December 2010 Round Up

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What books and/or magazines did I read this month?
Ha-ha! I had actually already typed "I'm wondering if I should take this question off, since the answer is always the same," but I managed to squeak one in with about 4 hours to spare before Dick Clark counted down to the ball drop. What book did I start and finish in a day? Serenity: The Shepherd's Tale, a Dark Horse graphic novel. I know, a bit of a cheat, especially since it was actually DH's book, but I was genuinely curious about it. I'm a little bit disappointed in it, to be honest. To me, it doesn't really fit with what they established in the Firefly episode "Safe."

What movies and/or tv shows did I watch this month?
* TV Time: The Sing Off was back! DH and I are both huge a cappella fans, and I am amazed that it did well enough last year to come back. I disagree with the winner (not that they weren't great, but I thought the second place group should have won), but it was great to watch. I am so glad the rest of the country is discovering how great vocal only music can be! The Closer has also started back, which is always fun. Looks like 2011 will be the end of the line for that show, though.
* New Films: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part I (quite good, need to rewatch Half-Blood Prince and reread book, though), Tron: Legacy (the epitome of "visually stunning but ultimately pointless sequel"; anyone remember that TCM commercial? nonetheless, we did enjoy it; so so pretty!), The King's Speech (so very well cast with excellent performances all around), Spy Game ("old school" spy thriller, quite well done, but I think Sneakers is better), 2012 (classic disaster movie in every sense, including not being able to apply any logic to it whatsoever)
* Old Favorites: How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Ratatouille, Casanova, Romancing the Stone, The Sixth Sense, October Sky, The Karate Kid Part II, Chances Are, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, Emmet Otter's Jug Band Christmas, The Muppet Christmas Carol, The Nutcracker (1977 Baryshnikov), Mickey's Christmas Carol, Treasure Planet, Ice Age 3, Up, Toy Story 3, Lady and the Tramp, Serenity

What special days did I celebrate and how?
Spent Christmas with my family! Was supposed to spend New Year's Eve with my mom's family, but I was too sick. My grandmother had to have part of a lung removed, so any upper respiratory bug is very bad for her, thus I stayed home. DH and Luke went, though.

What gifts did I give and/or receive?
I think you got most of the rundown of Christmas gifts on this post, so I won't repeat myself. We bought dinner for everyone while at Callaway Gardens as an anniversary gift to my parents. Other gifts were sent to out of town family. I hear the rocket play set we sent our niece is one of her most favorite Christmas gifts. Yay!

What illnesses or health concerns did I have?
The ringworm on Luke's face is taking a long time to go away, much longer than I anticipated. It would help if we actually put the cream on 2-3 times a day like we're supposed to, I'm sure. And as I mentioned, I started coming down with a cold on Christmas Eve, and by New Year's Eve, I was too sick to visit with my mom's family.

What fun things did I do with my friends and/or family?
The Callaway Gardens Fantasy in Lights with my parents was great fun, of course. And holiday cooking, especially when my brother is here, is always great (he didn't even try to burn the house down this year).

What new foods, recipes or restaurants did I try this month?
Pork and Mushroom Ragu, which I am counting as both a new recipe and a new food, since I helped to prepare it before I ate it for the first time. It's a lot of work, and not exactly cheap ingredients, but it is yummy.

What special or unusual purchases did I make?
Stuff for a new kitten was definitely both special and unusual. At least the kitten was free! LOL

What were this month's disappointments or frustrations?
Luke had a terrible cold near the beginning of the month, but he seems to have recovered without an ear infection (so far). Being very sick (thought it does not seem to be the same thing Luke had) on my one day off just for me (the Monday after Christmas) was not very fun. I think the most frustrating thing about it is that the same thing happened last year! I would really rather *not* make it an annual tradition to cough and sniffle through the Christmas blockbuster (last year was Avatar, this year was Tron).

What were my accomplishments this month?

101 Things in 1001 Days update: 39. See the Christmas lights at Stone Mountain, Lake Lanier, or Callaway Gardens. Done, as I mentioned above.

I'm also getting closer on item number 25 (make 3 new temari, each a new pattern). Finished one in November and one in December, so only one left.

Work was a little bit bonkers. I tried to pull off a Christmas miracle, and I came really close, but it didn't *quite* happen. I have hopes of it being done the first week of January, though, which would be 2 weeks sooner than we thought, so that would be nice. Not much else there.

On the home front, we got the cats integrated, which actually went much better and more easily than we expected. My entire family and I actually got all of the Christmas presents wrapped *before* December 24! We finished late in the evening on December 23. Didn't quite know what to do with ourselves without a frantic wrapping party on Christmas Eve after the child went to bed.

What were Luke's accomplishments this month?


Luke lost his second tooth. I'm not sure it was really ready to come out, but with the adult tooth already starting to come in, I don't think we need to worry about alignment issues. He has started having some behavior issues, both at home and at school, which we are not very happy about, though I am also not sure how to correct them. That is a big project for us in 2011, how to nip the attitude problem in the bud as much as possible.

Anything else noteworthy to record?
I saw Ted Turner at Ted's Montana Grill (he being the "Ted" of the restaurant's name). The hostess said that he likes to personally check in on all of his restaurant locations and comes in a few times a year. It was slightly surreal.

Monthly Round Up courtesy of Katie the Scrapbook Lady.

Currently feeling: ready for the new year