Week 38 at Home: George Returns

He's back, he's back, our beloved elf is back! We weren't sure if George was going to make it back this year due to COVID-19, but he's playing it safe and quarantined for a few days, and also wore a mask...he's keeping ALL of us safe!

11/29: In quarantine, mask and all!

12/1: He's back, with donuts and coffee!

12/2: George is going to spy on us...24/7. Yikes!

12/3: Must be rough being an elf...George is taking time for self-care with yoga!

12/4: Having a bonfire under the tree with s'mores and Puppy!

12/5: Peeping at us while we pee. Um. I have no words for this one.

The kids have been enjoying the Elf Advent Calendar

I took Friday afternoon off of work so I could tackle the Christmas cookie/treat making. It wasn't the same without having my mom here to help, but...again, we're keeping it safe and staying our distance. I made the sugar cookie M&M bars, the chocolate candy cane kiss cookies, and fudge...all good and very easy! My mom is making the sugar cookies this weekend, and they will drop off a batch for us to decorate in the near-ish future. Let's hope next year we can all celebrate and have fun baking together!

In non-Christmas news, we loaded up the kids into the car on Monday night and headed over to a new drive-thru exhibit at the MN Zoo. As members, we were able to drive though the exhibit before it opens to the general public, plus we went on a Monday, so there was very little traffic to deal with. The exhibit is made from 30+ custom inflatables (from a local company) and helps to educate people on the different areas and animals in the world. It was something fun and different to do, plus the funds help our zoo, which is really hurting this year. We are so fortunate to live only 10 minutes away from it, and I pray that it doesn't have to close!

Back to Christmas excitement...Santa just came through our neighborhood in a Rosemount firetruck - and he even threw candy out to the kids! It was nice to chat with the neighbors for a little bit, and enjoy the fresh air while we were waiting for him to drive by. I had attempted to get a video of the fun, but apparently forgot to hit the record button. Argh! Oh well, at least G and the other kids enjoyed it.

Comments

Goodbye Sweet Spanky

This is a post that I'm not very excited to write. As you probably know, our oldest dog, Spanky, had struggled with health issues (ear infections, seizures) his whole life, and recently, his health had severely deteriorated. He hadn't been eating, his ear infection was so severe his face was swollen, he had a hard time getting up the stairs, and he very rarely wanted to play. Last week we got a few tail wags from him, and he ate a few bowls of food, but it was a 50-50 chance that he would actually keep the food down. On Thursday, we made the decision that if he wasn't any better by this weekend, we were going to put him down. I know Scott didn't want to make that decision as Spanky was a very special dog to him - he truly was his little buddy, following him around everywhere, wanting to be wherever Scott was, and howling his sadness whenever Scott would leave him. Throughout Friday night, it became clear that Spanky wasn't going to have a miraculous recovery...

Grandparents, Birthdays, and Sprinklers, Oh MY!

What a whirlwind week we've had...I was trying to get everything wrapped up at work so I could take my 5-day "furlough" from last Wednesday, through tomorrow. Wednesday was my first day at home, so Ava and I had a ton of "fun" getting everything ready for the upcoming activities. I did have a wonderful massage, so that started my vacation off very well... Gramma Karen and Grampa Doug drove in from KC on Wednesday afternoon. We had a great evening catching up, and enjoying the nice weather (until the downpour that happened right as they were leaving our house!) On Thursday, Scott, Dad, Mom, and I drove down to Cannon Falls and Rochester to check out the areas for potential future homes/land for us. At some point, we'd like to move south of the Cities. Ava was a very good little girl, especially considering that she was stuck in a car for most of her FIRST BIRTHDAY!!! We went to Applebee's for lunch, and the wait staff came out singing to someone else...I...

Waffles and Helmets

Ava, Grandma Karen and I had a great end to the weekend last Sunday. We took a little adventure to Black: Coffee and Waffles, which is a small little place by the U which serves...waffles! I chose to have a savory waffle, Grandma Karen chose a fruit and granola waffle, and Ava chose to build her own with cinnamon, caramel, whipped cream, and marshmallows. Sweeeeeet! It was neat going someplace we hadn't been before, plus it gives Ava exposure to more than just her suburban life. She needs that. We then went and played at a local park, and Ava made a few new friends. It was perfect weather to sit on a bench and catch up with my mom! After 30 min or so, we rounded up Ava and headed off to the Wild Rumpus bookstore in the Linden Hills neighborhood of Minneapolis (by Lake Harriet.) We saw lots and lots of animals there (cats, chinchillas, rats, ferrets, birds) but no chickens! Bummer! It took forever to get Ava to narrow dow...

Go, Go, Goers!

Search This Blog