A long update

Circumstances being what they are, I haven't really had the time to update my blog in the past two weeks. I will try to summarize what has happened and hit the high points for my readers.
I got a flu shot on the 17th which caused my arm to hurt quite a bit. On Friday night, the 17th of November, Roberts and Lowe women alike met to help Alison with the Festival of the Trees project. We cut, sewed, and frayed stars. There was good food, good conversation, and two adorable babies to entertain us so the time quickly sped by. The next day I worked from 9:30 to 3 pm, then went to a late lunch with Ryan and John. I went home exhausted with flu-like symptoms. Sidney and Wyatt came over to have fun with their Grandma and Poppy. I spent most of the time upstairs trying to shake the flu-like symptoms caused by the flu shot I had received the day before. I did come downstairs in time to see Wyatt taking a bath in the sink. What a funny boy! On Sunday morning I felt even worse and did not go to church. I slept quite a bit but still managed to get a paper written for my History of Christianity class.
Work and school followed for the next two days. On Wednesday, the 22nd, I was awakened by my darling niece who showed me the hole in her smile since she had lost a tooth. I had breakfast with Mom, Dad, Sid, and Wyatt, then went to school for one class. (My other two had been canceled but Dr. Francis would not relent on his grilling class schedule.) After a rousing class in which donuts were served, I returned home to help with my niece and nephew and clean the upstairs bathroom. Jen and Lauren came out to help with the Thanksgiving preparations and a good time was had by all. I ended up watching two episodes of an interesting show called Numb3rs and cleaning up the basement in anticipation of Aunt Renee and cousin Mark's arrival.
On Thanksgiving the following people came over to eat: Grandma and Grandpa Roberts, Jen, John, Lauren, Josh, Brooke, Uncle Mike, Renee, Mark, Timothy, Roxanne, Doug, John D., Jen D., Jason, Jacob, Emily, Michael, Ethan, RJ, Nathan, Diane, Larry, Amy, Sarah, Nancy, Jordan, Alison, and Isaac. Jeremy, Britnie, Sidney, and Wyatt came over later. We had three turkeys and a ham along with some other great food. Three tables of people made for fun madness. We ate, talked, and then ate some more. After 3 pm, we had a baby shower for Brooke. Jen and I went together on a gift of books and baby blankets. By nightfall, the aunts were in the living room talking while Brooke, Josh, Alison, Sarah, Amy, and I played a game. It was fun. Amy and I were crushed by the other two teams. (It is nice to be humbled every once and a while :) Jordan and Dad went to see Grandma, who seemed to be better and appreciated the Thanksgiving feast they brought her.
On Friday morning, Dad and I went to the temple. Afterwards we went to see Grandma. When entering Grandma's room, a person is required to put on gloves and wear a face mask. Her cough is still horrible but the pneumonia seems to be getting better. After we went home, I headed off the Alison's house to babysit Isaac while she worked on the tree skirt for the Festival of Trees. Isaac had just gone down for a nap so I studied for a while. I finally decided to take a nap myself when Alison's parents arrived. Her dad played with Isaac while the two ladies sewed. I then took a nap only to be awakened by my mother and Aunt Renee stopping by. All in all, I am not sure how much sleep I got. When Alison and her dad left to buy wood for the signs, I took over playing with Isaac. What a darling baby. I helped introduce him to the blanket buddy that Grandma Roberts made for him. It is a bunny. He seemed to like it once he realized that it couldn't hurt him and that he could eat the ears. After putting him down for a nap, I helped Alison and Pat finish the tree skirt and then headed home to get ready for a night out. Ryan and I ended up at Mikey's house where we watched the end of the Jazz game and then hung out for the rest of the night. Once in a while it is nice to just hang out at someone's home and watch movie previews, listen to music, and talk.
On Saturday I was awakened by my mother telling me about a job that Aunt Diane had seen on the Provo Library website. I decided to apply for it because it pays more than my current job and it would be a nice change. I finished the book I was reading, 84, Charing Cross Road, and took a shower. Later that night I went to dinner with Jen Evans and her friend Erin, who seems really nice. We ate at Mimi's Cafe and had fun talking about life, men, traveling, school, and other interesting topics. We then went to the theater to see Stranger than Fiction, which I would highly recommend. Will Ferrell isn't his usual goofball self, Emma Thompson is brilliant as a tortured writer, Maggie Gyllenhaal is great as an angry baker, and Dustin Hoffman is the typical odd literature professor. It follows the life of Harold Crick, an IRS agent who begins to hear a narrator speak about his life. I won't ruin any more of the movie for those who plan to see it. I would give it 4 stars out of 5. Since there are only about 15 movies ever made that get a 5, that is pretty good. As a person who occasionally writes short stories, the idea that a character from my story could be walking around is amazing. Anyway, I got home about 12:30 pm but couldn't get to sleep until about 3 am. Cursed insomnia :(
Today I went to school and work. School was fairly uneventful. I got a paper back that my Victorian Lit teacher wants me to re-write. Grrr. In my History of Christianity class we discussed the beginning of the Baptists and Quakers in the 1600's. Good stuff. Mom took the day off to help Alison decorate for the Festival of the Trees which is this week. I included a picture that Mom took with some of the background blacked out. The stuff in the background was very distracting and I wanted to have the phocus be the tree. Alison, Emily (her sister), Aunt Diane, and Mom were the decorators. The theme of the tree is taken from a poem by Robert Frost. Tonight, work was completely crazy. Mondays after holidays are always insane. I guess I should try to go to bed now.