Holiday Hunger

The constant activity of the past few weeks has left me in quite a state. My life is swirling around me like the thousands of snowflakes that will be sure to elude me yet again this winter. I fear that I am smack in the middle of the holidays and have no plan for the next month. Thanksgiving came and went with little thought or planning. It was still great. It could have been greater. Christmas, however, is a completely different beast. It is, by far, my favorite holiday and as such, hold the greatest of expectations. Every year I vow to achieve heights of awesomeness and every year I miss at least ten different events or holiday 'must-dos' due to poor planning. Not this year. This year, I have made a list. Those of you who know me, know that I live and die by my lists. If something is to be done, it must be on the list!
Below is my list of top twenty Christmas "Must Dos" to satisfy my hunger for a true Christmas experience.

1. Attend 'A Christmas Carol' at The Wells Theatre.
2. Build a gingerbread house.
3. Buy some mistletoe. Make out under it.
4. Decorate the outside of my house.
5. Spend more time 'dressed up' than 'dressed down'.
6. Holiday shop at Kitsch, Etsy, and other handmade markets to support local artisans.
7. Give the mailman a plate of homemade cookies.
8. Send Christmas cards.
9. FaceTime my family instead of texting them.
10. Make edible Christmas gifts.
11. Go iceskating.
12. Attend a Christmas home tour.
13. Surprise someone with an unexpected gift.
14. Pay for the car behind me in the Starbucks drive-thru.
15. Keep a stack of dollars in my purse for the Salvation Army bell-ringers.
16. Take Christmas treats to my neighbors.
17. Keep my bird feeders full.
18. Read The Sorcerer's Stone (to keep my sense of wonder intact).
19. Turn my phone off while visiting with friends and family.
20. Spend more time as a reveler and less time as a consumer.

Whether or not you have your own way of celebrating the birth of our lord, I hope that some of mine will serve as inspiration for something new or different.

Merry Christmas my darlings.