Blogmas Bonus! Winter Pine Handcrafted Soap!

I've decided that I like the word handcrafted over handmade. So that's what I'm going to go with!
This soap was fun from start to finish and I love how the final scent turned out! Unfortunately this was one of those soaps that I let cook a little too much, so it has quite a few bubbles throughout. Live and learn!

Blogmas - December 6: Standstill

Instead of another no picture post here's our Christmas tree!

Today I spent my morning texting M until he boarded his final flight. He's still in the air as far as I know. I don't know when I'll next hear from him, but this was to be expected. Doesn't mean it's any less hard, lol. I dealt with lots of grogginess as I was up in the middle of the night texting him while he waited for that final flight. Sometimes I start to think about how I'm supposed to be on that flight with him and I get upset at the situation all over again (seriously, how hard would it have been to send that email sooner??) but I'm trying to stay positive. It's just frustrating that I essentially have to put my life on hold for this. I was supposed to get a job and we were supposed to be getting settled into our new living arrangements and begin to explore this new world together. Instead we're stuck waiting until... well, I don't know when. All we've been given is very, very large time frames for when this could possibly get resolved. As my parents and everyone around me is saying, "Welcome to the Army." Bah. Maybe they get away with this because you guys say that instead of making a stink about it.
Sorry, I had to vent. I would be lying if I said I wasn't upset about it, but I'm looking at the positives as well. More time with my family, more time to make soap and experiment (the next time we go out I'm going to pick up some goats milk), more time to decide what I'm taking with me and leaving here.
I tried to go out on the porch and take more pictures of my wax and soap so I would be prepared for any posts I felt like typing up but it was too windy and I could only get pictures of 3 or 4 things before I decided to call it quits.
After that I figured I would finish the Halo 5 campaign. I'm sitting down and typing this after I've had about 30 minutes to think on the ending, and I'm still not sure if I liked it. My first feeling was of disappointment. Regardless of any story arcs or surprise villains there wasn't really a good ending. I played through what felt like a very good buildup only to have what could have been an amazing ending snatched away. I'm not even willing to give the campaign a second playthrough to fill out my understanding of the story more. I'll get the same disappointing ending regardless. The second team we were playing (or I suppose main, as Master Chief was a side character/team) was lackluster. The only reason I cared about them was because of Nathan Fillion's character and all the sass that actor brings to the table.

On the bright side I did get in an order from Brambleberry. I had to restock on some secondary soaping oils and picked up some extra bits and pieces that will help me in making better soaps. I almost picked up a SMT and Rosegirls destash from a Facebook group but I talked myself down from it. If it's still there in the morning, though, I may end up caving. Especially since I had to defer my Glitterati order since Janine was unable to guarantee a timeline for my potential order to arrive. In my head she could have just prioritized my order first but I understand she needs to be as impartial as possible. I'm also grumpy and stuck in a 'woe is me, the world revolves around me' mood. I'll just have to wait longer for it. Assuming she can even send it to my new address, whenever that happens.

I feel like today was an all around bad day. lol. Humor me complaining though, as I find it somewhat cathartic since I can't talk to my best friend about it.

How has your day gone?

Blogmas Bonus! Lavender Handmade Soap!

I made this soap on November 20th for my Mom, who is an insane lavender fan. Besides some crumbling and acceleration issues I had this was a really fun soap to make!

Blogmas - December 5: Til Next We Meet

Today was a rather emotional day for me. I didn't outright cry but there were times when I thought I might. It was frustrating me. I don't like being emotional for no reason. I'm going to see M again, it's not the end of the world!
We spent all morning playing video games. What a shocker :). We continued playing through the Halo series and finally got to Halo 5 today. We're about half way through it. Couldn't finish it, though, because M needed to get the last of his stuff together and packed up. It took longer than I thought it would because he had to repack a few bags and shower.
M cooked his last meal, a mixture of chicken and red beans and rice. It was delicious. After that I drove him in to the airport where we met up with some of his immediate family. There were no lines for the security checkpoint so he got to stick around a little bit longer. When he finally went in I had some difficulties with getting to the right shuttle to take me to the right parking lot. It was a combination of me not paying attention and lack of detailed signage. Mostly me, though.
That was really all for today. My Dad built a fire in the fire bit and my siblings and him and I spent a few hours sitting around it being silly and telling funny stories. Now I'm typing this up as my siblings prepare a multiplayer game of Halo for the three of us to play together, just like the good ol' days of 5+ years ago.
A pretty boring day all in all, but I still wanted to keep up with Blogmas.

I did get in a Bath and Body Works order thanks to Deb's reminder about the candle sale. I had completely forgotten about it until I read her post!

Are you missing any family right now? Know anyone that might have to spend Christmas all by their lonesome?

Blogmas Bonus! Essential Depot Mini-Haul

Ooooh, aaaah, marvel at these shiny bottles!
As I mentioned here, Essential Depot had a crazy Black Friday sale that lasted most of November where they were offering 75% off of their fragrance and essential oils. It was hard to get one really good order in as things went in and out of stock like crazy. After casually stalking the website for a few weeks, there was finally a day where I picked up my must have's and then some. If I'd known I would be staying in the States longer than expected I would have picked up a lot more, but I'm still happy with what I got.

Blogmas - December 4: Loose Ends

Today M and I finished up the last of the porch painting and with my Dad's help replaced the broken bits. After that I helped M round up all of his clothes and items and get packed up for tomorrow. We also did one last load of some laundry for him.
After that we went to the Verizon store and suspended our account with them. There I learned that our phones are unlocked, which means we can use them where we're going even if we're not with Verizon. Cool! At the very least I can keep using the phone for its wi-fi accessibility after the service shuts off.
We picked up some Papa Murphy's on the way back and that's what we've had for food all day. I've still been feeling under the weather so I didn't have very much.
While we were eating we watched American Ultra. I was pleasantly surprised at how good it was.
Besides that M and I have just been enjoying eachother's company. We played some Halo and sat together while eating. It made me a bit sad to realize that we waited until we found out we would be separated for up to two months to start appreciating eachother again. Then I thought about it and realized it's human nature. Besides, we were prioritizing time with other family because we thought we would be leaving the states together.
We'll probably spend the rest of the night playing video games and do the same tomorrow until he has to leave. Maybe build a fire in the fire pit if it's cold enough.
In any case, my December has managed to be more eventful than my November, and it's barely started.

How busy has this month turned out to be for you?

Blogmas Bonus! Lavender Cotton Candy Handmade Soap!

I made this soap some time in September. I can't currently find my soapmaking sheets from my time in Georgia. As a result, most of my earlier soaps will have to be done by memory.

Blogmas - December 3rd: Painting

See the upstairs porch railings? Multiply that by 2.5 (the back porch is slightly larger) and that's about how much we had to paint/stain today! We being M and I.
This had been something that we had told Mom and Dad that we were going to do since we first got here. Seeing as M's getting ready to fly out, we figured we should finally get around to it. We did most of the work today, leaving a little touch up work that I can do over the next several weeks while I'm still stuck in the States.
Today we found out that American Airlines is awfully rude when you ask for clarification on their military flights policy, and we are currently out $130 for a plane ride that I will not be able to take. So far the passport agency's blunder has cost us over $250 extra. By the end of this... eh, I don't want to think about it. On the bright side I get a lot longer with my family! :) On the downside M will very likely be spending Christmas by himself. I already had myself a crying fit over how unfair and ridiculous it is that the passport people did not get in contact with us sooner so we could get this all worked out.
We spent at least 9 hours total today working on those darn porches. There was a break for breakfast (eggs) and lunch (goulash) but after lunch we worked until about 6 in the evening. Meanwhile my Dad did some work cutting the bushes and trimming the trees on the back right of this picture. The day went by pretty fast all things considered. Tomorrow we have to replace a few spokes (is that even what you call them?) to the porch fence, as the old ones became so warped they snapped. My hands are still covered in dry paint no matter how many times I've washed them.
We rounded out the end of the day with some Halo: Master Chief Collection multiplayer madness between my brother, M and I. M's talking about picking up an Xbox One and Halo 5 so him and I can play Halo 5 together while we're waiting for everything on my end to be settled. I'm inclined to go with these plans. We've been wanting to pick up our own Xbone for a while anyway.
Now I'm getting ready for bed and possibly sleeping in tomorrow. We'll see how my body feels about that.

Have you had to deal with American Airlines before? Is it always this tedious keeping up with several acres of land and an aging house?

Blogmas - December 2nd: Hi Ho! It's Off to Work I Go!

No picture today. I never got to take a picture, and as I'm typing this on my phone I doubt the post will be long enough for one anyway :)

Blogmas - December 1st: Sick Days

I made the mistake of waiting until the end of the day to finally put together this post. I had so much I wanted to talk about and show you guys. Now I'm just sitting here with flushed cheeks, a sore throat & horrid cough, and congested head. I've been sick since Thanksgiving, but today just took the cake. I'd been at least functional until about 30 minutes ago, where everything seemed to hit me at once and exhaustion set in. Not to mention my headache that is brewing at my temple. I'll try my best to make this a worthy post, though. I kept telling myself that no matter what I was going to start Blogmas on time. I may have some gaps in posting when (if) we fly out, but that's a whole other story. My point is, I'm all drugged up and the side effects are kicking in. I apologize for any weird phrasing/typos ahead of time.