Wow, almost the last day of the year. This has been a very slow year for me on Diaryland. :( I don't journal as much as I used to; now I just talk everything out to Stephen. Guess that's a good thing, but I sure miss writing myself out!

Christmas went pretty well this year. I didn't get to see my grandparents... I guess we're officially splitting the holidays between families and then alternating. Next year we'll probably have Thanksgiving with Stephen's parents and Christmas with mine.

We spent the entire long weekend (Stephen got Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday off and has Mondays off regularly) at Stephen's parents' house. It was a good weekend. I liked not having to run from one house to another; it made it much more relaxing.

It was very different, in that his family does things very differently than mine. Actually, my family just does things differently, probably, LOL. We do a lot on Christmas Eve and a lot on Christmas; at Stephen's parents', just Christmas was the big day.

Stephen bought me a lot of presents this year; he says it's because he missed me so much when I was gone for a week in December (the 5th through the 11th) visiting Elizabeth, Jenny and Mindy. :D Silly boy... He's so sweet.

So from him I got a CostCo scrapbooking kit, some clothes from Marshall's, and a lot of stocking stuffers, including a bottle of Twilight Woods lotion from Bath & Body Works.

It was major gifting time, because Stephen's family gave us anniversary gifts since we didn't see them for our anniversary. It was also Stephen's birthday on the 22nd, so he had a birthday celebration the day we got up there. :)

When we returned home from Christmas with his parents, we did go to my mom's house for a brief mini-Christmas with my mom and sister. My grandparents sent us Christmas gifts in the mail--a Michael's gift card for me, and a Starbucks gift card for Stephen. My aunt also got me a Michael's card, so I had $75 to spend at MIchael's!! That rocked!! I've now spent all but $17 worth; I bought me some things I really needed: an organizing unit, heavy-duty wire cutters, and floral shears. I need one other storage thing, which will probably use up the rest of my $17. (I ought to do that soon, while it's still on sale...)

My mom got us a shiatsu massage chair, which Stephen LOVES. I like it okay. I would like a neck-and-shoulders massage thing better; that's where I have all my problems. But it's good for Stephen's back; he spends all day hunched over a computer screen.

I can't believe the new year is almost here. 2010. I'm excited about it--my birthday is 02/10, so 2010 is almost like my birthday! :D 02/10/2010. Haha!

I think I mentioned in here that I took a floristry class. I am really excited about looking for jobs in flower shops in the new year. Floristry is totally something I could do for pay and be talented at and ENJOY and not feel horribly guilty for doing it for pay. I love to help people learn English and settle into America, but I feel like that's something I don't want to get paid for.

I am mostly excited to work with flowers because it involves creativity and color. I LOVE anything that has to do with creativity and color, whether it's coloring, making cards, scrapbooking, decorating, painting, anything! And I get to constantly get better at it land learn. It's like being a permanent art student, LOL!

One thing I am REALLY going to have to learn is how to get a big picture in place before I go at the details! I'm really terrible at that, and the price is completely botched-up, worthless oasis (wet floral foam). Every time I readjust a flower it stands less sturdily in the foam. It's quite aggravating. Once I finally had to take ALL the flowers out, untape the foam, flip the foam upside-down, retape it and then start putting in the flowers again. It turned out well though when I did that.

I have so much left to learn. I really want to take more floristry classes, or even go to a floristry school (we have one right here!), but I know money is tough... :/ Just keep arranging, my teacher says. We'll see what happens from there.

-Stephanie

previous || next

Miss Something?

Social Anxiety with Guys - February 07, 2024

Education Expo with an ADHD Kid - February 03, 2024

Lovely Church Experience - October 22, 2023

Seek Out Community in Christ - August 29, 2023

Grieving Lost Friendships - May 08, 2023