A Very Lucky Girl

The presents have long been torn into and the wrapping gathered into trash bags and I'm left with wonderful blessings from a thoughtful family.  Several monetary gifts that make my journey to Scotland in Spring 2014 much less a dream and much more a reality. A beautiful pearl necklace. A new (stylish) pill case to hold my necessary drugs. Make up that will greatly aid my face. Socks to warm my toesies. Gloves to heat my handsies. Jewelry to decorate my ears and my finger. Garments to clothe my body. And one of my favorites, words to warm my heart.  I unwrapped a box from Sharbear that contained a slim, green notebook, sturdy envelopes, stamps, and a set of pens. Inside the journal I found an entry with instructions. Mother-daughter journaling by mail. One of the sweetest ideas I've ever heard and I almost want school to hurry up so I can write her back immediately! Sure, my school is only about forty minutes away from home. But that doesn't mean life doesn't...

Nothing puts me in the Christmas Spirit like some NSYNC. The entire album is a gem of the 90's. Christmas is my favorite holiday, hands down. The decorations, the food (we've made 3 batches of caramel corn in a single week), the family, and the generosity. I can't get enough of the season that celebrates the birthday of the ultimate Giver.  Traditions sweep over our home, like a familiar quilt, when December rolls around. Decorating the tree and wrapping presents with Sharbear ornament the days leading up to the magical 25th. Christmas Eve is spent at the candlelight service, followed by a meal at a Chinese restaurant. We've done that for at least 10 years now. A tour of the city Christmas lights and a reading of the "Cajun Night Before Christmas" come to fruition before setting out goodies for Santa ("you know, I think this year Santa is craving a cinnamon bun and a diet coke!") and skipping to bed, only to lay there for hours, anticipation crowd...

Tyler and I are literally THE WORST at giving presents on the actual day of celebration. I think it's becoming more of a tradition than a faux pas. Who knows, we may end up celebrating Valentine's Day on February 1st or something equally ridiculous. I gave him his birthday present (originally designated for June 18th) around June 10th and he reciprocated by presenting me with my birthday gift weeks before my twentieth year of life. I had been working on his Christmas present since October and that's a really, really long time to keep such an epic secret. So I knew I wouldn't last much past Thanksgiving, when I completed the project. My gift to him was also time sensitive so I told him I needed to give it to him before Christmas. He caved to peer pressure and agreed to exchange gifts at the beginning of December. The plan was to decorate the tree at his house on November 29th, switch presents, and then watch Elf. We did all of that, except we opened presents on Novem...

I love holidays that involve presents. Not because of what I could potentially receive but because of what I can give! I love love LOVE to give people presents. It honestly makes me really happy. You could say it's an unselfish trait...but I love the feeling I get when I surprise someone with something that makes them smile. I crave that high. So, in that sense, I give selfishly.  That being said, I most love to give gifts with meaning. I hate Oakes' birthday because he has zero emotions and only wants cash. That's not fun to present. I try to make the card personal, but I'm fairly certain that my words go unread every year. But I thrive on holidays like Christmas and the birthdays of my friends, because they appreciate the thought I put into what I give them. For Christmas last year I gave Megan and my grandparents a memory jar. I compiled 52 specific memories that I have with them, wrote them on little scrolls of paper, tied with a ribbon, and spilled them all into ...