Happy Christmas

December is a month full of birthdays, anniversaries, and Christmas. But it is also a reminder of who has passed on. This year will mark the first time without Papa. His birthday passed, acknowledgement and tears; his and Granny's anniversary is coming up... and Christmas. The joy of the Lord's birth, of other family members birthdays and the empty space of a loved one. This year, I also lost a cousin suddenly, and an uncle is remembered fondly - and sadly as it is two members lost recently in the family. 

Christmas is also changing. I'm not only spending Christmas with my family, but also my boyfriend's family. Having to split my time between the two and wanting to spend as much as I can with my nieces and nephews, is hard. I am also disappointed that no trip to Florida to see the girls, grandparents and cousins isn't in the schedule... But it will be better to not be there with Papa not there. 

Luckily, we have the twins walking, Merritt liking presents, Mayer's funny words, and the sweetness of little Molly. So, while this was slightly a depressing post; it's also a reminder to enjoy your families and the entirety of the Advent and Christmas season. 

And to have a little more happiness, here's a picture of Christmas lights... 

Special Day

This has been a special day for us - we can finally (legally) call the twins ours! They've been ours from the beginning - just not recognized by the government. I am so happy that my sister and her husband decided to foster - and then adopt the boys. 

It's crazy how much they've grown in a year. Marcus was the shy one - and now, he's the flirt. He loves smiling and being tickled. Micah, he's so outgoing when he's around family but is so quiet in new situations. He's definitely the people watcher. They are both so special and now no one can take them away. 😍 

The Halloween Curse - A Halloween Short Story

Cree...eeeaa...creeaaakkk. The door slowly, noisily swished back and forth. Cree...creak. It continued moving. It opened partway...halfway - just a glimpse is revealed of the musty room. Dust coated the chandeliers, hanging off their arms like spiders weaving their webs. One couldn't move in the room without sneezing from the massive dust mites. It was strange, then, that someone sat in the big armchair. Creeaaa...creak. The door continued to swing noisily.

 BAM!   The person looked up in annoyance at the door. "Oh, would you stop it?" She asked, crabbily.

"But I'm not doing anything, Melinda." The slightly white ghost giggled, pushing the door as he looked upon the knob. “The wind is catching the door.”

"What wind?” She tossed her book up, watching as it hung in mid-air. “You might not be touching anything, but we both know that you can move the door.” She grabbed her book and sighed, “Please, Charlie, the noise is killing my ears."

"Killing?" Charlie popped up in front of Melinda, waving his arms in agitation. "Killing?! Could you possibly be any ruder?"

 Melinda giggled, placing her hand over her mouth. "I'm terribly sorry, Charlie. It slipped out of my mouth. Now then, could you please stop the noise? I'm trying to ignore the day."

 "But..but it's a lovely day. It's Halloween! We've got jack-o-lanterns to create and people to scare!” He drifted around the room. “I love Halloween."

 Melinda watched the ghostly vapor. Charlie got so excited about Halloween, even though none could see him besides her. She hated to disappoint him; he never remembered that after dusk, he would disappear.  Nodding determinedly, she stood. "You are quite right, Charlie. It is time to get ready. Who should I go as?"

 "An adventurer! You could take a Tesla with you. I have just the outfit. Come on!" Charlie quickly flew away, pulling Melinda with him. "Oh, and this year, you have to do the drippy goo hanging from the walls. And..."

 Melinda tuned him out; following, but not paying attention. Staring towards the door, she sighed. No one would come through. There would be no Halloween party. No dressing up, no candy, no dripping goo hanging from the walls. There would only be time - lost time. Can anyone hear me?Melinda asked in her head. Can anyway see us? Shaking her head, she headed back downstairs, knowing what Charlie never realised.

 The clock in the hall began chiming. The Halloween curse continued.

Bong.  Bong.  Bong.  Bong.  Bong.  Bong.  Bong. Seven times. Seven in the evening. Dusk on Halloween. The world stops... shimmers... and the day begins again. Creak. Creeaaakkk.And a giggle.

Sleepless

How is it that when one wants to sleep, they cannot - but when one absolutely, should not, needs to stay awake wants to stay up, they fall asleep. 

Now, normally I have no problem falling asleep. I can fall asleep anywhere - in the car, sitting in a chair, in the movies - literally, anywhere. And I often do fall asleep. It seems as if it can't be helped. 

However, I need to be asleep right now. I have school and loads of work to do, which I had planned on finishing first thing in the morning. Doesn't look too good for me right now 😔 I can't fall asleep. 

Oh, I'm sure if I really tried, I could. But my mind is racing and I'm exhausted, but awake. So, why?? What is making my mind so awake? 

Maybe it's the possibility of my niece coming home from the hospital, or my twin nephews eagerly waiting for their "gotcha" day. Or, maybe that my birthday looms near. What will the next year of my life bring? I'm hoping that it will bring the finishing of my book(s) and the courage to publish. 

Or, is my mind racing because I miss people? The next book keeps playing out in my mind... Or am I just being finicky and not sleeping just to not sleep. 

I don't know... And right now, I'm okay with it. I will just be tired tomorrow, because obviously something was important enough to keep me awake. 

Though now, I'm going to turn off my lamp, and think. Maybe I'll fall asleep. Who knows? 

- Sleepless 

And just because I saw this and adored...

Sweaters and Fall

The day is bright with some fluffy clouds in its' blue-skies. The wind, at times, is bitingly chilly. It finally feels like autumn. 

I'm in a sweater for the first time since the end of April and it is a comfort. I love sweater - and cardigan - days. I find it pointless to wear a cardigan in the summer, but apparently every place believes in 50 degrees inside. So I keep a cardigan on me at all times. 

But the return of autumn is always anticipated after a long, hot summer. It feels like students should be back in school. 

Yes, like most I'll miss the warm, pool days, but.... autumn brings winter that reluctantly lets spring come back. And spring is a time of new beginnings, a time of hope. 

So, I'm glad that autumn is here. It means fires and scarves, Halloween and Thanksgiving, my birthday 🎂... and to the retail people  - crazy days. 

So, to celebrate the first day that feels like fall (real celebration was over a week ago), I'm sporting a sweater and, of course, my Frankenstein necklace from Chandler the Robot. 

Lighthouses

One of the things that I have wanted since I was in elementary school was to live in a lighthouse. No joke. 

And who knows, maybe I will. It's on the water (love!), it's vintage, and will pretty much always be around. 

Into the Fray of Blogging... Again

Hopefully, now that I have an app for this, I will be writing, eh, blogging more. Unsurprisingly, I have been working on my stories... because they aren't published. I can write as much as I want, not afraid of what people think because they can't read them. 

But what is blogging? It's writing, of course, but isn't it stories in and of itself? My sister has convinced me that I just need to go ahead and publish - even if it is self-publishing. 

But I'm reluctant because they are mine and I don't want to share. Thinking of ways I could share my writings, I remembered "I have a blog"... because of course I had forgotten. 

So I'm going to try this again. Posting some parts of stories, or creating new ones on the blog. Slowly getting my work out so that I will try to publish my work, hopefully sooner rather than later.