Extended Family

One of the things we missed the most over the last two years was time with extended family. COVID actually meant we got to see the Towfighis more than usual because their move from Maryland to Quito was delayed due to COVID, but we went longer periods of time without seeing Grandpa, Margie, and Wendy's family due to COVID. I went a full two years without seeing Wendy and her kids (8/19 - 8/21), but now in a span of four months I've seen her three times as she came here in August and December, and we were in Chicago in September. Even though Paul's family lives far closer to us than my family, we saw very little of them in 2020 or 2021 due to COVID and also Paul's mom's health. We thought we might see Paul's dad three times this month, but he didn't end up coming up to celebrate his 80th birthday with us because he wasn't feeling well that day. Although it won't ever be total "normal" again due to Paul's mom, my mom, and my brother passing away, I'm hoping that 2022 will be more normal in terms of being able to spend time with extended family members.

The Oculus Quest 2 has been a hit with our kids and also their cousins. Several of the adults also gave it a whirl. Nadia loved her new roller skates that Uncle Al and Aunt Millie gave her so much that she rolled around the house in them for several hours on Christmas Day. We played Oliver's new Lord of the Rings Monopoly game from Aunt Yvonne with Pop Pop on Christmas Day. The kids opened presents twice on Christmas Day and opened their gifts from Wendy, Grandpa, and Margie on the 26th. Margie liked the scarf I got her which contained the names of their collective 21 grandchildren (15 on our side and 6 on her side). Ian has built his new Lego sets and played some of his new Switch games. All seven kids plus Wendy had fun ice skating on Sunday afternoon. Yesterday we went to church and the ice-skating rink. Today we stayed at home all day. We played Boggle, Codenames, and (traditional) Monopoly. Over the course of two days some people watched the first Hobbit movie, which was one of Oliver's gifts. Oliver and Grace spent many, many hours playing together in the basement, and Rachel and Nadia spent many, many hours together in Nadia's room. My kids wish they lived a LOT closer to either of my sisters' kids, but they are very grateful for the time they do get to spend together. I didn't use my good camera to take pictures or take as many as usual, but I did get some with my phone. 

We'll have some more time with Wendy's family tomorrow, and then it will go back to being just our immediate family. I'm planning to finally tackle Ian's birthday video, go to the dentist, take Ian to his 12-year physical, and keep my foot elevated more than I did the past four days. I could hardly bear weight on my right leg last night due to extreme pain from standing too much for three consecutive days. From December 30 through January 2 the only thing on our calendar is going to church. I want Ian and Nadia to put extra time into studying Romans as their next quizzing competition is on January 7-8. Paul will be in Baltimore the first week of January, and the kids will be back to school on January 3rd. It will only be a four-day week for the kids as I'm taking them skiing on January 6. January 3rd will be our 95th day of school, which means we're a little more than half-way through our school year as we plan to end in early May.