Scenes from the Holidays

Why is it so hard to get motivated during the first week back to work after an extended break?!? I was lucky to get 11 days off work to fully enjoy Christmas & New Years and to say that I'm dragging my butt this week would be an understatement. Before holidays, I was generally getting up at 5:45 every morning and getting in a solid hour workout before going to work. This week, that is not the case. I have hit snooze and chose an extra hour of sleep the past two days. I need to get my butt in gear!

Anyways, I will quit rambling now. I wanted to do a little recap post of the holidays today. Christmas is one of my favourite times of the year... I love the traditions, spending time with family, overindulging, and playing tons of board games.

December 23rd: went out for drinks & dinner with Brandon's cousin and boyfriend to celebrate the start of the holidays!

Christmas Eve: headed home with kitties in tow, went to my Auntie Heather's for appetizers, and then to Brandon's grandparents to visit with his family. Excitedly went to sleep awaiting the arrival of santa ;)

Christmas Day: included  traditions of waffles with Grandmas amazing strawberry rhubarb sauces, coffee filled with boozy liquer, lots of present opening, and scratch tickets & mimosas! Brandon and I went in to town briefly to have brunch with his family and then back out to my farm for Christmas dinner. This year we had my immediate family plus my grandma, my aunt, Brandon's mom & brother, and my sister's boyfriends parents. We enjoyed a delicious steak, shrimp, and scallop supper and then played a game of Chase the Ace.

Boxing day involved all of my mom's side of the family coming to our house. This included 30+ people which included many screaming, rowdy children.. thank god for wine! On the 27th, was my dad's side of the family at the local hall. Thankfully there were less people this day and no screaming involved. We played board games, ate delicious food, and visited.

The following days, we met up with old friends (Richard, Jacey, & Shane) to play Settlers of Catan, had a coffee date with my best friend and niece, and made a trip up to Brandon's parents cottage. We made his mom an early birthday dinner and went for a walk with Titan.

By this point, I was beyond ready to come back to our little home with our two sweet kitties and enjoy some time to relax and unwind. All in all, it was a wonderful holiday season and I am beyond excited for what's in store for 2016! :)