something different, but alas, it hadn't been done in quite a while)
• watch BBC's Emma mini-series
• upload recipes to shared folder (not yet finished, but a good start)

This is a project that I've been wanting to accomplish for quite a while. I have shared a recipe folder online with my mom and sisters and I'm trying to get my entire recipe box into an online format, with the hopes of one day using some sort of tablet device to read recipes (and search for them) rather than flipping through index cards. 

• read At the Back of the North Wind by George MacDonald

This one isn't finished yet either, but it will be done by the end of my break. I had wanted to read this for 2 main reasons: 1) because it is a children's book about death (subject of my thesis, not because I'm just that morbid; 2) because everyone loves George MacDonald and I really know so very little about him, except one brilliant short story I read last year, which got me thinking more about him.

The unexciting parts have included doing dishes regularly, laundry, reading my Bible every day, and going to the gym every day (which hadn't been done in months). All of these things have given me a great sense of accomplishment and it's sort of a thrill every day to see what I can get done. Having a list with every item checked off is super exciting for me. That's just who I am!

Sucker for Bargains

My cousin Stephanie and sister Leslie have always made me jealous with their ability to score awesome finds at Goodwill and other thrift stores. I have never been so lucky. A couple of years ago, when I went with Les to Goodwill, the two great items I bought she had actually found and tossed my way: a red zip-up hoodie with tiny giraffe silhouettes in yellow and black and a navy-striped summer-weight shirt with a bow.

I've tried thrift shopping at other times and I've never had a satisfactory experience on my own or with others.

Today, Les invited me along for another bargain-hunting day. I can proudly say that while she did find the two graphic t-shirts I got Kyle (and they are awesome, by the way), I was able to find 2 pairs of dress pants (one of which still had store tags on it) and a skinny belt.

Because today was a red-tag half-off day, I also paid just under $12 for all of my purchases. It was almost intoxicating.

Our next stop was Rural King. This place is a mystery to me. I cannot account for the variety of things sold here from food, to farm equipment and feed, to clothes, to kitchen gadgetry, to candy, to spices, to toys. Every time I enter (this was only my 2nd time), I find myself exclaiming: "They sell that here!?"

Today, I was able to find giant bins full of ladies dress socks on sale for 2 for $1.50. I bought 6 pairs for under $5. How is that possible?! Normally they each cost at least $5. Again, my mind was blown.

I need to remember that Leslie is my lucky bargain-hunting charm. Whenever she suggests an outing, I must be ready for something awesome to happen!

The Feeling of Completion

Last night at 5:55pm, I turned in my paper. It was a big paper, yes, but that wasn't the sum of the relief I felt. No, it was the burden of this entire semester of intense work. I've spent an average of 8 hours every weekend on schoolwork since October. And that's not including the work I did during the week or the 3 hours a driving a week or sitting in class. I don't know if I've ever been this tired. But let me tell you, I slept last night. Deep and long. Past after my normal internal clock wake-up call of 7am. 


It hasn't actually hit me yet, to tell the truth. I'm still in the stage of looking forward to having time for other people, baking goodies, watching movies, reading books for pleasure, and spending time with Kyle. Today was a very busy day--Wednesdays are always long. But I was able to see a good friend who I've hardly spoken to this semester, to hold her 3 month old baby and hang out with her older two boys. I have had multiple conversations today that were so good yet have left me with a mind full of chaotic thoughts.


My break begins this weekend with a time of food and movies with a fellow grad student, the celebration of a college friend's wedding, and the completion of my Christmas shopping -- the last 2 items! I hope to be able to wrap all the presents we have sitting around by Sunday, but I'm not sure it can be done. It delights me that these are the dilemmas facing me: when can I bake those cookies I've been wanting to try? When can we wrap our nieces' and nephews' presents? When can we sit down and watch my favorite Christmas movie? What Christmas songs do I want on my playlist? 


I'm also excited about cleaning...which obviously shows that I have not done a good or even decent job of that this semester. When you desire to clean, you've probably not done it for...oh...3 or 4 months. Right now, this is exciting!


Anyway, this is my current state of mind and being. Thanks for bearing with me on this most trying to semesters. I have conquered it. 
That is a great feeling!

Remembering to be Thankful

While it's not every day that you are presented with a 10+ dish smorgasbord, yesterday brought such a lovely sight (and the accompanying smells) to my weary soul. And I realized that I am thankful for:

• Aunt Judy's homemade yeast rolls
• Aunt Janet's delicious fruit jello
• Mountains of mashed potatoes 
• Stuffing (which I had never eaten until 3 years ago)
• My new cheesecake pan and the pumpkin chocolate cheesecake that I made in it (a recipe Leslie found)
• Dutch apple pie (also homemade by Leslie and myself)
• and last, but not least, Sara Lee's Razzleberry pie. 

As we ate and talked and took Jasper for a walk, and ate dessert instead of supper, and took a sweet little nap in the sun, and actually got too warm, I found that I was grateful for:

• An incredible extended family
• Adorable (and fun) nieces and nephews
• Sweet pets who give so much love
• A few moments of sunshine on that windy, otherwise dreary day
• Less pain than I've had in over a year
• and homes where we can afford heat, where we actually get too hot because we have warm clothes and lots of people gathered to celebrate life and family 

It probably seems like I've been complaining on here for a long time, so I wanted to show you that I'm not always Debbie Downer. 

In fact, it's these kinds of things -- the sunset reflecting on the lake or even watching the wind ripple the lake's surface while eating breakfast in the kitchen -- all of the things listed above, they are what keep me going. 

One whole day to cook, taste-test, set tables, serve food, clean up, nap and watch a movie...no work. None of that was work. It was wonderful. 

Thank you, Lord, for family, for my parents' home that never fails to remind me how refreshing peace and rest can be, for great cooks in the family and incredible amounts of food. Thank you that even when I miss out on some things (I missed all the Wilsons this weekend, including my husband), I still have blessings beyond measure, more than I ever deserved, or could ever count. 

So much more to the story

I don't know if I can do them justice, these novels that form the base of my thesis project. Even in the second, and third, readings, they bring me to tears. They are so sweet, so sad, so true of life and love. Not in a sappy way, though my crying does make the whole thing sound rather trite. 

They are more than they seem. 

And I'm a bit afraid that I won't be able to articulate what makes their beauty, what it is that they contribute to not just literature as a whole (which is true), but more specifically to young adult literature of today. 

They touch on something pure and true and...missing in a lot of stories. And they do it in the most beautiful way. 

I know it sounds silly, but please read them. 

As strange as it sounds: Keturah and Lord Death and The Book Thief. 

How can they be related? And doesn't one of them sound so ridiculous?

Read them, and tell me your reactions. You will not be the same, that I can promise. 

Life Lesson Learned #1034

Pepperoni Pizza Combos are not equivalent to a pepperoni pizza. In other words, they are not dinner.

Late Night Pondering

Sometimes, I just want more out of life.

But, it often seems that when I figure this out, I have nothing more to give in order to make that happen.

I'm so tired...okay, not just because it's 11pm. I would love some time to reassess what my life is, who I am, and where I'm going. I feel very much like I'm on autopilot, which is not something I relish. My self-reflections are limited and lame these days. Actually, the only thing I personally reflect upon are my health issues as I try to get that all sorted out before the end of the year and a new deductible.

Even though there is just a handful of weeks left of school...truthfully, sometimes I wonder if I'll make it to the end. It's not just the projects, the papers, the research, the brain-tired. It is so much more than that.

And I am so, so tired.