December 2020

MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM THE RAKOZ FAMILY!

This was the official Christmas card photo sent out this year.  Didn't get one?  Send me your physical address and you will be added for next year.

Here are some other highlights from December 2020:

These are the types of texts I receive from Maddox during the work day.  Their bond is adorable.

This is an Advent Calendar craft I borrowed from a high school friend of mine.  I made one for each of the 5 of us and added 3 candy treats to each of the boxes (for you math wizards, that means 375 candies).  By Day 4, I found that Dylan and Presley had plowed through their entire calendar's worth of candy and threw the wrappers all over the basement floor. Nice to see my efforts and generosity wasted.  I will NOT be making this mistake again!

Because we are still in the thick of COVID precautions, I tried to find other ways to make this Christmas season special. One suggestion was to wrap a door of the house with Christmas wrap.  Here was Presley's bedroom door.

                                        

We came across the classic "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" TV special one evening close to the end of the program. I was completely shocked to hear that Presley had never seen this before!  

Here's a pic of Dylan and I for our school's spirit week: Flannel Day

Here is a little package of Christmas fun I picked up for Presley from her teacher.

The Counseling Office hosted a hot cocoa bar.  While it did not compare to the staff Christmas Party from years' past, it was something fun to look forward to and break up the monotony.

One of Maddox's assignments this month was to create a storyboard in his Digital Arts class.  He could use any intro of a movie for this project and he chose a cold open from "The Office."  I think he totally nailed it and received praise for his drawing skills.

Unfortunately, this year my children did not put a lot of effort into making the "Nice List" and there were more bad choices made than ever before.  Even Snowster, our Christmas Elf, was saddened by their behavior leading up to Christmas.

The first day of Christmas Break we were invited over the Beardmores for snacks and crafts.  Amber has hosted this gathering for years and we were excited to be part of it.  She provided what she calls "bowling snacks" which is pub finger food and all of the supplies needed for each of us to create an ornament to pass along as a gift to a loved one.  Who knew 5 boys could focus long enough for this task?

My finished product

Later that day the boys headed to Real Life Student Life (Youth Group) for their Christmas celebration of snacks and games. 

Daddy has been craving Nestle Tollhouse M&M cookies and Presley volunteered as lead baker. While the cookies took 2 tries and didn't look as we expected, they were tasty.

Yes, I forced the kids to join me every morning for a work out.  There were a few 30-degree mornings, but I didn't hear too many complaints.  I think they are just resigned to humor me at this point.

We made the decision to cancel our traditional Christmas Eve Snack Fest, Christmas morning brunch and Maddox's birthday dessert this year, based on recommendations from the county health department.  This meant that we weren't going to spend time with family. A couple of days before Christmas, the kids & I dropped by Grandpa's house briefly to pass along his gift.  We stayed less than an hour and wore our masks the entire time.  We also exchanged gifts with Auntie Michele and Kaitlyn as well. I sure hope this is the only year we have to make this decision.

Here's a great pic Daddy took at our Snack Fest.

This was my festive cocktail of the evening.  It was incredibly delicious!

Here's a pic of all the goodies before the kids woke up.

Then came the frenzy.  

Here's an extremely rare pic of these two getting along and showing their gratitude for their thoughtfully selected gifts.  

The kids were spoiled and very excited about their new treasures.  The Winter Break would be considerably less noisy going forward.

Cranberry Mimosas for brunch!

It was one of Maddox's goals to be eating pigs-in-a-blanket.....in a blanket

Then, Maddox celebrated his 15th birthday!

This kid has made such strides this year.  He has grown in maturation, height, and responsibility.  He has spent his Freshman year distance learning and has hit a nice groove.  I love spending time with him and am extremely grateful that he seems to be on the 'other side' of the teenage years.  I love him so much!

Every Winter Break we have a pass to shop at the Adidas Employee store.  Presley joined me and we were delighted there was NO LINE to get in!  That never happens!

That is it for December.  2020 has been the craziest year ever and I'm not too sorry to see it go.  Tune in next month where I'm hopeful we can be celebrating with others again, we continue to stay healthy and have the ability to enjoy more freedom in the world.

Happy New Year!