With Thanksgiving nearly here and the NaNo finish line ahead, today* I’m just popping in for a minute to share a few things I might like for Christmas this year.

*(No, I definitely, totally did not pre-write this a month ago and schedule to post later when I’d be frantically typing for NaNo… I don’t know what you’re talking about…)

1. Books to complete my collections

Like many bookworms, I have a motley collection of books I’ve read, books I plan to read, and books that I picked up on impulse at a sale and never actually read. The one feeling worse than viewing your bookshelves and feeling those budget buys stare down at you with judgment for never yet giving them a read, is seeing series (seri? serieses?) you love with just one or two books missing from the lineup.

This Christmas, I would love to fill those holes. I have the first two books of the Hybrid Chronicles, but still need Echoes of Us. Shatter Me, one of my favorite series of all time, has the fifth book out now, Defy Me. And I fell in love with Cidney Swanson’s Mars series in high school, but have only managed to snag two of the six books in paper format so far.

2. Taylor Swift CDs

I’ve been Swiftie for nearly a decade now, after first hearing her music while stuck on a plane in Japan at age 14. I have most of her discography in my car already, but only through 1989. I want Reputation and Lover to round out my collection.

3. Starstruck

I am not saying this a great movie. I’m not even saying it’s a good movie. But I will never stop loving the cheesy Disney Channel feel-good nostalgia that is Starstruck, starring Sterling Knight and Danielle Campbell. Horror of horrors, it vanished from Netflix this year, and I must have my access restored to it immediately. And there’s an extended edition?! The used DVD is only like five bucks, soooo… hint, hint, brothers of mine.

4. Cake decorating kit

With my gluten-free, dairy-free diet, my relationship with food has changed a lot this year. Gluten-free alternative products cost an arm and a leg, and gluten-free baking from scratch is an entirely new and foreign process, so I’ve only had one (box-mix) cake in months. But I’m finally starting to get the hang of alternative, and sometimes even healthier, baked goods. I’ve always loved baking, and it’s so much cheaper to make these things myself. And I want to make them pretty! So this year I’ve got a cake decorating basics kit on my list, to get me started.

5. The gift of happiness

I have bipolar disorder, which for me includes an unpleasant episode of depression during the winter months. Many people with mental health problems experience this same phenomenon. It’s often either caused or aggravated by a lack of sunlight, since daylight hours are shorter and we’re all bundled up inside away from the cold even when the sun is up.

My former therapist proposed a solution: mood lighting. Or, more accurately, a lamp that mimics sunlight to improve your mood. It’s a slightly-too-pricey purchase for my budget, but maybe I’ll get lucky and find it under the tree this year.

6. Education on adulting

This year is my second year out of college, and it’s been just as much a wild, crazy rollercoaster as year one. With a big move, a change in jobs, and my return to the world of book blogging, 2019 has been a big year. I have a lot of dreams for 2020 and beyond, and many of them rely on me getting a handle on the world of adult finances — including scary new subjects like investing.

To help me get started, I really want to read I Will Teach You to Be Rich. There’s probably hundreds of other great finance titles out there, but I’ve picked this one for my starting point.

7. The gift of reading

Along with a few specific books, I would love to get an Audible gift membership. I tried a two-month free trial during early fall and really enjoyed having access to audiobooks again. Audiobooks are so much easier to fit in to a modern adult schedule than sit-down paperback time, but they’re also significantly more expensive. Audible is out of my skimpy budget price range, but the monthly fee is definitely better than the cost of buying audiobooks, and you get to keep your titles forever, even after the subscription ends. What bookworm wouldn’t love that??

Of course, if you prefer visual learning/reading to audible (I see what they did there), Amazon also offers Kindle Unlimited gift memberships. It’s not on my list, but that service could definitely put a smile on the face of the reader in your life.

What’s on your Christmas list this year?