292/365 ~ Even as an adult I find it difficult to sleep on Christmas Eve. Yuletide excitement is a potent caffeine, no matter your age. ~Terri Guillemets I know it might seem early and jumping a couple of holidays but today I started my Christmas List. Admittedly, there are a couple people on the list who are always difficult to buy for and then there are some that I've already finished shopping for. Harmony, Xyla, Justin, and Tyler have brought buying toys back into the mix and I love that! I'm considering American Dolls or Cabbage Patch kids for the girls. Last year, the Brookshire family did a cool thing and had a Christmas where everything had to be from NC. For years, Helen has suggested the Conrads get only gifts from thrift stores. I'm thinking about suggesting that everyone has to make their gifts - of course that means everyone is getting photographs from me, haha! Just kidding. Seriously, the best part of our Christmas is having everyone in the house together. I remember our first Christmas in this apartment 13 years ago on Christmas Eve Eve (that's the holiday created when families divorce) - all six kids piled into one room. The boys were true boys back then, pestering the girls, giggling, and playing Mexican music while Frank and I sat in the living room waiting for all six to fall asleep so we could fill the stockings. They finally dozed off but then I couldn't sleep. I couldn't wait for all of them to come down the next morning in their matching pajamas. Christmas morning pictures are the worst!! Frank refuses to come down until he showers which goes against everything I always believed in; but I have to admit, he is the only one in the photos without bedhead! We bought cream colored gold trimmed stockings and put their names on them that first Christmas and Frank made me little shelves with pop out buttons to hang the stockings on. Thirteen Christmases later and those stockings are still the first thing all six of them go for. Christmas morning breakfast usually begins with an appetizer of candy canes and M&M's. I know the true meaning of Christmas has nothing to do with what goes on my list each year; but that list reminds me to stop and think about everyone in my family and how much they mean to me. As Burton Hollis said, "The best of all gifts around any Christmas tree: the presence of a happy family all wrapped up in each other."

+2 in comments I've been attempting to work more with black and white, so there are other shots from todays shoot in B&W! It's autumn!! The leaves are blowing everywhere and I love it :) I originally had a different idea. However, it's been windy and rainy recently, and it will knock over my tripod. I'll do that idea on another day. Earlier this week, when I turned onto my route to go to school, some meanie through coffee on my car as I was driving. This was no accident. It was on purpose!! He was literally waiting for me to pass so he could dump his coffee on my car. After he did, I didn't stop to confront him. Afterall, what would it do? The coffee is already there. Nothing can change that fact. So I kept going. Well, yesterday I was about to turn onto that same road, despite the fact of the mean coffee man. Before I could turn onto my route, three grown adults walked infront of my car and told me stop. I did, as I didn't want to hit them and I turned down my wigger music and peeped my head out of my window. The man, who threw the coffee at my car because he was wearing the same college T-shirt, rudely raised his voice and strictly said I speed down the road and I need to slow down. I smiled because I only go 5mph over with the fear of getting a ticket. I also smiled because he was holding coffee in his hand and I was wondering if he would dump it on my car. (I guess dumping coffee on my car was the message that I needed to slow down. Sorry that I didn't get the memo) Then a woman dressed in her pajamas strutted her old behind up to my window and basically said the same things. She said I need to slow down because I'm going hit some kid. Also, that I accelerate too quickly (which I do, even though there are two bus stops on that same corner) and I look like "a damn fool" doing that. That made me laugh because she's being the fool, standing by my car and yelling at me. She then demanded that I can no longer drive on that road and she will report me to the police if I do. (I live in America. I'm pretty sure they can't tell me if I can/cannot drive on a public road) All the charming adults then made me turn around in the middle of a street. I hesitated at first because I was on a one-way road. I did as I was told and went on my merry way. It was pretty eventful! :)