During a normal expat year, we probably would have planned a trip somewhere. I still can't handle the thought of all the paperwork, Covid testing, stress of possibly getting Covid, packing, etc. that going somewhere would entail (yet) so we decided to stay home. After such a crazy year we don't mind the downtime! The only downside is Christmas break is extra long this year (Dec 17-Jan 16) which is a lot of time to fill. Most of the people we know hadn't been home in two years so there weren't a lot of friends around for the kids to play with. The school extended the normal break by a week (and eliminated several half days and random teacher in-service days) so the teachers would have enough time to travel and potentially quarantine on return.
The week before Christmas we filled with baking projects and movies. I got sick (IT WAS JUST A MILD COLD). At this time the government was whisking away anyone that tested positive for Covid-Omicron, AND sometimes close contacts, and making them quarantine in a facility. I can't express how awful I thought this was so staying in seemed like a good plan anyway. We did a little Christmas shopping, baked muffins, snowman cupcakes, a gingerbread house from scratch, and peanut butter blossom cookies, but mostly watched all six Home Alone movies on repeat.
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| This is the side of the house Ellie decorated |
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| Lucy ate all of the decorations on Ellie's side before she could take a picture with it 🙄, so Ellie is pictured with the side Lucy decorated. |
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| I took Ellie for high tea at Foster's. It's not fancy but its the best deal in town! A full pot of tea, delicious scones, a slice of cake, and a couple sandwiches for $12. |
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| Making gingerbread cookies out of the dough that turned out too soft to make the house 🤣 |
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| They turned out... cute? |
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| We took a walk down Orchard to see all the lights. The displays are lovely! But the commercialism is a bit nauseating. |
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| Nothing says a break from school like a fort in the living room! They even managed to sleep here a couple nights. |
Christmas day was a low-key affair. Our parents took advantage of being able to send gifts through amazon.sg and Santa also brought them a few things. I'm pretty sure every gift was unwrapped before 7 A.M. 😆But they were happy and spent the rest of the day playing!
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| The carnage! |
After opening presents we watched the Christmas Eve service from The Woodlands Methodist, which had only been broadcast a few hours before. No matter where we are, we will celebrate the thrill of hope and rejoice with the weary world at Jesus' birth!
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| Paw Patrol and Transformers--what more could you want? |
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| Lucy has become obsessed with the Wings of Fire series and was THRILLED when my mom sent her a W.O.F. "how to draw" book |
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| Ellie with an awesome LEGO set! |
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| Ellie's Snowman cupcakes! They don't look exactly like the Pinterest picture, but we still loved them! |
We spent the afternoon with friends enjoying an "Australian Christmas" and the kids played Harry Potter Clue and watched Home Alone (again!)
And that was Christmas 2021! We certainly missed our family and close friends but it was nice to have new friends to spend it with.
