Hey, It's Me Again

Hello guys! How is everyone doing?

I've had a pretty busy week. My day job has been very busy, and then my evenings are filled up with blogs, writing, and family.

This weekend was also busy because I spent a day and a half putting together my Christmas extravaganza.

Some of you are probably checking your calenders and thinking, "It's the first week of November, and she's already decorated for Christmas?"

Yes.

I promised myself I would wait until November to start decorating. I didn't start until the 7th, so I considered it a personal triumph.

I am a Christmas junkie. I love the trees, the ornaments, the stars. The tiny ceramic towns with the little people. Don't misunderstand my psychotic decorating habits; I know the reason for the season, Jesus. But one of the ways I love to celebrate and be reminded of that is with my house cluttered with Christmas decorations.

So. I thought I'd share my Christmas Gallery with you guys! :)

Our 7 foot tree

Our little tree that is sitting on top of the bookshelves!

This is my little tree which we decided to put on top of some of the bookshelves this year. I totally love it. Gives a nice touch to our library area.

Growing up, my father liked themed trees, but I always loved my grandparents Christmas tree because it had all these random lights and ornaments. Now as an adult, I'm surprised to see myself trending towards themes for my trees. The little one is peacock inspired, and the big one is old school elegance. Despite that, I still stick some random ornaments on my tree including owls, peacocks, cupcakes, and books!

Some of my favorite ornaments!

This is my little Christmas town. My mother had a few of these pieces when I was little on the mantle above the fire place. I loved it! I thought it was so charming, and stories about the people in the town would just fill my head. It was always my favorite thing to set up every year. When I got married last year, my mom gave my most of her collection, which I added to the pieces I had collected over the years.

What are some Christmas traditions you and your family have? How early do you start decorating, or do you pull out those boxes as soon as possible? Do you have a favorite ornament, or do you have themes for you Christmas tree?

On to other topics...

What have you guys been learning lately?

Recently, on the other blog where I write, Snack Time Devotions, I talked about knowing what God and His Word says. It's important because when you are out in the world, people are going to say all kinds of things, and unless you are tight with God, you won't know if it's true. I compared it to the match-up game we played as children. You know, the game where all the cards are face down and you pick two, and look at the images. If they are the same, then you pull them as a pair for youself. If they are different pictures, you flip them back over and try to remember where they are for future reference and points. This was all inspired by Nehemiah 6. Nehemiah experienced a situation where he needed to know who God was and what He's said in order to discern advice from a man ultimately trying to do him harm. If he hadn't known God's Word, then he would have been in a world of hurt! I won't overload you guys. Here is the link if you would like to read more about this topic. http://snacktimedevotions.blogspot.com/2014/11/spiritual-match-up.html

Reading wise, I recently finished Dixie Belle by Debby Mayne. This was a good book. I think the author stayed true to the southern flare. The main character was a little immature at times, but I actually think that was good for the story. You always want your characters to grow by the end of the book, and this character did! The ultimate message of the story was a good one, about being a Christian all the time, and not just at home and on the weekends. Over all, very good book. I will buy the sequels, but not obsess about it like I do with some of my fav authors.

What about you guys? What are things you like to read in a book? What kind of themes do you prefer or dislike?

This week will be very crazy for me, but the following few weeks will be slower at work, so I will be spending exorbitant amounts of time in front of my computer working on my next book. Stay tuned for tidbits about the story. ;)

Have a good week everyone! I will see you on the 20th!

V. Joy Palmer