Finals are finally (almost) over...

And I have so much to do! I do have one more paper I need to turn in, but the deadline was extended so I can stress over it after Christmas. After all, I have much more important things to do. For example, the Christmas tree is not out. There is not a single Christmas decoration making our little apartment feel festive. In fact, if you came over to visit, you might think it's still November from the turkey dishcloth I still have out. The presents have all been bought (thank goodness!), but I will be spending all my time tomorrow wrapping them. For far away family, I'm really sorry, but your gifts haven't made it to the post office yet. And for all you wonderful people out there who were expecting Christmas cards...those didn't get out either. It feels like someone has stolen my Christmas!


The law school is my Grinch this year. Boo! The only fabulous item that is making me feel just a little bit Christmas-y is this comfy pair of fleece socks with rice bags in the feet that smell like cinnamon and cloves. Garrett gave them to me early because my feet were freezing while I was working on my papers. I called Heather to tell her that my feet smelled like cider. They make our whole apartment smell yummy!

My one Christmas wish this year is that finals next year won't be such a monumental pain! At least I'm halfway done officially (almost-just have to finish that one annoying paper). So I'm going to work hard tomorrow to make up for lost time and get into the Christmas spirit. Garrett has to work, so I thought I'd spend the day watching some of my favorite Christmas flicks while I'm doing all that wrapping. Too bad 24 hours of A Christmas Story won't be on yet.

Happy Happy Anniversary!

I can't believe Garrett and I have actually been married for SIX years! They've gone by so quickly, it really doesn't feel like it's been that long at all. In the past year, Garrett has graduated, we went hiking in Arches, spent 10 weeks apart while I studied in Costa Rica, and now we're about to celebrate another Christmas together. The time has gone by so quickly!

We had a great day celebrating. We went to Bolt 3D at the Gateway. It was such a cute movie, and 3D movies are so fun. Then we had dinner and spent the night at Little America. Garrett gave me a beautiful pearl necklace and perfume. Yay! He picks such great gifts. I gave him a book about WASPs in WWII and a Marlon Brando movie he's had his eye on. We had such a great time, and I can't wait to see where we'll be in another six years!

Happy Holidays!

While I don't usually talk about substantive issues on my blog, generally preferring to focus on lighter issues like how much snow is on the ground outside over serious discussions that I've already had in law school all day, I just had to devote a little time to say Happy Holidays! That's right, I wish that everyone who is celebrating a holiday this month have a happy one.


We will be celebrating Christmas, and as part of our Christian beliefs and celebration of this special holiday, we wish goodwill to everyone regardless of what holiday they celebrate. I particularly feel the need to talk about my love of encouraging everyone to have a happy holiday because we keep receiving emails that seem to imply that saying "Happy Holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas" is somehow removing Christ from Christmas. On the contrary, these emails seem to boil down to a holiday popularity contest with one holiday claiming to be bigger, better and more important than all the other holidays.

Christmas is a great time to pass on traditions, testimonies and values to children. We should help them remember, as one of my favorite primary songs says, that "Jesus said love everyone." Showing respect for neighbors and their different traditions promotes peace on earth and goodwill to everyone. The impetus for these emails decrying the wishing of "Happy Holidays" seems to be based on court decisions regarding the First Amendment and department stores increasing recognition of other holidays.

Having just finished my Constitutional Law II final, I won't delve into the First Amendment much. I would just like to reiterate the fact that our nation was founded on separation of church and state. This governmental neutrality does not diminish the the strength of my religious beliefs or regulate my ability to wish whomever I want a "Merry Christmas!" And can you really blame department stores for working to appeal to people celebrating any holiday this season? Honestly, it makes perfect business sense to recognize as many holidays as possible to reap the economic benefits of seasonal giving.

One burr in my saddle is the way the holidays have become more commercialized, but this only reaffirms my belief that "There's no place like home for the holidays." It seems so odd to me that often the same people who argue that sexual education ought to be taught in the home are arguing that there should be prayer in schools. Just as morality and values ought to be taught in the home, so should the meaning of Christmas. Because no matter how much the authors of these emails try to convince me that being "politically correct" (or as I call it, realizing we are not the center of the universe) is ruining Christmas, mine seems to get sweeter every year.

Every Christmas Eve you will find me taking my place in the family nativity (wise man) along with Garrett (donkey-sounds sad but I have great respect for the donkey carrying a massively pregnant lady all over). We sing Christmas songs, decorate our Christmas tree and celebrate Christ's birth, and I am so grateful to live in a country that protects my right to do that. And my neighbors' right to celebrate Hanukkah, my students' right to celebrate Eid Al-Adha, and everyone's right to celebrate their holidays (or not).

So here's a big HAPPY HOLIDAYS to all and a wish for peace on earth and good will to men.

Let It Snow!

This was the view from outside our apartment on Monday. It snowed all day long, and hasn't melted away yet. It really is starting to look a lot like Christmas, hopefully it will stay that way until the 25th. I love the snow, especially when I don't have to go out in it. I like to be cozy and warm inside the house and look at the snow from the window. Fortunately, since it's finals time, I've pretty much holed myself up inside the apartment, cozy in my pj's, wrapped up in a blanket, studying my guts out and gazing out the window. I hope everyone else is enjoying it too, and I can't wait until finals are over so Garrett and I can mess up that perfect snowfall by making a happy snow couple. So in the meantime, let it snow!