We hope all of you had a wonderful Christmas with loved ones, lots of fun, and delicious food. The New Year is only a few days away. Have you joined any good reading challenges yet?

Okay, now to the part everyone has been waiting for- the winners! Each name was drawn randomly from a huge tupperware container by me, my hubby and my two oldest daughters. They were as excited as I was to see whose name was going to be drawn.

I drew the winner of the $50 Amazon gift card first, but I’m not going to tell you who it is until the end. Ha! Here we go:

• Oh, Say Can You See? by Laurie (LC) Lewis – Annette Lyon (for her comment on Stephanie Humphreys’ post)

• Backlash by Traci Hunter Abramson – Julie (for her comment on Lori Nawyn’s post)

• Alma the Younger by Heather (HB) Moore – Elizabeth Morgan (for her comment on Anne Bradshaw’s post)

• True Miracles with Genealogy by Anne Bradshaw – Hummer (Frances Ellsworth) (one of her five entries for blogging about the Countdown!)

• Dingo by Anne Bradshaw – Chantele Sedgwick (for her comment on Sheralyn Pratt’s post)

• Second Kiss by Natalie Palmer – Elizabeth Morgan (for her comment on Tamara Hart Heiner’s post)

• Cross My Heart by Julie Wright – Judy (for her comment on Anne Bradshaw’s post)

• Cold As Ice by Stephanie Black – Chantele Sedgwick (for her comment on Liz Carlston’s post)

• Meg’s Melody by Kaylee Baldwin – Lisa Bennett (one of her five entries for blogging about the Countdown!)

• Save the Child by Margaret Turley – Krista Jensen (for following LDSWBR on Twitter!)

• Anasazi Intrigue (ebook) by Linda Weaver Clarke – Callets (for tweeting about the Countdown on Dec 12)

• Mayan Intrigue (ebook) by Linda Weaver Clarke – Judy (for her comment on Joan Soward’s post)

• City of Angels by Sheralyn Pratt – Chantele Sedgwick (for her comment on Kristen Landon’s post)

• The Star Prophecy by Joan Sowards – Linda (aka @ponilinda) (for tweeting about the Countdown on Dec 18)

• The beautiful handmade apron from Joan Sowards – Lisa Bennett (one of her five entries for blogging about the Countdown!)

Krista Jensen!!!!!!

Congratulations to Krista and all of our Countdown to Christmas winners!

If you are a winner in the Countdown to Christmas 2010 contest, send an email to ldswbr(at)gmail(dot)com to claim your prize. I will do my best to contact you if I haven’t heard from you in the next few days. After a week or so, if I haven’t been able to reach a prize winner, I will draw a new name for the prize.

Thank you to all of our blog readers. We hope you enjoyed the Countdown to Christmas. As always, we love to hear from you, so feel free to leave us comments or email us anytime.

I’d like to tell you about a little book I just read. The Christmas Stone by Liz Carlston (author of Surviving Columbine) is a quick read at 88 pages, though Liz manages to pack a lot of story into those pages.

The Christmas Stone is the perfect size for gift giving, and by purchasing it as a gift you are actually giving twice, as Liz has agreed to donate all author proceeds from The Christmas Stone to Primary Children’s Medical Center.

Because it is basically a short story, there isn’t a lot of time for character development and history-building, so Liz trusts the reader’s intelligence to fill in the rest and dives right into the story, though she does include a couple of flashbacks so the reader can understand the characters’ history a little better.

She even manages to work a little romance in there. (Don’t worry guys and gals who don’t care for romance- it’s nothing mushy or detailed).

Liz Carlston is a national speaker and author. She served a mission in the Oakland, California Temple Visitors Center, Spanish-speaking. Liz has been seen on CNN, ESPN, CBS Early Show, and Good Morning America in conjunction with her book, Surviving Columbine. Most recently, she has written articles for The Daily Utah Chronicle and New Era Magazine. Liz has been spotlighted in the New York Times bestselling books Columbine by Dave Cullen (p. 38-39, pb) and Fablehaven: Grip of the Shadow Plague (p.417-418 , 446, 454, tc) by Brandon

Mull. Liz is from Littleton, Colorado, but has also lived in Oakland and Palo Alto California. She currently resides in Salt Lake City, Utah.

You can learn more about Liz on her website/blog, on Facebook and Twitter @lcarlston_CSton. View the trailer for The Christmas Stone here.

LDSWBR: What author/book had the most impact on you this year?

LIZ: I really enjoyed the memoir, It’s Good to Be Alive: Observations from a Wheelchair by Jack Rushton. Despite being paralyzed from the neck down for the past 21 years, he is one of the most optimistic people I know. I appreciate his wit, wisdom and commitment to live with faith in the Savior. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U3HnUfqCBfc)

LDSWBR: What books are you giving/asking for this Christmas?

LIZ: Of course I’ve given several copies of The Christmas Stone away as gifts this year (why not right? :) ). The other book I’ve been giving away is The Fourth Gift by Tucker Davis. This is a heart-warming story about a little Sheppard boy who became friends with Joseph and Mary. He wanted to give the baby Jesus a hand-carved wooden lamb. His attempt didn’t turn out too well, so he gave the Savior an even better gift. I appreciate the idea that while life doesn’t always go according to plan, we can still offer our very best to the Lord.

LDSWBR: If you could only participate in one Christmas activity or tradition this year, what would it be?

LIZ: I always look forward to watching “The Nativity” on Christmas day. It’s a great time of year to touch base with family, to think of others, and most importantly, to remember the Lord’s hand in our lives.

LDSWBR: Do you prefer eggnog or warm apple cider?

LIZ: I’d have to go with the eggnog, but just because I’m a warm apple cider drinker during the rest of the year.

LDSWBR: Liz, thank you so much. Have a Merry Christmas!