Nelson Family Blog: Christmas in Minnesota 2019.

Just like that, in a blink of an eye, Christmas is over. And this Christmas was especially crazy.

My grandma Elaine ended up passing away on Saturday, December 21st. Just 10 days after finding out Grandma had pancreatic cancer. It went so fast! So, between the funeral and Christmas celebrations, we had to be pretty creative in our travel plans.

John and I figured out pretty quickly that we had to drive separate since he had to come back and work the Thursday and Friday after Christmas, and I had them off for bereavement leave. So, on Christmas Eve, John and the kids headed to Minnesota in the morning. I had to work until noon on Christmas Eve, so I headed out after work and met everyone at Tim and Janel's house at around 3:00pm.

We had a really nice Christmas Eve. There was a lot of good food, lots of wine and beer, a Christmas program, and games. The kids got some gifts and had a blast running around and being crazy. Mom happily took the kids home around 10:00pm, and the rest of us stayed until about 1:00am. Yikes. That was a long day. It was nice to see everyone having a good time and trying to have a normal Christmas celebration.

Christmas Day was a little quieter. It was just my immediate family at mom and dad's house. We had a nice Christmas Dinner, and then let the kids open gifts and go crazy. The rest of the afternoon consisted of playing with some of the new toys, snacking, and just taking it easy. Rachel and Carlos, and John left in the afternoon, and then it was just the kids, my parents, and me. We had a good rest of the holiday, and got everybody to bed a little earlier since the night before was so crazy.

The next day, Thursday, Mom and I went to Mankato with the kids. We spent some time at Rachel's house and let the kids play with toys and burn off some energy. We went to Applebee's for lunch, and then brought the kids to the Children's Museum in Mankato. They had so much fun playing at the museum. We were there for about 3 hours, and they still didn't want to leave. Elliott was being adorable with Elena, he was playing with her and trying to watch out for her. It was so sweet. After the museum, mom watched the kids at Rachel's house while her and I ran to the mall to grab a few things. Finally, we made it back and headed back to the farm with two very tired kids.

Friday was another day at the farm. We stayed busy playing with some of the new Christmas toys and playing some games with the kids. John actually found a way to catch a flight (on a 4 seater plane) to the Redwood Falls Airport. So, at 3:00pm dad took over kids duties to give me and mom a break, so we could go to Redwood Falls and pick up John. We picked him up, and then we headed to Jackpot for a couple beers. It was an interesting choice, but it was pretty fun. It was nice to go out with just mom, without the kids, it just doesn't happen very often. We made it back home in time for supper. Then Ryan came over later, and we played sheephead until 12:30 am. It was a pretty special evening with everyone just enjoying each others company and visiting while playing the card game our grandparents had helped us to learn to play. It was pretty memorable.

On Saturday, things got a little harder. We had Grandma's wake at the funeral home from 4-7pm. It was definitely hard to see her like that, and to basically go through the same thing we had just done 6 weeks earlier with grandpa. This time felt different though. It was a little less sudden, and it was easier to see the positives. Grandma go to be back with Grandpa for Christmas. And she was no longer in pain. It was still hard to see her go, especially for her children, but it was also a little bit of relief for everyone. After the wake, Rachel, Ryan, John, and I spent some time at Ryan's house to have a couple drinks and visit.

Sunday was the funeral. We had it in the afternoon, and it was cold, rainy, and wet. We had an hour wake before the funeral, and then the funeral started at 3:00pm. It was hard, but a beautiful service. We even sang Silent Night Holy Night, which was pretty emotional. The grandchildren were casket bearers again, so that was another hard moment. It was hard to say goodbye, but I am glad she is in a better place. By the time we were done with supper after the funeral, it was dark, and icy, and snow was blowing around, so we decided to wait and leave the next dat. After the funeral, we headed to Grandma and Grandpa's house to open cards, and just share memories in their old house for a while. It was a nice time, and maybe the last time I will ever be in that house, which is hard to believe.

On Monday, we finally packed up and hit the road. I had spent 5 nights at mom and dad's house with the kids. I don't know the last time I spent that much time at their house. It was really nice to have that time together, but I was definitely ready to head home. We had the car packed tight, there was not much room to spare, but we made it. We had a pretty crappy drive home. It took 4 hours, and we drove about 35-40 mph for about half the drive. It sucked. But we were super happy to be home. The kids enjoyed finally being home for a few hours, before Grandma and Grandpa Nelson came and picked them up to bring them to their house. Those kids have had the craziest Christmas break.

It was back to work and normal for John and I yesterday, which was kind of nice. The Christmas Holiday just flew by in all the craziness, and I can't wait for some normal to come back into our lives for a while.

Here are some pictures of our crazy week in Minnesota.