Jingle All The Way Home

I can't believe it's December already. And I can't believe my weekend at home is over so soon. I felt like I just got home then I had to leave again. Luckily I'll be home again in about 10 days to stay for a whole month! 

This weekend at home was great. It was great to spend some time with my parents and my kitties. I hadn't been home in about a month since I didn't go home for Thanksgiving.

 I missed her. 

This one too.

 I spent most of Friday studying at Starbucks with my mom. I probably didn't get as much studying done this weekend as I should have, but I'll just work extra hard this week to get ready for finals. I just enjoy being home too much, I never want to do any work. 

Friday night we watched a movie called Safe House, starring Ryan Reynolds and Denzel Washington (two very talented actors that I love). It was a great movie, I'd definitely recommend it. Great plot, lots of action and character development. By the end I was rooting for the "bad guy" and I liked the subtle message. Beneath all the guns, explosions, shooting, and violence, the movie was saying to not blindly trust what people just tell you. And unlikely heroes may be lurking behind unexpected corners. And the bad guys in life may actually look like the good guys, and vice versa.

Saturday morning dad and I woke up bright and early to run the Jingle Jog 5k! 

 Complete with my brand new sparkly Packers santa hat. Not going to lie, the 5k was not my best. About 2 minutes into it, I felt pretty nauseous and sick. It definitely wasn't my best time. At all. But I had fun out there chugging along. And I finished! This race benefited YoungLife in Chesapeake, which is awesome. I went to Young Life in high school a few times and loved it. What they're doing for kids is great. Showing them the love of Jesus. And it's for kids that maybe got the wrong impression of religion and God growing up. It's showing them that God loves them no matter what. No matter their past, their present, their fears, their desires, their hurts. God is right there, passionately pursuing them. And I loved running for that, even though I felt sick. Totally worth it. 

Saturday night I got to go see Mary Poppins The Musical at the Chrysler with my mom! 

  It was fantastic. I loved the musical. The singing and acting was wonderful. And I still have the "supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" song stuck in my head. We had balcony seats, which were really neat. I loved being so high up and looking down on the play. 

 After the play they did this really cool thing. They asked the audience to donate money to this great organization called Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS.  Wow. How crazy is that. I come back from a week in New Orleans, so passionate about this disease and the people who have it, and what cause is this Broadway show supporting. HIV/AIDS. Beautiful. My heart leaped for joy when I heard them say that.  It reminded me I'm actually not the only one who cares about this. This whole Broadway company cares about this disease. And I loved seeing people throw their money in the red buckets on their way out. Even if it was only $1. That $1 was going to someone who desperately needed it and deserved it. My mom and I donated money too and we got to meet the actors who played Mary Poppins and Bert after the show. We even got a picture with them.

 Best money we ever spent in my opinion. Getting to meet some awesome people and it went to a great cause. I loved it.

Sunday I got to go to Grand Illumination with my dad and the Elliott family, which was a real treat. Grand Illumination is one of my absolute favorite things. And Colonial Williamsburg is too. So to be able to go to that with my dad and my best friend was truly magical. And it never fails to disappoint with the fireworks.

   They were spectacular this year. And every year.

 And spending time with this girl sure wasn't bad either. I can't believe she turned 20 today! No longer a teenager, but forever young at heart. Happy Birthday Anna! I'm looking forward to hanging out some more over winter break in a few weeks! 

This weekend went far too quickly for me. I learned a lot too. I was reminded how I like to be constantly doing something. Even when I should be relaxing. Maybe that's why I had such bad stomach issues Saturday afternoon. It forced me to just lay in bed and have some down time. As much as it annoyed me at the time, it was probably the best thing I could have possibly done. 

I was also reminded of how small I am. I love when that happens. Sitting in the balcony watching Mary Poppins. Laying on a blanket stargazing before watching the fireworks in Williamsburg. Those are the best moments. Those are the moments worth living for. The moments of perfect contentment and smallness. 
It reminds me of one of the songs in Mary Poppins:
Bert: "Best view in the world, eh? And who gets to see it? The birds, the stars and the chimney sweeps. Nothing to beat it, eh?
Now as the ladder of life has been strung, you may think a sweep's on the bottom-most rung. Though I spends me time in the ashes and smoke, in this whole wide world there's no 'appier bloke.
Mary Poppins and Bert: Chim chiminy, chim chiminy, chim chim cheree. A sweep is as lucky, as lucky can be." 

I was completely content in this weekend. But that doesn't mean it was easy. I had to deal with and learn about some difficult things this weekend. Hearing about my grandma who has breast cancer. Learning one of my mom's clients was diagnosed with cancer and only has one month to live. A family friend's father committing suicide over Thanksgiving. Sunday marked four years to the day that Lauren Vergara committed suicide. 
This weekend was heavy. 
It's easy to be discouraged. It's easy to be bitter. It's easy to push people away. 

I'm definitely going to be cutting people some more slack this holiday season. This is absolutely, without a doubt, my favorite time of year. But a lot of people dread it. And I can understand that. It reminds people of loved ones, ones that are gone and ones that may be having their last Christmas this year. 
Some of my fondest memories are from this time of year. But this time also hurts for a lot of people. So I'll be praying for the broken families, the families spending Christmas apart, the families remembering a loved one, and the families spending possibly their last Christmas all together. It hurts to think about. But it hurts because we're lucky and blessed enough to be alive.

Side note: I enjoyed going through old picture albums this weekend. I found this gem. Along with many others.

 I'll be praying. A lot. Especially for my family. My parents. The two most important people in my life. They have a lot on their plates and their hearts. Especially during this beautiful yet difficult Christmas season. I'm glad to have them by my side in every season.