The following post is really just a recap for me. I am working towards my goal of writing more about what happens in my life since I have such a poor memory.

While in Kingston, Annie and I visited with my family, and had a great time. My aunt and cousin gave up their beds during our stay so we didn’t need to rent a hotel room. The house, while full, didn’t feel crammed or uncomfortable. It was as welcoming as ever.

On a bit of a whim one evening, we joined my cousin, Mark, to see Star Wars: The Force Awakens. It was the second time for Annie and I, but the first for my cousin. It was just as good the second time. I wish I could review the movie, but I doubt I could do it justice without spoilers. I will say that most of my issues with it are small nitpicks.

I got to see my brother, Daniel, who lives in eastern Canada. I really enjoyed seeing him as we only end up in the same places at the same time every couple of years. When buying presents for his son, my nephew, Ben, Annie and I had to guess, based on our own interests what he’d like since I don’t really know him well. It ended out working great though as he seemed pleased with our gifts. My brother even commented at one point that we did really well and that our interests at thirty-three years old adults seem to match his nine year old son perfectly.

As always, I didn’t get to visit with anyone in my family near enough before we left on Christmas day. We woke up and at eight o’clock, we all proceeded downstairs to open our stockings. After opening presents, we returned back to Guelph. The drive home was pretty relaxing, as the volume of traffic was fairly reasonable, even through Toronto. Once we got back to Guelph, Annie and I did our traditional Chinese food at Doctor Who Christmas Special. It was a nice quiet evening. We cuddled on the couch, and I got to decompress a little bit.

On Boxing Day, we went to Georgetown, where we had lunch at Tim Horton’s with some close friends of ours who wanted to purchase a copy of Second Class Supers. Then we went to Becky and Denis’ for Annie’s family Christmas event. With around thirty people in attendance, there was lots of excitement. Thankfully, I was able to hide away and get a few really great conversations in with some people. The food, as always was plentiful, and the gift exchange went really well. It was nearly midnight as people started shuffling home.

The love and laughter over the past week have been amazing, and while there are still a few more festivities to be had, as an introvert, I’m amazed that this morning, I woke up, albeit after around nine hours of sleep, ready to tackle some chores around the house, and not feeling overly drained.

Thank you to everyone for the great gifts, the amazing conversations and your love and support! I am looking forward to a great 2016!