This category is full of randomness that really doesn’t fit nicely into any of the categories having to do with my road to walking.
Day 15, Movie 15 Mickey’s Christmas Carol
Oh man, Jimmy and Dave?! I swear I was a child laying on the green carpet in Mom and Dad’s house and watching the Disney Channel on channel 32.
I HAD to rent this one on Disney+ but $3.99 was worth it this close to Christmas!!! After I am done watching, Love Actually for the 15th time, I will have to watch this one again! It brought back so many memories!!!
I saw on Facebook Thursday St. Alphonsus was exhibiting a display from the Vatican that recounted 126 miracles. I have only been back to Saint Alphonsus once since my Dad died 13 years ago.
My Mom agreed to take me because I wanted to see the exhibit. We went on Friday in the late afternoon. I haven’t really been to East Dearborn by Saint Alphonsus at all in a pretty long time. As we got closer to Saint Alphonsus, all of the store fronts had changed but it was still familiar. I haven’t been in that parking lot in so long but it seemed so familiar to me too because I spent my entire childhood there! I went to school there from Kindergarten and I graduated from there in the year 2000.
The steps leading to the front of the church have changed, now there is a ramp on the right side which makes the whole front look different. I remember taking team photos on those exact steps and it seemed so long ago. As we were entering the church, a woman asked If we needed help. She offered to hold the door as my Mon pushed me up the ramp because I was in my manual chair. The woman graduated in 1983 from there and I got to tell her that I graduated in 2000. As she opened the door, it smelled exactly the same!
I held my breath is we got through the vestibule and entered the church. I recognized the man who opened the door for us so we could enter into the church. Mr. Savage. It looked exactly the same! It was the same ol’ St. Al’s!
Once we got inside, my Mom pushed me past the exhibit and straight up to the altar. She knelt at the communion rail while I sat in my chair in the center with my eyes transfixed on the altar piece! I slipped my hands into my sweatshirt and put them to my face. Once my hands were covering my face, I began to cry.
I had just seen video footage of my eighth grade Christmas play that took place in the church and everything looked exactly the same! In that video, I was dressed as an old-school nun and I sang a solo.
I remember that very large rosary I have fixed to my belt but watching the video, I couldn’t get over how straight I was walking and the fact that I was even walking, so effortlessly. It wasn’t until I saw and heard myself singing that I remembered it.
I couldn’t sing it now if I tried and it was really nice to see both my Mom and Sean’s face when they saw me singing. Being in the church, brought everything back and I was so relieved that it still looks exactly the same! Two parishes have merged into this church.
The current pastor saw us as we were headed toward the exhibit after leaving the altar and he walked over and welcomed us. Fr. Linus is his name and he asked about us and blessed both me and my Mom because she is my caregiver. His hands were so big and warm. It made me think of my Dad‘s hands.
The exhibit was a bunch of posters displayed in the pews. My Mom asked if she could take the poster out of its place to bring it over to me to read it. Mr. Savage said that was not a problem and I sat in the main aisle as my Mom went into the pew to get a poster.
I stared all around at the church while I waited for my Mom to get another poster. I tried not to think about the fact that a lot of the tiles were carpeted over; it was all carpeted up to the break in the main aisle.
My Mom read me as many posters and she could until she got tired and then she signed the book for us and as we were leaving, I saw multiple offering baskets leaning against the back wall and I could hear the usher saying, “Thank you!” like we had heard so many times at mass when we were kids.
This definitely was a blast from my past and I told my Mom that I wanted a cheese pie for dinner. We got it from the same bakery that my friend, Natalie, and I used to walk to from her house which is right across the street from the church when we were in grade school.
It tasted the same and I thought of St. Al’s with fondness on our way back to my house. I’m very glad that I took the time to see the exhibit even if it was in my manual chair.
Day 16, Movie 16 Holly Star
My Mom suggested this movie to me. She told me that it was on Netflix and I watched it today. I laughed really loudly and her friend! Right away, I knew I would dig it because of this guy’s hat:
Sean had a hat like this when he was in third grade I think. He found it. He wore it that entire winter and recently found it again. He put it on and we both laughed! As for the movie, yeah, I dug it! Cute!
Day 17, Movie 17 Die Hard
I know there is much debate regarding this movie and whether it is a Christmas movie or not. Today was the first time I saw it and Sean saw in with me. We both were pretty hooked on this one! After we discussed it, we agreed that it IS a Christmas movie even though there is a lot of violence and killing. I think the Christmas music set in the background and the big bear made it so!
Sean told me that if I made this one one of my Christmas movies that I watched over and over, he would sit down and watch a few scenes with me. I told him, “No such luck because Love Actually already has that distinction!”
I told my, “2 Sacreds” what I wanted for Christmas after having a discussion on Twitter with one of my friends. She told me about something and I told Sean and my Mom that I wanted, rather, completely had to have it for Christmas. Well, I couldn’t wait for Christmas so I ordered it for myself. I received an email today saying that it had been delivered:
I already knew what it was because I ordered it and I received an email saying it arrived today but this was a pretty big box that contained just this:
When I searched it on Target.com, it was advertised as, “The Holiday 4 Pack.” It contains; Ginger Spice. Cocoa Mint, Peppermint, and Vanilla Bean. I HAD to try out the Cocoa Mint immediately!
Sarah and Curl were dancing to Norah Jones on my TV as I applied it and it too, tasted like Christmas! I’ve already tried the Vanilla Bean but I am not sure if I will try the other ones because I have always loved me some Cocoa Mint!
Now, I say this is the best Christmas present ever but this definitely excludes all presents I have received for Christmas growing up, from my friends, homemade presents from Sean when he was small, my University of Georgia hoodie, and my Divine Child mug which I broke not too long ago. Hopefully I will get another one while I still have a Divine Child student.
*hint, hint Sean if you read this.
So, maybe this is just the best Christmas present ever that I have I given myself. What can I say? #SimplePleasures, man!!!
Day 19, Movie 19 A Christmas Kiss
I first saw this movie about seven or eight years ago. I saw it on my newly given iPad from work. I watched it on Netflix instead of sleeping because that was the very beginning of my sleep problems.
I was going to use this picture as a picture to show the movie but it seemed a bit too dark but it showed her glittery, “Sugarplum fairy eyes”:
I found a brighter picture that also showed them in the elevator which is the whole premise of the movie:
I didn’t know the name of this movie so I google searched, “Sugarplum fairy kisses man in an elevator” and I discovered its name. It’s no longer on Netflix so I had to start a trial subscription of some channel in order to see it.
It’s kind of a cheesy movie but I dug it back then and now anyway! They discuss classic Christmas movies and they watch them together before falling asleep. I have seen all of the movies that they discussed in this movie except for one. Maybe that will be my Christmas movie choice for tomorrow.
I am watching, Love Actuallyright now but I think I may have to rewatch this one again tonight.
Yesterday, when I received my chapstick in the mail, it was a 4 pack and I immediately tried out the Cocoa Mint.
I tried the Ginger Spice cut this morning because it sparked my interest. After I applied it to my lips and rubbed my lips together to spread it around, I immediately thought of my Abuela and the Christmas candy she had in a jar at her house every year.
That was the candy and if I remember correctly, the jar looked similar to this:
The bottom of it was more dainty but the smell of this Chapstick reminds me of her house at Christmas.
I had my Mom smell the chapstick this morning and told I her that it reminded me of that hard Christmas candy at Abuela’s. She laughed and told me that Abuela really liked it! She told me that she thought she’s first received it from the Good-fellows at Christmas When she was young.
It is only now, as a woman and a single mother that I truly understand how extremely strong she was! You see, my Abuela had no family here in Michigan except for the man she married. I call him, “The man she married” because I never knew him.
Over the years, my Mom has told me that he left their family when my Mom was 15. He left my Abuela with nine kids (The youngest one was five) and when he left, he turned off all of the utilities and took the family car. My Mom has told me that it was through the Grace of God that she made it happen for her and all of my aunts and uncles.
My Abuela died in 1989 when I was 7 years old. I knew that all of my aunts and uncles loved and respected her! The whole neighborhood respected my Abuela!
I know firsthand how difficult it is to raise a child by yourself but I only have one instead of nine and I have the love and help from my family. I was seven when she died and she was my height.
Day 20, Movie 20 The Muppets Christmas Carol
Going along with yesterday’s movie, this one was in tribute to Adam‘s grandmother. I hadn’t seen in so long! I liked the Marley brothers.
Day 21, Movie 21 National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation
I am 37 years old and I have never seen this movie. I didn’t know what to expect but I have always wanted Christmas lights on my house but I was aghast at how crazy it all got! I was happy that it ended well though! It feels good that I finally have watched it!
Today, I couldn’t resist the opportunity to try the fourth flavor of my chapstick 4 pack that I got in the mail not too long ago.
I’m not sure what I expected but I was thinking that it would be similar to the original Burts Bees chapstick. I think it has been a really long time since I had the original chapstick. I’ve been using the Grapefruit since I busted my knee because I couldn’t use the Açaí Berry one because that one is my Barwis’s chapstick. I swear I will get back there one day!
I am excited that now I have tons of choices when choosing my chapstick in the morning. What can I say?! #SimplePleasures, man!!! I do think tomorrow may be Ginger Spice because I can have the Cocoa Mint anytime during the year!