A Merry Christmas Indeed

After a crazy fall with lots of life changes (new job, newly single status after a long-term relationship) and lots of work travel, I was happy to not have many plans in December. I really wanted a low-key Christmas and so I decided to stay in Winston-Salem rather than travel to Utah even though I knew I’d be rolling solo for the most part. And I really wasn’t sad about being alone. I was really looking forward to being home, relaxing, hanging with Maizey, enjoying the charm of Winston at Christmas, and not feeling crazy and rushed during the holidays. And that’s exactly how the holidays went for me this year. It has been so serene.

I’m pretty lucky to have have awesome friends who have become my family away from family so I wasn’t really alone. My dear friend Meg had a baby two days before Christmas and she and her husband invited me over on Christmas Eve for BBQ, bourbon and baby snuggling. I could not say no to that! (And I didn’t want to – I jumped on the invitation!) This is either my totally giddy “I love this teensy baby!” face or “I’ve had a few sips of bourbon” face – impossible to know for sure.

After enjoying time with their family, I came home and started a movie. Nothing rings in Christmas like Gone Girl, right? The movie was really good, although it would have been better if I didn’t know how it ended since it has a major twist. (I had read the book earlier this year…or was it last year? I dunno…time flies…anyway, the book was awesome. I flew through it.)

While I watched the movie, I ate some gingerbread cookies (I tweaked this recipe) and sipped decaf coffee. I tasted everything to make sure it was good…there wasn’t much left for Santa. 😉

I tried to sleep in on Christmas morning since I was up until almost 2 AM (the movie was so dang long), but my body rarely lets me sleep past 8 AM. I woke up and decided to go for a run; I’ve run almost every year on Christmas for as long as I can remember. It’s so peaceful with so few people out and those I do see are smiling and happy. The weather this year was gorgeous too – mid 50s and blue skies.My quads have been completely destroyed since I did Crossfit two times earlier this week (I have a draft of a CrossFit post in the works – soooo many thoughts!), and I’m not kidding when I say they were barely functioning after two days. I tried a gentle jog on Christmas Eve to test it out, and it was.not.happening. So, I told myself on Christmas morning that I would just run 2-3 miles to loosen my quads. I knew I had to just shake out the soreness that had settled in. My quads didn’t break free until about mile 4 and then I was just so happy to be running and enjoying the weather that I kept running and running. I ended up doing 10.5 miles! It was at a pace slower than my usual, but I wasn’t worried about my time at all which was a nice change. It was truly a run just for fun.

And my neighbor made it even more fun when I got home and she brought me a Christmas morning mimosa made with freshly squeezed OJ. Um, yes, thank you. She said she’d been looking for me to get back so she could deliver it! How sweet is that?

After I cleaned up, I opened a few presents my family and friends had given me, including this vest from my sister-in-law. It happened to match what I was wearing. Thanks Ash! I’m obsessed. (Can we please wear our matching vests the next time I see you? Kthx)

That afternoon, I headed to Carolyn’s. The pups played while we enjoyed tons of appetizers.

Maizey was totally spoiled by Carolyn.

And then I was spoiled. Carolyn made an awesome Christmas dinner. This beef tenderloin was incredible. She tweak Ina’s recipe leaving out the mayo and just using pesto. That recipe is a total keeper. 

We enjoyed some dessert (she got sorbet and fruit for me – seriously so thoughtful) and then I headed home for an early bedtime.

It was a Christmas unlike any I’ve had and it was one of the very best. I hope you had a wonderful day with your family and friends too!