Promised Ben I would hit the books as soon as he left but I couldn't get rid of this urge to post! It won't take me long to type, promise! Plus my nasal congestion and achy feelings from a second round with a cold is making it difficult to focus!

Ben and I were able to hit a nice rhythm in terms of figuring out what times we could meet up and when the actual Thanksgiving celebration would occur. Like last year, we had a Thanksgiving brunch at his aunt's home (only ten minutes away from my house!) and a Thanksgiving dinner at my house. Unlike our usual Thanksgiving feast, we settled for really quick and easy. I put together a green bean casserole and homemade pumpkin biscuits on Thanksgiving morning. Parents were in charge of gathering the turkey, pork, and duck. Right before dinner, I employed Ben's help in whipping up mashed potatoes, gravy, and turkey stuffing. I forgot to use this free whoppie cookie kit and heating up the creamed corn, but at least we had a homemade pecan pie from a friend of my mom's. It probably wasn't the best looking dinner out there but it got the job done. Promises were made to go all out next time haha

We went out to Black Friday shopping like usual. Unlike last year, some of the stores at the outlet store near my house opened at 9 PM, 10 PM, and 11 PM. The rest opened up at midnight. I think I prefer this way of things because I was able to shop at my best condition before feeling all groggy. It was something of a shoe day because I walked away with two pairs of boots, one beige and the other brown. I don't know when my fascination with combat boots started but these seemed like a nice touch of masculinity without being too overt. Super excited about wearing these everyday.



The weather wasn't as chilly as last year so I was able to get away with wearing a really thin long sleeves shirt from Banana Republic and a light gray jacket (also from Banana Republic). I think I was trying to channel some Black Friday good luck because I bought said items at Black Friday the previous year. I only had a skirt and black tights on for the bottom but they were suitable enough for the weather. Unsurprisingly, I put on one of the pairs of boots by the time midnight hit. We rendezvoused with Ben's father and aunt at Macy's. I missed out on my chance to check out the deals at ULTA and Sephora but the new footwear was more than enough to pacify me. That peppermint mocha from Starbucks (courtesy of Ben) was also a nice mollifier.

I was able to do some early Christmas shopping for Ben and my parents. Seems like things were a little too similar to last year because Ben will be spending Christmas in his hometown. He has two weeks off though so we can always have a belated celebration after New Years. I would like to figure out plans with friends too so that it won't seem too lonesome when Christmas comes around. All in all, the break went well and I'm not too keen on getting back to classes. Small consolation is that the semester is almost over and I can get to started on the last one in spring. Then after that, applications? And after that, maybe get a job? And after that, hopefully get accepted somewhere?! It's a long way still so just keeping my head on the closest thing first. Phew.