This morning, we had a MAJOR wrench thrown in our holiday plans and it was pretty much the icing on top of the twenty-seven layer cake—if by cake, you mean a never-ending viral loop of ridiculousness and plan-ruining UPHEAVAL.
But.
I’m not ready to talk (read: type) about it, yet.
So I’m gonna bury my head in the sand for a bit and instead share the post I drafted but didn’t post last night before we went to bed.
***
Hellooooo, peeps, and happy early, Mini Christmas!
What is Mini Christmas, you might ask???
Welp.
It’s the early delivery of one present per kiddo (helpfully arranged by our household Scout Elf, Leaf) since Santa knows we’re traveling and just don’t have the room in our car for five of us humans, plus all we need to haul there and back.
Santa (and us parents) knew that one or two of the planned gifts this year were just impossible to pack. So we rallied for a really fun, early celebration, which is something we’ve never done before. Woohoo!
Chica was so excited to receive the video camera she’d kindly requested…
Since the start of this school year, she’s been a member of the 5th grade tech team, which essentially involves tackling the audio/visual components of the daily morning announcements.
Chicklet’s one major Christmas request this year was a virtual reality headset. And lemme just tell ya how entertaining it’s been to watch her—and how terrifying it was to use it myself in a roller coaster simulation, ha.
Little Man’s one major Christmas request was an electric Go Kart, and we—ahem, Santa—found this awesome, streamlined, affordable one (again with the couldnt-have-packed-this-in-the-car).
Though we love, love, LOVE the hustle and bustle of Christmas morning with family, it was oddly nice to give devoted time and attention to just these single gifts per kiddo and the one joint parental gift.
I mean…just look at this adorable little tech station, hehe.
We paused for a late brunch out—a wise decision thanks to these amazing gingerbread donut holes we adore…
And then headed outside upon our return home, for some Go Kart time!!
This Go Kart is really coolio and can do these insane 360 spins that, frankly, are a bit terrifying, ha. So while the kiddos are getting the hang of it, it’s all straight lines and moderate speeds, ha.
And what beautiful weather we had outdoors before it all started to tank.
And, look: our very own videographer. :)
Amidst all the present shenanigans, we made time to wrap up some baking, and watch a few holiday odds and ends together. And, in general, it was another super busy but really solid family day. :)
And never have I ever been more vindicated in our decision to have this early, Mini Christmas than when we did a trial run of packing the car later in the afternoon.
Needless to say, my car just couldn’t cut it and the hubby’s, with slightly more trunk room, was the only solution.
Since the start of this school year, she’s been a member of the 5th grade tech team, which essentially involves tackling the audio/visual components of the daily morning announcements.
She’s loves, loves when it’s her weekly rotation to run the camera.
It was a joy to see how comfortable she was, whipping out her new device and setting it up like an absolute PRO. Hardly any patental involvement needed. She was in a zone. :)
Now, this next item was our one parent gift to all three kiddos: a 4-in-1 table set of pool, foosball, ping-pong, and air hockey. In a perfect world, we’d someday have room for a standard ping-pong table in the playroom, as it’s something the whole family could enjoy, but in the meantime, this was a HUGE hit with the kiddos.
Now, this next item was our one parent gift to all three kiddos: a 4-in-1 table set of pool, foosball, ping-pong, and air hockey. In a perfect world, we’d someday have room for a standard ping-pong table in the playroom, as it’s something the whole family could enjoy, but in the meantime, this was a HUGE hit with the kiddos.
Chicklet’s one major Christmas request this year was a virtual reality headset. And lemme just tell ya how entertaining it’s been to watch her—and how terrifying it was to use it myself in a roller coaster simulation, ha.
Little Man’s one major Christmas request was an electric Go Kart, and we—ahem, Santa—found this awesome, streamlined, affordable one (again with the couldnt-have-packed-this-in-the-car).
Though we love, love, LOVE the hustle and bustle of Christmas morning with family, it was oddly nice to give devoted time and attention to just these single gifts per kiddo and the one joint parental gift.
And it made for a really jolly day. :)
Lots and lots of time spent getting acclimated with the gifts…
Then we also let the kiddos open a couple of other presents from extended family (again with the space saving). These particular gifts were chosen for early opening because they’ll be helpful for car travel.
Lots and lots of time spent getting acclimated with the gifts…
Then we also let the kiddos open a couple of other presents from extended family (again with the space saving). These particular gifts were chosen for early opening because they’ll be helpful for car travel.
They each received a book light (woohoo!), and a wireless keyboard. :)
Chica and Little Man, in particular, are constantly typing stories on their iPads, and keyboards make that process SO much easier. And Chicklet LOVES to set herself up with an “office.”
Chica and Little Man, in particular, are constantly typing stories on their iPads, and keyboards make that process SO much easier. And Chicklet LOVES to set herself up with an “office.”
I mean…just look at this adorable little tech station, hehe.
We paused for a late brunch out—a wise decision thanks to these amazing gingerbread donut holes we adore…
And then headed outside upon our return home, for some Go Kart time!!
This Go Kart is really coolio and can do these insane 360 spins that, frankly, are a bit terrifying, ha. So while the kiddos are getting the hang of it, it’s all straight lines and moderate speeds, ha.
And what beautiful weather we had outdoors before it all started to tank.
And, look: our very own videographer. :)
Amidst all the present shenanigans, we made time to wrap up some baking, and watch a few holiday odds and ends together. And, in general, it was another super busy but really solid family day. :)
And never have I ever been more vindicated in our decision to have this early, Mini Christmas than when we did a trial run of packing the car later in the afternoon.
Needless to say, my car just couldn’t cut it and the hubby’s, with slightly more trunk room, was the only solution.
Holidays are insane.
Traveling with young kiddos at the holidays is a special kind of packing Tetris.
But it’s all worth it when the end goal is time with family, and, OF COURSE, having too many people you love and gift with presents is the essence of a privileged problem, yes???
Happy The-Weather-Is-Tanking Day, peeps!
Over and out.
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