After holidaying at home last Christmas, I was so pumped to go back to our annual trek out east to celebrate the season with both the Yoders and the Millers.
We drove again this time. It is a very long trip, but with how many flights were cancelled due to the omicron wave, it was the better choice for sure. This isn't to say our time wasn't without covid-anxiety. There was definitely some of that. But overall, things went well.
Our first destination was Morton, Illinois. Earlier this year, my brother's family moved to a new location within Morton. I was pleased to discover that they are now just down the road from where my high school BFF Kare and her family live. Despite all the Christmas weekend activities, we did manage to find a time to sneak away to our old haunt Steak n Shake for a quick catch up and a milkshake.
Our time was mostly spent at my brother's house playing so many games
petting Margot
and checking out Titus' new drum set. (He's 15 already! Can you believe it!
Throughout this last stretch of the pandemic, I've been having a ton of dreams about Eureka, the town where I grew up. I have not been back to this tiny town in a literal decade and decided I really wanted to go and show Levent where I grew up. When I saw my childhood home, I cried a little. It was smaller than I remember it being (which is strange since my parents moved when I started my senior year of college). (My dad planted that tall tree in the front yard). It was nice to revisit, although also quite strange too. We stopped to take a walk down at the lower lake Eureka part and ran into someone I went to high school with. Since he didn't seem to recognize me, I chickened out and did not stop and say hello. That was also a very weird experience which has made me reflect a lot about the passing of time, anxiety and the power of place.
Back at my brother's house, Christmas was in full swing.
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| Christmas day photo |
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Christmas dinner
Of course there were more games |
and even more games.
One evening/afternoon, MJ and I made sugar cookies together. Since she also loves to bake, it was able to share this together.
These cutie elves helped decorate them.
Abram's "more is more" decorating vibes was my favorite.
And then, I literally slid down the steps on my phone and it broke. I felt very emotional about it (which was embarrassing). So from this part on, I was reliant on Levent's phone to take photos. It ended up working out, but I ended up taking less photos than I would've. Believe it or not, I made it through just fine. :)
Christmas was on the weekend this year (on a Saturday actually). We arrived on a Thursday and then took off for Ohio on a Monday. It was a pretty compressed family time but I was grateful to be able to spend time with everyone. (And this was the third time of seeing my brother's kids in 2021, which after going two years without seeing them at all, this felt like such a gift).
Hello, goodbye, central Illinois! Now on to the next stop: Columbus, Ohio!
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