Wednesday 12/31, P let me off at 3:00 so I was able to go home and relax. Eric put up the new light in the entryway and it looked really good. I tried to take a nap but I don’t think I was very successful. Eric made some potstickers to tide us over until we got to Stef and Peter’s for the party. Eric and I discussed a mini-kitchen remodel then I hopped in the shower. I got ready quickly and we took off around 8:30. There were a few people when we got there. We put on hats and Peter put a string of beads around my neck. I started chowing down and had several pieces of bread and cheese, two helpings of Peter’s goulash, some quinoa salad, a bunch of kettle corn and most of the chocolate covered almonds. I mostly hung out with Chyrstol and we talked over by the snacks. H*sam and R*berto showed up and they had a game to play. I sat it out but watched. As it approached midnight we all got our gear on and walked down Alki toward Seattle to try and see the fireworks. We only got about five minutes down then fireworks started from the other direction. We blew our horns, lit sparklers, drank apple cider, then Peter shot the cork out of a bottle of champagne. Stef was like “Geez, you’re wasting it!” which made me laugh. It was freezing out so we headed back and warmed up in their apartment. We stayed until 1:30 am and started packing up to go home. Peter sent us home with goulash and gave me a very long hug. He told me he cherishes my friendship and Chrystol told me days later that Stef was watching. Meh. I don’t want her to think I’m moving in or something. We drove home and it was about 2:00. I watched tv for a little bit before falling asleep.

Tuesday 12/30, When I got home I did my workout video then Eric made me a quesadilla for dinner. I showered and we went to Home Depot to try and figure out which valve I have in the shower but we didn’t have any luck. I assumed we wouldn’t but Eric wanted to check anyway. When we got home I went online and ordered the trim kit and the shower head. I watched tv and did a few things online.

Monday 12/29, I texted Dad and he found my phone in Mom’s car so Eric drove over and got it then brought it to me at the post office. Got my last paycheck of the year and I went over the six-figure mark. That felt good. Who knows what will happen next year, but this one was a good one. When I got home I talked to Dad who completed my Reef order. I went on a walk with two of the puppies, but made it a short one because it was so cold. At home I started putting stuff away from AZ and Christmas. Eric roasted a chicken and made a salad for dinner. We went up to the GO and loaded up then home where I showered and we took an hour out of our evening for just the two of us. I got into bed and updated this and watched Friends.

Sunday 12/28, Eric was up early, like always, but he told me he didn’t want to go on a hike. I got back into bed and went through some magazines. By the time breakfast was ready I was just getting ready to leave on my hike by myself. I took off and hauled ass up to the rock, but decided to go further and even went past the point Eric and I had hiked to the prior day. It was really pretty out and sunny. I only saw one guy on a bike and a group of three women, otherwise I didn’t see anyone. When I got back I loaded up my plate and ate breakfast. I showered and got ready then we pretty much hung out all day since football was on. I didn’t do a whole lot except eat and lounge. The Chargers lost so Christian was disappointed then the Seahawks were on. They stunk up the first half but the second half picked up and Eric was all excited. Kass was yelling and screaming and spiking a stuffed football. I packed up my bags and we said our goodbyes before the game was over. Dad took us to the airport and dropped us off around 6:00. Checked in, through security, and to our gate where we waited for our plane to come in. We took off a little late but made up some time in the air. Eric was anxious but there’s not much I can do to ease it so I put on the movie I started on the way down (Scoop) and finished that, then watched Drive. When we landed it took a while for our bags to come out. Mom picked us up and we went back to their house so I could get my computer and new computer and also get my car. Talked to Dad for a few minutes then took off for home. When I got home I realized I didn’t know where my cell phone was and it turns out it was in Mom’s car but I didn’t find that out until the next morning. We got the dogs settled (just our three) and got into bed. It was about midnight by the time I turned in.

Saturday 12/27, Eric and I were up and decided to go for a hike again. We went past the rock and Eric was all amorous, but I warded him off. Back at home Dad made pancakes and we just kind of hung out for a good part of the day. We eventually went to go see movies. Kass, Becky, and I saw Big Eyes. I enjoyed it and it had the new Lana songs. After the movie we went and got pizza. When we got home we played trivial pursuit again and the girls beat the boys, and Pete said we cheated again. Of course. It was before midnight and we all went to bed.

Friday 12/26, Eric was up early and I was up not long after. We got ready, ate a banana each, and took off across the street to go for a hike. We went up to the big rock, took a picture, then headed back home. It was super sunny, but it was pretty cold (like low 50s). Dad made French toast for breakfast. Eric wanted to do some exploring so we showered and got ready. Sky and Pete took Papa down to Chandler to help get Papa’s furnace squared away. We took Sky’s rental car and headed toward old Scottsdale. On our way we stopped at the Rack where I got a new bra and a bunch of underwear because all the clearance stuff was marked down. Next we went to a juice bar and I got a smoothie. Eric got a disgusting beet, parsley, etc. juice. We continued toward old town and finally made it. We walked around a little but it was freezing and most of the shops were kitschy junk shops. We didn’t stay long. We headed home where everyone was waiting for us because they were going for a hike. We got our hiking stuff on and went to the trailhead down the road. We did the 2+ mile loop and Aubrie and I did extra workout moves throughout the hike. The sun was setting as we finished up. We took a drive down the road to where the national park starts and Dad showed us the other properties they looked at and put offers on. Back at home we hung out and Mom was making dinner. Sky and Pete weren’t going to be back for a long time because the furnace guys got delayed by like 4 hours. We had dinner (ham) and as we were finishing up the boys and Papa walked in. After dinner we played trivial pursuit and the girls ended up winning but Pete always just claims that we win because we cheat. It can’t be because women are actually intelligent too. Nope, must be because we cheat! I think Christian showed up that evening. I think we went to bed by midnight.

Thursday 12/25, We were up around 7:30 or so and ran around the house getting ready. I packed my bags, showered and got dressed. We went over to Mom’s early so I could spend a little extra time with Alix and give her her birthday presents. Kass was right on time and we were all pretty surprised. We dug in on breakfast and everything was good. We started on presents and I got the atomic light for the entryway. Kass got me some tight, high-waisted jeans. We hung out for a little bit then took off for home to do a few more things and let the dogs out. We got the back bedroom taken care of, packed up the car, and went back to Mom’s. The four of us took off for the airport to fly to AZ. We made really good time through check in, security, and to our gate. Kass got a bagel sandwich and we shared it. Her and Sky got upgraded at the last minute and she tried to send her meal back to me in coach. Hilarious. It was not a great flight for two reasons: the guy next to me had four-people’s worth of Burger King that he was making his way through (barf) and second, Eric was having anxiety about the flight so I couldn’t really watch my movie, Scoop. When we landed we got all of our bags and headed the car rental place. The number was at 23 and our number was 47 so I called Dad to let him know it would be a while. I called Auntie Lauryn to thank her for my little cloak. Becky arrived and soon we were off in our enormous suv. We made decent time to the house and everyone was excited when we got there. Sky and  I had some presents left to wrap so we closed ourselves in the office and wrapped. Aubrie helped me. We sat down to dinner and it was a little after 9:00. The food was excellent. We didn’t wait long to dive into presents. I got almost all north face and reef stuff and Aubs got me some new bikinis. We went to bed really late, like 1:00 am. Papa went to bed only a little before that which was impressive because usually he goes to bed at 9:00.

Wednesday 12/24, I was up and to work, but P closed down the office at 12:00 which was great. When I got home I busted ass on chores, trying to get things ready for leaving town and having Stef stay. Eric got home and we both showered and headed over to Mom’s for Christmas eve. Eric made his mashed potatoes over there. There were like 20 people for dinner which was fun but we kind of laid low before dinner and hung out by the fire. For dinner we sat with Julie and David and chatted about how nuts women can be and how Eric should know that by now. After dinner we had dessert and talked in the living room. We made plans for the next morning and headed home. We relaxed with the dogs for a little bit then all headed to bed. Dex slept on the bed with me.

Tuesday 12/23, I rushed home and Dexter had arrived and Eric was in a bad mood due to my behavior the night before. We got into it for a while but got everything sorted in a very diplomatic manner. It was a little late for Eric to run to the store for supplies for the next night because we were expecting Jenny, Vicki, and Plum to pick up Fishy. They were running late so Eric went to the store and got everything. They arrived and we talked for about an hour and caught up with Peanut. She is so funny and it was great to see her. Fisher went home and I was mostly just nervous for him, but they were excited and I tried not to think about it. Eric made dinner and I had a couple pieces of pizza. I scanned the contract in and sent it off to NR. Eric made a cake for the next night’s dinner. I was tired so I got into bed and relaxed.

Monday 12/22, Eric had coffee with Sky and Austin after work so when I got home I got to work. I took the dogs for a walk then put on my running clothes and did my loop. When I got home I fed the dogs and moved the couch and vacuumed. I ate dinner then got started on the kitchen. I pulled stuff out of cabinets to clean and was getting pissed because I wanted to get a lot of other stuff done and instead had to spend the entire night cleaning and organizing. I quit around 8:30, showered, and got into bed. I updated this and wrote some emails about Fishy’s adoption. I watched Friends until 11 then went to bed.

Sunday 12/21, Eric got up with the dogs and I got around 8:00. I put on my workout clothes and went for a walk / run at the park. I was tired so I didn’t rush. When I got home I did my floor exercises and Eric left for work. I wrapped presents, washed the kitchen windows, did a ton of laundry and washed all my bedding, picked up poop in the backyard, took the dogs for a walk, replaced my watch battery, went to the bank, Walgreens for more wrapping paper, Mud Bay to pick up dog food, more wrapping, cleaned off the laundry room counter, loaded the dishwasher, and finally showered and got dressed. It was 4:00 by the time I could lie down for a minute. I fell asleep for about 5 minutes then I had to get up to feed the dogs, and leave to go to Mom’s for her birthday. Eric was there when I arrived and the Seahawks game started shortly after. We watched the game and it was very exciting. I mostly ripped cds onto my computer. Dad went and picked up pizzas at half time and we pretty much went through five pizzas. We stayed until about 9:00 then headed home. I stopped at the store on the way home and when I got home I sent in Fisher’s medical info and wrote to Jenny and Vicki. I got ready for bed and updated this before going to bed around 11:30.

Saturday 12/20, I stayed in bed until 9 then got up and got ready to get some more tile up in Bothell. Unfortunately they didn’t have it so we left and went to Redmond to go to World Market. We didn’t get anything and went to the olive oil place get some for Peter and Stef for watching the dogs while we’re in AZ for Christmas. Next we went up to Woodinville to have lunch at the Hollywood Tavern. We got the ancho tots as a starter and they were fucking delicious. I decided to do brunch and had the biscuits and gravy and Eric got the burger. After lunch we headed home and I was tired so I put on Return to Me. Afterward I tried to fall asleep but Eric woke me up so we could get ready and head to Sky and Chrystol’s for dinner. We got over there right around 6:00 and sat in the living room chatting. They made chicken gyros and a delicious salad. We watched Captain Ron, which I’ve never seen and was very funny. We watched some tv but eventually turned it off and just talked. By 11:30 we packed up and headed home. Watched SNL for a little then went to bed.

Friday 12/19, The tile guy came in the morning to look at the bathroom and go over everything. After work Eric went for a run and all I wanted to do was relax so I did not go on a run. I started doing research on shower fixtures and sat in the living room with the fireplace on, watching Family Tree with Eric. We just did that all night then Jojo was picked up around 10. Went to bed shortly after.

Thursday 12/18, I felt blahhhh for most of the day. Finally heard back from the ACM and Fisher can be adopted by Jenny and Vicki but there were a few more hoops to jump through. Janell went to bat for me and I appreciated her email and the messages I got from Genie and Julee. When I got home I put on my running clothes and while I was stretching Mom and Dad called to chat. I only did three times around the block but I’d done some extra warm up exercises and did my floor exercises when I got home. Anthony died and Nate told Eric. The flags were flying at half staff. Very sad for Sherry and we need to go over and give our condolences. I showered and we ate dinner. Eric made a roasted squash, delicious grilled cheese sandwiches (the best!), and tomato soup, but it had a whole bunch of veggies in it. Healthy and delicious. I wrote a few emails then got dressed and went to Super Supplements to pick up a few things. When I got home I vacuumed the bedroom and cleaned up my bathroom in preparation for the tile guy to come the next morning. I sat down to finish Fishy’s long bio and watched BL. I finished it after 9:00 and sent it off.

Wednesday 12/17, When I got home I showered and had plans to go to Nordstrom Rack. Eric said he’d go with me and we headed down to Factoria. I got a gift card for Jake, looked at some bras and sweaters then we wandered around the mall to see what’s new. We left and went to the Vietnamese restaurant on the way home. We ended up getting into a snit during dinner and I pretty much didn’t want to talk to him for the rest of dinner. When we got home I just got into bed and fell asleep shortly after 8:00 and ended sleeping through Modern Family. I felt exhausted.

Tuesday 12/16, When I got home Eric told me the Saturn was done and it was over $800. Great. We were supposed to talk about it but he told them to just go ahead and take care of a bunch of stuff. There goes a good chunk of our vacation fund! We went to the bank so I could cash a check that had both of our names on it, picked up the Saturn, and when I got home we went for a run. It went well and Eric was all jacked up wanting to run further. I’m sure I showered and did stuff online before going to bed.

Monday 12/15, I went to the bank after work and then to Susan’s. We watched two episodes of X-Files. We finished up season 3 and started 4. I had a ton of emails from the NR NW team about my email to Amber. I was home by 7:45 and sent my email when I got home. Eric made dinner and brought it out to me. I think we watched Thanks for Sharing. Eric was commenting on all of the program stuff and calling out inconsistencies. We went to bed after it was over.

Sunday 12/14, I work up before 8:00 and had big plans for the day so I started it out with a run. Eric made me eat a banana before I left. I felt pretty good. When I got home I put away clothes and was still so angry about the Fisher situation that I used that rage and wrote my email to the NW team and waited for responses. Genie said it was great, and Janell said it was good but I know she wasn’t as thrilled with it. I kind of threw a temper tantrum in it and was a little dramatic, but made my point. I felt better after sending it and went out in the yard and trimmed all the roses and hydrangea, only a month or so late. I ate lunch then took a nap while Eric watched football. When I woke up I went up to Joann Fabrics to pick up more snow for our snow scene. I got two packages then went to Goodwill where I got a house and some accessories (people and trees). When I got home Eric helped me set up the village then I spent a lot of time getting the cords to all run under the snow and down the middle and under the table. It looked good, especially after Eric moved around some items. I’m sure I went to bed early, despite having taken a nap earlier in the day.

Saturday 12/13, I woke up at 7:30 and couldn’t go back to sleep so I was on my phone for a long time and finally went back to sleep after 10, then woke up again at 11. There were all kinds of emails about Fisher’s apps and I was getting really mad about Amber’s emails, but didn’t want to respond because I was on my phone. By 11 Jess woke up and we got out of bed. Day made me an omelet which I ate most of. We got dressed and packed up and took off for Ken’s a little after noon. We got ready and helped set up for the party. People started showing up and I only had about an hour before I needed to leave. We ate and talked to people and sat by the fire. I took off after 4:00 and traffic was a nightmare. When I got home I showered and got ready for my massage. I apologized to Corey for the prior week and he said it was fine. We talked a little bit about Santa pictures and wigs. Afterward I rushed home and Eric was making brownies for the wig party. We both got ready and headed out, finding parking right across the street from their place. I had a white wig and Eric wore mine from the prior year with a hat over it. The wigs were pretty good and the other Erik won the prize which was an Alaska gift card for a couple hundred bucks or something. We talked with Stef a lot and I talked to His*am in the kitchen for a while. He’s so fun. We were there until like midnight and finally took off. We gave Stef a ride to her car then headed home. We watched SNL for a few minutes then went to bed.

Friday 12/12, I got an email from Plum’s adopters letting me know they wanted to adopt Fisher and I was ecstatic. P told me to leave work at 3:30 so I could get a jump on getting to Day’s house to see Jessica. It still took me two hours but it would have taken longer if I’d waited until 4:30 or 5:00. I was only there for about two minutes before Jess and Ken showed up. Day put on a hilarious wig (“Wannabe DJ Wig”) and tried to fool Jessica that it was her real hair. Jess wasn’t fooled for a second. After Ken left Jess and I sat on the couch and tried to figure out the wifi password since Day couldn’t remember it. We snacked on veggies while Day made dinner. I had chicken cordon bleu and Jess had tons of crab. I ate a bunch of salad and breadsticks too. With butter. Lots of butter on those breadsticks. After dinner we sat on the couch and put on Love Actually and Day brought us brownies on the couch. I stayed up and watched the whole thing but Jess fell asleep. I got ready for bed and we slept in Day’s bed. It was about midnight when we turned in.

Thursday 12/11, When I got home from work I showered then worked on Fisher’s bio a little. We had two apps for him but I didn’t really like either one. I spent about 30 minutes then took off for Kristel’s for dinner and chatting. She made yummy veggie udon soup. We talked and talked and caught up and I told her all about HI. She thought it was hilarious. I stayed there until 10 then took off for home. I did a couple things on the computer before going to bed.

Wednesday 12/10, Got an email that Jojo would be going home for two nights then coming back Friday. When I got home I showered, ate a little dinner, then headed down to VM to have my doc look at my foot. He did another freeze treatment but it wasn’t as bad as the last time. I went up to Crossroads again and traded my wig in for the white one. Back at home we waited for Jojo to be picked up and finally she was. The house was relatively quiet. I watched some tv and started falling asleep but woke back up for Modern Family. Went to bed afterward.

Tuesday 12/9, It was like 60 degrees outside so when I got home I put on my running clothes and went for a run. I did two miles then did some floor exercises. We went up to Crossroads so I could look at wigs for the wig party and I got a black one. We went and got Mom a few sweaters for Christmas then home. I don’t remember what else I did but I think I watched something with Eric.

Monday 12/8, I was excited to get home because I had all kinds of things planned for the evening. First I took Jojo for a walk and luckily the rain let up long enough for us to go around the block. Next I changed into my workout clothes and did a new video I got at Goodwill a million years ago. Kathy Smith I think. It was ridiculous and I couldn’t keep up with any of it. I did a lot of improvising because I was so off. Eric left mid-workout to drop something off at work, but he put some nachos in the oven for me. I did a few floor exercises then stuffed my face with nachos. Eric came home and I hopped in the shower. When I got out I worked for about an hour then onto the couch where Eric was watching a football game. I did stuff online even after he switched it to It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Around 9:45 we took out the dogs then I went into the bedroom and ripped some cds and updated this.

Sunday 12/7, Jojo woke us up around 7:00, though I tried to go back to sleep. I stayed in bed for a little bit thinking about all the things I wanted to accomplish. I got up and had breakfast then got started on my credit card statements. Around 10 I went and got a new phone then back home to continue on my statements. I also unloaded all of the xmas houses for the village and lined them all up. I didn’t have the energy to start, plus we need more snow. Eric watched the game and I watched Edward Scissorhands and fell asleep toward the end. His team won and I asked him if he wanted to go on a walk; he didn’t but said he’d go after a recap segment. I took Clancy for a walk around the block then home. We just did one time around the block then I heated up some dinner for myself. I watched something on tv then went to the store to grab a few things. I showered and got into bed. Did a few things online and fell asleep around 10:30.

Saturday 12/6, Eric got up with the dogs while I stayed in bed until about 8:30. I went for a brisk walk at the park and did two times around. Back at home I got going on some chores, including putting my luggage away, changing my sheets, and cleaning up my room. I wanted to watch a movie so I put on The One I Love and Eric left to go to a rally. The movie was good but I was confused by the ending. I read up on IMDB and got some answers. I showered and got ready and we took off to run errands. We went to Office Depot, Super Supplements for more cold stuff, then the GO. Back at home I had a snack and put on Bridesmaids. I got a call that my massage was at 5:00, not 8:00 like I expected. Shit. I felt so bad because I totally missed it. Eric was making breakfast burritos for dinner and we ate by 5:30. I put on the Disney Robin Hood and watched that until 8:00 which is when we left to go to the Crest to see Skeleton Twins. I really liked it and Eric liked it for a lot of different reasons, mainly because there are so many parallels to his life. It was late when we got home and we were talking for a while in the bedroom before turning on SNL and getting into bed. We watched together for a while before I fell asleep.

Friday 12/5, Eric had wanted to go out to dinner but by the time we both got home from work we were both tired and I still wasn’t feeling great and he started feeling not so good. He made dinner instead and we just relaxed. I talked him into watching Fading Gigolo and that was okay. Not great. Went to bed at a normal time.

Thursday 12/4, I felt better but still not 100%. At home Eric and I bundled up and took a walk around the neighborhood. He made dinner and I was disappointed when my BL show wasn’t on. I think I just did stuff online for most of the night. Think I ordered some stuff from Toys in Babeland.

Wednesday 12/3, I felt like garbage when I woke up and had a horrible night’s sleep. I emailed P that I would be in late. I finally got in around 9:15. Got a text from RH Eric that was a picture of us from Deception Falls, so we texted back and forth a little and agreed we need to catch up. After work I got the tabs sorted on the Gold Nugget. It was a lot easier than I was expecting. At home I changed my clothes and we went for a walk around the block a couple times. I was trying to get my legs to not hurt so much and get my heart rate up. I showered and Eric made dinner. I got into bed and wrote emails then he brought dinner in to me, along with some emergen-c with coconut water. I updated this and got ready for bed. Eric brought me in sliced oranges and moved my humidifier. I went to bed shortly after.

Tuesday 12/2, When I got home I took a shower and got ready then we took off for Mom’s. I wasn’t feeling great and I was super sore from my workout the night before. When we got there we snacked a little and talked. Sky was running late so we ate dinner and started on the tree. We had fun decorating the tree and Kassie super glued a bull’s tail that had broken off to a jaunty snowman to give him a huge wang with sparkly tip. We were all dying, especially when she showed Alan and asked him if he’d seen the perverted ornament Mom had bought, and he just sat there for several seconds staring at it. It looked legit. We were laughing so hard Kass had to hold her crotch so she wouldn’t pee her pants. We finished the tree then sat in the family room talking about xmas eve dinner and what everyone was going to bring. At 8:30 we took off so I could get home and into bed. I updated this, talked with Eric for a while, then went to bed.

Monday 12/1, I wasn’t feeling 100% but I felt pretty good. I went home and did my BL video then did some extra exercises and I was already sore which meant that the next day I would be miserable. Great. Eric made burgers with mushrooms and a fancy white cheddar. We ate in front of the tv but I got cold and needed to shower so I cut out early. I took a long shower then hand washed a few things before getting into bed. I thought DwtS was on but apparently it wrapped up the prior Tuesday. I put on some ridiculous Lifetime xmas movie and did a little shopping online. I didn’t really watch it, just background noise. I went to bed at 10:30.