Thursday 12 September 2013

Christmas lights, 2024

Round 15: December 2024


Sam Cooper is 46, Grace is 41, Madelyn and Ross are 13 and James is 8.
(Jeremy is 13.)



Narrated by Madelyn Cooper.

We're on Christmas break from school now which means we get to hang out more with our friends who are not from our school. Julia is Riley's girlfriend but Georgina is up for grabs. I've been sort of trying to push Ross and her together but it's just not happening.

I asked why he wasn't interested in her and he just said she wasn't his type. I don't know what exactly is his type because while the girls seem to like him he never likes them back. Not really.

Our family's not big on Christmas celebrations but we do have turkey for dinner. Dad usually cooks any special dinners because he says he's used to cooking for larger groups. We don't eat as much as the soldiers in his platoon though!

It's a real no fuss kind of Christmas Eve dinner - just the way I like it. Sometimes we have family over on New Year's Eve but Christmas eve is reserved for just us five.

We exchange gifts after dinner. This year mom and dad bought us something a bit more expensive which was nice although it's not the most important thing. James got a remote control car and we've barely seen him since that because he's always playing around the house with it.

I got a telescope which was something I had wished for but didn't even dare to dream to actually get one.

Ross got a game console and we've been staying up late playing.

Mom takes advantage of the few vacation days she has - by working on some medical articles. If I ever need a strong role model of a working mom then I don't have to look far. Mom was recently promoted to a surgeon and she's also the head of the ER. Her goal is to become Chief of Staff someday and I have no doubt about it - she will do it.

Oscar's been mainly my dog ever since we got him but he's kind of grown on to everyone else as well. When we first got him dad said he wouldn't take any part in taking care of the dog. But now he's more than happy to give the dog a bath. I think it's the authority in his voice that makes Oscar behave so well because he usually escapes at least once when I try to wash him.

Oscar's bed is in the third floor - in the kids' quarters as mom calls it - and we switch it from room to room. Ross was looking like he was in a bad - or maybe more like sad - mood so I didn't even fight with him when he said he would take Oscar's bed to his room.

Our friend Jeremy was visiting his uncle in the city on Boxing Day and he came by to see us too. Jeremy's nice and kind of cute but he's... Jeremy. I've known him since pre-school and I just don't see him as boyfriend material. He did give me my first kiss at school during recess once but it was like kissing my brother - not that I would kiss my brother like that but still.

We were mocking about like we always do when Ross came outside.

He just stood there with a strange look on his face and didn't say a word even though we were trying to include him in our conversation.

Then he just walked back inside without saying a word.

I'm not stupid. I know there's something going on but I guess he's not ready to talk about it. I could pester him about it but I know how stubborn he can be so I might as well just shut up.

I did ask him if he was upset at me or Jeremy about something but he just said that everything's fine.

"You know you can tell me anything and I won't tell anyone" I said.

I saw in his eyes that he wanted to say something but then he just shook his head and said he has nothing to say. Boys!


Notes:
  • Title reference: Christmas lights by Coldplay - the official soundtrack for Christmas in Wellington. 
  • The end of Round 15! The round summary will be up later today and I will start updating the profiles for a new year as well.
  • I'm sorry that the Christmas update isn't quite christmasy. To be honest I was too lazy to decorate the house or organize a lavish party LOL.
  • I will get back to what's bothering Ross in future updates. I've done the schedule for Round 16 (it will be up very soon) and the high school update is scheduled for January. I might move it down for later though because I really want to build a new high school first.

6 comments:

  1. Hmm, I have a guess what's going on with Ross, but I can't wait to see if I'm right or not. I like quiet family holidays too, less fuss.

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    1. I have a guess about what you're guessing, lol. We'll find out if you were right sooner or later.

      It's the kind of Christmas I like too, just spending time with the family without any pressures of having a "perfect Christmas".

      Thanks for reading. :)

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  2. I too have an idea of what's bothering Ross :) I'm looking forward to their next update!

    You're right about the update not being much Christmassy, but it's nice as it is! Not every family like all the fuss around Christmas.

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    1. I guess I left quite a lot of hints as to what's bothering Ross. It will probably be a loooong time before I play this household again but I'll address the issue in other updates.

      I think this kind of Christmas suits this family quite well. Sam's a no nonsense kind of guy and Grace has a demanding job so she doesn't have the time or energy to focus too much on Christmas decorations etc.

      Thanks for reading. :)

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  3. Heh, I also have a guess about Ross and it's probably not too much of a task to figure out what that guess might be! But whether I'm right or not, he obviously has something on his mind and I hope he can find someone to talk to about it eventually.

    I had to go and check Madelyn's LTW when she was admiring her mum's work ethic. I like that she's going into a similar sort of field (assuming you do stick her in Science, that is). She clearly looks up to her mum and is a very proud daughter.

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    Replies
    1. I can guess what you're guessing! And you're probably right. ;) I really hope he finds someone to talk to, it's not good to keep things inside too long.

      I think having Grace as a role model will most likely steer Madelyn into a career in the science world. She's kind of a serious introvert at heart so research would be a natural choice for her. But then again she still has several years before she has to decide so we'll see.

      Thanks for reading. :)

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