I'm supposed to be thankful for something, right?

As Thanksgiving Day is winding down for everyone, I'm sitting here thinking about what I should be thankful for. It's not necessarily the usual "family" answer. My definition of family is much more broad than most definitions. First, there are my parents, but that just always seems to be a rocky relationship and most times, I think it's better for my mental health to just leave it be.

Then there's what I consider my "immediate family" - Eric and Dakota. Yes, I'm including my dog (who right now is laying on the couch, drooling on it). Eric and I are going to have our 6 year anniversary in January, and some times it seems like we've been together forever, and some times it's like it was just yesterday. I'm also thankful that we all have roofs over our heads and food to eat.

I'm also thankful that I've gotten through the last few months. It feels like they just went by so fast, and I almost feel like I missed a lot. Things have been a blur, I did some stupid things, and I'm just still feeling behind with a bunch of things that I should do. I'm thankful for many friends that have been around, listened to me talk (sometimes about certain things, sometimes about random things), and just have been around to hang out. It makes Lansing not feel as lonely as it once did for me.

Anyway, I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving. Before we know it, it'll be 2009!

Finally - something new!

It took me awhile last night, but I finally sat down and made something new - here's the unveiling!





Now, with today being my last day of work for the week (I love my boss!), how much reading, movie watching, other random things will I get done??

Things I want (need) for Christmas...

I'm being practical this year. My number one item I'd love to have is a new wool coat - a long one. My old one has gone through 4+ years and is breaking apart on the inside. It was a great coat (thank you JCrew), but it's time to move on.

The other thing is to get my ears pierced. I think I'm finally ready to do it. Not that I ever wasn't ready, just never really thought about it much until I started making earrings...lol.

Yup, I'm being simple this year. What do you want for Christmas?

Whew...

After another nap (I could get used to this), I have decided to post a couple of pictures from today's festivities.

Mascots galore!!! I'm glad they all showed up, despite the weather. Then again, they had the warmest place to be!

Hm, at least the eggs are visible...however, this is BEFORE they started sinking into the snow.

I'm so happy with how the Easter Egg Hunt turned out - it was my first one. I learned a lot, because Carrie is super organized and had everything handled (thanks!!!)

Also, check out the video on the LSJ website - there you'll find yours truly.

The day after...

I survived Christmas. It was a long day, but we made it. Actually, it even started on Christmas Eve. I think Dakota had the best picture from the holiday. She received a very cute coat, but wasn't quite sure about it...

I am quite enjoying my time off from work. Getting lots of sleep, we finished watching the third season of "Arrested Development", and now I have lots more movies to watch and books to read.

I'll be heading back to Lansing tomorrow in order to hang out and clean my apartment a bit. I'll only be staying overnight, but I'm hoping to get a little bit done. Then, I'll be back in Muskegon until after the new year. Yay! More sleep!

I hope everyone had a good holiday, and also is having some restful time off. I know I am!!!!

Currently reading: Playing for Pizza by John Grisham

"Due to lack of interest, tomorrow is cancelled..."

Or, maybe due to excessive snow! On my way home last night, I decided to rent a bunch of movies and make sure that I had enough eggs to bake today. There was a lot of snow predicted! And, it has been snowing all day.

I slept late this morning, got up, decided to get lunch and go get butter, since I had forgotten that last night. I think that started the crazy day today. I went to Kroger, the box of Mountain Dew I had picked up broke and all the cans fell all over the floor. When I got home, I got to my front door, and dropped my large pop from Burger King in the hallway. Somehow, I got through making chocolate chip cookies without an issue, but then while making molasses cookies, I dropped the sifter in the mixture. Sigh. I'm such a klutz somedays.

I'm hoping this week isn't as stressful or exhausting as last week. I still have to do some holiday shopping, and hopefully will tie up some loose ends at work. In addition, I hope to watch some more movies, and read some. Luckily, it's still the weekend!

"No matter how cynical you get, it is impossible to keep up."

This is a busy weekend. Last night, I went out to dinner with a friend of mine, and then we went to see the movie "Gone Baby Gone". I really, really liked the movie, and Casey Affleck was just amazing. There were some great scenes, and the overall message makes you think. I highly recommend it to everyone.

I was at a Jaycees event for a couple of hours today. We hosted "Stuff the Bus" to help 6 families we adopted from the Salvation Army. When I left, we had quite a few items in the bus. I hope the rest of the event went well!

And then, I have just returned from Grand Rapids. I met Eric there, since we both stayed at our respective homes this weekend due to scheduling conflicts. Anyway, we went to dinner, then did some Christmas shopping. I hate that I'm at a loss as to what to get for some people. Then, other people are just so easy to shop for. I decided that this year, I was going to try and spread a little holiday cheer instead of being a grinch. Let's hope for the best on this goal!

Then tomorrow is brunch and "Spamalot" with the office. That'll take up a good chunk of the day, then I want to make some more cookies, but we'll see how time goes. I could make cookies, make cards, do a scrapbook page, watch a movie, read a book - there are so many possibilities. Although, I may just be lazy - I'm starting to feel a little run down and sick, but I don't know if that's from just standing outside in the cold today!

Well, off to do something...

"I never thought it was such a bad little tree..."

"I just don't understand Christmas, I guess. I like getting presents and sending Christmas cards and decorating trees and all that, but I'm still not happy. I always end up feeling depressed." - Charlie Brown



I'm fairly certain that Chuck got it right here. I really know of no other way to describe it than the above quote.

I've actually been quite uncharacteristic this week - I've baked cookies two nights in a row this week, and brought them into work. It's not like I was going to sit down and eat them all! I just felt compelled to bake, so that's what I did. I've had several people tell me I'm nesting. Sigh.

I'm not sure if it's just a combination of things right now, but I've had some trouble concentrating at work lately. My mind wanders elsewhere, and I just can't focus. In this respect, I just haven't done a whole lot. I know this - but it turned up in what I assume was supposed to be a joke toward the end of my day today. A co-worker of mine mused "Sometimes I wonder if you do any work." Ouch. I know that person probably meant it in a joking fashion, but man that statement ended up stinging. Even though I know I haven't been motivated at work, it still hurts when someone else comments on it. So, if anyone has some ideas for how to get me motivated at work again, please let me know.

It's just me and Dakota this week. I have grand plans to rearrange my apartment this weekend, throw out all the garbage, and do some reading. We'll see how productive I actually am.