Christmas 4

We just finished up Christmas 4.
Though my aunt and uncle have two kittens and one giant puppy, the giant puppy went to the kennel and the kitties were locked in the basement. The house was fumigated and my allergies were crystal clear.  We watched "A League of Their Own", stupid youtube videos, and the magical fireplace movie channel. (Everyone who has cable has this channel, though I've never tried it out myself.)
This year was a lucky year, because we got to see everyone a few months ago at the wedding and then again at Christmas. I missed my family!

Christmas 3 was with my brother and sister at my mom's house.  We got a few movies, an ISU blanket, ISU Tshirts and some lotion.

Christmas 2 was in Dubuque, IA. It was lovely, too. We had a board game exchange--I went WAY over the gift limit hoping that two of the cousin sets on that side would get the game. Nope. It went to my cousin's girlfriend. She doesn't care about the game and probably won't be dating him next year, so I was mad that I wasted the extra money and secretly wished she'd give it to the other cousins that I really wanted to have the present. Morale of the story: If you want to buy a specific present, give it to that person. Do not hope (futilely) that the right person will get your present.

 Christmas 2 was lovely, of course. I missed my grandma a lot and we all kept thinking she was there. Phantom Grandma. But I remembered the nice parts of my grandmother, which is all you can do when someone you love passes away.  We stayed at a hotel this year because every single house was full (this has never happened before.) That part was awesome--and we had a drink  at the hotel bar where Country Karaoke was the primary theme. Natch.  The finale was when one person sang "Lucille." So, of course I had to chime in. The drinks might have helped me there.  I went for a fast run on the treadmill and weighed myself at an all-time record high.  Desperate and urgent time for a change. (again again again again). My cousin from California was back and I hadn't seen him since he was 3--he's now 9.  His dad (mom's brother) married a Filipino and thus also went to Philippines in 2004. We talked about Colonialism, the spread of Catholicism and America's destruction prior to the Japanese arrival.  Since we also went to the same tourist attractions, we had a lot to talk about. Intramurous, Tagatay.   

Which brings me back to Christmas 1--Dan's family last weekend. I've already blogged about that, so the blog is now over.