Christmas Fiction

Happy December, friends and fam!!  New day, new week, new month, fresh start!

I'm starting this month off with this Christmas-themed randomness:  A Merry Fictional Blog Challenge!

Advent Calendar: What traditions do you celebrate during December? Are you starting new traditions this year?
Always celebrating Christmas Eve with Mom's side of the fam, then Christmas morning breakfast and gifts with the immediate fam.  JEM & Kelly's Convivial Cozy Christmas Party, my Mockey Little Christmas (assuming I host that again this year), Nancy's game night.  I want us to start a new family tradition this year that honors Grandad's memory in some way, but not sure what that will look like just yet.

Carols: What's your favorite Christmas song(s)?
If I must narrow it to one current favorite, I'm definitely going with Someday at Christmas by Stevie Wonder and Andra Day ❤


Coal: A naughty character you'd send coal to?
Jasper Bloom from The Holiday... he's the actual worst!

Fireplace: Favorite Christmas movie that melts your heart?
Semi-random, but I'm going with The Family Man.  More than I would've once expected, I understand the inner conflict between independence and alone time and plenty of money VS. family life and the myriad of joys and responsibilities that come right along with that... he gets a glimpse of both worlds, and I'm glad he makes the right choice in the end. ❤

Gingerbread: What's your favorite holiday snack?
Fudge...  peanut butter or chocolate or cookies n' cream... all good!

Hot Cocoa: What's your favorite drink?
Hot chocolate or apple cider... mostly, I just drink water but that seemed like a really boring choice. lol


Lights: A character who has had the brightest or most positive impact for you this year?
Neville from Harry Potter... the Christmas on the Closed Ward chapter in Order of the Phoenix always makes me cry - I can't even handle it!  I have many thoughts on that, but to boil it down, I love that he finds the resilience and inner strength to step up and fight because of the heartbreaking loss he has endured!

Mistletoe: Character you'd like to meet under the mistletoe?
This year's choice would definitely be Neal Caffrey... hellooo!

Mittens: A cozy outfit that keeps you warm during winter?
Umm, at the moment, a hoodie and PJ pants. lol 

Naughty: Three characters who'd make the Naughty list.
1)  Delilah on A Million Little Things - not a fan!
2)  Jasper Bloom again
3)  Thanos! lol

Nice: Three characters who'd make the Nice list.
1)  Tom Holland's Peter Parker - he's just precious!
2)  Uncle Nicky from This is Us - also becoming precious!
3)  Kathleen Kelly from You've Got Mail =)

North Pole: If you could spend Christmas anywhere (even fictional), where would you go?
Since our days are numbered, I would not choose to miss a Christmas with my own family for this... but if I could jump into any book or movie Christmas on another day, then I would choose to join the sisters and Marmee in the March home from Little Women! Their old-fashioned Christmas is sweet and slow and full of love, thoughtfulness, simple joys, kindness to others, and making their own entertainment! ❤

Presents: A book or movie on your wish list?
Speaking of Little Women, I can't wait to see the new movie coming out this Christmas!  

As for a book on my wish list, Beth Moore's Chasing Vines is already pre-ordered, and I'm super excited about that one, too!

Rudolph: What's your favorite TV holiday special?
I don't have one.  Looked up a list of the top 50 and I've never watched most of them, so I guess this one doesn't apply for me. lol

Santa: A character you'd love to exchange presents with? What would you get them?
The young Ronald Weasley, who's one of my fav characters ever!  He often feels bad about being poor ("Why is everything I own RUBBISH!?"), so I would give him extra money that he could convert to galleons and spend however he wanted that year... in exchange for some chocolate frogs or Bertie Bott's every-flavor jelly beans or whatever he was able to give... most preferably a trip to meet everyone at The Burrow! =)

Scrooge: A villain you'd help see life in a different way?
Sticking with the HP theme, I'd chat with Draco Malfoy.  He has bad parents who've messed him up, but there's goodness in him, and it's not too late! lol

Snowflake: A special fandom or movie moment that made 2019 awesome.
I wouldn't say it made the year awesome - lol - but the ending of Brittany Runs a Marathon was a super inspiring 2019 movie moment!  And it was fun to connect with my cousin and another cousin's wife over our shared love of the HP audiobooks! =)

Tree: What do you decorate your house with for the season?
All the Christmasy things... trees, garland, candles, ornaments, beads, ribbon, any glittery things that come in hot pink, turquoise, purple, silver, and lime green! =)

Yuletide: The top 3 things in your life that make you the most happy?
My super-current top 3 happy things list = JD McPherson's All the Gifts I Need song (thanks to my cousin Ashley for introducing me to his Christmas album), Hideaway pizza, and writing a blog post!! =)  (I wrote this late last night, and since then, I made this happy slideshow to go with that song.)

BONUS: Ugly Christmas Sweater: Would you wear a sweater Molly Weasley made you or avoid it like the plague?
Are you freaking kidding?  I would be all about it!  Molly's strong and awesome, and homemade thoughtful personalized gifts are always fantastic, and anything that tied me to the Weasley fam and Harry Potter - yusss, please!  ;-)

This one was fun to write! =)  I thought about doing a 25-day Christmas blog challenge, but there are too many other things to write about this month.  Anyway, happy December 1st, and Happy Birthday to Laura Allison!! ❤

Quotables

It's been a while since I've posted any quotable quotes!   I've forgotten to write down stuff that made me laugh several times, and it's so hard to remember what was said later. =(  ...Then there are so many little comments that make me laugh that shouldn't necessarily be memorialized in writing, so there's that too. Lol  Anyway, I'll try to start writing them down more often bc I always love looking back at them! =)

Charlene, cracking up as I flinched hard when my hair blew in my face after a wasp had been flying near us at the OSU game:  "I’m just glad to find someone who’s jumpier around bugs than I am!"

Chatting around the table at the Wilson's last pool party:

Me:  "This is the longest I've been outside in quite a while... It's so much better once the bugs start dying off."

Sarah:  "Are you just permanently Vitamin D deficient?"

Me:  "No!  ...because I take some every day." lol

Paul:  "You’d probably do well in, like, Alaska or something."

Me:  "Oooh, I’m going to Alaska next year!!" ❤

TV night with Tiffany:

Me:  "So do you at least kinda know the basic characters of Frasier?"

Tiffany:  "I just know there's Frasier and Elaine and Kramer."

Me:  "Hmm... nooo." lol

On our way home from the Lauren Daigle concert:

Kristin:  "Hey, did you know they have a Starbucks at the Central Library now!?"

Jon, with all the judgment:  "But is it a Ghetto-bucks or a real one?"

Discussing Downton Abbey:

Sarah Elizabeth:  "I watched every episode, but I only watched the whole show through one time."

Me:  "So you’re probably not as connected to the characters as we are!"

Dramatic Chettles:  "Seriously!!  ...I mean, did your brother die?  Did you lose a sister to preeclampsia!?" lolol

Chet sitting by Sarah's fireplace and singing Mariah Carey Christmas songs while the girls talked about decorating ideas! lol

Their fireplace has since been painted... and the walls around it will be painted gray soon, so I'll do another before-and-after collage then!  While we were talking about them painting it...
Me:  "Oh, that's already been painted!?  How does it look??"
Sarah:  "Oh, have you not been to the new house yet?"
Me:  ..."What!?  I moved you in!" lol
Nancy:  "Yeah, she was there!!" 
Sarah:  "Sorry, my brain was blanking for a minute." lol

Watching the niece and nephews practice gymnastics on their new mat...

Me:  "That's cool that it moves from a triangle to a square!"

The very literal Jaceman:  "Actually, it’s a cube... see!!"  (He's not wrong! lol)

Carter, trying to cheer her up when she was mad about messing up a gymnastics move:  "Look, it's a Kyndal sandwich!"

Miss K... not amused!! lol

Jace Michael, trying to make sense of all the strong emotions:  "If Jesus doesn’t give ___ another baby, then I’m gonna tell Grandad to punch Him in the face!"

(*J was really sad to hear about the miscarriage, as we all were, and he still feels connected to Grandad in heaven, which is cool.  His confusion about who's in authority there did make me laugh, though!)

The rest of these are from yesterday's game night.  After everyone else left, Sarah really wanted to play one more game.  She was getting intense about figuring out and explaining the rules for this new game... Nancy and David were tired and confused and over it all... and me and Steve couldn't stop laughing during all this!

Sarah:  "Mom do you have a pencil?"

David, getting impatient and handing her a knife:  "Here, just carve it in the table!"

Sarah, ignoring that:  "Well, we each need to have a pencil!"

David:  "Hang on, I’ll go run to Walmart and get some while you finish reading!" lol

Totally random comment from David while Sarah was reading the rules to herself:  "I know I’m from a different area, but why would anybody ride a stationary bike?"

A few minutes later:

David:  "I’ve got some checkers we could play!" lol

Nancy, shushing him:  "She’s not gonna be in a happy mood if we say anything else!"

Sarah (imitating her mom):  “Oh, nooo, Sarah's gonna explode on us!"

Nancy:  "Well, you pull out these complicated games..."

Sarah with all the intensity:  "This is a child’s game!!"

David:  "Yeah, a child’s game.  This child’s been reading it for 30 minutes!" 

Nancy got some little books out so that we could all hide our scorecards from each other...

Sarah:  "Okay, are you guys all watching this so you'll know what to do next when it's your turn!?"

David, thumbing through his book as Sarah was un-amused that he wasn't paying attention:  "Well, I had to see what happened to Goldilocks!" lol

That's all I've got for now!   I hope you're having a great Thanksgiving weekend... get excited for the last month of this DECADE starting tomorrow!! =)

Thanksgiving and Black Friday 2019

Here's a quick post full of pictures from Thanksgiving and Black Friday!  ❤

Our Thanksgiving dinner was at Justin and Anna's house this year.  (Their staircase reminds us of 9121.)  This collage = My aunts Nancy, Charlene, and Georgia.  My Dad and my Uncle Gus.  Turkey cupcakes decorated by Rach and the Parrish kids!  Jayme being excited to meet her nephew soon.  Al and Hilary. Justin making all the kids laugh! =) And Ree photobombing Jayme and Ashley! =)

It was quite the crowd, even though we were missing a few.  There were 41 people from Dad's side of the family there... along with a few from Anna's family, who were probably overwhelmed by the noise and the number of people from our side!!  

The Mueckes and the Parrish fam

The Texas Mueckes, minus baby Gracie, who was napping. ❤

Myrick fam!

The Peavlers... and now Ingersol and Hites families

Lock and Whitaker families!

Kristin and Frankie and the boys... they put their arms up like that when they're told to "say cheese!" lol  So cute!

Dad and his siblings, minus Havno!

Our Thanksgiving morning was refreshingly calm by comparison.  Just me and Mom and Dad and the dogs.  We had croissant sandwiches for lunch, and Mom and I made corn casserole, veggie bars, and random whipped cream just for us. lol  

Rylee is sick and hurting, so I gave them the bed I'd ordered for the girlfranz, and I'll take the one they ordered their dogs when it comes in a week or two.  Rylee and Reagan seem to like the new bed! =)

I also found out via texting with T-man that Dad qualified for the State Farm Disney World trip next year... get excited!!  Triston is already all over the planning with finding good restaurants and rides and learning the whole FastPass system!

On Friday, I met Kristin and Ashley for lunch and catching up on life at the Norman Olive Garden, then the whole fam came to see Ashley's new house in Norman.  

After that, I drove to Sand Springs for Nancy's game night.  I talked to Teresa for a while as they were all cooking! =)  Then we all made a snack plate... puppy chow, cheese cubes and crackers, sausage balls, pigs in a blanket, veggie bars, chips and queso and bean dip, homemade carrot cake, etc.  YUM!

I was focused on getting everyone to fit in the group picture and forgot to smile, so I fixed it.  Yay for the blue-face stickers! lol

We played 5-Second Rule with the Wilson fam all there... after they left, we played Word-A-Melon.  Then Laura and Melody left, and we played a highly entertaining round of Suspicion! =)  (Chet's expression is because the carrot cake was super heavy. lol)

Wilson family cuteness!

That's all I've got for now.  I'm planning to write a Quotables post tomorrow.  

For now, it's time for pizza and the bedlam game - yay!!  =)  The Miss K had made me this lovely colorbook page as a surprise to ask who I'm rooting for.  I genuinely don't care much, but this was precious, so I told her if she's an OU fan, I'll root for them with her. ;-)  Technically, I'm rooting for both teams and happy with whoever wins.  And I love the intensity of watching with people who DO CARE. lol

Happy Saturday!

Thanksgiving Thankful Thursday! (#101)

"I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

Marvelous are Your works; my soul knows it very well.

My frame was not hidden from You as I was made in the secret place,

intricately woven together in the dark of the womb.

You saw me before I was born.

Every day of my life was recorded in Your book

and ordained for me before a single day had passed.

How precious to me are Your thoughts, O God!  

How vast is the sum of them!"

~Psalm 139:14-17

Happy Thanksgiving, gang!! ❤

Today, I am thankful for:

1.  The Word of God, and feeling God's presence closer to us when we dwell on ALL we have to thank Him for!

2.  My niece and nephews and all the joy and light and cuteness they bring to the world!! ❤

3.  Sarah Elizabeth and Chet Lee... and every great friend I've met through them over the past 11 years!!

4.  Pictures of people I love!!  Just found these underwater GoPro pics from last summer, and they made me happy! =)

5.  For so many good Thanksgiving memories with Grandad... I am thankful for his life and legacy, and that I've had a couple dreams where he's with us and happy and healthy.  And I am thankful that Jesus bringing restoration in heaven is a promise we can set our hope on!

6.  For Christmas lights... and that even the courthouse looks magical at Christmas time! lol ;-)

7.  For my faith, family, friends, fall, food, football, and fun!!  That covers the general Thanksgiving thankfulness list, and I'm genuinely thankful for each of those!

On a more serious note, there's a man in my Dad's lifegroup who has ALS.  He has faithfully come to church and worshiped God even as his health declines and his strength fades.  He posted this morning about how this is likely to be his last Thanksgiving here, then he thanked several people for what they've meant to him.  Life is full of highs and lows, and it's good to reflect on God's love and on loving the people who matter most to us.  Think about all you would be thankful for if this were your last Thanksgiving day, then tell God and the people you love why you appreciate them!! =)

...Psalm 139 was part of my daily reading this week, and I loved the reminder that God knew and ordained all the days of our lives even before we were born!  I hope you're having a happy Thanksgiving this year, friends, but if you are hurting or feeling lonely, I hope those verses (at the top of this post) bring you some comfort and peace!  God sees your heart, and He knows your story, and He cares for you.  He loves you deeply right now, exactly as you are.  And He wants a closer relationship with you!  

"Draw near to Him, and He will draw near to you." ❤
Happy Thanksgiving!

Friendsgiving #8

Last night was the 8th annual Friendsgiving dinner hosted by the Wilsons.  There was tasty Mexican food and photo-booth fun and CatchPhrase games and a crowd of almost 30 people!!  It was fun times hanging out with old friends and meeting new friends... with You've Got Mail playing in the background, as is tradition! =)

Here are several pictures, beginning with a camera-ready Tate and a distracted baby Ellie...

 ...who wanted a closer look at this gigantic bag of chips! lol

A great pic of the Moss fam!

Aunt Lindsey and Tater-tot selfie!

Chet got 40 candles to light up the birthday cake, which turned out pretty great after a slightly ridiculous baking process. lol  (I wiped off the icing from the strawberries I had removed and then I froze them because I read that they won't juice so much if you do that, which was true!  So there's a happy tip for anyone trying to make a cake like this in future.)  Anyway, here's a pic right before we sang Happy Birthday...

Laura blowing out all the candles... she almost got them all at once!

Laura and I with the cake! =)  We had about 7 other dessert options, so we'd have been okay even if it didn't turn out well. lol

Uncle JEM and Aunt Kelly with Tate

I was pretty happy about the photo booth! =)

The Myers and Tate, who was wearing Karli's Uggs! lol

At some point, an acapella version of Mariah's "Oh, What a Wonderful Child!" broke out! lol

Guys pic

Girls pic

Happy friend trio pic!

CatchPhrase fun... we played 3 rounds of that, then went around sharing what we were thankful for... or as Sarah sarcastically put it, "We're stopping the game so we can all talk about our feelings!" lol

This = Chet paying Laura for cat sitting while they were in Florida... I had to snap a picture when he came in with this change jar! lol

(I also made Oreo balls for this event, and they seemed to be a hit!  Cody hadn't had them before, and when he heard that I made them, he gave me a thumbs up and said, "Jesus would approve!!" Lolol)

Happy Thanksgiving week, friends!  Today I feel thankful for God's grace, for decade-long solid friendships, awesome food, fun conversations, pictures that make me smile, birthday celebrations, and new possibilities!  That's all I've got for now.  Back to my grueling workday of playing on Facebook and addressing my Christmas cards! ;-)

*And if anyone would like to reminisce about Friendsgivings #1-7, click HERE. ❤