Seasonal Stress

I am pretty sure I was more stressed out yesterday than I was during the entire week of finals. I love shopping, and I love Christmas, but searching for presents yesterday was an extremely stressful experience. I'm sure it didn't help that I hadn't bought a single gift as of 4pm yesterday. And it probably also didn't help that I am on a massive budget and had to drive around during a huge snowstorm.

Whenever I come home, things are all rearranged differently in my house. This time, my room underwent a slight revamping, and it seems to be that the next time I come home it will be the permanent holding area for all household projects. I might be sleeping in the basement in no time. But it is good to be back home and free of anything school-related for awhile. Last night I was watching the news with my dad, and when the weather segment came on I totally thought that the broadcaster's name was Windy Weather when it flashed up on the screen. I spent about five seconds expressing how cool it was that her name was such a coincidence before I figured out how blonde I actually am. I think that's a clear sign I need a break from school. Or I need to dye my hair.

Joel was lucky enough to come home with me for a night before flying home. I let him experience the half-mile that is downtown Cedarburg, the Roastery, my family, and even my family's friends. Saturday night my parent's friends had a holiday party so after going out to dinner, my brother, Joel, and I decided to stop by for a little while. The party punch definitely had a kick to it, as its effect was clearly evident among all of the parents. Joel had his cheeks pinched as soon as we walked into the kitchen. Surprisingly I avoided the traditional "what's your plan after graduation?" conversation but instead got the, "Lizzy, you remember my son Ricky, don't you?" set-up proposal. Twice. Within 45 minutes. The only thing worse than repeating your post-grad plans 20 times during a party.

A couple more updates:
-My brother is another half-inch taller. That puts him at 6' 3 1/2". (Another big topic of conversation Saturday night.)
-My laptop choked. The blue screen of death was not on my wishlist this year.
-I'm missing my copy of Love Actually. Not cool when your entire family goes to bed by 10pm on Christmas Eve.
-6 days until Winter Conference!