January Ultimate Coffee Date!
Well, it’s my least favorite month (more on that later) but it is the first Friday, which means I’m linking up with Coco and Deborah for the Ultimate Coffee Date! Pour yourself one more peppermint mocha and let’s chat. First of all… I already announced it yesterday, but just in case anyone missed it, my son got engaged on New Year’s Eve! This was not a surprise, as he told us his plans on Thanksgiving. I didn’t want to share it on the blog until it was official, and now it is! Wedding is planned for this summer. Everything seems incredibly mundane after that, but I’ll forge ahead. If we were having coffee together, I would ask how you celebrated New Year’s Eve. I had an amazing day, starting with a COLD long run. This was the temperature when I started: I mean- that’s legitimately cold, not just Florida-cold. And it was windy! I started off seriously underdressed, but of course warmed up as the hours went by. 22 miles on my trail at the edge of the Everglades. Then, it was home to watch football! I spent a lovely afternoon and evening watching some great games (WOOHOO Hurricanes!), reading, and snuggling with the cats. My husband was working, my son was in Texas with his fiancee, and my daughter was at a party (and slept over at a friend’s). I was flossing my teeth at midnight when the ball dropped, and then I crawled into bed. The cats were a little worried because of all the fireworks, so they both curled up with me in bed. It was the perfect day. Ooooookay. Let’s talk about January. I’ve been trying to keep the festive feeling alive, but now that New Year’s is over I can no longer deny it- the holidays are coming to an end. I hate it! I love how bright and sparkly everything seems in December- it’s so hard to go back to normal. I go through this every year, and I know I’ll get over it. Eventually. But January is always my least favorite month. What would you tell me over coffee? Any exciting news? Do you like the month of January? Top photo by Glen Carrie on Unsplash
THE BIGGEST NEWS
I know I’ve been vaguely alluding to “changes” coming up, and now that it’s official I can finally share… MY SON IS ENGAGED! He told us about this over Thanksgiving. While he was home for Christmas the ring arrived, and on Monday he flew out to Waco to be with Isabel. Tonight (New Year’s Eve) he proposed and she said yes! The wedding is planned for this summer. Okay, let’s break down all the feelings, starting with the good- and it’s almost all good. I don’t know Isabel that well, but from what I do know, I absolutely love her. She’s made a real effort to reach out to us- she and I have emailed back and forth, and we’ve had several Facetime calls with her, and also her family. And… she really loves my son. That’s enough for me right there! But… all parents worry about their kids. I’m worried that they’re only 23 and not done with school yet. I’m worried because they’ve only been dating since May- I wish they knew each other longer. I guess when you know, you know, and they feel like they know. They’re eager to start their lives together. They know marriage is hard and that you have to work at it. They’re both very mature for 23. I still worry. I know I’m not losing a son, I’m gaining a daughter. But I was hyper aware this Thanksgiving and Christmas that this is the last time our family will look like this. It was hard for me to say goodbye to him on Monday, knowing how much everything was about to change. I know change is necessary- he can’t come home for every vacation for the rest of his life and sleep in his childhood bedroom. But it’s still hard for me. On a lighter note- WHAT IN THE WORLD am I going to wear to the wedding?????? GAAAAH! Remember how I stressed over what to wear to his graduation? I guess I can’t get away with my Athleta skort and croc sandals this time! LUCKILY, I’m still friends with the woman who helped me pick out my own wedding dress, 25 years ago. She’s agreed to help me. Phew- I’m going to need all the help I can get. I almost forgot the best part- she definitely wants kids. Not right away! But she wants them. I will have grandchildren!!! Happy New Year!
Holiday Reading
Remember my plan to read all holiday books in November and December? Let’s just see how that went! I started November by finishing The Joy Luck Club (clearly not a holiday book!) Then I dove into: Murder on the Christmas Express was pretty good! It won points for being a fun read and a mystery set on a train. lost points for not really being Christmas-y. I mean, there was a lot of talk about getting where they were going by Christmas, but you could have taken that plot point out and had the same basic story. A Holiday by Gaslight won points by being nice and Christmas-y! It lost points by being a romance, which I don’t usually read. But that’s not the fault of the book- it wasn’t like anyone tried to trick me. It was clearly billed as a romance, and I just decided to go out of my usual genre. I also read a book called Mystery in White by Jefferson Farjeon. It lost points by NOT being Christmas-y, other than the characters occasionally exclaiming “I can’t believe it’s almost Christmas!” It also lost points by being kind of lame overall. What I’ve learned is, if a book is a classic mystery written in the time of Agatha Christie but you’ve never heard of it- there’s a reason for that. In December I started strong with Everyone This Christmas Has a Secret by Benjamin Stevenson. This book was the clear winner! Major points for being extremely Christmas-y, and more points for being a really fun mystery. I’ve read his other books, and this was my favorite of them all. Then my holiday reading fell apart. I had this book from the library: It was up next in my queue, but then Nicole warned me it was “sad.” Nope! This was not a good Christmas for me to read a sad book, so it went back to the library. I’ll put it back on my TBR for next year. I also returned The Christmas Murder Game by Alexandra Benedict. This one had a lot of promise, but my mind was all over the place and I couldn’t do it justice. It also went back to the library and back on my TBR for next year. Instead, I dove into a comfort read: All Agatha Christies are rereads for me. Luckily I didn’t remember this one, so was able to enjoy the mystery. That also means it wasn’t one of her best books (or I would have remembered it). It fulfilled my need for an easy, nostalgic reading experience. November and December are usually not great reading months for me, but I did pretty well this year. On Christmas Day I started this: It’s gotten my reading back on track, and I’m hoping to finish it before New Year’s, to end the month strong. Do you like to read seasonally? What was the best book you read in December?
Ringing in the New Year
It’s time for Tuesday Topics, which I host with Jenn from Runs With Pugs. Today’s topic- How are you ringing in the new year? I do have some plans! They may be… unconventional, shall we say? To start with, my husband always works on New Year’s Eve (in addition to teaching music at a private school, he also still plays the trumpet professionally). He always plays for a New Year’s Eve party, and won’t be home until after 1 am. My son left yesterday to go see his girlfriend. Boo hoo! But- I’m happy for him, as they will have a much more fun New Year’s than he would if he were here. My daughter will be with friends. So it will just be me! And, I’m fine with that. In the morning of New Year’s Eve, I have a 22 mile run planned. I’m excited that the weather is finally cooperating! I’m going to drive to a trail I don’t usually run on, and I’m planning to enjoy this beautiful morning. THEN, I plan to enjoy lounging on the couch for the afternoon, reading and taking a well-deserved nap. At night I’ll watch the Cotton Bowl and do more reading- I’ll get takeout for dinner with a big Coke Zero. Yep- I really know how to live it up! Honestly… I’m looking forward to it. What are your plans for New Year’s? Could they possibly be as exciting as mine? Link Up With Tuesday Topics Welcome back to Tuesday Topics, as Jenny, from Runners Fly joins Jenn at Runs With Pugs to co-host this link-up! Please join us every week for a new topic! Write on our weekly prompt or choose your own topic! Make sure to add your post to the link up, link back to your hosts, and comment on the other shared posts! Join us next week—> What’s your word or intention for 2026? You are invited to the Inlinkz link party! Click here to enter Top photo by Natalie Kinnear on Unsplash