Up, Down, Repeat

We got an updated ultrasound picture of our grandson yesterday. He looks so much like our son. Eek -- so exciting. I'm not going to post the picture because of the dang bots -- just trust me that he's adorable lol. I can't wait to meet him.

I had another swing back to overwhelm. I guess this is par for the course until after the baby shower. The stressor this time is possible extra guests for Christmas Eve dinner. This sent me into fretting about everything. I need to calm myself again. I was in a better place (i.e. no middle of the night panics) but that started up again last night. Up, down, repeat.

I know I'll get through everything, but I want to enjoy the process. Cliche but true. It's possible to do all these things and have a good time while I do them. Enjoy the byproducts of a FULL LIFE. Just reminding myself of this has a calming effect. 

*Breath*

Anyway, I'm sure I'm like most US households today. KITCHEN and more kitchen. I made a few things yesterday -- cranberry and apple sauce, bacon for mashed potatoes and cooked up the sausage for the stuffing. All the extra messy things because the cleaning crew comes this morning. I don't want to mess up a clean kitchen. I'll spend the afternoon making a few more things. 

I'm heavily prepping so I have time to do a Turkey Trot with Duke on Thursday. Nothing official, just us running in the woods. I couldn't find a 5k that allowed dogs so we'll make our own. Keeping MY FUN (and my priorities) this week too.

I started listening to this podcast on a recommendation. Holy cow! Not my usual type of listen, but it's so interesting and well told. True crime with a ghost story mixed in. I'm 3 of 7 episodes in -- saving the rest for my drive to Asheville on Friday. Of course, now that I'm saying it, I'm not sure that a gruesome murder and a ghost story are best for alone nights in an old house ... hmmm. I can get myself all spooked sometimes.

I've been reading and not posting about books. None have been particularly great. I'm trudging through library reads (#4 of 6) before I leave for AZ next week. I suspended all the other holds. I need to slow down reading for a minute. I'll take a few on our trip to AZ, but otherwise taking a bit of a break. I need to be a little more discerning on my library requests. I think that's why I'm feeling a bit blah about reading. When I buy books, I'm interested. I'll reserve even slight interest books from the library and it's showing.

I'm watching Lessons in Chemistry. It's even better than the book. 

Time to get moving. Hope you're enjoying this holiday week. Later gators.