Technology digression:

I do not like using the iPhone to take pictures, and yet, since i have one, I never hunt out the good camera for pictures. Which means I never take pictures. This should change, stat.

We sat down last night to a good dinner and I was looking across the table at Annaliese, who has had some sort of time-melting growth spurt lately and now seems, oh, about 18 instead of four, nearly five.

I made some comment to that effect and K said, "it's like you're here with us for the first time in awhile."

Yes.

That is true.

Very odd, because the book was relatively a minor pain in the ass, and yet something about doing it was more than the Big Deadline Dread that I remember from school. Basically, it filled me with dread and terror the entire time I was writing it, and now that I'm not, voila! Nothing externally has changed but internally, no dread and terror.

Good change.

Makes me wonder if I should ever write any more books.

In store news, we need to make more money/employees continue to be a gigantic pain in my rear/people SUCK right now, it's all sandwiches and Christmas trees and no grocery shopping, which isn't FUN for me, I like the grocery shoppers!

So basically, the same as usual. In hard facts, I am encouraged by the all-time high average sale in the store (Rose by over $2/person in November, thanks to turkeys and Christmas trees), the percentage of growth compared to last year (37%, one month to go), and the record-breaking lunch/week the store experienced last week.

Did you just fall asleep? My husband did.

In farm news, our vision is clearing. K is close to finishing the porches. I've been painting and refinishing the floors in the kids' rooms and hopefully they'll be sleeping in their new rooms Christmas Eve.

The kids play outside a lot more than they used to. Right now their favorite game is Chef: they prepare intricate and beautifully laid out meals on short pieces of board: dirt, carefully mounded; magnolia leaves; acorns; screws.

Last night we decorated our Christmas tree together.

I'm liking December.