Christmas was a little different this year. Group gatherings are still discouraged because of Covid so Grandma and Grandpa didn’t hold their usual Christmas Eve party with the entire family.
The extended family is split on how everyone feels about masks and gatherings, so we had a Christmas gathering for those that were comfortable. We were comfortable since we had Covid in Nov, and Brenda and Mindy fall into the we-are-so-done-with-masks category.
It was so nice to see them and their families. I’m feeling like we are starting to head back towards normalcy! It’s about dang time!!! Having Covid was such a blessing to us, we've been able to celebrate the holidays this year without worrying about it!
No masks!!! And feeling so free 😂
On Christmas Eve, Grandma and Grandpa felt okay having us (since we already had Covid) and Brooke’s family over to have our traditional Danish Christmas. Mostly they wanted their young grandkids to not miss the Julenissa.
Usually the bed is surrounded by shoes and we can’t fit everyone in the room, but this year was kind of nice to have the smaller numbers and not feel on top of each other. It was a memorable year for sure! But we definitely missed the rest of the family and having the usual Christmas chaos.
The Julenissa brought Cherry Hill passes for the family again!!! Yay! 💦 🍒 💕
Steve won the whole almond in the rice pudding for the first time!
After Grandma's house, we went home and found William had brought Christmas jammies again.
Then we curled up and watched Home Alone with William.
Christmas morning was as good as ever.
Grandma and Grandpa Dehner sent fun phone cases for the kids to remember their roots.
Aunt Beth sent some fun 3-D glasses that make Christmas lights look like fun Christmas objects. Super fun to drive around with and look at Christmas lights.
Christmas pull aparts for breakfast after opening presents. Yummy!
The kids got some fun things, but they are esp excited for their plane tickets to Arizona to go to Great Wolf Lodge over New Years! The best part, they get to see The Lyons! They are coming to Great Wolf with us!!!
Mike gave me lockers for the kids! I’m so excited! The laundry room needs a remodel and this is the kick start it needs!! More to come when it’s finished!
I keep thinking that because of social media, and everyone's ability to easily see family pictures and stay connected with friends, that Christmas cards are going to die off... Luckily that hasn't happened yet. I love Christmas cards! I leave them up through mid-January because I can't bear to take them down. (The tree comes down right after Christmas though! Once Santa has come, I'm ready to put everything away!)
Here’s a couple of pictures from our stake outdoor nativity. The wards didn’t have the usual Christmas parties, so the stake decided to hold an outdoor nativity with staggered start times. Morgan is in the youth council and got to be an angel. What an angel she is 😇.
The girls loved the live animals. It's neat to see how creative people are during this pandemic with finding ways to safely have these experiences that people really need.
