i was gone, now i am back - aka the top 11 things i learned over christmas break

so yeah.  long time, no blog.  i'm sure you had gone into some sort of life low in not being able to read my ramblings.  not to fear - sarah is back to the babbling.  so thanks for stopping by.

before christmas, i was having a hard time trying to focus on writing and i'll be honest, the lack of focus has only increased in the two weeks i haven't written ANYTHING at ALL except for facebook status updates.  some of those, though, have been masterpieces . . . but i need to get in the habit of writing more because - as always - one of my new years resolutions is to, um, write more.  last year, i actually somewhat accomplished it via this here bloggy thingy.  this year, well, not such a great start.  but i'm BACK!

and i think here on this bloggy thingy i have kind of started a trend/habit/tradition of listing what i learned when i've gone somewhere for vacation or something.  well, i mean, i know i did it that one time.  so because i do want to write about my 2 week respite from junior high kiddos, but also because of the whole inability to focus thing, i am going to fall back on the ol' "what i learned" format.  catch ya on the flip side.

(not quite sure why on earth i just wrote that last sentence.)

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the top 11 things i learned over christmas break 

(someday i will figure out a more creative way to title these entires.  promise.)

1.  i have will power.  it's been a while since i had been able to find it, yall, but let the fact that i did not eat a single piece of aunt sylva's cherry pie (made by mi madre just for me) illustrate the fact that will power does exist in my dna.  also, i ran-ish.  a lot-ish.  even when it was COOOOOOLD in the arctic tundra that is oklahoma/missouri.

2.  number one is not always the case when wine is involved.  basically all you need to know (and really i'm just telling you this so you don't worry) is that wine + sarah = sleep.

3.  i heart steve nash.  and that will always be the case even if i am made fun of for having such a crush.  but yall i do have to say . . . watching nba basketball in oklahoma city was SURREAL.  i'm not knocking oklahoma at all in pointing this out . . . it's just, i guess, something i never really expected?

4.  you can find a lot of random crap at wal-mart.  especially a wal-mart in springfield, mo.  (and by random crap, i do NOT mean jan.)

in case you cannot tell, yes, that is an ENTIRE display of mizzou paraphenalia . . . purses, headbands, bags, scarfs . . . it was terrifying.

5.  i still like springfield, mo (despite the above horribleness available at their local establishments.  and by above horribleness i do NOT mean jan.)  and the people i know there.  (hi family!)  who knew we could laugh so hard about stealing gift cards to bookstores and bar-b-cue restaurants from one another?

6.  i am apparently the shortest person in my family.  i'm sure this has always been the case, but for some reason just now this christmas, i actually noticed it.

seriously?  what is that?  like 6 inches?  HOW COULD I NOT NOTICE THAT IN THE LAST 12 YEARS?

7.  my cousins make some cute babies.  (is that risque?  gasp!)

evidence #1 - joey!  (also, honesty time here . . . i took like 123 pictures of this kiddo and this is pretty much the only one that wasn't blurry.  obviously, i need to learn how to use my camera.)

evidence #2 - lizzy!  (another round of honesty - i took like 53 pictures of my dad holding lizzy and this is pretty much the only one where her eyes weren't red.  or where she wasn't flipping me off.  again.  must learn to use camera or convince this child to like me.)

8.  it's easy to fall into old habits.  i'm not going to elaborate on this one.  just know that it has nothing to do with the wine mentioned above.  not that that ever was a habit.  really.

9.  it's okay to let go . . . of control, of things you think you absolutely have to do because you always do them and oh my god if you don't do them then life will end, of assumptions, of  . . . yeah, so i kind of got some thinking done . . . again, no elaboration, but know that all is good.  very good.  

10.  i have had my fill of i-44.  no offense dear stl fam and no offense s-field fam, but it might be a while before i hang out on that glorious stretch of road between tulsa and where you are . . . please do not take it personally . . . 

11.  i am very blessed.  with friends.  with family.  with opportunities.  i didn't really need to LEARN, this, per say, but i think God likes to remind me in obvious ways since sometimes i don't stop and pay attention to the obvious.  see number 6 for evidence if you must.