Let’s start this update with a tiny little confession.
I did not write about the snowstorm that was in the forecast
because it’s Friday the 13th; this Witch Falls;
and I didn’t want to jinx the holiday fun for today. The great news is that we didn’t get any rain
until late afternoon, and while I was happy to see snow falling during the
school Christmas dance; we didn’t get enough of it to get in the way of our
evening out. I’ll get to that news in a
bit; but let’s go back to this morning and keep this report in order.
Weather watching was near the top of my to-do list when I
woke up this morning, and even then it was still sounding iffy for both the
Seniors’ Christmas party this afternoon and the school dance. Freezing rain and snow could have nixed both
of them – and sent the country kids home early too. All of the kids who are too young for the
school dances were wishing for that outcome; but this was one of those
incredibly rare occasions when the teens weren’t hoping for a weather-shortened
school day and bonus time for the weekend.
I had to plan for the school day as if everything was a go,
so that meant dressing up a bit so that I’d be ready for the afternoon party at
the church; and making sure that my saxophone was nice and shiny too. We managed to fit Tai Chi and breakfast in
along the way too before Rowen stopped in to get me on her way to school. She was fired up this morning; and even had
her overnight bag and clothes for the dance with her so we wouldn’t need to make
a stop at her house sometime after school.
She was also not interested in hearing about any possibilities that
weather might get in the way of her first Christmas dance with Tim as her date
and boyfriend; so we didn’t talk about that at all while I hoped for the best.
Michael and I had a blast at school today; and that was at
least partly because we basically didn’t spend much time in our classes at
all. We did music practices with the
Kindergarten and Grade One classes in the morning; spent our lunch hour and a
little extra time before that helping to get everything set up in the church
hall for the Seniors’ Christmas party; and then spent the afternoon playing
mostly oldies Christmas music with the band while many of our grandparents
spent a few hours playing with their friends – including my grandparents. That was actually a first for them too; since
they’d been going on holidays to Arizona
every fall since retiring.
The music and party had me thinking about old Christmas
movies while we played and had fun; and I loved spending that time with Michael
while we entertained some of our favorite people. Getting fed Olde Bakery Christmas treats was
a really nice bonus too; and made the extra work that kept us at school until
four worth the delayed start to our weekend.
Mrs. Robinson needed the help – especially since none of the country
teens could stay late without missing their bus rides home.
We did the after-school snack at my house, and then we had
Ethan and Ehlana with us in the lounge for some play time until Michael and Tim
headed to the Inn and home for dinner while Rowen and I helped Mom with the
dinner and a movie night cooking; had something to eat early; and then went up
to my room to get ready for the dance.
Michael and Tim ‘picked us up’ when it was time to head over to the
school, though they probably wished they’d just met us there instead. Aunt Leanne was in fine form tonight; she led
the jokes and commentary; and made sure that Dad took lots of pictures before
finally letting us escape. Yes, I
thought that was all fun too, if sometimes a bit embarrassing, but there was
Christmas magic in the air from then on; and the rest of our night has been
enchanting and wonderful!
Let’s begin the dance news by reporting that Rowen and I
thought that our guys looked seriously hot.
Tim isn’t really a fan of getting dressed up, but he also knows that he
looks good when he does, and considering how great Rowen looked tonight too;
I’m sure that he’s as glad that he made the effort as she is. The walk to school didn’t take long, and the
magic was already in the air when getting into the dance required passing under
a strategically-placed mistletoe. There
wasn’t a line-up when we arrived, so Michael and I didn’t find out until we
shared our kiss that pictures were being taken of those mistletoe moments. That was probably a good thing that we didn’t
know – especially since we lost track of a few moments there – about three
pictures, some laughs, and a verbal nudge from Tim worth of them.
Going through that ahead of our friends had mostly been for
Rowen’s benefit; and she did find the very public kiss with Tim easier after
Michael and I had given everyone something to laugh about. Their kiss was barely long enough to be
caught on camera, but it was; because we bought the copies that were being sold
as part of the usual dance fundraising efforts.
We did our part to help out with most of those raffles, sales, and
buying food and drinks from the concession tables; but we spent most of our
time dancing and having fun with our friends.
I’ll get to that soon, but let’s take a few minutes to write
about some of my thoughts about the social side of this little teen event.
First up, Rebecca was at the dance, but she didn’t have a
date; and spent half or more of her time working as one of the volunteers. She’d helped with the set-up in the afternoon
too; and had been back at the school early when it was time to get the snacks
and drinks set out and ready to sell.
She also looked absolutely gorgeous, and while I know she isn’t
interested in jumping right back into the dating game again; she was certainly
noticed in a big way by a lot of the guys tonight. Rowen and I got her to dance to some songs
with us and a few of our friends, and Michael took her out for a couple of
dances; but she only went dancing during two other ballad sets with a ‘safe’
friend and classmate partner who she could trust not to hit on her. I actually know why that’s true better than
she does; but we’ll save that little news tidbit for another, more appropriate
time.
Next I’d like to write a bit about how our social standing
is changing for Rowen and me. Michael
and Tim have always been two of the most popular guys in our class, but let’s
be honest – Rowen and I haven’t exactly been the ‘it girls’ or anything. Tim’s definitely helping Rowen take the next
step out of her shyness shell now, and Michael’s getting me more involved with
all of our friends. That isn’t putting
us in imminent danger of becoming the most popular couples at school – or even
in our class; but we are starting to feel like we’re part of the group instead
of on the outside looking in.
Of course we are in Grade Eight, and on the outside looking
in compared to the high school seniors and leaders. Tim barely has a touch of an in on that crowd
through his cousins, but even that doesn’t mean that we can hang around with
Kyle, Erin, and their group of friends for more than a couple of minutes
without looking way out of place and feeling uncomfortable. Even in our little town the social order must
be maintained; and we didn’t try to rock that boat.
I have some other observations, but think that it’s time to
stop writing anything about Jason in his post-Rebecca dating career; and I’m
going to give Jenny and a couple of other girls a break too. This is a good place to re-affirm that I will
never, ever be into way too personal displays of affection in public. That won’t be news for you when you read this
sometime in the future, Michael; but we’ll be keeping that kind of fun strictly
between you and me without audiences.
Let’s save those thoughts about some Michael and me alone
time for my dreams later tonight and move along.
I loved every minute of the dance. Michael is a really good dancer; and it
definitely feels like magic when we’re out on the dance floor together. That isn’t quite as special as our music is,
but it is pretty good; and I fall a little more in love with Michael with every
one of those special moments we share. Having
fun with our friends; Olde Bakery treats; and having Rowen win one of the
little raffles all helped to make for a wonderful evening too; and we wrapped
up our night out with a pair of magical goodnight kisses. I walked with Michael to his house for ours
because it would have just been a bit too weird to share my front porch with
Rowen and Tim. That worked out pretty
well even with the four of us trying to make sure that enough semi-alone time
didn’t turn into too long. Since Rowen
and I were both fairly happy when I caught up with her and we watched Tim until
he was out of sight; I’d say we managed to accomplish that goal successfully.
Mom and Dad had gone to bed already, but Mom came upstairs
to see us and have a short little girl chat shortly after we got to my
room. Rowen had a couple of blisters and
sore feet that I helped her out with using a little Magi power; and she’s in
the middle of a visit with my Jacuzzi that she started right after Mom left to
go back downstairs while I got changed and into bed with Mandy and started in on
my nightly computing.
The only news I have from around the family is that Violet
and Dillon are almost home to Woodvale.
He had a late exam, and then they’ve been fighting traffic off and on
all the way. I hope they have a good
weekend there, but I’m going to be really happy to see them when they get here
in time for the buffet dinner at the Inn that is mostly going to be for them,
Jake and Stephanie, and Christina and Josiah.
I haven’t heard anything from Stephanie today, but they’ll be back here
by tomorrow afternoon sometime; and they have Grandpa Grant and Grandma Eleanor
picking them up from the airport while their parents are all busy at the store
and Inn.
Josiah and Christina are doing the same thing as Violet and Dillon; and
are probably at Christina’s home by now.
They’ll be here in time for dinner on Sunday too; and all three couples
will be home for Christmas – and our family Christmas on the following weekend.
I guess that’s really about all of the news I have
tonight. I missed the dinner and movie
night here, and it sounded like they had fun; at least from what Mom told us
with her side of the mini-recaps we exchanged.
It also sounds like Rowen is about done in the tub, and we’re going to
have an early start to the day because of the parade we’re playing in; so I’d
better wrap this up and get ready to head off to sleep as soon as she’s ready
for that too. Until next time...
...Live long and prosper, fellow Magi of the Light!
