[contest below]

I’ve just gotten home from traveling back to see the littlest munchkin g-kid, Will, and am already having withdrawals. The cuteness, it overwhelms the senses. If I could have figured out how to sneak him away from his mom and dad, I would have. Here he is, with the hiccups:

William with hiccups

I know, I know, he is not the first baby ever born, but wow, it’s just hard not to be that proud Mimi. (We do not use the G word around here. Nor MawMaw. Maybe when I’m 80.)

Meanwhile, I’m getting my groove back, getting back into the rewrite (finally, I know), and working on the Bobbie Faye short story/novella I’ve been promising forever (yes, really, finally, swearsies). I’ve realized I had essentially not written much for these last few months, what with the illnesses and traveling, and it was fine… and, honestly, the time away did me some good. But now, I’m eager to get to the pages every day, and while I sometimes feel a little rusty, at other times, things just are clicking into place in a way that only time and distance could have given me. It’s a tradeoff, and so far, so good

I’m also trying to get into the Christmas spirit, so that’s where you come in, if you don’t mind. I keep finding great videos that make me smile:

“Silent Monks ‘sing’ Hallelujah”

Or this one from last year, where a flash mom sang the Hallelujah chorus at a mall.

I’d love some more great examples of the Christmas spirit. (Funny is a bonus.) So here’s what I thought–to celebrate the terrific books some of our MSW ladies have out this month, I’ll hold a contest today through Saturday morning. Everyone who enters with a link to a favorite video, photo, poem, blog entry–*anything* Christmassy–will be entered for a chance to win all four of our current releases: Rocki’s SPACE IN HIS HEART, Deb’s OBSESSION, and Allison’s IF I SHOULD DIE, PLUS a $15 gift card from the online bookstore of your choice. There will be five winners, so send me links! [Winners will be announced Sunday, so check back for our announcement to see if you've won.]