Keep Calm, Carry On and Ho Ho Ho

 

There's so little I can control this holiday season. No kids can go near Santa (we can take a social distancing pic but that doesn't quite feel right?). No magical train rides around Santa's Village. No holiday parties. No winter concerts at school (and now not even school because of post-Thanksgiving cases, we resume in January). Our cards have gone out late because I ordered them weeks late - we planned on taking the card photo the day I had my appendix surgery. Even the letterboard above met an unfortunate demise-by-child-excitement and was knocked off the wall hours after I took this photo, smashing into several pieces that did not go back together like the Lego santas did. It's just that kind of year. 

What I can do is make the season feel magical at home. We decorated the house inside and out starting the day after Thanksgiving. We set up our Christmas tree and put all the ornaments on. 

The bookshelves are brimming with garlands and festive flourishes. We watch Christmas movies/holiday specials, read a holiday book or listen to Christmas music almost every day. Something that makes the day feel festive when so many of our traditions this year are missing or on hold. 

We made paper stars for the back door. The boys colored some of them before I folded the stars, which came out really cute. We used tracing paper to get the pretty translucent effect on the white ones. 

We put lights up on the front of our house. And the back, because I love the look of color lights on the deck, just for us. It just feels happy and this year we could definitely use as much happy as possible. We had a gorgeous sunset the other night that looked spectacular with the twinkle lights (and yes my tree is leaning, it broke in a nor'easter and leans to the side, it's very 2020 appropriate though).

The kids made gingerbread houses out of graham crackers, school-style, because apparently everyone is making gingerbread houses this year and it's been hard to get a hold of two kits. They didn't mind though - as long as candy is involved! We've also been baking extra this year, the weekly treat making sessions have helped fill the void of our other missing traditions. 

So that's where we are. It's different, but not necessarily a bad thing. Normally in December I'm completely overwhelmed by the number of outings, get-togethers and traditions we do on top of a massive holiday-prep to-do list. And while sometimes the boys make me crazy (and following the isolating pandemic rules make them a bit lonely/crazy/wild), I also love having all the extra time with them this month. There's something very comforting about having them home with me, safe, in a time when things feel so very unsafe. 

It's going to be a long winter. I hope this year has a safe holiday season. Stay home, stay healthy, there's light at the end of the tunnel this spring.