As we near the end of 2015 I am definitely in reflection mode. Here are some of my favourite things from December. Don’t forget to share your own in the comments!

Books

This month I read a few books that should help me plan my routines and resolutions for the new year: So Good They Can’t Ignore You: Why Skills Trump Passion in the Quest for Work You Love, Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less, and Design Mom: A Room-by-Room Guide to Living Well with Kids. I also started Soul Keeping: Caring for the Most Important Part of You, but haven’t got far enough to comment.

Food

After making a double batch of rich chocolate pudding I had ten egg whites left over, so I made these coconut macaroons. The texture was phenomenal and — with a little almond extract as well as vanilla — so was the flavour.

When I saw this recipe for Bangkok Coconut Curry Noodle Bowl I knew I had to make it as my reward when I finished my novel revisions at the beginning of December. It did not disappoint.
(I paired it with this documentary about three restaurants and followed it with candy cane ice cream.)

As we recovered from the stomach flu last week we had to cancel attending a Christmas turkey dinner potluck. Thankfully we had all the essential ingredients for jambalaya in the house, so we had a delicious if unconventional Christmas dinner — with plenty of leftovers for quick lunches later on.

Finally, I can’t neglect to mention some favourite seasonal foods: clementines, homemade old-fashioned brown sugar fudge, and Danish butter cookies in a blue tin.

Activities

• Submitting my novel manuscript to a literary agent
• Enjoying Lebanese food and chopping down Christmas trees with friends
• Attending Zoolights at the Calgary Zoo
• Having my mom visit for four days and cramming them with baking, cooking, eating, geocaching, looking at Christmas lights, shopping, reading picture books, and visiting the zoo
• Shopping for (inexpensive) presents for the kids
• Opening Christmas cards
• Hearing my 19-month-old repeat words
• Watching short videos my husband made of the kids’ antics
• Skyping with relatives across the continent
• Doing a jigsaw puzzle with my husband while drinking tea, eating chocolate, and listening to sixties music
• Buying 40% off tea and clothes on Boxing Day
• Reflecting on the past year and making plans

Stuff

• Candy cane shower gel
• New notebooks
• Coupons and Groupons
• New laptop and camera (that my husband researched so I wouldn’t have to make too many decisions)
• Wool blankets
• My mom’s 1970s Hudson’s Bay Company parka
• The kitten toque I wore as a toddler, now passed down to my girls
• Our washer and dryer (when your kids have the stomach flu you use them a lot!)

Bible Verses

Old Testament: “Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.” (Proverbs 28:13) What a promise!

New Testament: “By faith Moses, when he was grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to be mistreated with the people of God than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. He considered the reproach of Christ greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking to the reward.” (Hebrews 11:24-26) Convicting words.

Final Thoughts

Thank you to everyone who has read my blog since I launched it in September. If you enjoy it please subscribe to my free email newsletter. Each month I share news about my writing, as well as blog and website reviews, lists, trivia, and the solutions to my cipher series. (If you don’t care about ciphers, but love history and fiction, please join me anyway!)

P.S. I’ve linked up with Leigh Kramer’s “What I’m Into” post. Go check out the other blogs!