Eek!! It’s Christmas Week!

Friday Jarrod took off work, he had some days he needed to use before the end of the year, and Stratton was out of school so they stayed home, did some Christmas shopping and came to my office and took me to lunch! Then when I got off we headed to Searcy via Hickory Ridge. Spent the night, had Christmas with the Staggs on Saturday and then went back to Hickory Ridge Saturday night late and spent the night at my mom and dad’s. Sunday we went to church and then the rest of the family came to my mom and dad’s house for Dillon’s birthday lunch and cake! We stayed there fairly late and decided not to go to church that evening. There was so much strep, and flu and virus’s going around I was crossing my fingers we wouldn’t be a victim!

Stratton was out of school, so he spent Monday at work with me. He was very good! Monday night we took the kids to Santa’s North Pole. It’s a large building that has been decorated like the North Pole and you walk through a path with displays of motorized elves, and animals doing all sorts of cute stuff. . .The kids loved it (I thought it was a racket slightly overpriced attraction. . .) But we got to meet “The Real Santa” as Stratton said, so it was worth it! I think we will make this a tradition, I think waiting till the 22nd to do it was a good idea! It wasn’t busy at all!

This picture is priceless! He was so excited!!

Arden didn’t want anything to do with him!

Tuesday Jarrod took the kids with him and took them to my mom and dad’s for the day. We had our Armor Seed company wide Christmas party/Lunch at our office, we had a great lunch and then all got to go home shortly after noon! I did some last minute shopping and errands (among everyone else in the world apparently! It was crazy!!) Got home wrapped some gifts, got supper going and started on my list of things to cook and make for our Christmas eve breakfast and Christmas dinners! When Jarrod and the kids got home we ate supper and they took baths then we watched Home Alone while I went back and forth from the kitchen checking on this and that and taking one thing out of the oven and then putting something else in. . .it was actually a really nice night. We may have to make this another Christmas tradition! I knew the kids, mainly Stratton, would think the movie was funny but I had no idea how much so! They both just laughed and laughed! It was funny. I hadn’t seen the movie in years and I forgot how funny it is!

We had planned to have my mom and dad and Dillon and Brandye and Darcy over Christmas eve morning around 9am for breakfast and Christmas with them. I had found an awesome recipe for Blueberry Pancake French Toast Bake, so I put that together Tuesday night before we went to bed. I’m not sure how exactly the morning went, but by 7am we knew Stratton had a fever. He was acting normal, but we felt like a fever might be a sign of things to come like the flu. Even though I felt sure he just had a sinus infection or something. So, Jarrod took him to urgent care at 8am. I called the fam and told them what was going on. D&B wanted to keep Darcy from any potential virus’s (understandably) but mom and dad had both been sick and I was almost positive that he was fine. Jarrod and Stratton got home around 10am and sure enough the flu test was negative! With a dose of motrin his fever went away and was fine the rest of the day!