I will remain calm.

I am not freaking out.

But I would forgive myself if I did freak out. You see, I was at the supermarket fish counter, turned my head, and saw this:

…and I threw up a little bit in my mouth.

Not because it’s a crazy Texas cowboy Santa with a cactus and a penguin, but because I am NOT READY to deal with Christmas yet.

By this time last year, I had already:

• - mixed up new Christmas music playlists
• - put together a Christmas party outfit
• - selected the Christmas-ey scent for my home
• - bought my Christmas cards
• - selected gifts for the nieces and nephews
• - I was very close to buying a tree and decorating
• - photoshopped my dogs to look like reindeer
• - had a plan for wrapping and shipping everything off to our family and friends

But mostly, I had:

KNIT MORE THAN TWELVE CHRISTMAS GIFTS, and I did it all without ever stepping into a mall.

Clearly, Christmas is going to be different this year. Not bad, but different.

Just as long as I don’t freak out because I can’t be Martha Stewart this time.