Good evening, everyone. Today it is Dec. 12 and Christmas still seems a little distant. But think about a week from now…it will just be six days away! Let’s get started with my latest Thursday Rundown.

Christmas Picture Fail – I mentioned that we went to a Christmas tree farm to get a family photo taken with Santa for our holiday card. Well, scratch that. Let’s say Sloan’s reaction was one of the major reasons why we went with an alternative plan for this year’s card. However, Sloan did earn some redemption last weekend when she went back to the farm with Sidney’s parents. She sat on Santa’s lap and held back the tears…

Sloan got it together for her second visit with Santa. (Erin Dietrich photos)

Ain’t No Party Like a Teacher’s Party – Last Friday, I was Sid’s date to the Palmetto Bays Elementary staff Christmas party. It was held at the Grumpy Monk at Broadway at the Beach. We had a wonderful time! The food was delicious, the atmosphere was on point, and the games were fun. During the Chinese gift exchange I won a 40-piece Tupperware set and during the door prize session my number was called and I received a whiteboard. I enjoyed chatting with Sid’s fellow fourth grade teachers and just savoring the night out.

We had a great time at the Palmetto Bays Christmas party.

RAMEN – Have you noticed all the ramen-based restaurants popping up everywhere these days? The dish is much more gourmet than the 10 cent beef-flavored packages I used to eat. I recently got a ramen bowl with fresh veggies, shredded chicken, and a marinated egg. It was pretty good for my first foray into gourmet ramen. It definitely won’t be a weekly thing, but I think I would eat it again down the road.

Ramen is much more interesting than what I thought.

Pies By Toddlers – Sloan’s daycare just posted this on Facebook so that is why I am sharing it a little after the fact. A couple days before Thanksgiving, Oxford Children’s Academy hosted a Thanksgiving pie social. The students prepared the pies themselves (with teacher supervision of course) and the parents got to come by at the end of the day and eat them. Sloan’s class made a chocolate cream pie that was superb!

Sloan and I at the OCA Thanksgiving Pie Social.

Let Me Answer This One – I came across this Twitter poll from Coca-Cola and felt compelled to answer it on my blog. First off, I thought the idea of Cinnamon Coke sounded awful. However, after trying it, I had to admit that it wasn’t so bad. What is bad are the choices below. In my humble opinion, a Cinnamon Coke would go great with sitting around the Christmas tree because it does taste like a holiday drink to me. So if you don’t have hot chocolate, opt for a Cinnamon Coca-Cola when you spend some time by the tree this weekend.

Cinnamon Coke is prime for enjoying it around the Christmas tree.

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I hope everyone has an enjoyable weekend. I got Christmas cards to address and eggnog to sip! Don’t Blink.