Another Christmas has come and gone. I always feel a little bit let down after the buildup and excitement of the holidays (well except for maybe last year when we were in Disney World!) and this year is no exception. But it was a really good break (although with a few hiccups along the way) and I feel recharged coming back to work today.
I was only hoping to be able to take the week between Christmas and New Year’s off this year with the busy schedule of our project, and even that I wasn’t too sure about. In the end though I was able to take off Thursday, December 22nd through Monday, January 2nd so I had a very nice, long time off which I really needed after the hectic December at work.
My vacation started with a busy list of to-dos to get accomplished on Thursday and Friday before hosting Mason Christmas at our house on Christmas Eve. Earlier that week Keith had hurt his back and Colin had the stomach flu so both of the guys in our family were still somewhat out of commission. Still, we soldiered on and finished up the wrapping, Costco shopping, cleaning, yard work, and baking. By Friday night, we were ready!
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| Me and my little baking helpers |
Saturday was a lovely Mason Christmas celebration. Meme and Pop Pop arrived around
1 PM and then Nancy and family arrived around 2. Unfortunately Uncle Bub and Aunt Jenny couldn’t be there but we talked and thought a lot about them, thanks in part to a picture montage Keith made on Amazon of all of the photos of Mason Christmases past. We opened gifts, played with toys, watched some of the Cleveland Browns game, and enjoyed the day together. We ate the traditional Polish Christmas Eve dinner (nothing like introducing Polish customs to a bunch of Masons!) of pierogies, smoked fish (salmon), and clam chowder. We also had brussel sprouts, rolls, and all of the appetizers from earlier in the day. It was very, very nice.
However, after Santa came Keith told me a couple of times before bed how full he was. Sure enough, he was up in the middle of the night with the stomach flu and didn’t get much sleep at all. Poor Keith was a mess on Christmas Day. He was a soldier and got up and stayed awake on Christmas morning for the opening of gifts. Normally I try to string that out as long as possible by taking turns opening and encouraging the kids to play with their gifts in between, serving some food, etc. But this year I rushed the pace a little bit more so that Keith could go back to bed. He spent about 5 hours of the day sleeping. Of all the days to get the stomach flu! Luckily Meme and Pop Pop were there to help me with all of the day’s requirements. All in all, it was a very good day but I was so sorry for Keith and of course we all missed him.
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| Shopkin Lego builders |
We were supposed to go to Indiana
on Monday to see Keith’s family who were all at his parents’ house. We debated back and forth that morning and had decided to go but then we got up and found out that Pop Pop had come down with the bug. We decided to stay put and keep our germs to ourselves and also see if anyone else in the family was going to get hit. So we missed seeing Keith’s brother and sister and kids which was a big bummer. But it was probably for the best. Keith wasn’t feeling 100% yet and the kids were rather worn out from the past 2 days and were reluctant to leave all of their new toys behind! We laid low
on Monday and
Tuesday – the kids played with their presents and I did a little bit of cleaning, running, and shopping (gift wrap for next year!).
On Wednesday morning we left for Grandma and Grandpa’s house. We enjoyed opening gifts with them and then
on Wednesday evening we went over to Uncle Bub and Aunt Jenny’s for pizza and yet more gifts! It was very nice to be able to see them and spend some time at their house.
Thursday we took the kids to Target. They received a gift card and a little bit of cash from Keith’s uncles so they were anxious to spend it. It was fun helping them make their choices and see what they gravitated to. We went out to dinner
on Thursday evening and then
on Friday we were headed back to Dublin!
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| Keith playing Bloxels with Colin once he is feeling better |
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| Grandma's girls |
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| More gifts! |
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| A Hogwart's t-shirt for Colin! |
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| Playing Olaf in Trouble with Grandpa |
On New Year’s Eve we went to our friends’ house for a dinner party with the kids. We watched some of the Buckeye’s game (sorry Buckeyes), ate some great food, and the kids ran around. Colin had asked to try and stay up until midnight this year which Keith and I agreed to let him try (a first for him). We left our friends’ house around 9 PM and while I would have preferred to go to bed earlier, Colin did actually make it until midnight with us! We cracked some noise makers and went to bed after the ball dropped. The next two days were a whirlwind of putting away and organizing kids' toys, taking down the Christmas decorations inside and out, and cleaning the house. And then back to work!
I love Christmas and I love Christmas break. I felt like I got to do everything I wanted to do this holiday season. Next year I'll just order up a germ-free holiday from Santa!
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