Ultimate Coffee Date: January 2015

Hi everyone! Happy New Year! :] ‘m linking up with Coco @ Got 2 Run 4 Me, Lynda @ Fitness Mom Wine Country, & Deborah @ Confessions of a Mother Runner! for the first Ultimate Coffee Date for 2015! Pull up a chair/bean bag/whatever you like to sit on and come link and/or catch up with us! :] I’m going to be somewhat sappy in this post, so consider this your warning. <3

The Ultimate Coffee Date

If we were having coffee/tea this morning, I’d tell you that…IĀ  feel incredibly blessed for all the amazing people I have in my life. Being away from home and from my family and all my closest friends for the past 4-ish years has been doable (obviously, as I am still here! :P ), but difficult. Not being able to be there for emergencies or happy celebrations is what bothers me most about being away, but at the same time, much as I love my home and everyone in my life over there, I also wouldn’t trade away the last couple years of experiences.

The people I’ve met here are truly some of the most wonderful and genuine people I’ve ever known, and if I’d never come out here, I never would have had the chance to get to know them.

I’ll start off with Christmas Eve! Since I couldn’t go home for the holidays this year, one of the families at my church invited me over for dinner. Truth be told, I really don’t remember the last time I’ve been to a large family gathering. My family is pretty small, and consists of just me, my brother, and my parents. All the hustle and bustle was really fun, and I’m so grateful that they invited me to take part in their family celebrations. <3

 

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If we were having coffee/tea this morning, I’d tell you that…I had no idea that their family tradition was to exchangeĀ  gifts on Christmas Eve! I thought it was just dinner, so I brought over homemade chocolate-filled marshmallows (my friend made them–I haven’t made marshmallows from scratch since about a decade ago. It’s somewhat difficult/tedious to do so when you don’t own a mixer of any kind.). Each of their families got me presents! It was super sweet of them, but I also felt really bad, because I didn’t have anything to give them. ;_;

 

My friend gave me a super thoughtful gift that I’m looking forward to reading. :] It’s filled with daily devotionals written by students, alumni, and faculty of the medical school that’s affiliated with my church!
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My friend’s mom gave me what I refer to as the “box of wonders.”

Said box of wonders contained an apron (she knows I love to cook), a candle that smells like warm sugar cookies, a planner (will help immensely with my organization), thank you cards (since I like writing them for the preceptors/staff I work with while I’m on rotations), and a really pretty shirt!

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His brother’s family gave me super cute pj’s, a super warm and comfy jacket, and fruity shower gel! They guessed my favorite color! :D

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We talked and hung out til around midnight, which is when I figured it might be a good idea for me to start driving back to Lewisburg. :x

If we were having coffee/tea this morning, I’d tell you that…I made it to Lewisburg at around 3:30 a.m. and promptly passed out in the bed in my room at Please Save A Cat. I didn’t emerge until late Christmas morning, and found a post-it note in the kitchen listing the things in the fridge and telling me to help myself to whatever I wanted.

I went out to go take care of the cats, since Linda had been called away to work. They were adorable as always, and it was wonderful getting to spend time with the people (and animals) I adore. <3
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We took a break from work/school/the stresses in life to go to Roanoke the day after Christmas to catch a movie (Unbroken) and eat dinner! :]
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Linda is basically my other mom and one of my best friends out here, so it was lovely getting to celebrate Christmas with her and Scott! Even if Scott threatened to have someone drop a bomb over my section of the house. ;_;

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In his defense, I guess it was somewhat provoked. We could probably do a commercial for Homestead Creamery milk. >_>

We also apparently disagree on the uses of instagram, because I was recently told by one of the kids at church that instagram is for selfies. (What?!) This is definite news to me, and when I brought this up at dinner, Scott agreed and said, “Farrah, you know we love you, but I follow you on instagram to see pictures of YOU, not the food you eat!”

The only time I really ever take selfies is when I have cute animals hanging around me, so I may or may not have also had a camwhore session with Herman, one of my favorites at the shelter. <3

Hermie! <3

He’s a ginormous Norwegian Forest Cat, so he makes a really nice, warm and fluffy cat-scarf. :]

 

 

If we were having coffee/tea this morning, I’d tell you that…I got a care package earlier this week from Rachel! It contains all sorts of awesome goodies from Trader Joe’s (I’m so, so excited about all that tea! <3!!!), and a homemade loaf of pumpkin bread that Jaclyn and her mom made! <3
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  • How did you spend your holidays (if you celebrate)?
  • What do you primarily use instagram for?
  • What’s the last movie you watched?
  • What are some of your favorite things from Trader Joe’s?
  • Are you on Imgur? I wrote a post about Please Save A Cat there. <3!

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30 comments

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    • Ricardo on January 3, 2015 at 12:21 am
    • Reply

    I disagree about the selfies. I take pictures of things I want to share. If I’m in them, great, but if not, it because I really want to show my friends my random adventures/thoughts.

    1. Same here! I just like sharing little pieces of my life on there, although I think I only know about 25 of them in real life, tops. :x As with most social-media-related things, I jumped on the instagram train later than most and kept it private until last year somewhere, haha. :P

  1. That is so great you were able to have such a wonderful Christmas! I love the wonder box idea! I think I don’t even have a single selfie in my instagram account!! I really want to watch Invincible soon…. Have a great weekend!
    Elsie @ Sharing Healthiness recently posted…Doubling What I Donā€™t Want to Miss Out in 2015My Profile

    1. It was! :D I may be adopting that idea in the future–the box was so pretty, and it was cool getting to see different personalized gifts for everyone in em’!

      Hope you have a great weekend as well! :]

  2. So glad that you decided to join us for the coffee date! It’s one of my favorite posts to write and read. Sorry you couldn’t go home to be with your family for christmas but it looks like you had a nice time anyway. It must be really hard to be so far away from your family.Here’s to a happy and healthy New Year!
    Deborah @ Confessions of a Mother Runner recently posted…Ultimate Coffee Date-January 2015My Profile

    1. It’s definitely hard sometimes and I do get homesick, but being friends with such great people really made things a lot better! Thank you, and hope you have a wonderful and healthy new year as well! :]

  3. Happy Saturday!! Looks like you had pretty good holidays despite not getting home!
    Happy New Year
    Laura@Fit Running Mama recently posted…Coffee Talk SaturdayMy Profile

    1. Yes indeed! :D I definitely still missed my family, but it was great getting to spend my holidays with such awesome people!

  4. So glad you had a good Christmas. I never mind inviting people over for the holidays, but sometimes forget to do it – this is a good reminder. And, don’t worry about the gifts, I am sure it was more important to them to give you something than for you to have gifts for them – especially since you didn’t know! I often give to my friends without expecting/wanting something in return – there really is a joy to giving. Thanks for joining the coffee date!
    Coco (@Got2Run4Me) recently posted…The First Ultimate Coffee Date Link Up Of 2015My Profile

    1. That’s true! It was so sweet of them! <3 I don't know if it's just that I'm in a smaller town, but people here and back where my school campus was located seem way more hospitable than what I'd be used to back home.

      I definitely agree about the joy of giving! :D Since we weren't exchanging actual presents this year (all of us were too broke!) I just sent my friends little care packages of homemade goodies instead. :]

  5. Looks like a wonderful holiday! What a fabulous family celebration. I wouldn’t know what to do with a large family either. Mine is small, like yours.

    I love the animals! And, I go back and forth about Instagram – I take pictures of all kinds of things – and not too many selfies – maybe it’s a generational thing?

    Thanks for the coffee date!
    carrie@familyfitnessfood.com recently posted…Ultimate Coffee Date – JanuaryMy Profile

    1. I’m definitely used to much smaller gatherings, but it was a lot of fun! <3

      Same here! Mine is mainly just a compilation of little slices of my life, but I definitely have noticed the younger generation using it for almost-exclusively selfies. (This makes me feel old, but oh well.)

  6. I completely understand how challenging it is being away from family during the holidays. This was my third Christmas away and it was difficult but thanks to Skype, I was able to join the festivities (in a way). I am not a fan of selfies (period). I used instagram just to capture whatever randomness I feel like sharing. Did you enjoy Unbroken? The BF and I are going to see Hunger Games: Mockingjay this morning.

    1. Skype and technology in general have definitely made it a lot easier in terms of being far away. :] I’m so glad it exists!

      I’m not either. :[ I feel like it’s incredibly narcissistic, but I do admit to major camwhoring whenever I have cute animals hanging around or on me. :D I like using instagram to share little pieces of my life, which usually revolves around food. :]

      Unbroken was a great movie! Incredibly inspiring, although at times, it was unsettling to watch. I still need to go see Mockingjay!

  7. Looks like a wonderful holiday was had! I’m ehhh with selfies. I’m sure I should take some more.
    Enjoy your holiday season!
    Nadine Renee recently posted…Heal Arthritis Pain With This One Drink!My Profile

    1. I’m bad with taking em’ unless cute animals are involved! :P Have a very happy new year! :]

  8. Great idea on the theme! Love it!

    1. Thank you! Hope you have a great weekend!

  9. Add me to the old crowd who does other pictures more than selfies LOL.

    Sounds like you had a lovely holiday despite being away from family.

    Happy New Year!
    MCM Mama recently posted…Let’s have some coffee…My Profile

    1. I’d rather be part of the old crowd! Who wants to see 536 pictures of me looking pretty much the same every day anyway? :o

      Happe New Year to you as well! :]

  10. Love all the food!! Thank you for sharing :) Happy 2015!!
    Nancy recently posted…Queen in 2015!!My Profile

    1. Thank you, and happy 2015 to you as well! :D

  11. tough not to be home for Christmas but sounds like you had a wonderful time with your new friends! It’s nice when life changes ad God puts people in your path to take over and carry your over! has to make you smile! Happy New Year!
    Mary Beth Jackson recently posted…January Ultimate Coffee DateMy Profile

    1. I really did! It was so nice of them, and I’m definitely super grateful for the awesome people He puts in my life! :]!

  12. All of these pictures made my day! Happy 2015!
    Tiffany @ The Chi-Athlete recently posted…Country-Fried Chicken Pizza.My Profile

    1. Thanks! :D Happy 2015 to you too, and I hope you enjoy your Sunday!

  13. It sounds like you had a wonderful Holiday and I love and want the cat in the picture. I also liked all the dogs. You did get some awesome presents. I did not know Instagram was for selfies so I learned something new today. Have a nice week.

    1. Thanks! I adore them too! <3 I try to go back to visit whenever possible. :]!

      haha, I still like to believe it's not, because I'd much rather share pictures of food and cute animals instead! :P

    • HornBrain on January 6, 2015 at 2:15 am
    • Reply

    Yay! Glad the package arrived ok! Happy eating!

    1. It dwindles by the day, and I super-love the tea! Thanks so much again! <3!!!

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