Time To Go

I have had an amazingly awesome time at home!  It has been a great 3 weeks and I am so glad that I was able to afford this trip.  Here are some highlights from my vacation.

1. Ann's Wedding - What a nice little ceremony and dinner following.  It was great to see Ann looking so happy and excited!  Harry and Ann chose me to do a reading for them at the wedding, so I was very honored to be a part of their special day.  I really am happy for both her and Harry.  Although it was quite cold, the tent kept out the wind so it wasn't as bad as it could have been.  The wedding also provided me the opportunity to see various family members that I haven't seen in quite some time, along with family friends Aunt Diane and Uncle Bill Spain (told you I'd get you in there:). 
2. Christmas Eve at Mom and Dad's - It was great being home for Christmas this year.  It was quite a bummer that all of the Minhinnick's weren't there to celebrate together (Ann had the flu), but we did gather with her, Harry, Ian, and Brenna the following weekend to continue our Christmas celebration.  I really enjoyed celebrating the traditional Minhinnick way: finger foods for dinner on Christmas Eve followed by cookies for dessert and the opening of presents.  Everyone got some very nice gifts and it was wonderful to experience Christmas through the eyes of Alexa and Mason.  Mom, Amy, and I went to midnight mass at St. Joseph's and it was a very nice service reminding us all of the true reason for the season and pointing us to the sacrifice of Jesus for the forgiveness of our sins.  We were exhausted when we made it back home at 1:30am, but it was a great day of family and celebrating Christ's birth!  So thankful to be able to be with my family!!
3. Christmas dinner at Mark and Nancy's - Mark put together a great spread for Christmas dinner.  I loved his garlic smashed potatoes and pumpkin roll!  Another nice day with family as we were joined by the Bednarz clan.  It was nice to see Nancy's parents and brother as well as seeing Alexa and Mason again.
4. Watching my Babies for 3 days - Mark and Nancy had to go back to work the day after Christmas and they asked me to watch the kiddos.  What fun!  We had a great time playing in the snow and making a tent in the house along with many other fun activities.  Amy came over and we went to the Ann Arbor Hands-on Museum and spent some more time out in the snow. 
5. New Years Eve - I spent a few hours at Mark and Nancy's before returning home to visit with Aunt Diane and Uncle Bill (see, there I go again!!).  Mark made his most awesome hamburgers and we went to their neighbor's to have them cooked.  After dinner we went back to their house and played games.  It was a fun time, but I wanted to see Aunt Diane and Uncle Bill (one more time!!) before I left and I wanted to be off the road before all the crazies got on the road so I left relatively early and rang in 2013 with Mom, Dad, Amy, Aunt Diane, and Uncle Bill!

I guess that pretty much wraps up the most important events of my Christmas break.  A great time and I am sorry that it is coming to an end. 

What I'm leaving

1. Family
2. Snow
3. Cold weather - 25 degrees at 10:30pm
4. Home cooked meals (maybe I should cook more?)
5. Tigger and Chloe
6. Rest

What I'm returning to

1. Sun
2. Sand
3. Warm weather - 57 degrees at 7:30am
4. Work
5. Redeemer Family
6. My own bed

I am already looking forward to my trip back in July!