It was hard to get excited about the pretty scenery, knowing that Scott and Chali had to hit the road, back to Sacramento. Our few days together went too fast.  

 
Unc Scott and Aunt Cha
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I hate good byes. I don't think Charlie wanted her uncle and aunt to leave. I didn't want them to head off either... on snowy roads.

But, what an amazing few days. I still can't believe we pulled off a Christmas gathering, despite the pandemic and weather worries. It was exactly a week ago, that we spent a miserable day, debating whether we should switch plans about the kids all coming to Texas. (the very next day) By late evening on December 21, it was decided. The kids would cancel flights and Don and I would somehow hit the road west, the next morning. 

The 6 of Us

The last time we 6 were all together, was in 2020. That August, we rented a place and gathered in a safe pandemic bubble. 16 months later we finally gathered again, in wintery Oregon. Once again, the pandemic forced us to be cautious and isolated... mostly for our unvaccinated Charlie. But all we wanted to do was hang out and catch up and have some fun, anyway. We 6 "adult kids" wore Christmas popper-crowns and sunglasses, which were originally bought for the hot, sunny TX Christmas. 

We cooked in classy aprons, sang karaoke, listened to Scott read "Texas Night Before Christmas and we walked in the snow and did some puzzling.  

Playing with Charlie

16 months ago, we didn't have a little Charlie in our midst. (click to enlarge)

What a different kind of fun it was, to have this addition to our gang. 10 months is such a perfect age. 

Festive Here or There

A week ago, I felt sad leaving our decorated house behind. The house felt so ready for the kids' arrival. But once we walked into Heidi & Jamie's, it was clear that it didn't really matter where we were. We were in giddy spirits to be all together.

Of course a few extra things helped make things extra fun and festive. There were good foods and drink. Lots of colorful clothes from vintage aprons to colorful jammies.  The tree was lit and the windows gave us great snow views. And we finally had all 7 Christmas stockings in one place! The oldest was knitted in 1957. The newest, just completed a month ago.

​Presents

I don't have many photos of gift opening. Mostly photos of Charlie, (who as expected) liked the wrapping and boxes, as much as any toy.

It took us 2 days to open all the gifts. I think we all overdid. Something about having to deal with a second pandemic Christmas, made us all a little overly generous. But I must say, I was blown away by the thoughtfulness of the gifts. Every gift seemed to have a story behind it! 

Most Memorable Christmas

This will go down as one of the most unforgettable Christmas gatherings. We worked hard to make it happen.

In recent days, I've heard from more friends who are dealing with breakthrough Covid issues over their holidays. 

I'm so glad we had a safe Christmas after all. We stayed well and Scott and Chali made it safely over the snowy pass to home. Don and I will stay a little longer before we head back on the road to Texas. 

I hate that we all live so far apart, but I'm so glad we're a flexible family, willing to make things work out.
​

Leaving Early

I woke in our quiet B&B at 5 this morning. I tiptoed to take a shower.

It was Christmas, but Don and I had to hit the road early. We couldn't hang around for the comp breakfast. But we did set up our little Covid testing lab, before we took off.

Negative

We both tested negative. Not surprised, but still relieved.

What exactly would we have done if we'd gotten a positive result?

Long Route to Portland

We'd decided yesterday to go ahead and drive the longer coastal route.

I'm not even sure if they ended up having all the expected snow on Siskiyou Summit. But we'll never know. We took the coastal route and enjoyed only a little rain.

Scenery

A week ago, I never thought we'd being spending Christmas Day, driving for nearly 9 hours. I thought we'd be in Texas, gathered with the kids in the family room... wearing sunglasses while we opened gifts, while sun poured in the huge windows.

But today on Christmas, I stared out the window and smiled at the coast and a rainbow and the Redwoods and felt so happy that we'd almost completed this long journey. A lot of changes in a week. Our Texas Christmas turned into an Oregon Christmas. Our mountain drive turned into a coastal one.

By 4:00

By 4, we made it to Happy Valley! Baby Charlie was asleep and we 6 adults couldn't hug each other enough. We went to work unloading the car, jammed with gifts. (How did I do that myself 5 days ago?)

Suddenly Charlie was up and taking it all in. I can't believe we're here. I can't believe this little girl is 10 months!

Family

The evening felt cozy, while Christmas music played and dinner cooked.

We have 3 days to celebrate Christmas, in our safe, cozy, family bubble.

Tonight we just enjoyed each other.

Tomorrow...

We'll start thinking about stockings and presents.

I can't believe we're here!
​

Christmas Eve 6:30 am
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This is me EXACTLY 24 hours ago. It's Christmas today and we still have road travel ahead.

But yesterday I was a lot more anxious. I made Don take this photo of me in the Springhill Suites in Palm Desert before we departed. I was afraid this might be our most festive moment of the day.

Digging for Chains

We still weren't sure about which route to take. Huge snows were predicted at the mountain passes in Oregon. So we unloaded bags of gifts and hunted for tire chains.

We pulled out of the hotel lot and drove in drizzle and rain.

​Studies

Then I did my studies. "How do we use these chains anyway?

And I studied maps and websites to determine weather. I texted with Scott who had driven the dangerous route the night before.

Instructions

Then I studied the Covid rapid test instructions, since we had packed a few.

In Spanish!?  That was extra confusing, but luckily I found another set in English. We'll need to take these right before we see the kids.

Decisions Made

So for a few hours, we drove in "stressful-decision-making gloom". I'm so tired of making decisions about risk. Should we risk the kids flying and get Omicron? Should we drive the mountain pass in a snow storm and die in a car wreck? 

We finally decided to take a 3-hour-longer, coastal route. It felt wonderful to make that safe decision. We celebrated with burgers from Carl's Jr.!

Magic In Ferndale
​
We had planned on staying at some Fairfield Inn, in Redding. Sick of these blah but pretty safe hotels. But our new route took us near Ferndale, CA.

I Googled and found a place called Gingerbread Mansion! They had a room!

We pulled into town at 7 and it looked magical!

Christmas Eve in a Gingerbread House!

Our host Angel, met us with a mask and showed us our room. She gave us some wine and we sipped a bit before heading out in a soft drizzle.

Never in a million years did I expect to be in a sweet colorful town on Christmas Eve. We headed back to our room with a fireplace and fell asleep with a fire nearby! Today we hit the road to see the kids! 
​Can't believe this! Merry Christmas! 

Warm in Arizona

We had lovely weather on our drive yesterday. Made it to Palm Desert by 5.

We relaxed at our hotel and cheered that we'd made it half way!

Scott & Chali

​Scott and Chali worked half days in Sacramento, then texted around noon that they'd gotten negative test results on their rapid tests and they were hitting the road!

I love knowing the 4 kids (and baby Charlie) will have a couple days together until we arrive!

Alarming Weather Predictions

​Then we started getting seriously worried.

Chains?

So it' 5:30 am on Christmas Eve, right now! We'll hit Siskayou Pass tomorrow. We have chains, buried under all this!

Ready to hit the road. Should we add a day and go the coastal route? Don't know.
​

Sleep!

Luckily I slept well last night. Yesterday my head was foggy as we traveled on my 5 hours of sleep. I was grumpy all day!

Today it helped that I woke up in a hotel in El Paso. Suddenly being away from our house, my focus was on getting to Portland to be with family. No more moping, "But what about playing carols around the piano and making s'mores around the fire pit!" On to new plans!

So we checked out before 7 am and stopped for gas. 

This is how my day started. I shared it on Facebook.

Now we're in a hotel in Palm Desert, California and feeling excited. Two more days of travel. We'll be with the kids by Christmas, if snow doesn't interfere! 
​

Christmas Lone Star?

I can't believe we're in El Paso, Texas tonight. I thought we'd be playing with our 10 month old granddaughter tonight, at our house in Sugar Land. She was going to take her first airplane ride. Today was going to be her first trip.

Instead, Don and I are on a trip. After about 11.5 hours of driving today, I spotted this white star on the edge of El Paso. Some kind of sign!?

Man, it takes a long time to drive across this state! But, it's good that Charlie and the rest of our family will be at less risk this holiday. No flying with Omicron, for any of us.

Tetris

Earlier today, Don and I did some speed-packing and then a little Tetris Time, loading all the boxes. Unknown gifts that the kids had shipped to Texas, from CA and OR. 

Don's puzzling eye guided me, with the boxes. Then it was time to load all the presents I've been wrapping for days.

By the time the back was filled with boxes and wrapped gifts, there was  little room left for our usual traveling stuff. But for the first time I ever, I didn't worry about perfect packing. I just tossed some clothes in my smaller suitcase and didn't fret over having everything that I would possibly ever need. That was an unusual feeling, to not obsess over packing. I kind of liked that.

Easy Drive

By the time we reached west Texas, there was a dramatic sky to enjoy. I'd had over 10 hours of just thinking. Don seemed content driving.

This has been a frustrating 24 hours. Omicron has invaded our holiday plans. But all this quiet time has reminded me that no one in our family has been sick. No one has died. There is no tragedy involved. We will actually all be together in a few days. I have a feeling tonight I will sleep well and I'll wake, ready to take on the celebration! Cheers to the peaceful big skies of Texas. So good for pondering.
​

We understood and we planned for Christmas 2021.

These are 5 of our stockings, in the house now. Baby Charlie has a brand new stocking. Scott and Chali are... were bringing theirs. We've been planning this Texas Christmas for a long time.  

5 a.m.

It's December 22. I've been up for an hour. Heidi, Jamie and the baby were supposed to fly in, this evening. But all has changed.

We spent all of yesterday going back and forth on the phone with all the kids. Weighing the risks of traveling with a 10 month old with Omicron. We spoke with doctor relatives and I spoke with my most trusted nurse practitioner friend, who used to work with Dr. Fauci. Decisions are hard.
​
It's Off

By 6 pm, after a day of phone calls and texts and few tears, the decision was made. The kids were going to cancel flights and not take the risk. 

I left the house to get the mail and I could barely stand walking back to the house and seeing the lights, that the kids won't see.

Kiddie Stuff

I've been ridiculously manic for months, knowing our grand baby would be in our home. I found the old Christmas train in the attic and put it on the porch.

Charlie's really too young for the old Advent calendar, but I pulled it out of the box anyway.

And maybe she would have been creeped out by Rudolph in his little chair, but he was waiting for her.

I wanted to sit Charlie in the small green chair, that used to be at my grandmother's. Heidi posed with her great-grandmother's bears, when she was a baby.

Upstairs

​All day yesterday, I vacuumed and prepped, in case we got some huge reassurance that all was good to travel.

I put fresh soaps and toothpaste in bathrooms and I set up the wrapping station for all the gifts the kids have shipped here. I smiled/cringed when I spotted things, like the silly ceramic tree that Scott loves and the basket of homemade ornaments that the kids made long ago. These are things i rarely drag out. And I pouted to look at the old "youth bed" that Charlie is too young for. But her "pack and play" for sleeping, will be going in that room.

Plans to Drive

By 9 pm, the decision was made, for Don and me to hop in the car and drive to Portland, tomorrow. We might make it by Christmas. Scott and Chali will drive up from Sacramento. Is this crazy?

Upstairs I gathered all their boxes. My own closet holds 7 shopping bags of wrapped gifts. Will this even fit in the car?

Sitting in the Dark

As I sit here in the dark, I feel embarrassed by all my manic prep, for this Christmas. All these doodads and silliness that I put out. It somehow makes me feel better to just snap photos and take the images along in my head.

I care less about the decorations, than I do about the stuff that was going to happen around those decorations. Tiki night was a plan. Reading Christmas books... drinking coffees and drinks from fun glasses and meals on Christmas plates that don't match. 

Cooking?

And what about all that food that's stuffed into the fridge? We had planned so many fun cooking activities. Gingerbread houses, cookies... filet mignon. And the aprons? I bought those ugly Christmas aprons on Ebay!

We have no clue how long we'll stay in Portland, but I'm sure I won't be up for carols by the time we get back.

More Family

On the bookshelves near the piano, I'm sad to see these photos of our joined families. Chali's family! We were all together on Christmas in Thailand 4 years ago. Scott and Chali had their Thai wedding.

The photo with Jamie's family makes me sad. They were coming to our home after Christmas, to celebrate. Jamie's sister and Dad haven't even seen Charlie yet. This pandemic is making me so angry.

6:30 a.m.

It's time to get moving. I haven't started packing clothes. Weather will be cold. Am I ready for this? As I've been sitting here, I've heard a couple clunks near the Christmas tree. 

The drooping-dry tree branches are letting ornaments fall. I've just piled up some breakables. We'll let the rest tumble down while we're gone.

Flexible

I feel better. I needed to pout and rant and now I'm ready to shower and pack.

We are a flexible family. This is our gang (with Chali's mom) on Christmas 2017. We made Christmas a whole different celebration that year. This year we'll have Charlie. It will be different in the most wonderful way. We might celebrate a day late, but we'll all be together. Onward!
​

Doctor's Appointments

Don finally got an appointment and headed off this morning to see a doc who specializes in back pain. He can't get in to see his orthopedic doc until March! Back to Sugar Land Methodist once again!

Yesterday, I had my annual check up, with my doc at Methodist. We've seen this place through a lot of seasons! My exam was quick and good, with simple advice. "Just do what you've been doing." Then I was told I needed to go to Lab Corps for my bloodwork. Their office lab was closed, because their main worker and assistant have Covid. What!? That freaked me out, but not as much as the long line at LabCorps. I drove over and saw the line heading down the hall. They were "short staffed". Forget it! Bloodwork can wait. I'm not putting myself at risk.

​News

I swore I wouldn't watch the news. But I need to be educated about risk. I turned it on as I wrapped the last gifts.

Luckily the United Airlines CEO, said that they are seeing no rise in cases due to air travel. Hmm? Not sure how they really know that. I just hope the airports are being super strict about masks, with all the cranky travelers. I hate for our kids to be feeling all this air travel stress, in the next few days.

The stores are out of Antigen home rapid tests. I'm glad we got some on Sunday. We've got a few more ordered. Now I need to read up on the best strategy for using them.

The Tree

​And then there's the tree to complain about. Even though the holder is full of water, the needles continue to rain down.

I swept this morning. Now it's raining ornaments as well! 

But, I'm going to be amused by this crazy "fresh" tree. The tree is so far down on my worry list! A bare tree, surrounded in a sea of needles and ornaments, could be a festive  (and fitting)  look for this year!
​

No Rudi Lechner's

The "kids" are coming in less than a week. We had plans for Christmas Eve at our favorite German restaurant. It's a tradition. Schnitzel and beer and polka dancing!

But a week ago, I talked to Heidi and it became clear that this wasn't a good idea. Baby Charlotte is not vaccinated. The world is getting crazy again. We cancelled dinner reservations and it made me so sad. When again will we all be together at Christmas, in Texas? I love our crazy tradition.

News Yesterday

I cringed when I saw the news yesterday. Texas is bright red on this chart. Omicron is no longer in far away countries. It's no longer considered less severe than delta.

Broadway shows are closing. The Rockettes are closing their shows. NHL and NFL games have been postponed. 

Searching for Rapid Tests

This morning Don and I headed to Target early, while most people were at church. As we hunted through the store with our masks, we heard the recorded voice, reminding people who weren't vaccinated, to wear masks. We got the last 2 boxes of tests on the shelf.

Then we headed to a CVS, where the sign asked ALL to wear masks. The woman at the pharmacy handed me a box with 2 tests. I asked for another box and she handed it over reluctantly. Now we have to figure out how to best make use of testing. 

Phone Call

After lunch I sent an email to the kids with some Christmas planning ideas. We'll be back to celebrating in a safe bubble. No dining out. No museums. Just enjoying each other. Which is fine. But, then we talked with the kids on the phone.

We got down to the awful question. Should we really be doing this? As Omicron invades the country, do we allow our kids to fly across country to celebrate with us. Oh my heart is feeling heavy. I've been focusing on house and presents and fun. I've been avoiding news.

​It was hard to hear the kids worrying over this decision. So much has changed in 2 weeks, or even one week. I'm looking at this ridiculously decorated house and cringing at the thought of canceling.

But we are doing a "wait and see" for now.
​

Warm

We're used to back and forth December temperatures, in Houston. But this is the warmest I remember. 80's almost every day.

I ran before the sun came up yesterday. It was so warm I had to cool off with my feet in the pool, afterwards. I drank water out of a Santa mug and stared at the pool. Fingers crossed that our pool guy will be able to get the part, for the broken hot tub. The kids are excited to make use, when they visit. But it will probably be too hot for the hot tub!

Shopping in Shorts

Don and I finally got out to look for a tree. Houston Garden Center had a lot, but they weren't lovely or cheap or tall. And I was wearing shorts! That seems so wrong.

I also wore gloves, because I'm the one doing all the lifting and moving junk these days. 

Finally

The tree is only 6 feet. It holds about a quarter of the ornaments that we own. But I was pretty proud of myself for carrying the tree in and getting lights on, myself. Don's back did allow him a a minute with the chain saw, to cut off the bottom!

I am so happy to have this tree up. The needles are already falling like a gentle rain. (Who knows when this poor tree was actually cut down.) But I'm so happy to have the lights filling the room. And yes, it might be 80 degrees on Christmas. But the kids will be here. Baby Charlie will have her first trip... to see her grandparents and Aunt and Uncle!
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