STRESS. That's what I see people feeling this Christmas. Has it always been that way? Or am I just starting to see it now that I'm older? There's the stress of visiting family and trying to make them happy. And of course the stress of money and whether or not the people in your life will appreciate your gifts and whether you did enough for them. The crowds around the malls and restaurants add stress too. Cooking, cleaning, everything. But you didn't need me to tell you that. Chances are you are feeling it for yourself.
I just wanted to say, let it go. As best you can, just let it go. Christmas should be about love and just enjoying the time off from work and relaxing. It should be a celebration of the birth of Jesus and a time to remember that God loves us no matter what. When you get stressed out, just think about how lucky you are to have the really good things in your life. Think about all of the love around you and how thankful you are for that. No matter how bad things might seem right now, it definitely could be worse, so just concentrate on the good things and let go of the bad ones for now. There will be plenty of time to worry about that after the holidays are over.
And when someone gives you a gift this season, be it something you love or something you never would have asked for, smile and be thankful that they cared enough to think of you this Christmas. Do your best to smile and make other people around you feel good. To me, that is more important than any monetary gift you can give.
I am wishing for you all a very merry Christmas this year. Try to let the stress of it all and stop worrying about expectations and money and work... everytime you feel the stress, think of something wonderful in your life that you wouldn't trade for anything. Like your beautiful new baby who has his whole life ahead of him and can make it anything he wants. Or your upcoming marriage to a person you can't imagine living without. Or the family around you that loves you despite your mistakes. Those are the things that matter. Remember that.
Joy of the Holidays
Editing and My New Novel
I feel motivated to start writing my new novel today! I have been tossing around ideas for weeks now, not sure which one I really wanted to focus in on. Brainstorming and figuring out what to work on next is definitely fun and exciting because there are endless possibilities. However, at the same time, there is this fear of settling down with the wrong idea or passing over the perfect one without recognizing it for its potential. What I am starting to learn is that while there is no way to know which idea is the best, every idea has potential and promise. What's the worst that can happen? I could choose the worst idea and write a novel that never gets published. Okay. So what? The next idea and the next opportunity to write something new will be waiting for me on the other side.
So after going through a ton of new ideas, I finally decided on the one that feels good for right now, and I am going to go for it. I'll start writing it today, and whether it turns out to be my best novel, my true breakout novel or not, I know I'll learn valuable lessons about myself and my writing along the way.
I am also going to need to crank it up a notch when it comes to editing my NaNo WriMo novel, so I'll be setting page goals and working hard on that today as well. Hard to believe that Christmas is just a few days away! And just beyond that... a brand new year to look forward to.
Vertigo Is No Picnic
If you've never had vertigo, believe me when I say that you are lucky. It's not painful or anything like that, but it's terribly disorienting and equally annoying. Just when I start to forget I even have it, I turn a corner or tilt my head and there it is again. It's a difficult sensation to describe. I feel dizzy and disoriented. There is a slight jolt that goes through my body and feels tingly all the way down to my toes. Sometimes, it makes me feel like I am on a rollercoaster that is upsetting my tummy with its sudden drops and loops.
Yesterday, I didn't get a chance to write a blog, because we went to the doctor in the morning, then finished our christmas shopping in the afternoon. The doctor gave me some Antivert, which I guess is basically a strong antihistamine. It makes me a little bit sleepy, but not so bad as benadryl, thank goodness. All I can say is that I hope this vertigo is over by tomorrow. So far, I feel better today, but there have already been little episodes that let me know it isn't over yet. I'm ready to get off this rollercoaster!
Inner Ear Infection?
I feel dizzy. Disoriented. When I turn my head or look out of the corners of my eyes, I feel a sort of jolt and my body gets tingly. The room gets a bit spin-y. I was just at the doctor yesterday, but this had just started and I didn't mention it because I thought it would go away. No such luck. Talking to my mother, she thinks it's an inner ear infection, which she says will not go away on its own. So... another doctor's appointment? /sigh.
10 Days Til Christmas
Can you believe Christmas is so close? Have you finished your gift buying? Sent all of your cards? I am not really very good at sending Christmas cards. I have the best of intentions, honestly, but I never really seem to get them in the mail. Oh well, email is easier, haha!
I thought I was mostly done with my shopping too, but then my Mom stole my idea for my brother's present and left me high and dry last night with a "hope you have some other ideas" email. Okay maybe that's not completely fair. I was going to get him the gift, but it was pretty expensive. She offered to buy it instead and I could buy an accessory for it. Then, last night she announced that there was a deal where she got the accessory free with purchase. Now, I have to figure out what in the world to get for him. We still have G's Dad to buy for, as well as his niece. I think that's the bulk of it though.
This year, for the first time in my adult life, I will actually be home for CHristmas. And by home, I don't mean my parents home. I mean my home. Well, we are going to G's Mom and Dad's houses at some point in the day and on Christmas eve, but that is only an hour drive away. It will be really nice to just spend some quality time with G instead of running around to various parties and people's houses (namely Aunt Barbara, who I have no desire to see for a very long time)... It is going to be really nice!
2009 is almost here, and I have such high hopes for my writing. My Christmas present to myself is going to be editing the novel I wrote for NaNo WriMo, and starting a new fun novel that I just thought of yesterday. It's going to be a great Christmas, I can just feel it.
Survivor Gabon Finale
Last night was the finale of Survivor Gabon, and I am sad that it is over. My sister and I share a love of Survivor and Amazing Race, so this year we decided to each pick a team/player at the very beginning of the competitions and place friendly $5/each bets on our winners. If neither of our picks won the million, the money rolls over to the next season, etc. Well, believe it or not, I actually picked the winning Amazing Race team, Nick and Starr, right from the outset before the show began. $10 in my pocket. I wasn't quite as lucky with Survivor, but I figure I did pretty well considering the odds.
My sister's pick was Crystal, the Olympic gold medalist in the 2004 400m relay. Crystal made the top 6, but was blindsided by her own alliance. My pick was Matty, the personal trainer with a heart of gold. He made it to the top 4, but went home after failing to make fire in a tie breaker challenge against Bob. What broke my heart is that he was one spot away from going to the final three, and when asked, the group almost unanimously agreed that if it had been Matty instead of Bob, they all would have voted for Matty to win the million dollars. A narrow miss. I wonder how it really must feel to be that close to one million dollars and still come up short.
Personally, I think out of the final three, Sugar deserved to win the most. It's strange that she did not receive a single vote. No one ever voted her out, and no one voted for her to win either. I thought she was great! The only time I got mad at her was when she forced a tie and Matty went home, but at least you know she was following her heart as best as she knew how. So, I didn't win the $10 for Survivor and that money rolls over. I'm just impressed I picked a winner in one game and a top 4 in the other. Not bad.
Our pictures!!
Yesterday I got digital copies of the pictures we took at JC Penney!! Since none of our parents read this blog, I feel that I am safe to brag about them here and post a few, haha! We are giving framed 5x7's of the one at the top to our parents for Christmas as part of their gifts, and I really hope they like it! I actually love that top picture. Out of all of them, it is by far my favorite. It is the type of picture that our grandchildren might look at some day and think of how young and happy we look together.
We got up early this morning because G has to take his final exam, and I am anxious to get back into bed for another hour (hehe), so I am just going to post a few of these and go back to dreamland until 8:30. Happy Friday all.
