This is a double-update; but it’s going to
be a short one because I’m out of steam and need to get some sleep.
Friday – cold-enough for Tai Chi to be
indoors; and for us to stay indoors as much as possible. We had a good day at school; and then I
helped Mom around the house after school while Michael was busy at work. Ethan and Ehlana were with Aiden and Naomi
respectively for the night; which was why we were able to have a teen movie
night in the lounge after Michael was done work. Rowen and Tim came over early and helped me
with getting ready for that; we watched two Christmas movies after Michael joined
us; and then Rowen and Tim went to her house for some alone time at
twelve-thirty – and you already know that I kept Michael for a sofa
sleepover. That was fun; so was the
Saturday morning wake-up call; and then we needed to hurry to get ready and over
to the school in time to help load the buses for the trip to the Maple Valley
Christmas parade with the marching band.
We managed to fit in a quick, hot breakfast too, but didn’t help Mom and
Dad with the clean-up; and we all skipped Tai Chi today.
The bus ride to Maple Valley was a lot more
fun with Michael; and I should have mentioned that last week for the Friday
night parade too. After being on
separate buses during the football season; it’s nice to have that time to spend
together – and with all of our friends.
The weather was really very good for a Christmas parade – just a bit
below freezing; a few snowflakes in the air without being anything major; and a
bit of a dusting of snow on the lawns along the parade route. That also meant there was a big crowd – at least
for a small town parade; and our band was a big hit thanks to the fact that we
do have a nice contingent of Maple Valley students in it with us! That had a lot to do with why we were also
Santa’s band, and while that put us at the end of the parade and made for a
long wait before we hit the parade route; it also meant that we got to watch
the entire parade head out ahead of us – and we could get right to the fun
afterward as soon as we’d packed up and loaded the bus with our gear. This time, we were given two hours to play
and have lunch; and then we headed back to town by mid-afternoon.
That worked for Michael and me, since we
were booked for the dinner shift at the Inn; we had time to help out at the
school; get home and cleaned up for work; and then go on to the Inn. I didn’t have much time to talk with Mom and
Dad then, and they hadn’t gone to the Maple Valley parade this year after doing
the night parade last weekend instead; but then Dad is working a lot this
weekend to get ready for his week in the city.
The dinner crowd at the Inn was fairly-large, but most customers came
early; so we didn’t have a late rush and managed to get out of the inn by a bit
after nine o’clock. Since Mom and Dad
were going out to the pub for a while; and Michael and I were on babysitting
duty while they were gone; they were happy about that because it gave them
nearly an hour longer than they’d expected to have.
Ethan and Ehlana had Naomi and Aiden booked
for the night; and we also had Zack, Brianna, Eli, and Hailey to watch while
the parents were out while other kids and cousins were with other babysitters –
and we weren’t keeping any of those extra kids overnight. It was also already bedtime for half of them,
so while we set up a Christmas kids’ show in the lounge; Hailey, Eli, and
Brianna were all sleeping before the end of it – and I moved the girls into my
bed while Eli was temporarily put in the guest room across the hall from the lounge. Zack tried to stay up later, but only lasted
to the start of the second show; and he joined Eli in the guest room while the
rest of us watched the rest of Home Alone and then the twins and their besties
went to bed too. Michael and I cleaned
up; and then cuddled in the lounge until Mom and Dad got home with the parents
that were picking up their little angels.
Brianna had woken up; so we’d had a bonus cuddle buddy, but that was a
blast of fun for us; and a fair trade for the lack of make-out time we were too
tired for by then anyway.
While I was tempted to keep Michael again
tonight; he went home when Eli, Hailey, Zack, and Brianna went home with their
parents; and I only had a short visit with Mom and Dad before coming up to my
room and getting ready for bed. I’ve
only done the basic computer checks since getting into bed with Mandy; and that
brings us up-to-date with the news for the past two days.
My Christmas music video pick is from
another favorite a Cappella group; a Christmas classic; and a really fun
version of the song.
While you listen to that; I’m off to have a
nap; so, until next time...
...May the Magi Force be with you!
