So, 99% of my life, I would consider myself someone who really couldn’t care less about football. I don’t care about players stats, I don’t care who’s fumbled the ball, I don’t care what team we’re up against this weekend. My dad considers this one of his shortcomings as a father: not managing to pass his love of football on to his eldest child.

But, in that final 1% of my life, when our home team makes it all the way to the Superbowl, giving my city something to get excited about in the midst of dreary February… I can get a little like this:

I feel bad for the people who continue to hate sports even when they give us something to celebrate about. Seattle hasn’t had a major championship win since 1979 – That’s before myself or any of my friends were even born. The Mariners are an embarrassment, we don’t even HAVE the Sonics anymore, and the last time the Seahawks went to the Superbowl we were totally stomped. The past few months (and especially these last few weeks since the Playoffs) have filled Seattle with camaraderie, sportsmanship, team spirit and best of all hope.

I’ve seen more 12th Man flags, more buildings shining blue and green lights, and people walking around jerseys than people in wizard garb at a Harry Potter con. You can help but get involved. It’s infectious.

I might not really care about the game itself, but I can appreciate an exciting event when I see one, and more so an excuse to throw a good party. Which is exactly what my friends and I (and most of the city of Seattle) did yesterday.

We came up with all sorts of silly traditions, such as taking jello shots at kickoff (and then again after halftime) – Justin ended up eating the final 1/3 of a cake he began eating during the Playoffs game, David wore a football helmet during the offensive plays and everyone pretty much sat in the same seats we sat in two weeks ago – there was obviously some sort of good luck vibe going on so we couldn’t mess any of it up.

I know a lot of the country thought yesterdays game was boring, and I understand that. Winning by a landslide is not nearly as thrilling of TV as an evenly matched, down to the wire game. But please just imagine what it felt like for a Seattleite, watching one amazing play after another and just feeling totally awesome about our city. The perpetual underdogs, rising up for a freaking amazing win. I am so proud to be from Seattle right now, I’m proud to have experienced this crazy event, and I am so happy for my friends and family (especially my Dad) who spend so much more time being invested in this team.

Today marks my retreat back to being a non-sports fan, but I enjoyed it while it was happening. I’m happy this made so many people in my city so happy.

I love gettin’ all decked out for Christmas, and this year was so exception. I’ve got green tights from Target, red boors, a black lace skirt and my favorite basic grey sweater. The reindeer earrings were a new addition (love the front and back for each side) as well as the giant candy cane bow. I loved it. I picked both up at Claire’s. The Christmas light necklace is a holiday staple for me… I wear it every single year and bought it at a craft fair when I was young.

The holiday season has been anything but relaxing, but it’s been a lot of fun regardless. First we started off the week with a Christmas game night, which ended in a way no one could have imagined. I had a handful of friends over (most of which are mega Harry Potter nerds) and for old time’s sake, we decided to play Harry Potter trivia. Somehow, the two least knowledgable in Harry Potter managed to abuse the card-stealing mechanic of the game to take home the win. It was a rough night for most other parties involved.

My friends and I celebrate Christmas a few days early with each other, before we all go home for our family Christmasses. I really enjoy having my own tree and a night of present exchanging with my friends. We really are like a little alternative family and I love them all so, so much. Especially when we do dorky things like taking a “Battle Camp Christmas Picture” together:

Then my family got together for a Christmas football game. I don’t normally go to football games (as I’m sure you can tell, sports aren’t really my thing) but my dad has had season tickets for years and really wanted my brother and I to experience the craziness that is a Seahawks game as of late. So I donned what minimal sports gear I owned and headed down to the stadium.

It was, of course, the WORST game of the season and the only home game our team has lost in years, but you can’t deny the environment of a sold out football game is a sight to see.

Then it was nearly time for real Christmas. I made the short journey to my parents’ house and was happy to see our tree all set up just like I remembered it. Our extended family lives all over the place so we don’t usually get to see them for Christmas, which has made for a lot of quiet Christmasses over the years. I don’t really mind it that way. It’s nice to have a couple of days to just spend at home with my parents and my brother.

I got a lot of lovely presents and gave even more away, and now that it’s all over I’m just gearing up for my birthday. 26 will be the first depressing birthday I have (goodbye dad’s healthcare!) so I am making up for it by having a Frozen themed birthday party, just like I’m a kid again. Hopefully it helps, somehow. Also it’s impossible to get any work done at my parent’s house while they’re home, so I’m going to end this blog post here and leave you with this picture I found of my very first ugly sweater.

Merry Christmas everyone, and I hope everyone has fun plans for New Year’s!