Last minute Christmas suggestion?!?!?!

So I'm trying to think of a last minute Christmas idea for a relative and I thought some sort of Catholic daily devotional publication could be a great idea. The only problem is there are so many to choose from. I decided on three that I like based on their website but I'm looking for advice from my fellow Catholic readers...

My Daily Visitor
http://www.osv.com/MDVNav/MyDailyVisitorHomePage/tabid/440/Default.aspx

The Word Among Us
http://wau.org/

Living Faith
http://www.livingfaith.com/

I personally have subscribed to The Word Among Us but found it dry at times and not as inspirational as I hoped (just to give you an indication, I really enjoy the Little Blue Books Advent devotions from the Diocese of Saginaw http://www.littlebooks.org/ ).

Anyways, I know its late in the game so I'm not expecting lots of feedback, but any would be appreciated!

Thankfulness....and enjoying a day off!!!!

Hello all!!! Happy Day After Thanksgiving. Many refer to this day as Black Friday but ever since my days of working at J.Crew (god, how I miss those days....), I always say its Green Friday. And boy, are the masses out today! I went with hubby to McD's for breakfast and the Target parking lot was packed!!!! And of course Rt. 28 was jammed. We are planning on going out tonight after Lessons and Carols at St. Joseph's to do some decoration shopping (perhaps a stop at Target!!!!) since the apartment feels like it needs more Christmas stuff!!!

Today has been a fun day... we took down all the Thanksgiving stuff and put up our Christmas decorations. Here is our checklist:

• Stockings, including Rosabell's
• Both Nativity sets
• My Lenox village pieces
• Various hanging signs and nick knacks
• Advent wreath with brand new candles
• Holiday coasters
• Christmas throw pillows
• and our Snowmen mugs make a great decoration and hot chocolate holder :-)

Going back to Thanksgiving, I wanted to make a quick list of the things I am most thankful for this year....

1. My husband... He is my number one fan and always supports me in anything and every thing I do. Last year I took the whole year off from working to obtain my teaching certification. And he was there, rooting me on and doing more than his share of things around the house so I could get all my work done! I am the luckiest gal!!!
2. Rosie.. our bulldog. She is not only our dog but a true member of the family. I never thought I would love an animal as much as I do. We kid that she is our daughter... and we spoil her as if she was our baby!
3. Family... I lucked out in the in-law department especially. My family rocks... that's all I can say.
4. Friends... Again, I am pretty lucky in this category. I am so thankful for all my friendships since they are all so different. Each friend brings out a different side of myself and I love how each one has their own individual talent or gift they bring into the friendship!
5. My job... Teaching is one of the best parts of my day. I love my students and feel so blessed having them in my life. I will never forget my first year and all the relationships I've made this year!
6. St. Joseph... I love my parish. I feel so welcomed and part of the community. I've been giving many opportunities to share my gifts and especially love taking part in the Mass each week.

I hope everyone enjoys their day off today!!!! And enjoy the sales today ;-)

What a splendid idea.... Books for the Holidays!!!

I was stalking one of my favorite blogs when I stumbled upon this jewel:

http://www.buybooksfortheholidays.com/2008/11/about-buy-books-for-holidays-by-amy.html

As a teacher and a book lover, I strongly support this endeavor and proudly declare that I will be participating in this cause.

Friends and family members: You've been warn ;-)

I need some time...

Whew, I forgot how crazy the holidays were. We have been non-stop since Christmas Eve day and finally have a few moments to breathe.

Christmas Eve: Overslept first of all (not good), finished last minutes shopping until 1pm, made a batch of my Grammy's pumpkin bread, got ready, and then headed to the Seeds. We then drove to Westford to Doug's Memere's house (still calling it that for a while I guess), dropped off the gifts, made my famous rosemary potatoes and threw them in the oven. We busted down the road to Uncle Ray at the nursing home, had a quick Christmas with him and then busted back to Memere's for Christmas Eve dinner with the Aunts. We had as lovely time, but it was different without Memere. Got lots of fun stuff including some books, teas, and Fondue stuff. We finally got home and in bed by 1:30am.

Christmas: Woke up at 7:30am, did a quick Christmas morning with Rosie and Dougie. This year we had a five gift limit because of the circumstances and I think it was the best Christmas ever. It made us think real hard about what we were getting each other and I think the gifts were more thoughtful. I got a teacher bag (!!!!!), awesome books (including a grammar book), a school house for my village, a beautiful cardigan from JCrew, and a few movies. Then I hauled butt to Mass where I did the first reading. It was so beautiful being in church that morning and being a part of the Mass. I love sharing my day with the Lord! Then we headed to Methuen to my mom's to have Christmas with her and Andrew (my brother). It was a nice small Christmas because we both don't have the money. We had stockings and Dougie and I gave them small gifts. My mom made an awesome batch of crepes and it was a nice time all around! Then we headed to Doug's parents for our Christmas dinner which included a rib eye roast, mashed potatoes, peas, and sparkling grape juice! We had an awesome Christmas with them too: I got another beautiful teacher bag, pj's (a tradition), some nice linens for my tea parties, and the best part: a complete bone china tea set! Needless to say, I'll be having a tea party real soon! Then Dougie and I caught a late showing of National Treasure II and hit the hay again around 1:30am.

Today: Slept in til 10am, then dropped Rosie at my mom's, headed to the hospital to see Grammy (Doug's grandmother) who is going the same exact path as Memere (same infection and same kidney issues), then went to my mom's again to have Christmas with my godmother and my cousins. We did a secret Santa thing so we didn't have to buy for everyone and it worked out well. I had my brother so I got him a cool calendar and some candy. My mom had me so she got me car mats (which I needed so bad!!!) and a gift card to Borders. We just got back from that and we are looking forward to a relaxing night. Tomorrow we have to visit my dad and his wife in Rockport and hopefully clean up the house and put our stuff away.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas full of happy memories and many blessings. I know I did!