And so it begins.

The Christmas decorations are already displayed for sale in the store aisles, special pre-Black Friday sales ads are streaming into my inbox and much to my surprise, I heard Christmas music playing in a store in Allentown over the weekend.Crazy, right?It felt very strange and rushed, but gave my spirits a little lift just the same.I instantly called to mind the pretty lights, colored balls and glorious smell of the Christmas tree that will grace my living room; approximately six weeks from now.As much as I love Christmas, I must confess that over the years I have become a rather restrained gift-giver.As I've mentioned in previous columns, I always feel that we have too much stuff to begin with and would much rather meet a need than give in to a want.As for my own Christmas list, I'm very easy to please and spare my family any stress related to what type of gift to get me or overspending on my account.My list last year consisted of knee-hi stockings (in various colors), hair spray, mousse and coffee.That's it.Cheap, easy to find and for the most part, needed items; especially the coffee.Definitely a need.I'm fairly certain I provided my family with the same wish list the previous year as well, with the exception of a request for my favorite perfume from hubby, which I've managed to make last since then.With that being said, I think it's pretty safe to say that when it comes to shopping for a gift for your wife, I am every husband's dream.I couldn't be any more awesome except if maybe I were to ask for a football.Yes, totally awesome until now.You see, something happened last weekend when I saw those Christmas decorations and heard that Christmas music playing throughout the store.It was as if something just lit up inside me, filling me with all of the wonder, anticipation and excitement found within a child at Christmastime.I immediately considered driving over to the mall in search of the jolly old elf himself so that I might jump into his lap and give him my new and improved list.Now I know what you are thinking: It's too early for Santa.You're right, he wasn't there yet, but that's OK.I figure that being a writer, I can just write him a letter because after all, I have heard throughout my entire life that if you really want something, you just need to ask for it and I have worked really hard to get on to the "nice" list this year.So for whatever it's worth, here goes:Dear Santa,I'm sorry for always eating the cookies and drinking the milk that the kids have left out for you over the last two decades.It probably wasn't the best thing to do because now I pretty much resemble you, with the exception of the white hair and beard; but that's only because I wax and hit the salon every six weeks.Other than that, I think I have been pretty good this past year.So if it isn't too much trouble, may I please have a Nikon D810 camera, an 85mm f/1.4G lens and a 70-200mm f/4G lens because I really want to be a photographer when I grow up.Love, Sheri