Merry Christmas! I do hope that you are enjoying the holiday today. In order to celebrate I thought I would post a list of my favorite three things that make me think of Christmas. Here's a picture to describe it all:

What? That doesn't make sense to you? Fine. But let's make this quick, I've got Christmas to enjoy.

1) Sufjan Stevens: Songs for Christmas: I honestly get giddy with anticipation to listen to this CD. I know I mentioned this before and I'll mention it again. It is one of the best Christmas CD's hands down.

2) A Charlie Brown Christmas: Seriously, it's short, sweet, and meaningful. Why belabor it by posting a lengthy description?

3) Christmas Cookies: While I have no tradition making any Christmas cookies, I do have a tradition of eating everyone else's cookies during this holiday. I also make it a tradition to gain 10 pounds too. They might be related...

So what am I going to do? Combine all three for a magic Christmas day miracle. I hope you find the time to enjoy all the things that make you enjoy Christmas so!

Thanksgiving is this Thursday! I'm sure you already knew. This Thanksgiving is huge for me since it is the first Thanksgiving away from any family that I know. Some friends and I are having a family-less Thanksgiving due to our locational distance. The theme is for each one of us to bring something from our family traditions. I'm brining curry :-).

But in order to celebrate Thanksgiving, I thought I would focus on the theme of giving thanks this year. This week, I'm giving thanks to different things in life. Today is the top 3 things that I'm grateful for at the current moment.

3) It's almost Sufjan Christmas time!

You may laugh at me, but I seriously love the Songs for Christmas album by Sufjan. The reason I don't listen to it all the time is that I have this strict rule about not listening to Christmas music before Thanksgiving. Because of this, it makes the experience that much more special. Songs for Christmas is one of the most visceral albums I know of. Not only is it a great Christmas CD, but it is one of the most spiritual albums I've listened to. For real, try and listen to it and not feel the depth of Sufjan's soul being poured out. I suppose we can lump all other types of Christmas things into this space: Christmas music, Christmas food, cookies, families, friends, and new to this year, going home.

2) Adjusting to Spokane

Sure, it's not one specific thing to be grateful for, but this is huge on my list. I thought moving to another city where I didn't know anyone was going to be terrifying and horrible. While it was a bit scary, it has been anything but horrible. I have a steady job, classes aren't terrible, and I'm meeting all kinds of interesting people. In fact, I think I'm actually starting to like Spokane. So thanks to anyone who has made the transition here easier than it could have been.

1) My family

Sure, it's cliche, but I'll be honest, this wouldn't have made my list before. Moving away has given me some good perspective on what a great family I have. They love and support me in all the things I do no matter how crazy those endeavors might seem at the time. Plus, they are always loving no matter what stupid things I do. Sure, we don't get along all the time, but in the end, I know that they'll always be there.

So how about you? What are the things that you're thankful for this season? Yes, be as corny as you want, I don't mind. 'Tis the season after all.