This has been a week of vacation (Randy and I took a break from normal work) but a busy weekend with the holiday. I don’t participate in Black Friday shopping, but it takes a lot of work to prepare for Thanksgiving dinner and decorate for Christmas right afterward.

I did without my laptop much of this weekend, as my son, Ryan, had the urge to work on his fantasy novel, and since he had the time, I let him have at it. I think he wrote close to 15K words! He writes better on the laptop, as do I. Something about the desktop doesn’t seem conducive to the creative spirit. And the desktop is in the main area of the house, which is not without its distractions. But the lack of easy access to my laptop made me realize all the more that my son needs a laptop of his own. Or I need a new one. :) I did a little online window shopping looking at Mac laptops today and had my son, Jeff, who owns a Mac, walk me through some of the features and discussed why owning one might be worth the extra expense. I’m nearly convinced. Nearly…

We decorated the house for Christmas Friday and Saturday. Thanksgiving Day was quiet and pleasant. My sister and her husband brought my dad from the nursing home (and my mom as well) and he got to eat with us, albeit sitting in his wheelchair. The wheelchair they gave him could have been more comfortable, so next time we will be more aware of that, but all in all, he had a good time and we enjoyed his company. He is becoming more confused these days though, which is sad to see. I’m not sure what that means as far as his overall health goes.

I finished a romance novel Off the Record by Elizabeth White on Thursday night and started right in on another story – Crime Scene Jerusalem by Alton Gansky. Off the Record definitely kept me turning pages. I love a good romance! Crime Scene Jerusalem is different and intriguing. I love Jerusalem and the story takes place there in two centuries, which feeds my addiction for the Holy Land in ancient times. If only time travel were possible…I’m trying to make a dent in my TBR (to-be-read) pile.

On Thanksgiving Day my left eye felt like I had something in it all day long, but there was nothing there. So Friday morning when the feeling wouldn’t leave me, I found the doctor’s office was indeed open and went to have it looked at. Turns out I have a slight scratch. Go figure. It’s much better today, and thankfully, it was never so bad that I couldn’t see to read.

I made way too much food and we are still eating the leftovers. But tomorrow I’m hoping to go back on my diet. This is a horrible time of year to be strict about healthy eating, but I’m working on it. I went over a week without chocolate! But I will admit, I did succumb this weekend. Made chocolate cherry coffee today – who can resist such a thing?

Been doing a lot of pondering on the opening chapter of Bathsheba and finally worked on more of it tonight (after I got my laptop back!) So much goes in to that first chapter, setting the stage for the rest of the story. I want to get it right, and am having way too much fun in the process. :)

One last to-do for tonight – make my Christmas wish list. I don’t have any big wishes this year. I think the thing I’m most grateful for and the thing I want most is to just be with my family. When all is said and done, the rest of the “things” we receive are just things. Memories with loved ones is best.