Another holiday is in the books! I love Christmas, but am also kind of glad when it's behind us? Phil feels the same way. If you've read my blog for awhile, you've probably picked up on the fact that we are minimalists/prefer simplicity and Christmas is kind of the antithesis of our lifestyle with all of the excess!! But it was a great holiday all in all. So here is a bullet-point summary of the highs and lows of our holiday.
- I'll start with a low. We had yet another covid scare! I've had a cold since Thanksgiving but it keeps morphing into different viruses, so when I detected yet another change in the virus early last week, I took an at-home rapid antigen test on Wednesday. And it was just slightly positive (a line displays if it's positive and mine was very very faint). So I got a saliva PCR test at a state-run place where appointments aren't necessary. It didn't take long but the wait for my results was awful. I had my test at 11am on Wednesday and got results around 8pm on Thursday. That probably doesn't seem long to some, but we are used to getting results in 12-14 hours from the clinic location where we typically go. But it's hard to get appointments for in-clinic PCR tests so that's why I went to the testing center. So this was my 2nd false positive. I wish the at-home tests were more reliable, but I use them to determine if we need a PCR. I've tested Will twice in the last 2 months and both times his tests were negative, so I know they can be effective. By the time my results came back, I was feeling better so it's just another cold virus.
- On Christmas Eve morning, we FaceTimed with my parents so they could see the boys open the gifts from them. I LOVE my parents' approach to gift-giving. The boys each got 2 presents (and all gifts were from a list of suggestions I gave the grandparents) plus money for their 529 plans. Phil and I get socks and money as well. Paul was excited to have a new puzzle to work on. He loves the planets/space so this was a hit! We worked on it while Will napped that morning.
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| Happy to be outdoors in the fresh air! |
- That evening, we went to Phil's cousin's house. Since my test was negative and I was feeling much better, I felt comfortable going. Everyone was vaccinated/boosted except our 2 kids but Phil's family was comfortable being around our kids.
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| All dressed up for a fun night with family! |
- Santa made an appearance at the gathering! Paul was too shy/terrified to get close, but Will was pretty interested in him!
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| This ball gift Will received was a hit with both boys. |
- On Christmas Day, we had the boys gradually open their presents. My MIL went pretty crazy with the gifts... Paul had 13 presents to open and Will probably had 6? So Paul gradually opened them starting on Christmas Eve and finished opening them on the 26th. He still has 2 gifts to open from his Godparents and the cousin gift exchange. So the crazy number of gifts just affirms our decision to not buy much for our boys. We got Paul a refurbished iPad mini and a PJ Masks-themed car and mask/cape set. Both boys got books from Santa.
So all in all, it was a nice holiday. Both boys got money for their 529 plans and we appreciate the gifts she got the boys. But it's just A LOT. Phil's mom said she will rein in her purchases next year. I don't think she realized how much she had bought until she saw the stack of 13 gifts for Paul... so hopefully next year things will be a little less crazy in the gift department! I am trying to pack away some of the toys received to pull out later this winter.
How was your Christmas? Do you struggle with the excess of the season like we do?
Christmas was good but, like you, I find the influx of stuff a bit overwhelming. We also dealt with some sickness Christmas Eve into Christmas Day, so all-in-all I'm feeling tired and definitely relieved it's over. But I think the kids + my parents (visiting for Christmas) enjoyed the event!!
ReplyDeleteMy parents will be here until Thursday, and then we have a week before the kids go back to school (though I'm doubting schools will open in-person because of Omicron), and I'm hoping to really catch up on sleep and self-care over the week period. I think I was just super run-down and had enough adrenaline to get through Christmas, but am crashing a bit (in a good way), now that it's over.
I'm so glad your PCR test came back negative AND that you were feeling well enough to enjoy the holidays. Both boys look happy and healthy - you certainly deserve a break in the health department after all the viruses lately.
We have that Melissa and Doug space puzzle and it is STILL a hit after years and years of use.
I heard of SO many people getting Covid over the last week or so! It's really crazy. Thankfully, most of those people are vaxxed and had mild cases, but it's still really nuts - I'm starting to suspect Covid will come for ALL of us at some point in time. Ugh. I really need to keep some tests at home, but I didn't think about that until last week and now every place is out of stock.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you ended up being negative for Covid, though, and could enjoy Christmas with your family! I had to laugh at your MIL going overboard with presents - #grandmas. ;) Hopefully, you can do a toy refresh so it doesn't feel like you're being overrun by toys!
I'm already starting to take down my Christmas decorations, ha, and return my apartment back to its normal, minimalist state. As much as I love how cozy and festive my apartment looks during Christmastime, I am usually READY to start packing it all away soon after Christmas.
We have the same bunting suit in purple for my 11 month old. We love it!
ReplyDeleteIt looks wonderful, LIsa! Fun, and family. Can't beat that. I am so relieved your test was negative. That had to be a little scary.
ReplyDeleteIt was just us -- we'll do Christmas with the kids, hopefully in a couple of weeks. I'm with you on the presents. Where did you find the planet puzzle? If there's a link, can you mail me? Carson's into planets too and they both like puzzles! We won't do a lot, for the same reasons. I think we'll get the family a Zoo membership and then things like socks or little stuff. For the boys, a contribution to the college fund for each and one or two toys or books. I am uncomfortable when people give me too much or too elaborate stuff.
What a fun holiday for your boys! Yes, they probably were a little bit spoiled, but if you can't spoil them at Christmas, when can you?! (Have you considered setting aside some of the presents before they notice them and hiding them until a snow day or one of those days when it's 115 degrees and 95% humidity? Or is that an idea that only a child-free person can come up with?)
ReplyDeleteStuff is not really my problem at the holidays - it's food. My husband has a very limited diet and people dropping off cookies and cheese and crackers and other homemade treats is just so challenging because he honestly can't eat it and it probably shouldn't be coming into the house at all. But how do you tell your super kind neighbors that the food is probably going straight into the trash can? It's the thought that counts, but the food waste is staggering! If it's store bought, I can generally donate it to the food library down the street, but homemade treats are SO HARD.
That walk on Christmas Eve morning sounds SO nice!!! I had really wanted to go on a long walk on Christmas morning (my walking game has been horrible lately...and I hate that! I really love it when I walk most days. But with that big swim meet, A's birthday and Xmas, it just hasn't happened. And now I'm kind of "out of the habit"....). But I still had a lot of loose ends to tie up on Christmas Eve- things I normally would have preferred to have done way before. Like we still had to decorate the sugar cookies, I had food prep stuff to do AND I still had a bunch of presents to wrap.
ReplyDeleteWe always have way too many presents. I'm just as guilty of buying too many, and then my mom always goes way overboard for everyone too. It's one of those things that once you sort of start it that way, it's hard to ever reverse?? Like, my kids are used to getting a lot of gifts...and trust me, they LOVE it!! But I actually really do enjoy the whole process, personally, so I don't feel pulled to want to minimize this area. (I know it's a very personal decision! I totally get where you are coming from on this.)
I even intentionally wrap things separately, for example, to have extra things to open. I guess I'm still a kid at heart. haha! It's just fun and exciting to me to open/ give gifts! We tend to go slowly and open them one at a time, each watching what the other person is opening. It's kind of the main focus of our Christmas Eve! But I guess that sounds bad maybe? I don't know. I guess to each their own! We so rarely buy anything for the boys though if it's not a gift! So I usually end up with lots of ideas, plus things they "need"- like Ethan got new soccer shin guards, a new soccer ball, etc. Asher got art supplies, they each got new winter hats, waterproof gloves, etc...and of course some other just for fun stuff, but at least now I probably won't spend a single dime on them "just because" til their birthdays!
Ugh, I am glad it was just a Covid-scare, but what an ordeal to get a test and result. It sounds like you had a pretty nice Christmas, though. Love the picture of you and Will on Santa's knee - hehe :)
ReplyDeleteSince we've celebrated Christmas alone for a few years now, we absolutely have more control over the 'excess' and it's been less over time. Jon and I usually don't exchange gifts at all (or just a small one) and then I get a couple of small things from friends usually and something from Jon's Mom (who just likes to buy us things). My parents - because of the distance - usually gift us some money and that's basically it.