Chapter Ninety-Five: Quite a Few Things

January 15, 2016

I have quite a few things to catch you up on, don't I?
Every Christmas, my small family would gather in my parents' house mid-morning. Mom would make her delicious egg omelet, and then, after we were satisfied, we would watch the kids open their gifts. This was a tradition that went on for as long as I can remember. Those kids (my sister and I) are all grown up, and now my family has new kids to watch over: my niece and nephew. So, in light of this, Christmas was spent at my sister's new house.
We had a delicious Christmas lunch together, which was followed by the satisfying crinkling of wadded up wrapping paper. The kids had a blast opening their numerous gifts, however, Mom and Dad had to intervene continuously to keep them going from one gift to the other.

Oh, Christmas Tree...

Robley and Evelyn

Dad helping Evelyn with her new toy!

Mommy helping Robley with some new toys!

For Christmas, I was given three new princess movies. Yay!! I now have Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937), Aladdin (1992), and Beauty and the Beast (1991). My Disney Princess line is almost complete! This is a satisfying achievement for any Disney freak.

Yaaaaaay!

After all the fun, it was nap time. Besides, the kids wanted to play with their toys in peace, without the annoying, yawning adults.

A couple of days later, the family gathered once more to celebrate a successful year's passing. This was also Christmas Part II, because my cousins, Kris and Russel, had somewhere else to be during Christmas Part I. We once again watched the kids open their gifts (and watched Kris and Russ open AJ's gifts for him), and laughed when they played with each others' toys. I was given a giant, fat, stuffed pug this go-around. My new best hug buddy, as well as bed-accent.

Oh, New Year's Tree...

Robley enjoying Christmas Part II

The kids decided that the new midnight was 8 O'Clock, and headed home. Another successful evening with the family...something that I hold near and dear to my heart, as my time with them is short!

On the fifth, Kimberly graced Victoria and I with tickets to the showing of the Abominable Bride, a special of the BBC series, Sherlock. Both of my friends are caught up on the show (I have yet to see the third season), but, luckily, this special did not rely too much on previous knowledge. You see, the BBC Sherlock has a modern twist on the classic tales of the incredible detective...so this special brought the familiar characters BACK to Victorian times. Very interesting! It was also just loads of fun because the theater was full of Sherlock fans. This was a great experience that I will not forget soon.

The Game is Afoot!

In between work and these fun events, I've found time to relax during my break from school. I've started multiple games on The Sims 3, a huge time-waster (but immensely fun). Following some Half-Price Books hauls, I've spent a lot of time reading books, something I don't get to do often at school. I've decided to make the effort to at least read a book a month during this next semester. Reading is so valuable to me, and something I value for my future students...I should make an effort to make it more of a priority!

My Happy Place

New Books!

Work has been treating me well, but I'm definitely ready for school again! In addition to being paid, a benefit from working at an awesome seafood restaurant is that I get to try food for 50% off. If you have a question about a particular meal at Red Lobster, let me know because I've probably tried it!!