Pandemic Week 41: A COVID Christmas

Christmas 2020 is in the books.  Like every other holiday and tradition this year, Christmas was spent at home.  While we could focus on the things we did not get to do this year, we will instead focus on what we did do.  Here are the memorable Christmas moments from 2020:

  • Massive rain storm on Christmas Eve and 60 degree weather.  For a moment, it seemed that the neighbors would be unable to put out the luminaries.  Fortunately the rain stopped around 8 PM and the lights came out.
  • Christmas Eve Mass - virtually (Anna noted this was the only time her mother would ever let her go to church in sweats).  The added bonus was that Storm was able to join the family (he promptly fell asleep).
  • Seafood Christmas Eve dinner of halibut, shrimp, and this year a smoked trout appetizer (there was much consultation going on with the Fagella family members about how to cook halibut).
  • A blustery cold Christmas Day (it was a holiday of extreme weather), which provided a great opportunity to build a fire in the fireplace.
  • Anna got roller skates (thank you grandma) with light-up wheels.  Theresa has been waiting for years for roller skating to come back in (this was a sport she was good at back in the day).  Anna and Theresa have been practicing in the garage (Theresa, who was on roller blades, insisted on playing 80s music).
  • Theresa got not one but two vacuum cleaners - a large one and a small one for the kitchen.  Considering that her old vacuum cleaner was being held together with duct tape in multiple areas, this was a major improvement.
  • Joe got night-driving glasses.  Anna is looking forward to the day he picks up her friends while wearing them.
  • Everyone got some new games to keep the family occupied during the pandemic.  The latest game additions included Monopoly (hard to believe we didn't have that one), Yahtzee, and Exploding Kittens (yes this is really a game....and a lot of fun).
  • A zoom call with the Fagella family (Anna and the cousins had a pre-call so they could talk before everyone else joined to talk about their latest health issues).
  • Night Driving Glasses
    Storm got a trip to the vet the day after for Christmas for an ear infection.  

A lot of the weekend was spent catching up with family a friends via phone and text.  Joe caught up with several high school friends.

Unfortunately the reason for the calls was the loss of two classmates, but the plus side was the conversations.  We took Christmas dinner to some friends who were dealing with health issues.  We caught up on holiday movies (The Christmas Chronicles 2, Miracle on 34th Street and Elf).  We continued our quest to hike all of the trails of the Manassas Battlefield, including a muddy Sunday walk on the Chin Loop trail (Anna does not aspire to do this, but what else can you do during the pandemic).

In short, we counted our blessings and made the best of it.  Merry Christmas!



Chin Loop at Manassas Battlefield


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