uncompetewithable

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!

I hope everyone had a fun, enjoyable Christmas. My weekend was very full, but enjoyable nonetheless. I ended up doing a shift exchange at work so that I could have Christmas Day off which meant I had to work 6 days in a row last week. Luckily I got through it pretty easily and as long as I got to spend time with my family for Christmas I was happy.

Saturday I went to Baraboo and spent the day at my parents. We had an awesome dinner of bacon wrapped beef tenderloin, twice baked potatoes with cheese and bacon crumbles on top, broccoli and cauliflower with cheese sauce, and cheesy biscuits. We exchanged gifts and hung out for awhile, and then I headed to Sun Prairie late Saturday night to be ready for Christmas day with Zach and his family. I did a black and white oil painting for my parents (from a picture of me holding Alyssa the day she was born) which made my mom tear up a little bit. [Success!]

"Widdowe Beebees"

Sunday I spent the entire day with Zach's family. I was seriously impressed with the lunch spread they had - a huge, delicious meal for THIRTY people. The entire meal went off quite well (so well, that I was stuffed full for the rest of the day/night). There was an 18.5 pound ham, 2 turkeys, stuffing, ranch mashed potatoes, roasted vegetables, carrots and onions, rolls, some cabbage thing (that I stayed away from), and lots of cookies and other snacks throughout the day.  The afternoon held lots of running around, lots of present opening, and a few drinks for the adults. My presents for Zach's family (his parents Jodi and Dave, twin sister Meghan, and little brother Sam) were what I was most nervous about. I've spent pretty much the last 3 weeks knitting their Christmas presents, and I was really hoping that the sizes of everything would work out and they'd enjoy their gifts. Soooooo....

Meghan's Scarf

[dark purple, very hard to see - but SUPER warm!]

Dave's Hat

[my own pattern I made up on the spot - also SUPER warm]

Jodi's Mittens

[cabled cuffs and one of my favorite colors made them hard to give away]

Sam's Hat

[Sam has a hard time finding hats that fit his giant head (because his brain is so big) 

so this one needed to fit just right, and it did!]

I was very proud of myself because I was finished with all 5 of my projects by 2 am on Friday night - the earliest I've ever finished all my presents! The last few weeks were a little jam-packed but it seems like everyone enjoyed their gifts, and you guys know I just like spoiling people so it all worked out. 

My parents were also able to come to Zach's to spend some time on Christmas Day. Dad had to work so they hadn't planned on really doing anything, so Jodi and Dave invited them down. They got there around 5 pm and stayed through halftime of the Packer game, so we got some quality time in and my parents finally got to meet Zach's parents. 

Phew! Needless to say, I was exhausted by the time I got back to Madison last night (sometime around midnight). I was sleeping by 230ish which is about 3 hours earlier than usual. I'm excited to relax and be lazy for a little while now that all my projects are complete. 

I hope everyone enjoyed Christmas and you'll hear from me in the new year!