December Holidays: part 1

January 04, 2020

December Holidays: part 1

Well, we did it. We made it through another holiday season. (And this year, neither Levent nor myself got sick. So that's a win). I go through phases where Christmastime really bums me out. That didn't happen this year either. Also a win.

Surprisingly enough, what jumped start me into the holiday spirit was going to the Newton Et Cetera Shop to hunt for more decorations (due to the larger size of our house compared to my old house). I made our living room look way more festive than I usually do and loved it. Of course, doing some holiday baking helped too. (I made old fashion fudge for the first time. (That's where you have to fold the fudge). It was so fun). Moreover, I opted to be more creative and eco-friendly with wrapping gifts this year too. (I used brown craft paper and scraps of fabric for ribbons).

But what probably helped the most was being stressed out at work. What? Yeah, you heard me right. Work has been crazy and since we take about a week and half off for Christmas, I was so ready to get out of here. The fact that it was also Christmastime felt secondary. I was so pumped to go on a road trip with Levent, rest and read, see family, eat yummy things and do all the things in Columbus and Asheville.

We opted to drive this year, which we haven't done for several years. The compromise was that we break up the long stretches (especially for the sake of my back). This was the best decision. Since I was overly pumped for vacation, I did a lot of research and found some really cool lodgings and cafes on our journey.

Overall, it was a great holiday. (Plus the weather was very mild; so it felt like we took a break from winter too) Here is what made it very merry indeed.

Part 1: Journey to Columbus via St Louis

1). We left midday on Dec 18th and headed to St Louis for the night. We grabbed tortas from Mission Tacos and headed to The Cheshire for the night. This is an English style inn where the best part was definitely the lounge. I wanted to hang out on couch by the fire for hours with a good book.

2). On the second day of driving, I decided to try and find a local coffee shop on route to make a pitstop at. Surprisingly enough, I have never done this before. It's way easier to look for Starbucks. This time, we found a very hip coffee shop (despite it's name) right off the interstate in Indy called Kaffeine Coffee. They had all these different kinds of international espresso drinks. I would love to go back here someday.

3). Levent's mom's birthday is on Dec 18. We arrived on the 19th just in time for Shirley's 60th celebration dinner in Columbus at the Boat House Restaurant. The place was basically empty; so it felt like we had rented out the entire place for Shirley's birthday. There was a lovely fireplace and a great view of the skyline. People who live in cities are so lucky.

4). Really, the name of this blog should be, "to all the coffee shops I've loved before." I mostly spend my time on the internet gushing about coffee shops. Well, here's another one. We went on an outing to one of Stauf's coffee locations in Columbus. This one just happened to be an old church that actually used to be where Columbus Mennonite met ironically enough. (CMC meet somewhere else now as parking was a main issue at this old location).

5). Last Christmas, I made a point of starting a list of things I would like to do in Columbus sometime. This year we crossed something off my list by going to the main branch of the Columbus Library, which isn't too far from where the Miller's live. The place was like an art museum mixed with books. It was magical. I did practically all my studying at college in the library. Ever since, libraries have felt like sacred spaces. This one was no exception.

6). Due to unforeseen circumstances, my dearest friends Jille and Lucas are back in the States. While this was unplanned and rather stressful for them, I am grateful that I got another chance to see them this year. And to meet their sweet baby Pax who was only two months old.

7). One evening, Wilbur and Shirley took us out for Lebanese food. We ordered way too much food and feasted. Yum x 1000.

8). And of course, being in the Miller's beautiful old house is one of my favorite things about Christmastime. Unfortunately, this was the last year we'll be celebrating in this space as they are planning on selling this too big house in the spring. It seems like a really smart choice for where my in-laws are in their lives right now but I will really miss this beautiful place. So I made sure to drink in all the Christmas magic I could this time around.