Category Archives: Celebrations

I’m Officially An Aunt (or Welcome Rory!)

Posted on April 8, 2020 | Comments Off on I’m Officially An Aunt (or Welcome Rory!)

I’m so excited that my nephew is here! He was born last week and now he is home with my brother and sister-in-law. I know that the original plan didn’t quite happen, but I’m still so excited.

Originally, I was going to go up to Santa Barbara when my sister-in-law went into labor. My parents already had plans to spend the month of April there (my sister-in-law’s parents live in Santa Barbara so they didn’t have to travel). When we were at the baby shower about a month ago, we all assumed that’s what we’d be doing. I remember saying goodbye to everyone and saying how I’d see them in a month. I was so honored that my sister-in-law wanted me to be there when my nephew was born and I couldn’t wait to meet him.

Of course, with everything going on, there was no way for us to be there. Even if we were in Santa Barbara, we wouldn’t have been allowed at the hospital. But none of us traveled because it’s really not the smart thing to do right now. We had an idea of what day he was going to be born, so we were all keeping our phones near us to find out the news as soon as possible.

And when he was here, I got photos immediately from my brother. And I am thrilled to introduce you all to Rory James Levin.

I knew his first name would be Rory (and obviously knew his last name would be Levin). The gift I made for the baby shower were bookplates that said “The Library Of Rory Levin”. But I didn’t know his middle name until he was born. I think it’s a super cute name and he looks like a Rory to me.

I’m glad that my sister-in-law’s parents are near them so they can help my brother and sister-in-law out with things. I know that they are working on keeping their house as clean and safe as possible so nobody else is able to come over. But as soon as things are normal again, I know my family and I will be traveling there to meet him. For now, we just have to see him through technology.

I am sad I wasn’t there when he was born and I don’t know how long it will take before I get to meet him, but I also know it’s for the best for everyone’s health. And if everyone just went to see one person, people are going to keep getting sick. So staying home, even if it means missing out on something my family has been looking forward to, is what I have to do. And I’m sure my parents feel the same way since they were so excited to get to spend several weeks with Rory. But they will be there as soon as they can and I’ll probably time out my trip to be at the same time so I can see my parents as well.

I have several friends who are pregnant and close to their due dates and I know that there are so many unknowns or weird things with trying to give birth right now. Everyone is handling it the best that they can and I hope that my friends have a similar experience to what my sister-in-law had. Even if my family couldn’t be there to support my sister-in-law, I’m glad my brother was there and that they do have some family nearby that can help them if they need it. Plus, everyone has gotten more familiar with different delivery grocery options lately so I know they know how they can safely get groceries without having to leave their house.

For now, I’m just going to enjoy knowing that I’m officially an aunt and I can get so excited for when I get to meet Rory in person (hopefully) soon! And I now have lots of time to find really cute presents to get him so I can bring lots of things when that happens!

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Default ThumbnailHaving Fun With Photos (or My Brother And Nephew Are Twins!) Default ThumbnailAnother Santa Barbara Day (or A Little Bit Of Social Interaction) Default ThumbnailMore Family Time (or Seeing All My Immediate Family Last Week) Default ThumbnailOfficially Getting A New Cousin (or A Zoom Wedding) Default ThumbnailMeeting Rory (or This Made Isolation Worth It) Default ThumbnailForgot To Share Some Awesome News (or I’m Going To Be An Aunt!)

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Posted in Celebrations, Fun Stuff

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A Santa Barbara Afternoon (or Celebrating My Future Nephew!)

Posted on March 10, 2020 | Comments Off on A Santa Barbara Afternoon (or Celebrating My Future Nephew!)

Even though my brother and sister-in-law live pretty close to me, I don’t make it to Santa Barbara that often. I haven’t been up there for a while and I know that I should make plans to do that more. It’s only about 90 minutes away from me, so it’s not that far. But I know I will be going up there more often soon because my sister-in-law is pregnant and my nephew should arrive in about a month!

I’m so excited to be an aunt and I’ve already got a lot of things that I can’t wait to get for my nephew. And when I found out the date for the baby shower, I immediately started to think of a good gift.

I looked at a bunch of different websites to get inspiration for a gift, and I found something that I loved and could make myself. They were bookplates (stickers that say “Library of Baby Levin”) and I knew that would be perfect! I know what my nephew is going to be named and I knew the theme of the nursery is safari animals, so I made some really cute stickers with different animals on them. The only problem is that they aren’t telling most people the name yet (only family knows right now), so I couldn’t give a gift with his name on it. So I had to get something to go along with the bookplates to give at the shower. The obvious gift was to get some books, so that’s exactly what I did!

I wanted to find books that relate to things that my brother and sister-in-law like so they could be an introduction to those things for the baby. So I found a book on San Francisco (where they met), Santa Barbara (where they live), world-traveling (which they love to do), and wine (which is one of their favorite activities). I will say, finding a baby book about wine wasn’t easy, but I was so thrilled when I found it!

The baby shower was this past weekend and I drove up to Santa Barbara just for the afternoon. I drove with my great aunt (who lives near me) and we went a bit early so we could spend time with my parents and dog. The dog had knee surgery recently so I really wanted to get to see him. And I hadn’t seen my parents for a few months and I knew they had some stuff for me. We got up there about 2 hours before the shower started, so that allowed us some time to relax after the drive and hang out. Shockingly, I didn’t take a single photo of the dog when we were there!

And when we were at the shower, I didn’t take many photos either! Part of the reason I didn’t take photos was that I was dealing with a lot of nausea that day. It’s unfortunate that a bad nausea day fell on the same day as the party, but I can’t really control that. But the other reason I didn’t take a ton of photos was that I was focused on enjoying being there. I wasn’t sure how many people I would know there, but I did end up knowing quite a few people. I knew I’d know my family and my sister-in-law’s family. But most of my brother’s friends who were there were people that I have known for a while too. I think the last time I saw them was at the wedding, but since everyone stays in touch through social media it didn’t seem like it had been that long. And I did chat with some people that I didn’t know so I did end up feeling like I knew everyone there.

The few pictures I did take were of some of the decorations.

And of Ross and Krystle when they opened up gifts.

I had given them a heads up that there was a part of the gift that had the name on it, so they opened that without showing anyone else before opening up the books for all the guests to see. I think they were just as surprised as I was that there was a baby book about wine! And I think they loved all the other books I got them too.

After they opened the gifts, the party started to wind down a bit. My great aunt and I hung around for a while so we could catch up with family, but we didn’t stay too late since we did have to drive home. We were there for quite a while, and I should be back soon since I will go to Santa Barbara when my nephew is born. My parents will be staying there next month so they don’t have to worry about driving down when she goes into labor. I’ll just be in LA basically waiting for the call to get into my car and head up. I can’t wait!

I’m so excited that there will be a new member of our family soon and I can’t wait to see what he’s like and what he will add to the family dynamic!

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Default ThumbnailI’m Officially An Aunt (or Welcome Rory!) Default ThumbnailHaving Fun With Photos (or My Brother And Nephew Are Twins!) Default ThumbnailForgot To Share Some Awesome News (or I’m Going To Be An Aunt!) Default ThumbnailA Little More Time In Santa Barbara (or Hanging Out With My Sister-In-Law) Default ThumbnailSanta Barbara Weekend (or Family and Friends Time) Default ThumbnailAnother Santa Barbara Day (or A Little Bit Of Social Interaction)

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Posted in Celebrations, Family, Fun Stuff

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I Do Enjoy Valentine’s Day (or Celebrating All Love In My Life)

Posted on February 14, 2020 | Comments Off on I Do Enjoy Valentine’s Day (or Celebrating All Love In My Life)

I know that Valentine’s Day is a love or hate holiday. Some people love being able to acknowledge love in their life or showing how much they love another person. Some people hate it, and I seem to be more familiar with the reasons people hate it. I’ve heard how it’s a holiday that is made up and only to sell things. I know some people think it’s an excuse to have a bad and overpriced date. And others say that it leaves out single people and they aren’t able to celebrate since they aren’t in a relationship.

I’m not going to debate that going out on Valentine’s Day might be overpriced and I have no clue if it’s really a made-up holiday. But I will dispute the idea that it’s only a holiday for people in relationships. I believe that any love can be celebrated on Valentine’s Day. And I’ve written a post about how I celebrate love in my life before explaining this. Things haven’t changed much for me. If anything, I believe even stronger now that everyone should be celebrating all love in their life and not just romantic love.

I’m incredibly lucky that I have as much love in my life as I do. Of course, I do want romantic love and am still searching for it, but my life isn’t less than because I don’t have that just yet. I have amazing friends and family that I love and that I know love me. They support me in all my craziness and I know I could turn to anyone if I needed help. If something happened to me, I wouldn’t feel alone because I didn’t have a boyfriend or husband. When I thought I needed liver surgery, I had friends that said they could come over to help me do the things I couldn’t do for a few weeks. I know that having someone I was in a relationship might mean I automatically have someone who could do that for me, but I have friends who can fill in and I’m fine with that.

For several years, I have celebrated the idea of all the love in my life on Valentine’s Day. But this year I feel that even more. I think that’s due to a realization I had after having a talk with a guy that I was trying to get closure with. In that talk, I realized there is a difference between wanting to be with someone and needing to be with someone. That realization actually gave me the closure I was searching for with that guy. And it made me understand why he and I never could have worked even if he hadn’t done the things he did that hurt me.

But it’s gone far beyond just that closure. I have realized that while I do want a relationship, I do not need it. I am living an awesome life without having a significant other. I am not looking for my missing piece. I am looking for someone who can add amazing things to my life and not someone who needs to fill what is missing. And I think having that thought in my head has helped me remember that my life is full of love even if I don’t have a boyfriend or a husband. And it’s important to remember that love and to celebrate it.

I do try to celebrate the love in my life throughout the year and not just for Valentine’s Day. Life is short and I don’t want to miss the chance to tell someone that I love them or how much they mean to me. I thought about doing something for Valentine’s Day for the people I love, but I just didn’t get it together in time. I did send out holiday cards just about 2 months ago to the people I would have sent Valentine’s cards to, so I do know they know how much they mean to me. I would have loved to have sent out cards again, but it just didn’t happen. Hopefully, next year I can do that.

And as far as my Valentine’s Day plans go, I don’t really have anything planned yet. I have my normal Friday routine with my workout and work, but nothing is planned after that. I might see if a friend wants to meet up and do something. I might stay home and be lazy on my couch. I might end up having a random date (which has happened on Valentine’s Day before). I’m not worried about making plans and whatever I do tonight is going to be the right thing to do. The only thing I know I will do is that I will celebrate the love in my life no matter what because I am so lucky to have what I do have.

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Default ThumbnailEnjoying Valentine’s Day (or Celebrating The Love I Do Have In My Life) Default ThumbnailSo Many Birthdays and Anniversaries! (or A Month Of Celebrating And Remembering) Default ThumbnailCelebrating My Friendship Love (or I Don’t Hate Valentine’s Day) Default ThumbnailCelebrating Some Anniversaries (or Remembering Awesome Family Moments) Default ThumbnailSpreading Some Holiday Cheer (or Finding Cheaper Ways To Make People Smile) Default ThumbnailAnother Day Another Audition (or This Is The Life I Love)

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Making Some Good Guesses (or I Am Not A Cat)

Posted on February 13, 2020 | Comments Off on Making Some Good Guesses (or I Am Not A Cat)

This past weekend was the Oscars, and as always I went to the Oscar party that my friends throw every year. It’s really the best party because I can watch the Oscars the way I want and I can still celebrate with friends. And I love that it is a costume party because that’s always fun. I’m not the best with costumes, but I love seeing what my friends come up with. But this year, I figured out my costume a few months ahead of time.

I have no clue why I thought of this, but I realized I could make a Fox News costume by having some newsprint on my clothes and wearing some fox ears. It was an easy and clever costume so I knew that was the perfect thing to do. And even though Fox News isn’t technically a character in the movie “Bombshell”, it kind of is. Plus, the costume doesn’t have to be an actual character. A costume that represents a movie from the past year is pretty much the only requirement.

I found a newsprint scarf online and some fox ears that also came with a tail. And even though I’m not good at doing makeup, I really wanted to try and see if I could do something. So I looked up a lot of videos on how to do fox makeup and did a very simple version of what I found online. And I have to say I think I did a really great job considering my lack of makeup ability!

It wasn’t super elaborate or fancy, but I felt like it represented a fox. And I was happy with the final result which is what mattered the most to me.

I got to the party earlier than I normally do, but that allowed me to hang out with my friends before the show started. I always watch the Oscars in the quiet room, where we aren’t supposed to talk except during commercials. So while the show is on, I’m not being social. And I knew I wasn’t going to stay super late, so I wanted to get my socializing time in before things got started. And it was nice that I was early and there weren’t a lot of people there because I could get a photo of my full costume plus a photo with my friend Marie.

But one thing I noticed as soon as I got to the party was that everyone thought I was a cat. I totally forgot that “Cats” came out last year and I guess in a way I did look like a cat. Plus, there were a few friends who did come dressed as cats. But I just kept saying “I am not a cat!” whenever that was the guess for my costume. I just wish now that I had thought of this being an issue so I could have worn a shirt that said that.

Once the show started, things were pretty normal in the quiet room. We did have a few moments that were really shocking where we were all yelling, but those were rare. We were quiet for most of the show and that allowed us to really enjoy it and hear every moment of the speeches.

It also helped us track who was winning because there is a contest to be the person who guesses the most winners correctly. I don’t always do great with the guessing, but I was making a real effort. And I was doing amazingly well from the start! I kept guessing them correctly, even the categories where the guesses were complete guesses and I had no reason why I picked one over the others. In the end, I only missed 4 out of 24 awards, which may have been my best one ever.

After the awards were done, we had the costume parade to pick the costume winners. And before we voted on the costumes, we also got a big group photo of everyone there. I don’t think we have gotten a group photo before, but I love that we got one this year.

I knew I wasn’t going to win the costume contest, but I wanted to at least be on the honorable mention list (which means that you got at least one vote). And I did get on that list (and I promise I didn’t vote for myself). The winners were all really amazing costumes that were clever and the ones I expected to win. I don’t mind not winning since my costume was good but not nearly as good as what I knew everyone else would come up with. But I was hoping I might place with guessing the winners.

I knew I’d be in the top few, but it’s the top 2 that win prizes. And it turned out that 2 people did 1 guess better than I did. So I did get 3rd place, but no prize. But I was still proud of myself for how well I did with my guessing!

After all the prizes were given out, I started making my rounds of goodbyes since I wanted to start heading home. I wish I could have stayed longer, but I had an early morning the next day and about a 30-minute drive home. But I was glad I got to spend so much time with my friends and I’m sure the next party will be here before we know it!

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Posted in Acting, Celebrations, Fun Stuff

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A Very Low-Key NYE (or I’m Glad I Don’t Have To Impress My Friends)

Posted on January 7, 2020 | Comments Off on A Very Low-Key NYE (or I’m Glad I Don’t Have To Impress My Friends)

I have written several posts about how I’m so excited to start a new year and what I think the new year will bring. And I am excited about it being a new year and feeling like there is a fresh start (even though that fresh start isn’t really real). I love the idea of a clean slate and feeling like I have a new chance to do something amazing.

But despite all those things I love about a new year, I’m really not the biggest fan of going out for New Year’s Eve.

I might have been a bit more excited about NYE when I was younger. And even in more recent years, I think I was a bit more enthusiastic about it. Maybe having my car die on NYE has made things a bit more serious for me. I don’t worry about my car breaking down on my drive home, but I am reminded about it each year. It’s hard to forget when it was a pretty big deal.

But there are other factors that make me not as excited about NYE. I don’t want to go out somewhere that is going to be really crowded and will be very expensive to go to. If you go out to dinner, it is overpriced and they seem like they want to rush you so they can get to the next seating. I don’t want to be out late because I don’t want to be on the road when people are leaving bars. Hopefully, people wouldn’t be driving drunk (especially with all the rideshare options in LA), but it’s still something I worry about. And I usually don’t sleep in on New Year’s Day because I have a lot to get done.

I’m lucky that I’ve got a group of friends that usually get together for NYE that I can hang out with. And it’s nothing fancy or extravagant so I don’t have to feel like it’s a big deal. And hanging out with my friends is exactly what I did this year.

It was a smaller group than normal because my friends have a dog that is a bit skittish. So it was mainly people that they knew their dog was familiar with. But it was still a good-sized crowd. And there were some people who did dress up, but that wasn’t necessary and there were plenty of people who didn’t dress fancy. I was one of the people who dressed pretty casually. I figured if I was going to be out late, I might as well be comfortable. And I know my friends don’t necessarily care how I dress so I didn’t feel like I had to impress them or meet a certain standard.

I didn’t take any pictures at the party, but that was deliberate. I wanted to focus on being with my friends and not trying to take photos or make sure I have things I can post on social media. But also, I didn’t do anything too crazy. I spent a lot of time hanging outside in the backyard with my friends just chatting about lots of random things. And when it got too cold for me, I went inside and hung out on a couch with other friends.

I usually don’t stay up too late, so I had to do something to keep me awake and alert. I thought it was close to midnight at one point and then looked at my watch only to discover that it was only about 10 pm. I think a lot of us were starting to feel that way, but we didn’t want to leave before midnight since we did want to celebrate together. We decided to play a game and we went with Cards Against Humanity. We started with a small group, but as people were coming inside to get out of the cold more would join us. It was a pretty fluid game with the group size changing often, but we were just playing for fun and we weren’t going to figure out an overall winner when we were done.

Finally, it was almost midnight and everyone was in the living room with us for the countdown to midnight. And once it was the new year, we all celebrated together. Everyone usually goes around to make sure they hug everyone to say happy new year. It’s a nice tradition because you don’t feel left out if you don’t have someone to kiss at midnight or to celebrate with. Everyone celebrates together and I like that.

And right after midnight, I went around to say my goodbyes to my friends. I was so tired and I really wanted to get home before it got too late. I think my friend group understands me wanting to leave early since I have one of the longer drives back. And since everyone was gathered in the living room, it was pretty fast to say goodbye to everyone and to get into my car to head home.

I was home and in bed before 1 am and that was perfect. I did get to celebrate the new year, but I didn’t have to do anything fancy or crazy. Nobody cared that I was dressed in comfortable clothes or that I left so quickly after midnight. And I love that nobody cared about those things because getting together was more about being with friends and not impressing anyone. Plus, we realized that the Oscars are coming up really soon so we’ll all be together again before we know it.

Honestly, it was the perfect way for me to ring in 2020 and I couldn’t have asked for anything else.

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Merry Christmas! (or I’m Good With Whatever Happens Today)

Posted on December 25, 2019 | Comments Off on Merry Christmas! (or I’m Good With Whatever Happens Today)

I hope that you all are having an amazing Christmas doing whatever you usually do. I know most people celebrate Christmas and I love seeing all the fun traditions that my friends have. But for me, I’m usually spending the day solo.

I don’t mind being alone on Christmas. For me, it’s not really a holiday that I celebrate. I just like having a day off of work and a day that I can do whatever I want to do. And usually, that includes watching movies and eating Chinese food. And that’s the plan for today.

I don’t know how much else I’ll be doing because I’m still recovering a bit from having food poisoning, but I am so much better than I was on Monday. I’m just feeling a little weak and dehydrated. So I’ve been working on fixing that.

I’ve invited friends to come over if they don’t have other things to do, but I don’t know if anyone will be coming by. And if I spend today alone or I spend the day with a ton of friends, I’m fine either way. I’m sure this sounds weird, but Christmas doesn’t really mean much to me. So whatever I do is what happens and I know that tomorrow I’ll have work and a bit more of my normal life.

I know this is 2 short posts in a row and there’s a chance that the post tomorrow will be short too. But I hope that you all are doing something fun and not spending time reading my blog!

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Another Union Holiday Celebration (or Being Social And Working Social Media)

Posted on December 17, 2019 | Comments Off on Another Union Holiday Celebration (or Being Social And Working Social Media)

One of the holiday parties I try to make it to every year is the SAG-AFTRA party. I haven’t been able to make it every year, but I do make an effort and know that even if I’m not feeling up for it that I will have a great time. I didn’t think I was slacking on sending in my RSVP for the party, but I guess I did because I was originally on the waitlist. I was a little sad that I might not get into the party, but I knew that it was my mistake for not sending it in the day I got it. But the day before the party, I got another email saying I was officially on the list and that improved my day a lot!

I was starting to deal with nausea on the day of the party, but I knew that I needed to go. I wasn’t planning on staying out too late, but I wanted to see my friends and I was excited about that. I arrived at the union early because I knew we would be lining up to get inside. I was in line standing right by the big tree in the lobby and I took advantage of that. I wasn’t feeling like having pictures taken of me, but I wanted to get some good photos of other people to put on my slate’s social media. I have been trying to work on improving the quality of the photos and I knew this tree was a great photo op.

I first got an amazing picture of my friend Shea (who had holiday decorations in his beard) with our union president, Gabrielle Carteris.

Then I realized that with so many of the union leaders being at the party, it was a great opportunity to get a photo of them for our main Instagram page. I usually am posting in our slate’s Instagram stories instead of the page, but I wanted to work on finding something new to post on our feed. And I think this one came out pretty good.

I only realized after I had posted it on all our social media channels that it looks like there are horns coming out of their heads. But fortunately, they found it funny so I was able to leave the photo up and not have to run around to try to take another one.

Once I was inside the party, I got some food to eat and then found a table to sit at with my friends. We didn’t take up all the seats at the table so we got to meet some members that we didn’t know before. Getting time to meet members and talk about how we are involved in the union is one of the great things about social events like this. There were no politics involved, there wasn’t any arguing, and there weren’t any stressful or tense moments like there can be at other union events. This was all about having fun and enjoying ourselves.

I did get one photo taken with some of my friends while I was there, but I really didn’t think about taking any others of me.

I spent most of my time at the party talking to friends of mine, but I did try to also introduce myself to people I didn’t know. But since I wasn’t feeling my best, I knew that I wouldn’t be making the best first impression.

When I was getting ready to leave, my friends said they were headed over to the photo booth area to take some photos. I figured I could wait a bit longer before leaving and went to take some photos with them. But we didn’t expect that there would be such a huge line and that it would move slowly. I’m sure it felt worse for me because of how I was feeling, but after waiting 30 minutes I realized I wasn’t going to make it much longer. Plus, when I’m really nauseous I break out in a sweat and I didn’t want to take a photo like that.

I decided to head home before getting that photo done and it was a little disappointing. But I knew it was for the best for me and my friends understood I wasn’t feeling great. I haven’t seen how the photo turned out yet (they are supposed to be posted online in the next day or so), but I’m sure it would look amazing and I’ll feel a bit sad that I wasn’t in it. But I also remember how relieved I felt when I got home and could work on feeling a bit better.

I was only at the party for about 2 hours, but I feel like I got a lot done. I was able to hang out with a lot of my friends, I got some amazing photos for social media that I really needed, and I got to feel like I did something social when I would have been laying on my couch otherwise. I think that was a big win for me and I’m glad that not only did I get into the party but that I made the choice to go. And I know that when they announce the party next year, I’m going to RSVP right away!

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Posted in Acting, Celebrations, Fun Stuff

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The Rest Of Thanksgiving (or Getting In Lots Of Family Time)

Posted on December 4, 2019 | Comments Off on The Rest Of Thanksgiving (or Getting In Lots Of Family Time)

I have already posted about the first half of my Thanksgiving trip. That time was mainly spent with my parents or my immediate family. But Thanksgiving Day was all about all of my family that was together for the holiday. We had 16 people (plus 2 dogs) this year in one place. And there was a bit of sadness as this was the first Thanksgiving since my grandma passed away, but we were all so grateful to be together with everyone in those 3 generations in one place.

Thanksgiving morning started with the family workout at Orangetheory. I love that we have that tradition now in the family and it was a great way to start the day. Even though the studio was really close to the hotel, it was really cold out so we ended up driving over to the workout. I made sure I worked out a little extra hard to make up for us having to drive over. But it was fine.

After the workout, we had some time at the hotel to shower and get ready plus some time to relax. There was no rush to get over to my aunt and uncle’s house and it was nice having time to read and not stress out about getting ready and leaving by a certain time. We were still over there a few hours before dinner, so we had a lot of family time. But we didn’t feel stressed that we had to get there by at a specific time and we didn’t have to worry about if we were going to miss anything.

Thanksgiving was originally planned for Sacramento because that’s where my grandma was (and she couldn’t travel). We knew that she wouldn’t be able to be at dinner, so I was prepared already for her not being there. But I had made plans that I was going to visit her before dinner so it did feel a bit like we forgot to do something. Starting next year my family will be rotating where we do Thanksgiving (which is what we used to do every year), so I think it won’t feel like we missed something. But it worked out fine for Thanksgiving to be in Sacramento and since all of us live on the west coast, it’s not too difficult to travel there. It was so awesome having everyone at dinner this year. We haven’t had the entire family together in a few years and I know how lucky we are that we can do this.

We were all hanging out in the kitchen and living room spending time together. A lot of the cooking was done in advance, so there wasn’t a lot of craziness in the kitchen. It felt very relaxed compared to some of the past Thanksgivings and I liked that. And it gave us time to enjoy things like the gorgeous sunset that we had that evening.

Also, I convinced my brother and my cousins that we should try to recreate a photo that was taken in 1988. This photo wasn’t from Thanksgiving that year, but it’s the first photo I think of when I think of a photo of all of us when we were little. I actually don’t love the photo, but it’s still the first one that comes to mind. My cousin Stephie was excited to do the recreation too, so she helped me get the guys together for it. And my cousin John even tried to match the pose from the original photo. I think it looks awesome!

I think that everyone loved the photos once I combined them and that they agree it was a good choice to take it. The 5 of us aren’t always together at Thanksgiving, so I am glad I took advantage of that. I remember the last time we were all together that we took a photo and it was only after we left that I was upset we didn’t match the old one. Now, I finally got to do what I regret not doing a few years ago.

Thanksgiving dinner was awesome as always. We had all the usual things that my family has and they are always delicious. My favorites are the green beans and the corn casserole, but everything that I had on my plate was so good!

After we had dinner, we did go around the table talking about our favorite memories of my grandma. Some people included memories of my grandpa too, but my memories were all grandma ones. She was very particular about her hair and makeup and always looked perfect. I remember when I was little that my grandma went on an amusement park ride and somehow she was the only one out of us that got wet. That was so funny. I also remember a Thanksgiving when we were young that my cousin convinced my grandma to try his rollerblades and she got on them inside the house and my cousin helped her stay up. I loved the memories that everyone else shared too and I’m glad that for the most part that was an upbeat thing. I was worried that it would be sad, but there was only one time that I cried. The rest of the time was all about smiling and reminding each other of these random memories that we loved.

After dinner, we had to get a family photo. And while I loved the one we had last year of all of us laughing, this one was a bit more normal. But I do love the dogs looking at each other.

Overall, it was a really great Thanksgiving and we had some amazing family time. And my concern about being sad while I was there didn’t come true. There was so much joy and happiness in being together and sharing memories that the sadness was minimal. And I’m so glad about that.

The day after Thanksgiving was pretty low-key. I had to work that morning so I worked in the hotel room. My brother and sister-in-law left that morning but they stopped by the room before driving home. And while I was working my parents took the dog for a long walk. I was fine being alone because it made me feel a bit better about having to work. When I work around all my family, it is fun because I’m a part of everything happening. But I also feel a bit guilty when I ask everyone to be quiet or when I can’t participate in a conversation or have to end talking to work with a customer.

When I was done with work, we headed over to my aunt and uncle’s house for some leftovers and a bit more family time. Unfortunately, I had to leave before some of my family was able to get there because I had to catch my flight home. But hopefully, the family that didn’t get to see me understood that I needed to be at the airport on time.

My flight home was much calmer than my flight there. There wasn’t as much turbulence so I was able to relax a little. I still don’t love flying, but this was much more normal and I only had my normal anxiety. And once we landed, it was pretty quick for me to get back to where I parked my car so I could get home. It was a bit weird when I was unpacked and everything felt normal when I was just with my family a few hours before.

Next year, we’ll be somewhere else for Thanksgiving. But I know we are going to have so many of the same traditions happening wherever we are. And I’m so glad that we all agreed as a family that our annual Thanksgiving gatherings are important to us so we are going to keep them going. I can’t wait for next year!

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The First Half Of Thanksgiving (or My Pre-Thanksgiving Activities)

Posted on November 29, 2019 | Comments Off on The First Half Of Thanksgiving (or My Pre-Thanksgiving Activities)

My Thanksgiving trip felt like it was split into 2. What I did before Thanksgiving Day and what happened on Thanksgiving Day and after. So I figured I should split my posts into 2 as well. And this is the first part of my Thanksgiving trip.

As I previously mentioned, I was anxious about flying for Thanksgiving for several reasons. This has been an issue for me for most of my life, and I just have to work through it whenever I travel. I guess it is a good thing that I don’t travel that often. And while most of my fears I wrote about weren’t an issue, my flight for my trip wasn’t the easiest.

It was a totally full flight, which wasn’t as horrible as I thought it would be. I wasn’t too squished in my seat, and I think the new seats that Southwest did help. Even though the seats are probably smaller, the armrests are up a bit higher so that makes it more comfortable for me. I do fit in the seats either way, but it’s nice to feel better about it.

The flight itself was one of the bumpiest I’ve been on. It was pretty horrible. The turbulence was constant and there were so many stomach-dropping moments. I really wished that I had some panic meds with me because that would have been the time to take them. But I just tried to focus on breathing and I listened to podcasts during the flight instead of reading so I could zone out a bit more. And we did land safely, which is what is important.

And all that stressful travel was worth it because I go to see my family’s dog again for the first time in a year!

The day before Thanksgiving was mainly family time with my immediate family. I had to work that morning and my cousin and her kids came over to the hotel to say hi to me and my parents. My brother and sister-in-law were driving up to us that day, so that afternoon was just my parents and me.

A few days earlier, we were trying to figure out what to do that afternoon because it was supposed to be pouring rain. My mom saw that “Stomp” was playing at a theater very close to the hotel so she got the 3 of us tickets. My parents have seen the show twice and I technically have seen it before (but I was 4 or 5 so I don’t remember it), so we were all very excited to check it out!

My mom got us great seats and we were close enough to see everything but far enough that we weren’t able to see the entire stage at once.

And the show was really awesome! The performers were so talented and what they were able to do was fun to watch. And they were all able to show personality with their characters even though they never spoke a single word. There were a few moments that were Thanksgiving themed, but those might be always in the show. But I liked those touches and everyone in the audience was enjoying it.

After the show, we headed back to the hotel where my brother and sister-in-law were waiting. Their drive wasn’t too bad, so they got to us with plenty of time to spare before we went out to dinner. We hung out in our hotel room and caught up plus we did our Hanukkah presents. I gave my brother and sister-in-law a candle that is supposed to smell like San Francisco (where they lived before) and I got my parents these really cute wooden tiles painted to look like Scrabble tiles that spell out SNOW. I know the gifts weren’t as good as the custom pet portraits, but they were still good.

After presents, the 5 of us headed out to dinner. We went out for Chinese food and it was a nice and casual meal. And even though it wasn’t that late, after dinner we were all pretty tired so we headed back to our hotel rooms to get some sleep before a big day the next day.

Even though the start of my trip got off to a rocky start (literally), I’m glad the first half of Thanksgiving was what I hoped for. I got to hang out with my family, go do some fun things, and enjoy a little break from my everyday life.

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Happy Thanksgiving (or A Quick Post)

Posted on November 28, 2019 | Comments Off on Happy Thanksgiving (or A Quick Post)

Happy Thanksgiving! I’m spending today with my family and I’m excited to see what craziness might happen at my family Thanksgiving. We don’t always have something crazy happen, but when there are this many people together you never know what will happen.

This year, we have 3 generations of my family together plus 2 dogs (not sure what generations to consider the dogs) so it should be an awesome group. And everyone in my family is going to be there, which hasn’t happened for a long time. I know there will be a bit of sadness since this is the first time we are all together after my grandma passed away, but hopefully, that loss will be more about remembering my grandparents and all the awesome memories we have and not being upset about the loss. I have tried to focus on it that way and it does help.

I hope that all of you are spending Thanksgiving doing exactly what you want to be doing today. I know not everyone wants to be with their family, but I hope you are spending the day with the people you want to be around. I hope you all have amazing meals today and it’s an awesome holiday. And if any of you are Black Friday shoppers, I hope you get all the deals you are hoping for!

I’ll be posting more about my Thanksgiving trip tomorrow. Happy Thanksgiving everyone and I hope you all have so much to be grateful for this year!

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