Dang my kid is beautiful. Then again, so is her best friend (picture #2)! Her sister isn't half bad, either (picture #3)!

For those of you in the Upper Midwest, DO NOT BE ALARMED! There are no animals dying!

At least not in the horrible ways you may be "hearing."

No, rather, my hubby got his Christmas wish — bagpipes!

Why exactly did I mention those to my parents? I'm not sure... Oh well, he's a happy camper and is actually getting a little better.

I do think the long horns on the wall clash with the pipes, though! *grin*

Well Christmas has come and gone, and still no word back on Ghost Mountain. I don't even know who ended up with it TO critique. I was talking to my sister about it, and a thought occurred to me: what if it's an author I don't like? Then if THAT PERSON doesn't like my story, I can be OK with it. But what if they do and I don't like their stores? Interesting dilemma, isn't it?

We spent Christmas with my family. First time in 10 years, to be honest. Anyway, this is a picture of the lap quilt I did for my grandmother. The blocks are the Lord's Prayer.

As for gifts, I got a lot of jewelry, a book on angels, one on saints, a few on Celtic Christianity, Pirates of the Caribbean Scene-It, and some knitting stuff. The kid got mostly clothes and fairies (she likes fairies!), and hubby got coins and bagpipes. Yes, I said bagpipes. No, he has NO IDEA how to play. My mom got the "Are you smarter than a 5th grader?" DVD game and we spent some time playing that. I've learned that I AM smarter, but not by much.

Only other homemade gift I did this year was a purse set for my step-daughter. I'm not sure she liked it (she's hard to "read" ya know...), but I think it came out really well.

Just got home from visiting family for Christmas (will post more about that later) and downloaded the pictures from my camera. This one I had to post because it was so darn cute!

Haven't posted in a bit, because life was in the way. Did get a lap-quilt finished for my grandma for Christmas, and a purse set for the oldest. I'm ready for the holidays to be over because we're going to be traveling this year and that always stresses me out.

Am still losing weight. Down a bit more and have only 30 pounds to go to reach my goal. Some days that seems like a LOT. Some days I'm not sure how I managed to lose as much as I have.

Found out I am (borderline) narcoleptic. Guess that explains why I get so dang tired, huh?

Finally, I STILL haven't heard back from the Ghost Mountain critique. I have no idea who read it, or when to expect it. I was told "before Christmas" so it could be any day. Or not.

The Game is on!!! And you're IT!

Describe ME in one word - just one single word. This is really fun.

Here's how to play: 1. Post a comment here with my one word.

The Game is On!!!

I haven't posted in awhile, and for those expecting some witty comments, forget it. I feel like ranting and this is probably the safest place to do that. Be prepared to get upset.

At what point did parents stop teaching personal responsibility? How old do children have to be before they are required to act like adults? And why do the people who DO behave responsibly seem to get screwed in the process?

I grew up in an area of the city where being a white female was a serious minority. I didn't know "white guys" could even PLAY basketball (with the exception of Larry Bird, that is!) until I attended college in Missouri. I've seen more people get *stuff* because it was entitled to them. I've seen a ton of people — people of each and every color and creed — demand their share. And what did they do with it? Usually squandered it away.

Now we have kids buying and playing video games with "R" ratings and the parents can't figure out why the kids are more violent. GIVE ME A BREAK! Today music and video games and movies and even television programs have the ratings posted! It doesn't take a genius to check that stuff!

But instead, let's make excuses. Let's milk the system for all we can and then wonder why the next generation doesn't bother to do the simple things like return phone calls or take initiative, let alone the big things like pay their own bills or follow those pesky laws they don't like.

And then there are people like me. The ones who TRY to follow the laws. The ones who WORK hard for what they have and even put their own wants and desires on the back-burner because it's not the right time to get or do "whatever." We are the ones who ultimately pay for the nonsense of the "I need it, I want it, I deserve it, you owe me" sect. After 30+ years of it, I'm tired. And I really despise having to explain it to the kid.

Maybe life would be easier if I was a taker, but I'm not. And with the world filling up with more and more takers, I am starting to feel like some endangered species. As we head into the Christmas season, these aren't the feelings I'd hoped to be filled with, yet I see it everywhere. How can I fix it? How can I even fix my own little corner of it? All I can do is teach the kid.

I just hope it's enough...