Wednesday, September 09, 2009

Celebrating Christmas abit Early


It isn't every day I get to be published with another blogger who I enjoy so much. But happy to say Angie Ledbetter from Gumbo Writer and I are both in this new book from Adams Media. So you get two for one:)


And to celebrate, I'm giving away a free copy of Christmas Traditions to the person who leaves the best Christmas memory in a post.

My husband will read the entries and choose a winner. Lucky him but like I said before, he likes my cooking too much to refuse. So enter away until this Saturday. Then I'll send you a copy to keep or give away as a nice gift for Christmas.

















28 comments:

Janna Leadbetter said...

What a special book!

I understand this forfeits my entry, but there are too many fond Christmas memories to choose just one. Whether it's choir performances with carols/hymns, family get-togethers, or special presents, each one holds something special.

Jessica Nelson said...

I saw your post on facebook and think it's really cool that you're both in there. How funny, right? LOL

One of my favorites is a childhood memory. We were all gathered at my grandma's and there was a knock on the garage door that led to the kitchen. We kids ran to open it, I guess I got there first because I was the oldest. And sitting on the floor of the garage was a huge bag of presents! LOL I was so amazed, esp. since the garage door was closed. I KNEW it must've been Santa who came. :-)

Gaia said...

Hi Terri

Congrats! This is so exciting.
Look forward to all the christmas entries.

Unknown said...

Congratulations to both you and Angie! What a wonderful idea! I may have to come back and leave a memory for you.

Have a blessed day!

Wendy Paine Miller said...

How fun you are both in that!

I don't know about *best* but I remember my dad used to climb up on our roof and pretend to be Rudolph. We had the head of a deer hanging on the wall above the fireplace and my family used to joke the deer jumped through. When I was little enough, I believed it.

And the deer hooves...I used to imagine my dad and the reindeer were really dancing up there. :D

~ Wendy

KelliGirl said...

Hooray! How exciting!

I obviously couldn't have been in this book because I can't even think of one extraordinary Christmas memory. They all jumble together like a warm blanket.

I'll keep thinking, though.

Eileen Astels Watson said...

Congratulations to you both! I love Christmas books and as for traditions in our home, there are many.

As to my favorite, I'm not sure, but it is certainly fun when the whole family (Phil, I, three girls, and two dogs) don our best Santa hats (yes, the dogs have specially fitted ones for them too) and go tree hunting in the Christmas tree farm near the market. We take lots of pictures each year where people are looking at us like we're totally nuts!! But, hey, it's easy to find one another when we go in search for that one special tree to grace our family room for the season.

Great Grandma Lin said...

congrats on being published. I've posted most of my christmas memories. Here's one to check out http://lettersfromlin.blogspot.com/2008/12/day-after-christmas.html It's reading the Christmas story to my four grandchildren to remind them what Christmas is all about. I have a little nativity set with it that they can hold and act out the play.

Susan R. Mills said...

My best Christmas memory was several years ago. Our heater had stopped working in the middle of the night, and it was 20 degrees outside. My husband started a fire, and we all huddled around the fireplace wrapped up in blankets and just talked. We didn't open presents or eat or anything. It was just too cold to move. It only lasted a couple of hours because the guy showed up to fix the heater, but it will always be my favorite Christmas ever.

Jeannie Campbell, LMFT said...

congrats, terri!

my favorite christmas memory is the year i found out *gasp* there wasn't a Santa Claus. my parents always had this rule about what time my brothers and i could get out of bed in the morning...never before 6 a.m. one christmas morning, i didn't obey this rule in my excitement. i tiptoed down the hall, and could hear voices coming from the living room. i popped my head around the corner to see my mom and dad playing with my toys, which Santa usually left displayed across the couch for me. (i got the couch, my middle brother got the love seat, and my oldest brother--whose gifts were usually more expensive smaller stuff--got the recliner.) so my mom was in all my She-Ra dolls that morning. i gasped. "what are you doing, mom?" she glanced at my dad, who just stood there with his eyes wide and mouth open, before turning back to me and saying calmly, "i was just playing with all the things Santa brought you, honey." she placed the doll back on the couch. by this time, my dad steps into motion and orders me out of the room b/c of the 6 a.m. rule. i scuttered back to my room, not fully understanding why my mother felt the need to play with my new toys. as i was back in my bed, i began to think about the evidence of what i had seen. boxes had been everywhere at mom's feet. She-Ra doll boxes. she had actually opened my She-Ra boxes! so then i got mad, and when 6 a.m. rolled around, i figured some heads were going to roll, too. i feigned enjoying my christmas morning that day--and the She-Ra dolls were cool. but afterward, i asked my mom the burning question in my little 8-year-old heart. "Mom, is there really a Santa Claus?" and from there, my idealized fantasy world crashed to a halt, as she couldn't lie to me outright. but it's still my favorite memory, because it's SO hysterical to recount now when all the family's together at Christmas.

jeannie
Where Romance Meets Therapy

Anonymous said...

Too many to choose from...
Congrats to you!

Jody Hedlund said...

Congrats to both you and Angie! How exciting! Can't think of a Christmas memory off the top of my head, but if I think of one, I'll pop back over!

Carmen said...

What a fun contest!

Many of my Christmas memories are unhappy ones, however, I do have one fond memory.

It happened about 10 years ago. Every Christmas our church would put on an event called "A Night Like This." A horse led hay ride took groups of people around to different sets in our parking lot, where the Christmas story was played out for you. There were live animals,lots of hay, and some very cold characters (the winters here get down to -30C). At the end of the ride, they would come in and have hot cocoa and goodies.

I was one of the lucky ones. I am good at reading stories aloud, so my station was in the large decorated foyer reading Christmas stories to the next group of people waiting on the hay ride.

Situated around me was a faux fireplace and a beautifully decorated Christmas tree. I sat in a wooden rocking chair dressed in a nice rich looking outfit, green and red, of course, and I usually had the audience captivated with a Guidepost Christmas story.

However, one night our pastor, who had quite a sense of humor, decided
to play a little game. He stood behind the chairs of about 30-40 people and decided it would be fun to make faces and do funny gestures with his body while I was reading a particularly serious story.

After a few minutes of this, and after the audience noticing that I was having a hard time keeping my composure...I finally laughed and confessed what was happening.

As they turned around to look, they were met by the innocent gaze of a man slightly confused at my confession. He threw his hands in the air and shrugged...who me? I have no idea what this crazy person is talking about, was the expression on his face.

So embarrassing, and yet so funny! Luckily, it was time for that group to go for their hay ride. It was enough time for me to give him a piece of my mind (yes, I was still laughing) and take a sip of water while the seats filled up with the next crowd.

If you ever need me to tell a story, I'll happily do so...but the last row of chairs in the room must border the back wall!

Hope you enjoyed my Christmas memory!

Holly Rutchik said...

Ever wonder about how much more time you would have to enjoy Christmas if only we weren't running around cooking and cleaning up? My grandpa did. So, Chrsitmas Eve dinner is now Pizza Hutt and Subway - even though he has been gone for 8 years!

Congrats!!

Natalie said...

Congratulations on the new book!

Just before Christmas when I was maybe eight or nine my dad got a call from someone (I don't know who) saying a family traveling through our city had been in a terrible car accident and the mom and dad and one of the children needed a place to stay while their other three children were in the hospital. They came to stay with us for two or three weeks (and over Christmas) while their children recovered. They would visit each of their children every day, I think they were in different hospitals so the mom and dad weren't always together and the kids didn't have a parent with them all the time. I remember being so filled with gratitude that my family was safe and all together at Christmas. Presents were not the focus that year.

Pat's Place said...

Good memories of Christmas past: One year we went to Grandmother's for Christmas and she had a few guests in on Christmas Eve. My cousin, Mike, came over from Aunt Alma and Uncle Neil’s house across the street. He was about four years older than me and loved to tease me. He and I were running through the long closet that connected the two bedrooms in the house and he told me that if I would close and open my eyes really fast then I would see little red dots. He told me that those red dots were Christmas elves hiding in the closet to watch and see if I had been good or not before Christmas. Of course I believed everything that Mike told me, so I sat in the closet blinking my eyes really fast to see the Christmas elves. What fun it was to have an older cousin to teach me such wonders!

joe doaks-Author said...

First order of business is congratulations on getting into print…very nice. But, I’m curious about your contribution to the book. Maybe in a future post, you can highlight a bit about what you wrote. That is, of course if you haven’t done that already and I just missed it. That would be me, you know, late to the party.

Best Regards, Galen
Imagineering Fiction Blog

Diane Ronzino said...

Congratulations, Terri!

My most memorable Christmas was one that healed my heart. When I was 6 I moved from Flushing, Queens to Stewart Manor in Nassau County (Long Island). I was so heartbroken to leave my childhood friend, that I could not say goodbye to her or her loving family.

Very long story short: With some 40 years of regret at never having said goodbye, at Christmas, I found Margie. It turns out she was my son's first grade teacher!

When I realized Mrs. Albano was Margie from Flushing, we had an awesome reunion (with the whole school watching) and my first words to her were, "Margie, I'm sorry!". We cried and laughed and hugged. She forgave me!

It was a miracle and a time of restoration for the both of us. God is the God of Miracles!

Jennifer Shirk said...

Oh, how exciting!!! CONGRATS!

Christmas memory? I need to think about that.

Diane said...

I can not recollect a best Christmas memory, but wanted to say YEAH on the book! :O)

Kara said...

Congrats, this looks like a wonderful book!

A few years ago we left the cold Texas panhandle and the chance for a white Chirstmas to enjoy the holdiays at my parent's house in Houston. We were going to Chirstmas Eve Mass and as we dressed for church the evening turned very cool. I quickly bundled up my two little girls in their Chirstmas sweaters and off we went. The church sits surrounded by tall pine trees on all sides and open windows across the whole back of the church. As the mass progressed the light outside dimmed slowly welcoming the blessed night. The voices of the choir rose beautifully as the wooden doors of the church swung open at the end of mass. Hundreds of people silently filed out all looking to the sky in awe. Tiny, cold snowflakes drifted down from the sky. Everyone stared in disbelief, while children and adults alike lifted their faces heavenward with smiles on their faces.

Clementine said...

Oh Congratulations! I submitted a story for Christmas Traditions, but alas, it didn't make it. But I'm thrilled that yours did! I look forward to reading it!!!!

Keli Gwyn said...

Congratulations on being published in Christmas Traditions, Terri. How cool!

My favorite Christmas memory was seeing the joy on my mother-in-law's face when we gathered as a family one year, knowing we were soon to lose her to cancer. While bittersweet, that Christmas morning is one I'll never forget.

Ginny said...

This is my favorite of all our Christmas traditions:
After midnight on Christmas Eve, I walk out doors and stand under my red maple tree. It is there in the holy darkness that I can truly feel silent night, holy night. It is there that I can connect to the Christ Child and pray for all those people, the "gifts" that I have been given in my lifetime. I usually spend about 10-15 minutes alone and silent. Then I return to the house, and my husband and I enjoy a cup of hot chocolate!!

Angie Ledbetter said...

Cool that we're in the same anthology! :)

Hope I get my copy soon. Can't wait to read your story.

Analisa said...

Enter me..here is my Christmas memory.

After Christmas in 2007 I finally tossed out an artificial Christmas tree I had for years. Trees mean a lot to me and I later found the one I tossed I should have kept. It was often mistaken for a real tree. I decorated it differently each year on the day after Thanksgiving. So in 2008 I found the Thanksgiving holiday approaching with no tree. I don’t drive so I had to enlist the help of a friend to buy a new one. Everything was lacking. A feeling of disappointment surrounded me. I searched the web. Trees I loved were costing hundreds, thousands. I could not justify going into debt for a tree. I thought of how the house would look without a Christmas tree. My family is small, just my 16yr old son and I live in our home. So it is very important that the house has a feel of the holidays. He told me “Mom it is ok if we don’t have a tree”. But I was crushed at the possibility. I could not recall ever, not having a Christmas tree. So one weekend my son and I boarded two buses and headed for Walmart to shop for gifts. Maybe not having a tree would be ok. We made our purchases and then outside I saw it, a live tree for 15 dollars. It was the perfect triangle shape, green and full. I went in to pay for it, but there wasn’t an attendant to wrap it. I borrowed scissors from the cashier and did it myself. Pushing the tree through a tube and tying it with netting. My son looked at me with amazement. Shaking his head and smiling. Knowing his mother was on a mission. He proceeded to carry/drag this weighty, medium sized (about six feet) tree onto the public bus. My teenaged son never complained, never acted embarrassed. We get off the bus and waited for the next one at a crowded transit hub. We ignored the stares at the tree. After about 30 minutes of standing in the increasing cold. Our bus was missing. We could wait another 30 minutes or get a cab. I decided to splurge and hire a cab from the taxi stand. It took two drivers to figure out a way to load the tree, our packages and us. It has become a favorite memory and it always causes my friends to laugh when I tell them how we brought a live Christmas tree on a bus and a taxi. I love it more because it showed me how much my son loves me. I thanked him for not complaining, I can’t think of too many teens who would endure public humiliation for their mom. Oh and yes, I still need a tree.

Greg C said...

My best memory was the year that a friend of mine asked me to go Christmas Caroling with her church youth group. We all got into the back of a pickup truck filled with hay and rode around caroling. It was a very cold night even for Florida :) and my friend offered to share her blanket with me. Somehow we ended up holding hands under the blanket (we were both really shy) and at the end of the night, I got my first kiss.

Technonana said...

Hi Terri... I missed the give away... but that doesn't matter. Just thought I would share one of my favorite Christmas Traditions from my childhood.
We didn't have much in the way of material things when I was a small child. We lived with my mom's parents in a small farm house with 2 bedrooms. Funny thing was there were Nine of us living in this tiny house. My 'brothers' actually slept on the porch, that was turned into a makeshift bedroom. (all 4 of them.) My parents had 3 children of their own and were raising two my cousins as their own.
I never remembered going to a Christmas Tree lot to pick out a tree, probably because there was no money for such things. But each year about a week before Christmas, my grandfather would take all of us kids and the dog, down into the woods near our home.
Grandaddy would carry the ax and we would laugh and sing as we searched out the perfect cedar for our Christmas Tree. Sometimes this search would take awhile other times we made short work of it, depending on what we found and how deep into the woods we had to go. Always though, when we returned home from wondering through the wood, my grandmother would have hot tea and tea cakes waiting!
The smell of the tea cakes would greet us before we made it to the kitchen. Sometimes wet, sometimes cold, but always excited we would return to the house and celebrate our great find!!
For another great Christmas story... go here... www.Sweetsouthernpearl.. there you will find the story of my youngest daughter and her now husband's engagement... you may just want to read her story from the beginning to understand how powerful this memory is!!
Thanks For Listening!
Love,
Sharon