Life: It Goes On - December 19

Happy Sunday! It's been quite a week here. We had the tornado sirens go off on Wednesday for the first time all year. I can't recall us ever having tornadoes in December. Tuesday was my book club's now annual holiday party. I've spent a lot of time with my Dad helping him get ready to host the family for Christmas this year. Hence, very little reading got done and no book reviews were written. To be honest, I've only finished one book in the past few weeks and that one only because it was my book club's selection for January and I needed to return it to the library for the next person in the club to read. 

I'm ok with that. I'm not beating myself up about a reading slump for a change. There are other things that are better uses of my time right now, things that are more important to me at the moment. 

Last Week I: 

This year's tables cape was inspired
by Scotland 

 Listened To: Sally Rooney's Beautiful World, Where Are You. I'm interested it and then I'm not and I've opted to listen to holiday music frequently when I'm in the car instead of a book. 

Watched: The Husker women's volleyball team play for the national championship with my dad, who is so knowledgeable about the team and the sport. It was so fun to watch this team, which is heavily made up of freshmen, take on the challenge of the tournament and knock off the number two team in the country. Sadly, last night was not their night, but they played so well against a team they haven't played well against in the past two years. So proud of them. 

Read: See above. Maybe thirty pages of My Monticello. I did read about fifty pages of Stanley Tucci's Taste, which I'm really enjoying but haven't had much time to pick up. 

Made: Chicken noodle soup, puppy chow, fudge, chocolate cookies, taco soup, chocolate sauce, homemade ice cream. I've definitely spent more time prepping for next weekend than cooking for us to eat regular meals. 

Enjoyed: Hosting my book club. I so enjoy these friends and it's nice to have someone else see the house that I've worked so hard to make festive. 

This Week I’m:  

Planning: More food prep, some final shopping for stocking stuffers, and then it's time to enjoy my family. 

Thinking About: As we head into our first Christmas without my mom, I've been feeling pretty sorry for us. Today, though, we heard about a car accident in the town where BG's sister-in-law is principal of the house school that took the lives of two young people and left three others on life support. Our Christmas will be different and a little sad but we are so blessed in every other way. My heart breaks for those families. 

Feeling: Like I'm in pretty good shape for the holidays. Somewhere around Tuesday evening I will surely be struck with the realization that I've forgotten something important or that there's no way I'm going to get everything done without a sprint in the final days. But today, I'm feeling good. 

Looking forward to: Being with my family. 

Question of the week: How will you be celebrating the holidays?