Key learnings, food comas and holiday shopping

I still am full from Thanksgiving. Is that even possible? Although, I did eat more in 24 hours than I normally do in a week, so that's probably why I feel like a beached whale. But it's the holidays, so it's time to get the elastic waist pants on and relax.

And here are some of the key learnings I experienced this holiday weekend. I do love going home to enjoy the non-city way of life :)

Key Learnings:

• In Wisconsin, Packer gear and Virginia Slims are frequently seen accessories

• It's okay to nap between Thanksgiving dinners when you have more than one in a single day

• Pushing shoppers to get to the last Gap thermal long sleeve shirt in your size is okay

• When starving while shopping, it's acceptable to hit the free Ghiradelli samples more than once (saves money)

• Booze is a requirement at Thanksgiving. No booze means people are less uninhibited and conversation can be more forced

• Driving is a lot of fun, especially when you don't have a car in the city

• Squirrels are evil

• My neighborhood is like an episode of Animal Planet. Possums walking down the street and fat squirrels, oh my!

• Putting cooked food outside overnight is equivalent to putting it in the refrigerator, except animals can move around it

• Staying with your parents is not like living alone in a bigger apartment. Close the bathroom door when it's in use and cover yourself up more

• Whenever I go home, I will never get to relax right away. Within 10 minutes of arriving at home, I always hear "Jess time to do chores, put your shoes on"

Overall, my four-day weekend was a mix of productivity and relaxation. As I mentioned earlier, I have two Thanksgivings in one day. I go visit my grandparents around noon and then have dinner with my dad and stepmom in the evening. Thanks to some pre-holiday overeating and stomach stretching, the second meal wasn't too bad, but two big meals in one day, is a lot for me to handle. It's so good but doesn't feel so good when your stomach is totally overfed.

Fortunately, grandma did not insult me this year. Rather, she said I'm very pretty, which is sweet. Things at my evening Thanksgiving got a little ugly, with the traditional family fighting, which lead to me hiding out upstairs watching a movie with my piece of pie. Some things never change.

The rest of my four-day relaxing weekend was focused on getting my Christmas list all ready for dad (including links to specific items and style numbers, if appropriate) and getting ideas for people on my list this year. I have gift ideas for just about half the people on my list, but I have not found a gift for everyone just yet. 

Of course, my shopping bug from Friday hasn't deteriorated and with deals like, "buy one, get one 50 percent off," I'm more than supporting the economy. But I'm ready to stop focusing on me and getting gifts checked off my list. I think once the list is filled in, I need a day off to knock everything out. Once I get started, I hate to stop midstream.

Here's a picture of the new berry-colored Coach gloves that I bought on Friday. They are super soft and I really love the color. I will be breaking them out this week!

So how was everyone else's long weekend? I hope everyone travels safe, especially in the Midwest, where we're supposed to get six inches of snow tonight. Ick.