HELP THE ELF: I Found Santa’s Missing Nice List!

Hi everyone! As you may remember, a few weeks ago PETE the Elf had a touch too much Eggnog at the Holiday Christmas Party and as he stumbled home, he lost Santa's NICE LIST.

The North Wind scattered the papers to all four corners of the world, and The Bookshelf Muse put out a call to help find them in order to SAVE CHRISTMAS.

Ever since I read about it, I've been on the lookout. And then today, EUREKA!

Yes that's right...when Bentley and I went for our morning walk, we found part of Santa's missing NICE LIST. There it was, fluttering in the wind, caught in a branch of one of the bushes in our backyard.  And shock of all shocks, I recognized the name, and I bet you will too.

Here it is below:

Photo credit: assorted gold baubles (christmasstockimages.com) / CC BY 3.0

NAME: Lenny Lee

LOCATION: Lenny's World

NICE LEVEL: 99%

NAUGHTY LEVEL: 1%

OBSERVATIONS: Lenny is a special young man who spreads lots of smiles, hugs and sunshine in the emails he sends and the comments he makes to the blogs he visits.  I consider myself very lucky to know Lenny.

RECOMMENDATION:     a) Coal                   b) Gift

~ ~ * ~ ~

Because poor Pete is dashing all over the place trying to hunt down the rest of Santa's missing Nice List, I decided to take care of this one myself. Lenny, I feel so blessed to know you! Enjoy the gift I sent to your inbox and have a wonderful Christmas! 

                                                                         ~ ~ * ~ ~ 

Want to see who else was on Santa's Nice List?  Then stop by The Bookshelf Muse to see who else signed up to help find Santa's Nice List.

                                                                         ~ ~ * ~ ~

How about you, Readers? Is there someone you'd like to say Happy Holidays to, or tell them how much they mean to you? JOIN US! There's plenty of days left until Christmas, and sometimes a kind word can lift people up in a way that they really need. It's as easy as sending a free e-card or email note, posting on a Facebook wall or sending out a tweet. So go ahead and spread some kindness and cheer!

Bible Bites Personal Devotions

Author: Shirley Kufeldt

Publisher: Halo Publishing, Int.

Publication Date(s): October 2012 for all four titles

Page Count: 60 pages

Price: $ .99 each

MEET GOD AND HIS SON

Paperback ISBN: 978-1-61244-099-6

GOALS THAT LEAD TO SUCCESS

Paperback ISBN:  978-1-61244-100-9

AMERICA, LAND THAT I LOVE

Paperback ISBN: 978-1-61244-101-6

THE WOW FACTOR

Paperback ISBN:  978-1-61244-102-3

SYNOPSIS

Albert Einstein stated: God always takes the simplest way.  Bible Bites are pocket-sized journals that include current prayer requests and focused Scripture designed to develop the habit of responding to God’s Word.  Through BIBLE BITES devotions, people can easily learn, memorize, meditate and reflect on Scripture as they journal regularly with direction and purpose. Quality prayer time leads to dependence on God while writing your legacy of faith.  

WHY BIBLE BITES?
For too many people, reading the Bible, God’s Word, is too much of a challenge so they neglect picking up a Bible and do not learn what God has to say about any number of topics. Too many people only know God as judge who only punishes sinners, but have a misguided conception of His love, grace and compassion. They blame God for the sins others commit against them. They live their lives based on misconceptions about God, and a secular lifestyle is the result.

We each look differently at Scripture, and respond to and reflect on God’s Word based on “where we are today.” In a non-threatening manner, Seekers are introduced to God as the One who loves them unconditionally and pursues them by answering prayer His Way:

Definitely, Denied, Delayed, Differently, Distributed a bit at a time. 

BIBLE BITES booklets are small pocket-sized monthly journals that include current prayer requests and focused daily Scripture for journaling and reflection. This is a simple solution to a situation many would like to resolve. Through BIBLE BITES people can easily learn, memorize or meditate on Scripture as they journal regularly with direction and purpose.

- Learn, memorize and meditate on Bible verses
- List current prayer requests
- Respond and react to God’s Word “where you are each day”
- Quickly Journal each day in a small topical booklet with a daily Scripture verse
- Introduce God as the One who you them unconditionally
- Use BIBLE BITES as an easy gift idea in place of a greeting card
- Carry BIBLE BITES in pocket, purse, briefcase, backpack.
- BIBLE BITES is inexpensive, sold over the internet.
- Because it takes 21 days to develop a habit. Bible Bites firmly establishes the habit of spending five minutes each day with God’s Word.

Verses come from the New Living Translation

After growing up with four sisters in Illinois, then raising two daughters, Shirley Kufeldt and her husband left Illinois and her daughters to retire to Northern Wisconsin in 2007. Having participated in Bible studies for over 30 years and hearing of the efforts of so many others over the years to document their personal walk of faith, she developed the Bible Bites series. Mrs. Kufeldt participates in Tea Party activities as time allows and cares for her one grandchild (when asked) with joy.


Places where your books are available for sale:  www.halopublishing.com

Author Website: http://biblebites.net

The Fart That Saved Christmas by Jacob Morningside

The Fart That Saved Christmas
An Adult's Christmas Tale

Written by Jacob Morningside

Illustrated by Nadja Andrasev

Published by Publish Green

Released on September 6, 2012

Price: $4.99

Format: Ebook

Pages: 40 illustrated


iBookstore buy link ($4.99):
http://itunes.apple.com/us/book/the-fart-that-saved-christmas/id560241061?mt=11&ign-mpt=uo%3D4

About the Book:
The behind the scenes story of what really happened "The Night Before Christmas."

It's Christmas Eve. The reindeer go on strike with a list of demands for Santa, the elves and Mrs. Claus. Santa gets "loaded" and threatens to cancel Christmas, fire the deer and divorce Mrs. Claus. But, just when all seems lost, Christmas is saved by a timely fart.


My Thoughts:
When I received an email from Tribute Books (www.tribute-books.com) about the tour for The Fart That Saved Christmas, I thought to myself, why not?  It's a Christmas story and I was looking for something for a December blog post.  Actually it was the title that got my curiosity.  I was wondering how could a fart save Christmas?

I shared the book with both my husband and son, so I want to share what they thought about it as well as what I thought.

I found the the book to be okay.  Although I could see where many people would find it hilarious and comical, I didn't.  It just wasn't my type of humor.  The illustrations definitely go well with the story line.

My husband said it was cute.  He said the illustrations were nice.

My son thought the book was funny and comical.  He said he laughed at the story.  He thought the illustrations were funny.  His favorite one was the elf sitting on a cellophane wrapped toilet.  If you want to know what that is all about, you'll have to read the book.

For anyone who finds hilarity in things a bit strange, you can't go wrong with reading The Fart That Saved Christmas.

About the Author: 
Born into a body inhabited by multiple muse personalities, I create stories by stretching the "normal" beyond the boundaries of the absurd.  The result is a worm-hole ride to the Far Side.  I love a good story — so, I wrote one.  Enjoy it with my wishes for a happy holiday season. - Jacob Morningside

Jacob Morningside's Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Fart-That-Saved-Christmas/136942536447992

Tribute Books Blog Tours Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Tribute-Books-Blog-Tours/242431245775186

The Fart That Saved Christmas blog tour site:
http://thefartthatsavedchristmas.blogspot.com/

Some Things I Did While Taking A Break

Hello to all!  Thank you to everyone who stopped by to check out old blog posts while I was taking a break.  I had actually planned to start blogging the beginning of December, but life just kept happening.  I'll share about some of it in this post.

Just before I took my blogging break, my family and I had to make the extremely hard decision to put our cat, Rusty, down.  He had a large inoperable tumor growing in his abdomen and he was not able to control his bodily functions.  He was a member of our family for almost 15 years and it is still hard to think of him without shedding tears.

Rusty had been my writing companion, at times sitting on the desk or by my feet while I read emails, blog posts and worked on my writing.  Sometimes he would also curl up with me on the couch or sit on the back of the couch when I would read books.  RIP Rusty.  You are missed.

I was a participant of NaNoWriMo 2012.  It was my third year participating.  I wrote a total of 17,150 words.  I was not a winner, but I am totally okay with that.  There is always next year.

I tried staying up on my blog reading while I was taking a break.  I actually did quite well at first.  I enjoyed visiting my blogging friends, learning about the books they were reading or writing, what books were being toured, or what was going on in my blogging friends lives.  

I baked some peppermint sugar cookies and some peanut butter cookies, but they didn't last very long.

My family and I had talked about getting a dog in the spring of 2013.  It would give us time to mourn the loss of our cat, get through the holidays, get through the winter months in which I like to stay indoors as much as possible and have the springtime to worry about potty training a new puppy.

Well, my husband started looking at animal rescue sites and found a cockier spaniel dog that we adopted on Saturday, December 8th.  His name is Bentley and he is about 19+1/2 months old.  

December 5th through the 7th was spent dog proofing the house, shampooing all of the carpets and finding a cage for Bentley to sleep in.  Let's just say I was more than a bit stressed during those three days.

Since my husband had already met Bentley, that just meant that our son and I needed to meet him before we could bring him home.  Bentley liked us, so he became a part of our family.  

We are still in the adjustment period, which can last about 3 - 4 weeks.  Last night was the first night that we weren't woken up by barking, so that was a blessing.  We need to work on the leash issues, as he likes to pull instead of walk.    

We've also decided not to put up a Christmas tree this year, since Bentley has enough adjustments to make with a new home and a new family.  

Well, I think it's time to wrap up this blog post.  This was just a small bit of what happened in my life while I took a break from blogging.  Thanks for stopping by and have a great day!