A Very Scrooge-less Christmas!

Do I love Christmas or do I love Christmas?!

I LOVE CHRISTMAS! I love Christmas music (preferably Celine Dion, Amy Grant, NSync, and The Carpenters), decorations, cookies, shopping, crazy people, parties, movies and the REAL meaning of Christmas. And I almost forgot, I love gifts! Of course I love getting gifts, but I truly love giving more than receiving. That may have something to do with the fact that the gifts I give to Derek are usually beneficial to both of us, therefore I am giving and receiving all at the same time. Smart girl here! (I'll share my big gift with you after the 25th!)

So on the note of giving is better than receiving..... What better time of the year to give to those in need! Whether you're buying a dead rose from "Doug," the Indian guy downtown (who I'm pretty sure is not named Doug) and paying an extra dollar or two, or just dropping in some extra change at the Salvation Army stand, now is not the time to be stingy! Not many people read this blog (I know, right?! What's wrong with this world?), but what kind of lousy person would I be if I didn't use it for good once in awhile? So today, and from here on out, I'd like to share with you some organizations, that aren't super well known, but would GREATLY appreciate and benefit from your help.

First up is not an organization, but a family that I've talked about on here before. Brad and Tara Mowen adopted their first ADORABLE baby boy from Ethiopia last spring and just found out a few weeks ago that they will be going back to Ethiopia right before Christmas to bring home their two new sons. Awesome news! That's the short version, but you can read about everything here. Sounds easy, but there's a ton of paperwork and money that go along with it and they could use all the help they can get! On their website, you can purchase either t-shirts or bead necklaces made by African women for $15 each, which will help with adoption costs. Now I know you may wonder why you should be helping these people you don't know, but you should change your way of thinking and realize you're actually giving two little boys a family! There will be two less orphans in Africa shortly and what I love more than anything is that they are actual brothers. Heartwarming!

Second up is another organization I have mentioned before. The actual organization is Amazima Ministries and was started by Katie Davis from Kisses From Katie. Amazima "feeds, educates, and encourages orphaned and vulnerable children and the poor in the country of Uganda."

This is an amazing organization to help with and while any amount of money is gladly accepted, you could (and should!) sponsor a child for just $300 a year. That's $25 a month. Your phone bill is probably triple that! This will include education at a Christian school, school supplies, school uniform, three meals a day, medical care, Christian discipleship, and spiritual growth activities for their families and/or guardian. I understand if $300 isn't readily available however, so they also offer handmade, beaded necklaces for $19.95. What. A Steal. These necklaces are made by the Ugandan women through Amazima's vocational program and I'm just waiting for the red one to be back in stock. These women better pick up the pace a bit! (I kid, I kid.) You should seriously check out their website to read everything, they say it much better than I ever could. Back to Katie..... She has a new book out, cleverly titled, 'Kisses From Katie.' Heeeyyooo! Honestly, I can't put into words what an amazing girl she is. Read her book, read her blog, you'll love her!

I'll think I'll call it a day with charities in this post, but I've already got quite a few others in mind and I'm actually really excited to share them with you! GOODNIGHT!

Patented & Copyrighted.

You know those sayings that are making their way around the internet that usually start out with "That moment when...." and then go on to describe some random moment that happens to everyone? Well I've come up with my own original 'moments' and I thank you, ladies and gents, for allowing me to share them with you. Here you are:

"That moment when you're in the shower and you look down and think you're being murdered, but you really just knicked yourself shaving."
OR
"That moment when you're in the shower and you look down and think you're being murdered, but you really just forgot to put a tampon in."
OR
"That moment when you're in the shower and you look down and think you're being murdered because you're actually being murdered."
(That 'moment' doesn't end well.)
Any of these could work and are interchangeable.

"That moment when you're in the shower using your homemade coffee scrub that is supposedly curing your cellulite and you look down and think you've accidentally gone to the bathroom. Specifically, number two."

"That moment when your peaceful dog jumps up and bites a skipping girl's long braid."
(Let's get something straight. Diego is perfect, that girl shouldn't have been skipping!)

Here are some real 'moments' taken from That Moment When on Tumblr and they are not very good moments at all! I don't think these people understand the assignment.

"That moment when you want to walk around the house in a sports bra, but then you realize you have too many love handles to do so.. So you just slip on an XXL shirt and call it a night."
-Ummmm, what? This girl should stop talking.

"That moment when I love the bad guys more than the good guys in an anime. I MISS AIZEN SOUSUKE~"
-Uuuuhhh, nerd.

"That moment where you tell your friends that you are going to bed but you are still browsing the internet after 10 minutes."
-Good one. Not.

This is in honor of Thanksgiving and Marianne!
"That moment when you wanna punch your mom in the face."
-Happens most holidays!
(No it doesn't.)
(Yes it does.)

And finally someone recognizes themselves for who they and most of us really are!
"That moment when you realize you are probably the most boring person ever."
-Spot on!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Love, Your Favorite Granddaughter

As I was walking through town today, once again stuck behind old people walking SO slow (bad hips, bad ankles, underdeveloped calves, fluid in the knees, vertigo), I realized I don't necessarily love old people. Rough, I know. But seriously, old people are the worst! They're slow at all things, they do not/cannot/will not learn technology or anything new for that matter, and quite honestly, they can be kind of gross. You know what, you need to stop hating on me right this second! I'm allowed to feel this way! Besides, there are several old people I enjoy very much, one being Doyne (aka Grandma).

I adore Doyne with all my heart, but she really isn't making a good name for her peeps. Through her, I was able to get a glimpse into the life of the older generation and it is not pretty. I realize you're 85 years old and I just showed up at your house unannounced, but you're a hot mess! Lets class it up a bit Grandma, put your teeth in! Treat yourself and wear your teeth all day, even when company is not expected! I also understand you enjoy the taste of cottage cheese, but it doesn't need to be eaten for every meal. Despite what you say, I know it can't possibly taste good swirled around with all the other food on your plate. Nice try! **For the record, Doyne is actually very not gross and I thought she had things pretty well figured out.....until this happened.

I stopped by her house one day (when my Grandpa was still alive) and they were SO relieved to see me. It was the reaction I'd been waiting for my whole life, and then they told me they needed help. My uncle had bought them a "record player" (cd player) to listen to their music, but they couldn't get the "record" (cd) to work.

"We've tried everything. We've hit all the buttons, but we still can't hear any music."

I finally had a reason for living and was going to save the day, but then I couldn't get the "record player" (cd player) to work either. Embarrassing! I was ready to give up when I became curious as to exactly what kind of music my grandparents might be buying (I assumed something Lawrence Welk related), so I opened up the cd thing, and they had not bought any music at all. They had gotten a "free cd" in the mail, an AOL internet startup cd to be exact! They had literally been trying to get music to play for HOURS which totally boggles my mind.

So yeah, old people......

(This isn't Doyne, but these ladies probably pull the same shenanigans.)

A Summary of My Life.

"I had a very interesting discussion last night at dinner with some friends. Usually I don't have discussions at dinner. Not because I do not enjoy them, but I prefer buffets and am generally either at the buffet table or eating as fast as I can for fear they will close the buffet before I can finish."

EXACTLY!

PLEASE BE AS GOOD AS THE BOOK, PLEASE BE AS GOOD AS THE BOOK, PLEASE BE AS GOOD AS THE BOOK

I read this book awhile back,

and I fell in love.

I was a bit hesitant to begin this book because I'm not usually a fiction type of gal, but it had me hooked at chapter one. Naturally, when I heard this was being made into a movie, my first reaction was JOY. Pure joy! My second reaction was a bit of the ole queasies in my tummy. Could they possibly make the movie as outstanding as the book? I'm not into Harry Potter, Twilight, or Lord of the Rings, so I really need The Hunger Games to be good. Like, really good.

The day I heard Jennifer Lawrence was cast as Katniss was a sad, sad day. Winter's Bone was more like Winter's Bore and I refused to believe that she could be Katniss. That is, I refused to believe she could be Katniss until my one good eye caught sight of this baby: It's my perfect, perfect Katniss. Yes! Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Next came these pictures:
Then there's the perfect Effie. Exactly how I imagined her.
And then the most perfect of all. Cinna. EXACTLY how I pictured him. I was the opposite of a Lenny Kravitz fan, but that may all change very soon.
These pictures made me realize that this will be the best movie series OF ALL TIME!
And then I saw the trailor. I don't know, I just don't know what to think. It's so strange to see it come to life. It's basically what I imagined it to be except the arena training. You know what though, I'm keeping hope alive and I know this film will be AH-MAH-ZING!

The movie is being released March 23 and I'll still be in Italy. For the next four months I vow to search for a theater where I can see this in English. I WILL NOT STOP UNTIL IT IS FOUND!
MAY THE ODDS BE EVER IN MY FAVOR!

Mi Casa Es Su Casa.....

......unless you want an oven in su casa! We've finally moved into our real apartment and I truly can't complain. It's nice, it's fairly modern, there's a flat screen tv that we can plug our computer into to watch real television, the shower feels excellent on my head, buuuut there's no oven. This was suppose to be "The Year of the Oven," and now that has been renamed to "The Year of the No Bake Cookie!" Yuuummm.....when I was 12! Do they think Thanksgiving pumpkin pie and Christmas cookies bake on a two-burner stove? I don't think so! This is a true tragedy!

Thoughts of having no oven have completely consumed me, but luckily, I am an even tempered, level headed, mature 29 year old woman. HEAR ME ROAR! Maturity means I don't yell at Derek for having no oven because it's obviously not his fault, I don't bring up the no oven 'sitch' in every conversation I have and to everyone I meet, and I haven't cried over it. That would be SO crazy if somebody cried over not having an oven! I am once again starting to become very upset, so I think it's best we move on.

Here are those pictures of our new hood I promised you weeks ago! Bolzano is an awesome city and I may not have originally thought it was a happening tourist spot UNTIL I ran into a Rick Steve's tour downtown! Rick Steves! First question asked, "Is Rick Steves with you?" He wasn't, but there was NO WAY I was passing up the chance to meet this traveling nerd. Anyways, hope you like the place as much as I do! **Note** I did not edit these photos. On most days, I would rather come down with full blown AIDS than deal with Photoshop!
(Only my favorite place in all of Bolzano!)These next three photos are from just outside of Bolzano, where we actually live.**Another Note** When we bought the DSLR camera, I thought mad photography skills would flow from my fingertips, but as we can all see, that's not the case. Don't think mean things to yourself about my less than stellar photography, okay? Thanks!