Alas, Christmas is over!
I can honestly say that the work leading up to Christmas – the fretting over what to give, the shopping, the wrapping of gifts – was all worth it. I truly enjoyed Christmas this year, and it was nice having lots of family come over to share a meal and open presents. This feeling was unlike Christmas of prior years, when I felt like I was just going through the motions and focusing too much on the gifts I gave – do they like it? Should I have gotten them X instead of Y? Did I give too much or too little? – are the questions that bounce around my head all day. I finally came to the realization yesterday that focusing on the people, rather than the gift-giving part, is the true meaning of Christmas. Even if I lose all my possessions in the world, nothing can take the place of family to comfort and protect you. I hope this Christmas feeling lasts all year.
That being said, since Christmas fell on the last day of the four-day weekend, it was tough getting up this morning to get to work. My sleep pattern was ravaged this weekend by late nights watching season 3 of Lost (my husband and I refuse to watch series TV until it comes out on DVD because we hate waiting a week to find out what happens next – we like the instant gratification box sets provide) and days filled with visiting malls or wrapping gifts. Thankfully, the malls did not turn out to be the nightmares I had envisioned. If you are willing to park far away and come with a relaxed attitude the mall experience is actually a pleasant one. It would have been more pleasant for me had I worn flat shoes to the mall, but wanting to be stylish, I stupidly wore shoes with three-inch heels. My feet are plotting their revenge.
I had so much planned this weekend for this little blog of mine. I was going to overhaul the design by making the post column wider, putting up a new banner, adding a new "About Me" page, and re-arranging the format of the existing information. Unfortunately, NONE of these planned changes were executed. Somehow my time disappears into a black hole every time a four-day weekend comes around.
On Saturday, Rene and I hit the mall and bought presents for everyone left on our list. We shopped from 11 am to 8 pm. If that's not dedication I don't know what is!
On Sunday, I spent part of the day organizing said gifts. I ended up crashing around 2 pm from hunger and made myself a pizza bagel from pasta sauce and leftover mozarella cheese in the fridge (necessity truly is the mother of invention). At night the whole family dressed up to the nines to attend my sister's graduation from the Nursing Program at LAVC. Congrats Vieve! This ceremony was unlike typical commencement exercises and was more like prom, complete with a DJ and dancing at the end of the night. Here are some pictures:
Dad, Vieve, and Mom posing in front of the tree before leaving the house
Chuy getting into the mix
My brother and Rene waiting for the food to come
Ken and Vieve
Rene and I
Check out the decorations - very prom-like, no? They also hired a harp player to play during dinner time to add some class to the evening.
Vieve and her fellow graduates
Vieve receiving her diploma
Posing with fellow graduates in the background
The whole family posing for a picture after the ceremony
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