My New Cat!

Hi everyone! I hope you all had a good Christmas and a great start to the New Year. As I mentioned in my last post, I celebrated Christmas on January 7th - I meant to post about it, but I got too busy with friends and family. Anyway, I had a very good time and ate lots of traditional foods. 

You'll never guess what my best friend, Xiaofei, got me for Christmas - my very own kitty! His name is Murphy.

Xiaofei volunteers at the animal shelter a lot, which is how she came to adopt this cat for me. He was found wandering around with an injured leg. He was rescued and nursed back to health, but he had no home to go to. Xiaofei thought I would be the perfect owner for him. She's such a good friend! 

Isn't he just adorable? Really, I've never had my very own pet before. My family used to have a golden retriever when I was younger, but since then, I've had no animals to take care of. I have to try and be to best owner I can for Murphy. My mom told me it will take a lot of responsibility but she knows I can do it! 

Do you have a pet? 

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas everyone! Actually, my family doesn't celebrate really Christmas for two more weeks. We celebrate on the Orthodox day of January 7th - this is when most Ethiopians celebrate.

However, we do celebrate a little on December 25. This morning my siblings and I found our stockings filled with candy and small gifts. My little sister, Rahel, still thinks Santa Claus is responsible for leaving them - especially since my parents had an Elf on the Shelf  "visit" her this year. It was very cute.

In my stocking I got some of my favorite treats like chocolate, Laffy Taffy, Sweet Tarts, and Fruit roll ups. I also got a book, some hair accessories, and jewelry. I was so confused when I found earrings in my stocking - my ears aren't pierced. Then Mom told me she was taking Rahel and I to get our ears pierced really soon! I'm so excited but a little nervous too. I'm afraid it will hurt.

Dawit and I made cookies. Mom says we have enough sweets with all the candy we got, but what's Christmas without baked goods? We made sugar cookie stars and chocolate chip gingerbread men. It was delicious!

Merry Christmas to those who are celebrating!

Rainy Days & Christmas Cards

I don't like rainy days. The drab weather brings my spirits down and it always feels like there's nothing to do. Playing outside is not an option, I can't do much playing indoors since Mom likes to rest on rainy days, and my siblings are all busy so I have no one to play board games or watch movies with.  "Now would be a great time to start on your math homework," my older brother teased. He's right, actually, but I'm in no mood to solve fractions.

My mom had a better suggestion. "Why don't you go make a craft?"
I often forget about the big art set my aunt and uncle sent me for my birthday earlier this year. I'm not much of a crafty person - I'm too impatient to take time to make my crafts look good. But, I admit, when I get into it, it's fun.
I shrugged. "What is there to make?"
"You could make some Christmas cards!" Mom replied.

That sounded like a good idea, so I set down to start.

I thought it would be good to start off with the people who sent my art set - Aunt Sahay, Uncle Yosef, Merhawit and baby Mesfin. I drew my best holiday decorations on the inside - including presents, a Santa hat, and the star that led the wise men. The Nativity is very important in Ethiopian Christmas, more so than in America it seems. I also added some snowflakes - even though we rarely see a white Christmas here in the Carolinas. 

When I was finished, I addressed the card to my relatives and added confetti on the front. I slipped it into an envelope and set it aside, ready to continue making more cards. 

Do you make holiday cards for your family and friends? Which holiday do you celebrate?

What do you do on rainy days? I need some more ideas!

Hi!

Hello! Nice to meet you, and I'm glad you found my blog. My name is Mellesse (mell-EE-say), and I love adventuring and exploring. I'm 11 years old and my family comes from Bahir Dar, Ethiopia, but I've been living in the USA my whole life.  We speak mostly Amharic at home, though, and celebrate our culture through food, celebrations, and such.
Unlike a lot of kids my age, I love school! I especially like History and Science. I think being able to learn is such a great opportunity and I'm glad that I get to have an education.
Sorry this post is so short - I've got homework to do! But if you follow this blog, you'll be able to read about many more of my adventures. See you soon!