Merry Christmas!

It's been a beautiful Christmas season despite that I got off to a very slow start. In fact, this is the latest I've ever, ever been with Christmas preparations. The boys and I didn't get the tree up until 2 days ago. Then, we didn't  bother to decorate the tree with anything but lights- no ornaments. But, one of my favorite decorations is our stockings and Michael did manage to hang them so it turned out perfect. The happiest part of this Christmas was the fact that every single one of my children and their families were here. We took family pictures to prove it. Xiaojun did the honors and she usually does a very good job.

My sister treated me to an 8-day trip to Cozumel, Mexico. Oh man, it was an experience. A few days before I left, I graduated with a Bachelor's in Social Work (BSW) so I was quite busy with ending classes plus finishing up my internship at NCADD.  The timing of this trip seemed a little stressful since I needed to accomplish so much knowing that all of my children would be here for Christmas. But low and behold, a few days before our departure I also came down with the flu, and let me tell you, it's not often I am in bed all day, but, I was in bed all day for about 3 days.

Thanksgiving in San Francisco

I am relieved to report that although we had two near-death experiences on our way to San Francisco for Thanksgiving, we are still alive! The day before we left, Hansan and Dallan got their driving permits and had never driven on the freeways before so they were excited about getting to drive as much as possible and I let them have one-hour turns; they did pretty good, considering. We almost collided with a semi-truck as we entered the freeway, and another time we almost ran into the back of a car as the highway traffic suddenly slowed down. Other than a few incidents of driving too far onto the shoulder of the road, and passing before looking over the shoulder, I stayed as calm as I possibly could, at least on the outside ... :-)

We had so much fun with Tommy and Xiaojun's family. One day we hiked through a forested trail and then played on the beach. We played plenty of cards and Wii when at the house. We also walked on the Oakland Temple grounds and went to an outdoor mall. There was a lot of good food and talking. It was good to meet Michael and Taylor there, too. Taylor brought a girlfriend named Melinda and rightfully figured out that she isn't for him. It was fun to spend time with my grandchildren while the others went to the theater to see the second part of Hunger Games. It was a very nice and relaxing, low-key visit.

I feel very blessed that all of us had a safe, fun trip. On the way home, Hansan drove about 375 miles and still wasn't tired. Dallan drove a couple of hours but was too tired to drive more. I can guess who has my driving blood running through their veins.

By the way, Timothy, as one of my single boys, was not with us on this trip because he spent Thanksgiving touring New York City with one of his buddies. He had a wonderful time, but we missed him! :-(

I am done with my bachelor's degree! Now onto the master's program!