Happy New Year!
My start to 2015 has been great, so let’s
get right into the highlights; picking up the story where I left off yesterday
– or last year!
By the time I got to the Inn yesterday
afternoon, the dining room was already closed to the public for the rest of the
day and the decorating and set-up for the tickets-only dinner and party had
been started. Since Michael was still
helping with the post-lunch clean-up, I was put to work in the kitchen too on
the prep-line instead of the work in the dining room. Helping out with the mounds of veggies wasn’t
as exciting as decorating and the rest of the action in the dining room; but
hanging out with Michael, Rebecca, Jacob, and Jake was entertaining enough.
I guess this is as good a place to begin
adding in the football action part of this update; since the sport is
unavoidable in a football town on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day. Michael’s been really good from a boyfriend
perspective when it comes to the sport, but he was right there with the rest of
the guys to watch the games yesterday and today; and I wouldn’t want him to
break man-laws and get into trouble from skipping the annual bowl game event –
especially when this is the first year of the new playoff format for the
national championship. While I don’t
really care about the games or results; I’ll admit that it was fun both
yesterday and today when I had the opportunities to add a bit of entertainment
to the football mix with my little talent for predicting the play calls and
results. That kind of goofing around
helped to make the work in the kitchen easier for all of us, but the real fun
for Michael, Rebecca, and I didn’t kick in until we took our dinner break and
temporarily joined the party in the dining room.
Lucas, Jenny, and Lance were there already,
and were at the dessert stage of the meal by then; but they still hung out with
us while we ate – and they kept us entertained with their New Year’s Eve day
stories. We didn’t take a lot of time
for that break because we wanted to help get as much of the work in the kitchen
done as early as we could so that we could all be done earlier and enjoy more
of the party – at least until the midnight buffet needed to go out shortly
after we rang in the New Year. Jenny and
Lance didn’t stay for very long after that either because they were heading
over to his house and a party there for the rest of the night – which was also
why Jenny wasn’t helping out at the Inn.
She hasn’t spent much time there at all so far this holiday, but I’m not
really surprised by that – she’s been spending as much time with Lance as
possible while they’re both off from school.
I’d probably do the same thing if Michael and I were in the same
situation they are.
Though we were part of the second wave of
staff to take our dinner break, there was still lots of work to do in the
kitchen to clean up and get most of the trays ready for the midnight buffet; so
it was ten o’clock by the time that Michael and I were done and had taken a bit
of time to freshen up before rejoining the party. Okay, we might have been slightly delayed due
to finding ourselves temporarily alone; but that few minutes was hardly enough
time for a major make-out session – just a few kisses and caresses.
Once we were free for a couple of hours, we
did a quick round of visits with our families and friends; caught the end of
the last football game of the night that was all but over by then anyway; and
then we hung out with Rowen, Tim, Rebecca, Lucas, and some of the other teens
until it was nearly midnight. There was
time for a bit of dancing too; but it didn’t seem like very long before we did
the countdown to midnight with Mom, Dad, Ethan, Ehlana, Naomi, Aiden, and
everyone else hanging out with them. The
first kiss of the New Year with Michael was pretty good, but not too hot – our
parents were right there, after all; so we took it easy on them! ;^)
We had time to share other hugs and kisses
too, but then it was back to work for a while as we helped to set-up the buffet
and then clean up after everyone had finished snacking. A little more dancing and partying was an
option after that, but parents with younger kids had already left by then; the
party was winding down; and we were back at work by shortly after two o’clock
to get the kitchen and dining room ready for business on Friday morning. That was entirely so that nobody would need
to come and do that work sometime on New Year’s Day; though it was also a
choice that Miranda and Jacob give their staff most years – and everyone
usually picks staying late and getting the work done.
I was okay with that; and going home with
Michael and his family was great. So was
the sofa sleepover with Michael; and that started out with some bonus
entertainment when Miranda jokingly tucked us in and kissed us goodnight –
knowing as well as we did that we had no intention of going up to separate
rooms after a little cuddle time.
Rebecca and Lucas thought that was as funny as everyone else did, but
they didn’t have a problem with it either – especially since it gave them the
chance to possibly have their own little sleepover. I’m not saying that happened for sure; but I’m
not saying it didn’t either. By this
morning, that was a case of we won’t ask; and just pretend that we don’t know
what those smiles mean.
Jacob might have a different perspective on
that for Rebecca than he does for Michael; but Miranda doesn’t. Lucas is still shyer than Michael, so if
Jacob really wants to be worried about things like that for the four of us; I’m
probably the one teen he should worry about most.
Not that I’m saying he actually has
anything to worry about with me leading his son astray or anything! ;^)
Anyway, other than having a very minor
make-out moment or five once we were alone in the living room, that’s pretty
much all of the New Year’s Eve news.
Michael and I fell asleep; got to have about three hours of nap time;
and then we stayed at his house for Tai Chi for two before having breakfast
with his family. I needed to go home as
soon as we finished the kitchen clean-up; and Mom and Dad put me to work right
away to help them out with the party set-up and lunch prep work. The second half of that was mostly putting
food trays together and keeping an eye on the pre-cooked dishes that were being
re-heated. There were two crock pots
doing the slow-cooking thing too; but we didn’t have to do anything with them
except move them to the buffet table when it was time to feed the troops.
We had extra help and incoming food
donations being arriving at eleven, and while that started a bit of a social
hour that meshed with the work time; the party really got started at noon – at
the same time we put the lunch buffet out.
Football ruled the action in the living room, and the lounge was the
primary girl zone for the day – at least for the teens and kids. That usually included the younger boys too;
though they mostly played other games in my room or the exercise room and only
stopped into the lounge for snacks, drinks, and the occasional chat with their
favorite girls.
I had some teen friends to hang out with
now and then too; but not for the entire day; since most of the teens at our
party also had other places to spend parts of the day too. Rebecca, for example, was at our party first;
but then went home with Lucas and his family for the night – and other parties
they were attending at two other farms.
Rowen and Tim were at his aunt and uncle’s house for dinner and the
evening football action; and Michael and I were two of the few teens standing
at my house by dinnertime. That was
mostly because our adult guests mostly had younger kids; which is also why
Ethan and Ehlana had lots of kids to play with – and I was kept busy with kid
control when I wasn’t helping out with meals or clean-ups. That still meant having lots of play time;
but not of the teen variety – and not much alone time with Michael either.
Our dinner meal was buffet-style and
on-the-go too, and while eating in the dining room was an option; most of the
football watching group filled plates and went back to the game in progress in
the living room. I did that too so that
I could hang out with Michael, or Dads, and the other guys, but I can’t say
that I found the game all that exciting.
The hanging out together was the fun part of that half-hour or so that
we spent together before I moved on to more work in the kitchen.
After a very late New Year’s Eve, I was
actually thinking more about having a nap by then than doing anything else, but
I mostly went back to playing with the kids after the work was done; through
until the Moms or Grandmothers started taking the youngest kids home to
bed. Ethan and Ehlana kept Naomi and
Aiden for the night; and my play time ended when I helped out with getting them
tucked in for the night at around nine-thirty.
Then I was free to either watch movies in the lounge with the girls or
hang out in the living room with Michael and the other guys. I chose both – watching the end of a movie in
progress; and then going to cuddle with Michael while the last game of the day
was on the television.
By then, the guys had watched or kept up
with the first four games; and Oregon had pretty much beaten up on Florida
State in the second half of their game for a big win to earn the first of the
two championship playoff games. Alabama
and Ohio State were battling it out for the other spot in that championship
game; but I’ll be honest and admit that I was just there for the cuddle time
with my boyfriend. I wasn’t the
trend-setter for that; but I was an early-adopter; and it wasn’t long before
most of the women still there gave up on movie time and joined us in the living
room. That got a bit crowded; but we had
fun with it.
Well, most of us had fun with it. I had a cat nap or two and missed quite a bit
of the sports and entertainment while enjoying the rest and cuddle time with
Michael. If he dozed off too, he didn’t
admit it to any of the guys; but I wouldn’t be surprised if he did join me for
some of my nap time.
As mentioned already, man-laws might have
been broken if every football fanatic guy in the country didn’t watch those two
playoff games, so it was fairly late by the time Ohio State managed to beat Alabama
42-35 and win their shot at the National title against Oregon. By then, I was ready to call it a night, but
it took a while to see our guests out, and after saying goodnight to Michael
when he left with his family; I also needed to help out with the final clean-ups
in the living room, kitchen, and the lounge.
That’s why it was after two before I got back up to my room and had a
chance to get changed. Mandy didn’t wake
up when I climbed into bed with my computer because she got tired of the noise
and wait; and decided to spend the night with Ehlana and Naomi.
Maybe I should have kept Michael for
another sleepover too! ;^)
My nightly computer checks took a while,
and I had a couple of family business jobs to take care of too; but I’ll be
heading off to dreamland as soon as I wrap this report up. From the email reports around the family, it
sounds as though my cousins all had fun on New Year’s Eve; and I hope that they’re
all having a wonderful start to the New Year too. We only have a play day planned for tomorrow,
but Dad’s taking the day off; so Ethan, Ehlana, and I will be hanging out with
him – and with Mom. There aren’t any
plans – we’ll just wing it and do whatever we feel like doing – or nothing at
all.
I’ll let you know how that goes, but that’s
all of the news I have for today and it’s definitely time to get some sleep;
so, until next time...
...May the Magi Force be with you!
