Nelson Family Blog: Christmas Festivities 2020

Jeepers, it's been about 3 weeks since I last blogged. Time is just flying around here, it's hard to believe that Christmas is only 12 days away! Yikes!

A couple weekends ago, we headed out to Jim and Barb's house to celebrate Elliott's birthday. They were finally released from their covid quarantine, so we were able to get together and celebrate. Barb actually did really well with the virus, and ended up getting an antibody infusion which seemed to help to speed up her recovery.

Both kids ended up getting a Christmas-themed hat, and Elliott also got a Pokemon ball game and a hot wheels track. He was one happy little 6 year old. Emma got her big-sister gift which was a play-doh set, and then Barb also bought a large Christmas lego set that everyone had fun building with for a while. It was a fun evening, and the kids really enjoyed it.

Both kids have Advent calendars this year, so that has been a big deal around here for the last 13 days. Every morning, Elliott opens one of his compartments on his Pokemon Advent Calendar. And it's very exciting for him. He has gotten quite a few Pokemon figures, and he is always wondering what he is going to get the next day. Needless to say, it has been a big hit.

Emma has a slime Advent calendar. I really hate this calendar. Emma loves it of course. She has gotten many different colors of slime and then slime add-ins like glitter, foam balls, charms, etc. It's kind of a nightmare though. She has gotten slime on the couch, on her clothes, and pretty much everywhere. I'm tolerating it until Christmas, and then they are going to slowly disappear. She wanted more slime for Christmas, but I said no to that. Slime is really the worst. Note to self, no more slime.

They both also have some cheap chocolate Advent calendars. So, every morning, they eat a piece of chocolate as well. Our children are really suffering this Christmas season.

The coronavirus is really pretty terrible right now. We have about 3,000 people dying per day across the nation, and here is South Dakota we are having about 30 people die a day right now. Luckily, they just approved a vaccine, and they plan to start administering it as soon as tomorrow. But, it's going to be a while before everyone can get the vaccine, and there are many people who don't "trust" the vaccine, so I'm hopeful that it will help, but I guess time will tell. For now, we just have to try to get through these next few months, and then hopefully we can see some sort of normal return. I think everyone is ready to say goodbye to 2020.

The kids are still in school, and they have one week left until Christmas break. For Christmas break, they have a full two weeks off, so they are going to be spending some time with Grandma and Grandpa. I hope that we can get through this week without any issues, and the kids can have a nice relaxing break.

Our weekends have been pretty low-key. With the virus surging right now, it's hard to do much of anything. We have gotten our Christmas shopping done, and just enjoy time at home with kids playing games and hanging out.

This past Wednesday it was 60 degrees outside (yes, on December 9th), so I took the kids to Falls Park right after school, and they loved it. It was so nice outside, and they just enjoyed climbing on rocks and running around. We stayed at the park for about an hour, and then we headed to the Candy Cloud Factory, where the kids got to pick out their favorite cotton candy flavor. They were flying high. After sugaring up, we went downtown to do a mini sculpture walk, and then check out the light outside the Washington Pavillion. It was a pretty special night, and the kids loved it. They did not want to go home when it was time. It was a great way to take advantage of a beautiful December day in South Dakota.

This weekend was pretty tame. We did some shopping yesterday, hit up the gym, and did some typical cleaning yesterday. Today, we had church and Christmas Program practice, so it was a longer day at church. While the kids were practicing, John and I had a lunch date at Chevy's. It was delicious, and so nice to eat out. It probably wasn't the smartest place to be with the virus. but it was a nice little lunch date. In the evening, Jim and Barb stopped by and Jim helped us fix our entry way light and we put in a new thermostat. That was satisfying. We have been complaining about our thermostat for 9 years, and we finally got a new one!! We capped the night with some Fizolis, and now we are getting ready for another week.

The kids are in bed, football is on, and now we are just ready to relax until bedtime. I'm not really ready for another week in the main OR, but I guess I will take it. We are employed, healthy, happy, and it's the Christmas season. I really don't have anything to complain about. Bring on the week! :)