Those Girls on Holiday

AFTER ROUGHLY 6 MONTHS OF night out after night out and hang out after hang out spent mostly with boys or boys who like boys, I got the chance over the holidays to spend time with my girls again! At least most of them.

The short-haired formal-looking one is Lar, Chin is the one laughing so hard so you can't see her eyes or her flute anymore and the one in the Santa hat is Mia, visiting from Boston while on Christmas break.

And of course, like true aging high school friends, we couldn't possibly part that night without cam-whoring. Luckily, I am queen of filtering photos. And good thing our place has an abundance of bare white walls.

Holidays are unfortunately, finally done. But yay to girlfriends!

Me, Lara, Chin and Mia. Photos by Lara Santico, December 2010.

Those Holiday Mojitos and Joanna Gleason

IT BEGAN IN THE KITCHEN, where our White House gatherings usually do. Jaime added some holiday into the spirit he is often expected to make by substituting lime with cranberry. Or was it adding?

I couldn't drink anyway so I took photos and folded napkins while waiting. Before we knew it, we were all together again! Chopping, grating, reheating and garnishing, smoking, laughing and talking all at the same time, it felt like we'd never really been apart.

And with a post-dinner/pre-dessert break to watch excerpts from the Sondheim concert DVD, it felt like nothing's really changed.

Holidays are merrier when good friends come home. Welcome back Mike and Mia!

Christmas dinner at the White House, December 2010.