Christmas (UN)Wrapped

How quickly the Christmas season comes and goes.  It’s really a bummer.  I would love to spend days at home doing nothing more than waking up at 11am, hanging out with the parents and brother at the fill-in homestead, eating out at some favorite or memorable restaurants, making meals with the family and sitting down to the table all four of us, drinking kahlua on the rocks and eating ice cream and cookies before finally calling it a night at around 2am.  C’est la vie.

And that is pretty much how the whirlwind trip home for holiday season 2012 went for me.  I got to do pretty much everything on my list.

• UM Basketball game A trouncing against EMU

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• Jerusalem Garden Better than ever on a cold rainy night
• Northside Grill Still a must for their hearty pancakes and friendly service
• Lunch with Mom and Dad (though she won’t be working) Eh…I guess you would say that
• Hair highlighted by Mom  And it’s beautiful!!
• Bowling  With the Krupps, though I’d rather not recall my scores

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• Movie (at home or out)  There were definitely movies at home
• Soup Spoon Cafe  With the Grandparents!!!
• Fork in the Road Diner  Eager to return for this
• Maru/Sansu  Yummy in my tummy
• Christmas Eve service  New church, new laughs, same lighted candle service
• Aladdins  One misstep…and I’m already regretting that one
• Yoga  Mom and I walked to class…and it was fantastic!!!
• Bake a bit with Grandma  And she even let me try a new recipe and stir the dough!!
• Make breakfast/dinner with the family  Dinner…check!  Breakfast…I can’t wake up early enough for that.
• Christmas lights drive-arounds  We saw some pretty good ones
• Lots of Christmas music  Oh yes indeed
• Lots of coffee, hot chocolate, and hot tea  Ummm hmmm
• See Nisa and Claire  Love ’em
• Jazz  You should definitely check out the new Avenue Cafe and Shorts Cup O Joe Espresso Ale if you are in the Lansing area!!!

On top of this wonderful list we got to go to the Breslin for a MSU game vs. University of Texas, the trio noshed on some fantastic sweet potato fries at the Leo’s Outpost, we did a puzzle (should have been on the list anyways), and I got to see the whole family twice.  I really loved the whole trip from the time I landed in Detroit until the time my parents said goodbye to me on Christmas Night.  To pick one favorite is hard but I really enjoyed Christmas Eve.  Bowling, stopping at the bar, making dinner as a family, going to church service as a family, driving around looking at the lights and opening each other’s presents are things that I will cherish the whole year through.  

And I got some great gifts too!!  I am so eager to use my new entertaining pieces:  placemats, cloth napkins, serving utensils, and paring knife.  I can’t wait to book some more flights to travel.  I got some great makeup pieces and some great snacking items that I can’t wait to break into.  And probably the biggest present was the gift I have and will continue giving myself in the new year; the gift of taking care of myself, meeting my goals, loving myself and doing self-care necessities.  It’s so worth it and I think this was the first visit in a long time that I have not felt the slightest bit paranoid or anxious around the family, the first time I could be myself 100%, and the first time I didn’t have to face my shortcomings and have an emotional breakdown.  What a great Christmas!!

Chelsea