Merry Christmas to all...

And to all, a goodnight.

What I received commemorating Jesus's birth...

*Varsity coat (what I really wanted)
*Complete Works of Shakespeare DVD (the play we did, only professionally performed)
*Set of Classical Orchestra music (It was one of the 4 things on my Christmas list)
*A very soft, warm, green, fleece blanket for my bed (that sentence fragment is grammatically incorrect.)
*Sketch journal/sketch pen set (How my parents know I like to write and draw is beyond me. I assume they scour my room and come across such things)
*A SLED!!!! (the only one we own is one of those old-school wooden and metal flyers. They run very fast and give me bruises from toppling over at the bottom of the hill at Mills Creek. This one is all plastic and foam... no more bruises!)
*Borat DVD/T-shirt (my parents bought this for me?!?!?!?!)
*The Dark Knight (my sister is my favorite person now)
*Grand Theft Auto 3-game set (once again, from MY parents?!?!?!?! yessss!)
*Wireless headphones (okay, so they were really cheap on sale on Black Friday. I might not have much use, but when something is on sale, you have to buy it!)
*The Best Shirt Ever (It says, 'I'm too pretty to go to Michigan!', which is very true, and ironic, seeing as my parents were a bit displeased that I refused to attend The University of Michigan, even though it has a brilliant English program, solely because I was a Buckeye fan.)
*A long sleeved shirt with paint-splatter drums on the front (It's very artsy. I like.)
*Lots and lots of gum. And then more gum. And chocolate (which was then re-wrapped and given to my aunt, haha.)
*Body Lotion/Bubble Bath/Shower Gel/Body Shimmer/fill-in-the-blank cosmetic (which is typical of relatives who have no other clue what to get for a teenage niece/granddaughter that they only see on Christmas. I do enjoy these things, though.)
*A Magic 'Date' Ball. (Not an 8-ball, but the 'romantic love' spin-off. My aunt gave me permission to use it even though she knew I would use it only in private consultation. I rolled my eyes and told her I wouldn't consult plastic concerning matters of such importance. She said she didn't believe me.)(Okay, she was right, and it told me that my friend and I are meant to be. Yes! But don't tell anyone, especially not her. I do NOT believe in this piece of plastic.)(Okay, yes, I do.)
*School sweaters. Yay. (Actually, they ARE really cute. I think I'm going to wear one outside of school.)
*Shoes! (A pair of addidas, they have memory-foam in the bottom and are narrow-sized! perfect! and they were $12 clearance... awesome!)(A pair of black dressy thongs [not the underwear, mind you.] that i so would rock with a pair of shorts or the new mini i just bought. yay shoes! this makes almost 60 pairs now...)
*Hot cocoa set (like two pounds of hot cocoa mix, and a spoon! My dad knows this is my favorite.)
*Socks. Pink and white socks. (Hey, everyone has to get socks for Christmas. And they will go great with my new addidas. You go, Dad.)
*Tootsie Roll Bank (My sister and I have gotten these from my Dad for every year since I can remember. I love them to death, but it's the only time I will eat Tootsie Rolls.)
*Nail Polish. (From my cousins, who were very upset that I got the nail polish they wanted in a family gift-game the year before. Maybe it's an apology. Maybe they didn't realize the irony. I don't care, I like it.)
*A Coach wristlet. (I started shaking when I saw the gift box. From my Aunt Sandy, who works for Coach. Oh. My. Gosh. !!!)
*Money. (This goes toward a new pair of Converse, maybe an iPod touch, Right-to-Life March, Steubenville, World Youth Day 2011, et cetera...)

So, so far, I have made out well with my mom/uncle's side, my dad's side, and my family. All that is left is my aunt's side of the family. Christmas, I assess, has been very nice. Although my mother isn't able to provide my sister and I with gifts, it matters not to me. I love her all the same, and this holiday really isn't about the material matters, but yet, celebrating the birth of hope.

What, perhaps, was the best though, is that my visit to my aunt's house wasn't too bad. Grampa John (who really is just my Grandma's boyfriend that she has been with since I can remember) and I pretty much sat together and talked about church the whole 2 hours I was there. We both really like Deacon Kishore and Fr. Dave. I told him about playing drums for Lifeteen and the success of Lifenights. He was impressed, and plans to attend a LifeTeen mass. I'm excited. I didn't really talk to the rest of my family, but they didn't seem interested in talking to me either, so I didn't take much offense. But they were friendly, and all commented on 'how much I've grown' and 'how beautiful of a lady I have become' and whatnot. My dad reminded me, once again, that if ever I needed birth control or any other products of the nature, he would provide them to me at no cost without questioning. Gee, thanks Dad, Merry Christmas to you too. I don't think he realizes that unlike many girls at SHS, I'm not into that stuff. I told him I would keep him posted. After leaving there, I got to go back to my dad's apartment and see his new kitty. Her name is Lucky, and she has a limp. My dad hates cats, but loves this one. She is absolutely adorable, with her tabby striping and long hair and bushy tail. I fell in love with her immediately. After unwrapping presents there, my sister dropped me off at my (nice) Grandma's. I pigged out there on food my Aunt Sandy prepared (delicious hors d'ourves and mandarin almond salad) and had some laughs with Grandma. My uncle and I visited Aunt Mary at work, and went home. He made supper and I brought all the presents up from the basement. I watched The Dark Knight and talked to Matt (Go Matt!) on the phone for an hour or so until Aunt Mary got home from work. We ate dinner together (as though I hadn't eaten enough that day, somehow, I was starving come dinnertime. Shepard's pie cured this, however.) and proceeded to the living room.

Presents were unwrapped. Joy was shared. Happiness warmed the house.

And thus, here I am, wrapped up in this new sense of warmth called a blanket with a cup of tradition named hot cocoa, typing this blog, and I am more than happy that I have a loving family, be they not my father and mother, a safe home, presents under the tree (that are now scattered), food on my table, amazing friends (I love you guys), an education, and most importantly, a loving and all-sacrificing God. The ground may not be blanketed in snow, the electric blanket I asked for may not be there, my family may be dysfunctional and not perfect, my stomach might be bloated from over-consumption, but I am happy.

P.S.- I feel a little guilty for a reason. My cat only received one present from Santa (but the dog got three?!), a catnip toy that needed assembly (really, what cat toy needs assembly? Geez Santa....) that I attempted to assemble for her as she stared at me with a look of impatience, much like a child watching their parents try to figure out how to work a new toy. It required unscrewing part of it and filling it with the included catnip. Simple enough, right?

Not.

I broke it. :( I feel really bad for my cat. I gave her the bag of catnip, and she seemed pleased with that, but her toy that made her work for it was now useless plastic. Her only Christmas present, and I broke it. I guess I will have to let her have full use of my new blanket tonight to make it up to her. I'm sorry, OC Kitty. Really, I am.

Merry Christmas!