My Advent Calendar
(click for the large version)
December 1:
a. I touched the ceiling of my bedroom. It wasn't especially hard since my bedroom is under the roof. Basically, I can touch the touch the ceiling with my head because it's that low. *g*
b. I also watched the peace out video. I liked the whole "imagine it's summer" thing. It's freezing outside, so this was nice. But it was very obviously geared towards children - it was both amusing and a little off-putting to be talked to like I'm five.
December 2:
I watched the 5-Minute-Crafts video and decided to do the little paper envelope for money. Here are some pics:
December 3:
Didn't do anything. :(
I wanted to do the clothepin wreath but didn't have the materials.
December 4:
I made the coffee body scrub. I picked a version with coconut oil and sugar. I smelled okay even though it looked kinda gross:
To be honest, I tossed the rest of it out. It was far too rough - my skin was bright red for the rest of the evening and didn't feel noticably smoother or anything.
December 5:
I baked cookies! Thumbprint cookies and white chocolate + macadamia nut cookies. I love them both and I didn't feel like making traditional Christmas cookies.
December 6:
I didn't have access to a massage chair, but I do have a shiatsu massage thingy that you can plug in and use on your shoulders or other areas where you're tense. I spent 30 minutes on the sofa with that thing on my shoulders and it was great.
December 7:
I watched the video. I'm always up for a funny cat video. :D
December 8:
I rearranged some of the living room furniture in preparation for the Christmas tree. We like putting it by the window, but that required a bench to be moved as well as a lot of dog stuff and a small table.
December 9:
I made a recipe from the movie recipe website: spaghetti and meatballs. It was easy and quick and tasty.
December 10:
Another day where I did none of the things.
December 11:
a. I got up early and went on a quick walk with the dogs. It was a bad idea because it started raining and we all got soaked. *sigh*
b. I also ate chocolate. I mean, getting exercise clearly didn't work out too great today, so why not?
December 12:
I picked up some birdseed during my weekly shopping trip and scattered it on the lawn. Honestly, it hadn't really been cold enough that the birds need it, but why not. (I then had to lock the dogs away because they kept barking at the gathering birds...)
December 13:
I had a healthy snack: an apple.
December 14:
I tried a new recipe called Summer Vegetable Rice Bake. It was pretty tasty. You basically take a bunch of (summer) vegetables (I used zucchini, tomato and bell peppers) and fry them until they've softened up a little. Meanwhile you cook the rice. Then you pour some cream and tomato paste in with the vegetables, let it come to a boil and then pour it into a baking dish. Cover with the rice, spread some cheese on top and bake for ten to fifteen minutes until the cheese has melted.
December 15:
I did the ten minute meditation. And realized I'm not really the meditating kind. Pretty much the whole time I was like, "how much longer is this going to take? I have stuff to do. Oh, wow this is boring." (Ten minutes are super long when you're not doing anything!)
December 16:
I played with a pet, specifically the two dogs. Nala especially likes to play tug-of-war. One of her favourite toys is a (by now pretty frayed and icky) twisted rope. Zoya usually only joins in when she's feeling left out.
December 17:
I watched the Lion's Breath video. I did feel a little silly doing it, but there wasn't anyone around to see. Yoga - not really my thing.
December 18:
I again watched the video. I remember watching this last year and it was still awesome. When I watched it the first time I thought the mom was dead but this time I knew she wasn't which made it less sad and more heart-warming.
December 19:
a. Did some meal prep - I like to buy vegetables and meat in bulk, then spend an evening cutting everything up and freezing it. That way you always have a pre-cut onion or whatever you need. Same with meat - some of it I slice up and marinate, some I use to make schnitzel, some I form into burger patties. It saves a lot of time during the week when you have to cook after you get home from work.
b. I also told a silly joke to my sister-in-law (who was sick). I told it here in this comment - but it's in German.
December 20:
I listened to some soft music. I was finishing some gifts for the Land of Art Secret Santa and put on an easy listening playlist on YouTube.
December 21:
I took a nap with the dogs when I got home from work.
December 22:
I watched the sunset with a cup of tea in my hand. I was going for the sunrise, but it was cloudy and rainy so that didn't work out. I did clear up by four o'clock so I could watch the sunset from my window at work.
December 23:
I taught the dogs a "trick" - I taught them to hold still while I put silly headbands on them. :D
(I don't know why they rotated on upload. Just... tilt your head.)
Nala does hold still, but she doesn't move at all and just sits there with a hangdog expression.
Zoya holds still for like 0.5 seconds before shaking it off. The above is the only pic that didn't come out blurry.
December 24:
Our traditional Christmas Eve dinner is potato salad, and because it's Christmas I used fresh parsley.
December 25:
a. I complimented my Grandmother on her outfit - she hasn't been able to go out except to the doctor all year, so she took the chance to dress up for our visit.
b. My mother has a foot bath that I borrowed. It has an extra massage function, so that was nice.
December 26:
I watched the video. The best scene was toothless sketching Hiccup in the sand. But the whole thing was hilarious. Kinda makes me sad I can't actually see the whole movie.
December 27:
I did the 20 minutes of reading. Fanfic, but still. (I read a lovely Pride & Prejudice fanfic told from Mrs. Reynolds' POV (link - it took more than 20 minutes, I don't think that's a bad thing.)
December 28:
Nothing again.
December 29:
I made a string snowball. Well. It didn't go quite as planned.
First off, I only found one single balloon, so I only had one chance. I also located my tacky glue and a disposable cup and some white cotton yarn. I blew up the balloon, covered it in the yarn and then brushed a water + glue mix all over it to get it to hold together. Then I let it dry. It wasn't dry by evening, so I had to let it sit over night.
It was dry the next morning, but trying to get the balloon out was... not working. Basically, I had made several mistakes: I blew the balloon up too large so I couldn't really reach inside to pry the balloon loose from the yarn before popping it. I also used way too much yarn. And when I finally got impatient and just popped the balloon, half the yarn pulled into the middle with it. /o\ But the outer layer kept its shape so I carefully pried the balloon loose, cut some of the inner yarn away and voila: snowball.
It looks so blue, even though I used a multicolour string of lights.
December 30:
I did a chore without being asked. It's kind of cheating because nobody asks me to do chores - if I want the dishes to be clean, I have to clean them. But still, I did chores. Without being asked. Sometimes you gotta take the easy win.
December 31:
I did the easy exercises. They were easy, but the video wasn't really my thing because it made me feel like I'm five. Which I'm not.
