I feel it in my fingers...

Christmas is here! I can finally feel it since putting up my little 5-foot-tall christmas tree today...by the radiator (sorry, no fireplace here). Thanks to a really sweet friend in Marseille who gave me some "Original Swedish Gingerbread Holiday Hearts", I finally had the oomph to put up my tree. These delicious-looking ornaments made a huge difference. (Merci, Tiphane!) I just find them so warm and sweet on my tree. Supposedly in Germany, it's a tradition to hang cookies on the "tannenbaum". With "The Christmas Song" spinning on the CD player, I thought about each of my very dear friends as I carefully hang the ornaments one by one onto the tree. I thought of Becky and Sharon and the others who might be doing the same thing this time of the year. Well, I've thought about making a batch of cookies but I don't know if I'll follow it through. Thoughts speak louder than actions, you know. I don't have those chocolate advent calendars to countdown to Noel, but I know it's less than 20 days away. Gosh, I better be mindful about how I spend the next two weeks. I better start thinking happy thoughts, write in my journal, and be thankful about all the good things that God has given me this year.