NKOTB vs. NSYNC

Here it is. Democracy at its finest. Which of my beloved boybands has the best Christmas album??? I'm not going to list the merits of each album, which there are many. With no discussion or thoughts from me, YOU ROCK THE VOTE!

VS.

P.S. I can't believe I've never done this one before! I can't wait to see the results!

Guilty Pleasure Confessional

OK. I'm done hiding the truth. I absolutely love Christmas movies on Hallmark Channel. Absolutely. Love. I used to try to hide the truth from myself, calling them cheesy, stupid, made-for-TV garbage. Oh, I was so jaded...so wrong. The truth has set me free. I feel like screaming from the rooftop: I LOVE HALLMARK ORIGINAL CHRISTMAS MOVIES!

I mean, c'mon, people: just check out the star power. Dean Cain's done at least TWO. (He's got a new one this season called The Case for Christmas. It's gonna be awesome...if you haven't already caught the first 9 times it's aired.) Elizabeth "Jessie Spano" Berkley's made the cut this year. She's hung up her g-string and signed up for G-rated with Lucky Christmas. Candace Cameron Bure, Tom Arnold, Henry Winkler, Shelley Long, Christine Taylor, and the list goes on and on!

You know who really needs to get in on this? RICKY. SCHRODER. I mean, he's made a movie for CMT. Hallmark HAS to be a step up! It's ooey gooey family Christmas fun AND values. What's not to love!?! Hallmark has to pay better than CMT, too. (I'll have to check my LA source for that info.)

After last Christmas, the first one with my son, Hallmark Christmas movie marathons take on a whole new meaning, and maybe this is why I feel so connected to them. The first few days after he was born, we were still in the hospital, and the Christmas movies were always one: keeping me calm, centered, and focused on the beautiful gift in my arms. They have a serene quality to them that makes them oh-so-enjoyable for the family centered woman I've become.

I love them. I don't mind telling you. And, I don't care if you make fun of me!

Cheated :(

Dear November 2011,

I'm sorry, but I didn't mean to ignore you this year. You, my most favorite month, got the short end of the blogging stick this year. I love you so much: you're my birth month, my "twin's" birth month, and you hold the best holiday that the stores want to ignore, Thanksgiving. (Seriously, November, I love your holiday almost as much as you. I try and try to find fun decorations in which to adorn my house every year, but this year all I came up with were "Gobble Gobble...til You Hobble Hobble" napkins at Target. Just sad this is.)

Even though we haven't spoken formerly, I've had a great time with you this year. #32 was wonderful: a day in which nothing was planned, but big, great things came of it. Beautiful family and friends came over, the man I'm lucky to call husband let me sleep in until 10:30 (!), and I did something I never thought I'd be excited to do on my day of birth: I went to see an original 35 mm print of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. Who would've thought that I would ever want to do that for my birthday!?

Thanksgiving was simple and wonderful, too. For the first time, I was the one cooking the bird. I can't tell you what an honor this was! You probably knew, though, as you looked down upon me, the only one smiling from ear to ear at Meijer the day before Thanksgiving. I was so happy getting the last minute bits and bobs for the bird, and I was so blessed to be able to share it with my family.

So. What do you have left for me, oh wonderful month? Oh, just a small thing called an ANNIVERSARY. #9 to be exact! How the time flies. And, how time has flown this month. I'll try to make up for it the next few days by blogging as much as I can. I love you, you final autumnal month of the year, and I will respect you by not putting up Christmas until after Halloween, and by keeping the traffic and ire a little less by not shopping on Black Friday.

All my best,

Your daughter, Amanda

How to Make the Definitive Leftover Turkey San'wich

Here it is: the only san'wich "recipe" you'll ever need for leftover turkey. Follow the directions closely, and don't skimp on the ingredients, either.

1. Take two pieces of white bread. Yes, WHITE bread. I suggest trying the Arnold's brand, with no high fructose corn syrup, so you can kid yourself that this bread isn't as bad as Sunbeam and almost as good as some hoity-toity whole grain stuff you tell yourself you should eat even though you don't want to.

2. Slather each piece of white bread with the mayo made with extra virgin olive oil. Why the kind with EVOO? See the reason I stated above for using white bread but substitute Hellman's for Sunbeam.

3. Have some nice, fresh tomatoes sliced and place them on one piece of the bread. DO NOT FORGET to season these with salt and pepper. It totally does boost the taste.

4. Get a few slices of clean, crisp romaine on the other slice of white bread. There's nothing better than biting into that romaine and having that fresh *CRUNCH* pop in your mouth!

5. Place the leftover turkey on the side with the tomatoes, so the bird meat can get some of that S&P on it, and the toms are more stable than the wavy lettuce.

6. Cut in half, get some Lay's on the side, and ENJOY! Eating a sammie at 9:30 p.m., six hours after stuffing yourself silly, never tasted so good. And the best part might be using your tongue to scrape that smooshed white bread off the top of your mouth.