This Contest Ended at 6 pm Pacific Time, December 9, 2021
Find the past and current contests on the Writing Contests page >>
Thank you for the incredible entries! It was so hard to come up with just two that I have engaged my author friend, mentor, and judge, Colleen Reece, to give me a hand. She is an incredible source of inspiration to me.
In 50 words or less, write about (choose one only):
- the very best Christmas gift Andi could ever receive, or
- the very best Christmas gift Andi could give someone else.
Entering is easy. Simply post your “Andi’s Best Gift” entry in the comments below. (I will count words, so please stay under the word count.)
Note: Include your email when posting a comment, but do NOT put your email into the actual comment. (I hope that makes sense.) WordPress asks for a name and an email before you post. Please fill that out. Do not comment “anonymously.” Otherwise, I will not be able to contact you if you win.
Winners will be announced Friday, December 10, on this post, on a new “Christmas Surprise” post, and also on the “Past Seasonal Contests” page. Winners will also be notified privately by email for their mailing addresses.
Two Lucky Winners
- First Place Winner receives: the Circle C Christmas Collection and a pair of fun, Christmas “red” horse socks.
- Second Place Winner receives the Circle C Christmas Collection
What’s in the collection? Four Christmas short stories. I can’t sell this book, but I can sure give it away with fun contests! Peek inside at the stories.
- Andi’s Christmas Good-bye (Riley leaves the Circle C ranch, 1876)
- Andi’s White Christmas (Andi is caught in a blizzard, 1877)
- Andi’s Interrupted Christmas (a Christmas pageant goes wrong, 1878)
- Andi’s Christmas Ball (Andi is a reluctant participant in the governor’s ball. This one is my favorite, 1879)
Note: physical prizes ship to U.S. addresses only. International winners will receive a MOBI or PDF file of the book.
Andi Carter's Blog 
This paragraph is Andi telling you what her very best gift to give is.
The best gift I remember giving was to Riley. One year, when we were young, I begged Mother to help me bake sugar cookies. She helped me! I wrapped the plate of cookies and ran outside. Riley’s face lit up when he saw those cookies. That’s my favorite Christmas gift.
That was hard! Whew!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Can anyone remember how old Andi was when her father died?
LikeLike
She was almost six.
LikeLike
Remember, this is a CHRISTMAS BEST GIFT writing contest.
LikeLike
whoops sorry!! can i change that???
LikeLike
(Heres the redone one!)
This took place the Christmas after Riley left the Circle C:
Andi ripped at the wrapping paper, inside of the paper sat a box.
“Who is this from?”
“Riley sent it just for you” Mother smiled
Andi opened the box and in sat a carved piece of wood that read:
Best Friends Forever
“This is the best Christmas gift ever!!”
LikeLiked by 1 person
Remember, this is a CHRISTMAS best gift writing contest.
LikeLike
Oops, I misread it. Can I change it up a bit to get the timeline right or is it final?
LikeLiked by 1 person
Sure…. Just let me know it’s updated and then I can delete your other one.
LikeLike
How many entries per person?
~Anna Elizabeth
LikeLike
One this time. Thanks.
LikeLike
Andi’s best gift was when Mitch gave her a carved horse of Taffy. He made it so beautiful and worked so hard on it. She loved it so much. And she put it in her treasure box. That was Andi Carter’s favorite gift that she had ever received at Christmas.
LikeLike
Hi, I am Andi and the very best Christmas gift I could ever receive would be one more Christmas with my father and I would give him the biggest hug ever to show him how much I loved him.
LikeLike
By the way here is my Email: lyders128@gmail.com
LikeLike
“Hi! My name is Andi Carter and I think that the best Christmas gift I could ever give would be Taffy having a foal on
Christmas day and getting to play with the new foal all day.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hi, I’m Andi. I think the very best Christmas gift ever was when Justin arranged for a band to come to town for me. They rode on horses and played joy to the world on guitar and fiddle. They threw candy out for the children. That was fun.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hi, my name is Andi and the best gift that I could ever receive would be getting to see my whole entire family including my nieces and nephews and my sister (their mom). we would have a feast and than talk all about funny stories, and things like that.
LikeLiked by 1 person
The best gift I could give Mother is obedience. She asked me to stay with Aunt Rebecca over Christmas since she couldn’t come to Fresno. I didn’t want to, but I decided that my gift to her and Auntie would be to obey happily. I think Jesus is happy too.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Andi: “The best Christmas gift I ever recieved was a little goat that wandered onto the range. I know none of my family thought the same as I did about Loco Luna, especially because of the eaten articles of clothing, the terrified horses, and the muddy hoofprints in the house. But that’s a story for later.”
LikeLiked by 1 person
I wrote about the best gift she could get.
Dear journal,
This was the best Christmas! This year Chad gave me a piece of paper. On the paper was a note that read “One day of no chores and helping me train the new filly.” It isn’t like Chad to do something like this. He’s the best. (sometimes)
-Andi
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s creative, and funny.
LikeLike
The best Christmas gift ever was the bracelet Riley gave me the first year we married. It is forteen karat gold! The inside was beautifully engraved. It said “A truly good wife is the most precious treasure a man can find” Proverbs 31:10. My heart overflowed with gratitude toward Riley!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Andi Prescott woke up with a start on Christmas morning to the sound of Jared giggling. She had a feeling something was different, and ran to the window. To her amazement, Jared was rolling around in SNOW! “Thank you, God,” Andi prayed. It was truly the best Christmas gift ever!
LikeLiked by 1 person
The best gift Andi could ever give someone else on Christmas is telling them how Jesus Christ died on the cross to save them.
LikeLiked by 1 person
“The best Christmas present I ever received was not wrapped in tissue paper hidden to be opened. It was seeing you, Riley, with your Mother all those years ago when we were little,” said Andi, looking into her husband’s face, after asked the question.
LikeLiked by 1 person
The best Christmas present Andi could give would be a home for a homeless person. There are a lot of homeless people in every state, country, republic, island, and continent. Even back then!
Marenn – age 9
LikeLiked by 1 person
The best Christmas gift I gave Riley is probably a gold belt buckle that said: Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest. Joshua 1:9 that was on our second anniversary.
LikeLiked by 1 person
The best Christmas gift I ever received was a hug from Mother one year when everything else went wrong. Some mothers tell their kids they love them a thousand times a day, but I have a mother that shows it.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I would give Andi a Christmas day filled with the knowledge of God’s grace and love. The day would be filled with blessings, hope, joy, gifts, words of kindness, and anything else that could show Andi how much God thinks of her and will never leave her no matter what.
LikeLiked by 1 person
The best Gift Andi could receive would be one of two things: the of salvation for her and her family, and the gift of God’s son becoming human for us.
LikeLiked by 1 person
The best Christmas Gift I ever gave Riley was the news I was expecting. I whispered in his ear that I was pregnant, and he got so excited. We were so delighted our family was growing. There has never been a Christmas gift to rival that one.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Gift I gave.
I found a girl on the streets in December. Her Pa and Ma died, she had nowhere to go. I invited her to live with me and Riley at Memory Creek Ranch. Later however, we found her relatives that were kind, caring and wanted to care for her.
-Julia
LikeLiked by 1 person
One Christmas morning, Mitch said excitedly, “Andi, guess what—Taffy had her colt!”
Andi raced out to the barn. She went into Taffy’s stall and stopped and stared. There were TWO palomino colts! Taffy was nuzzling them. This is the best Christmas present Taffy has ever given me, Andi thought.
LikeLiked by 1 person
So Cute Michelle,
Love Sophie 🥰
LikeLike
Here’s my updated Andi’s Best Christmas Gift:
The best gift I, Andi, have ever received, was a sweet note from Father. It was the last Christmas I had with him. The note said, “I love you, dear Andrea. May you grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ. Love, Father.” Reading it makes me shed tears.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Andi smiled as Jared opened his gifts. :Boys,” she said. “I have you gift.” Riley smiled at her. “Well, where is it.” Andi giggled. “I’m pregnant.” Riley face was the best gift ever. Jared jumped up and hugged mommy. “I love you.”
LikeLiked by 1 person
Okay, sorry. I just included my email address. Sorry again about going over the word count. That was a total mistake.
LikeLiked by 1 person
My name is Andi Carter, and the best Christmas present I have ever received is the little Bible I got the Christmas after I turned 8. The next year, I gave my heart to Jesus, and I still read my first Bible. My Christmas Bible.
LikeLiked by 1 person
The best Christmas gift… I always love knew tack for Taffy, and loved that knew fishing pole Mitch got me. I also loved the knew brush and mirror set Melinda got me last Christmas. But my favorite gift was the Bible my dad got me the Christmas before he died.
LikeLiked by 1 person
The best Christmas gift I gave was the doll Melinda helped me make for Rosa, after that every night Rosa slept with it and she named it after me, Andrea. Then the Christmas after that, Rosa gave me a doll she made and I named it after her. I remember that day very well, Melinda made hot chocolate with marshmallows! Yum!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m going to ask my author-friend-judge to help me pick the winner(s).
LikeLike
okay! Thanks
LikeLike
Oops, sorry, change that first sentence to: Today was Christmas of 1882.
LikeLiked by 1 person
The best gift I ever received was when one Christmas eve I opened the door there stood Macy! I hadn’t seen her in three years! even better was when she later told me that she had given her heart to Jesus. That was the best gift ever.
LikeLike
Here is my updated post:
Today is Christmas of 1882. Andi’s gift to me was a satin scarf with a print of roses. Andi had said she could not find anything special enough. I told her that she was the best gift.
-Mother
LikeLiked by 1 person
It was Christmas morning! Andi jumped out of bed. She ran to her stocking. She pulled out a toy horse. Chad woke up. He got out of bed and he walked up. “Your other present is in the stable”. Andi ran outside. She saw a horse. A little colt.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I think the best Christmas gift Andi could receive is a new father. A godly father a lot like her old father before he died and went to be with God in heaven forever and ever.
LikeLiked by 1 person
The Best Christmas gift I (Andi) ever got was not something I could hold in my hand, it was the gift of being with my family after being away in San Francisco. That Christmas I was more grateful and thankful to be with my family than ever before-Andi
LikeLiked by 1 person
“Howdy! I’m Andi, and I received the best gift ever when I was six. That Christmas, I asked Jesus into my heart, and He’s been there ever since! I consider Jesus my best friend, especially when I felt sad after Riley moved away later that year.”
LikeLiked by 1 person
The best Christmas gift I, Andi, ever gave was to Melinda and Peter. It was a trip to New York City, New York. They stayed at the Melva Inn for 3 weeks. They really enjoyed skating in Central Park. Riley and I watched their kids while they were away.
LikeLiked by 1 person
“Books will always live forever, Ken,” said Andi, confidently on the first day we met at the Halloween Party last month. I was reading a novel when Andi came around to exchange pleasantries. Now, Christmas is here and Andi just presented me the very best Christmas gift; a book!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Andi spent all summer teaching riding lessons to earn extra money to buy a new fishing rod. On Christmas Eve she went to town to buy it. She saw a poor family with nothing to eat and felt pity for them. She gave them her warm coat and her savings! – Nick Koturbash
LikeLiked by 1 person
Andi rides Taffy on Christmas morning and finds a small child lost in the woods. She helps the child find its way back to its mother, and is offered a large sum of money. Andi kindly refuses, and the child’s mother is very grateful to her. Andi is genuinely happy. – Angela Koturbash
LikeLiked by 1 person
I think that the most meaningful gift that Andi could receive would be a lost letter from her father. A letter from her father would be meaningful because she would have something that he wrote just to her.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s sweet
LikeLike
Andi’s aunt and some other family members came to Andi’s house for Christmas. After a wonderful dinner her family opened presents. Andi was the last. She wanted a bridle. She opened a present and looked inside. And there sat an adopted baby brother from Australia. He’s the best gift ever!
Alayna – Age 6
LikeLiked by 1 person
The very best Christmas gift Andi could receive would be Taffy having a baby. She could teach the foal and name it Sunshine. She could train it to compete in contests like calf roping and bronc riding. Andi would be super amazed to see Sunshine on Christmas morning.
LikeLiked by 1 person
This paragraph is taken from Andi’s diary when she was eight years old…
I was sitting on Justin’s lap as he read the birth of Jesus from the family’s leather Bible. We read it each Christmas, but this year I really understood what Jesus did for me. That morning I gave my life to Christ and received the precious gift of salvation. (2 Corinthians 9:15)
LikeLike
“What do you want for Christmas?” It was Christmas Eve. Mother was making eggnog. “Everybody has . . .” Andi hesitated. “It’s not Christmas without. . .?” Mother looked puzzled. Andi turned, and ran upstairs.
* * *
Christmas morning, Andi leapt off her bed, ran out onto her balcony, and gasped. “Just what I always wanted-SNOW!!!”
LikeLike
Andi’s Best Gift
by Cecily Grace
Andi’s best gift that she ever gave was a Bible to her cousin Daniel. It was Andi’s Bible and she gave it to him on Christmas Day because he was doing things that were bad. Andi wanted him to become a Christian.
LikeLiked by 1 person
The best Christmas gift Andi ever gave was the cougar cub she gave Chad. She and Riley found it in the mountains while searching for a tree. She killed its mother, and felt responsible for it. But she decided it would be a great present for Chad. That backfired eventually.
LikeLiked by 1 person
The best Christmas gift Andi could receive would be a promise from Chad to not tease her ALL month. However, he wouldn’t really be capable of fulfilling his promise. He’d tease her once or twice while smiling sheepishly and earning himself “The Look”. It’s the thought and effort that counts!
LikeLiked by 1 person