December 2021

Here are a few photos and several videos taken during the last month of 2021. We had a quiet, but wonderful Christmas and New Years as a little family this year; more details are below.

Holiday Festivities

It was nice to look forward to a celebration of Christmas this year, even if if was altered by another year of an evolving pandemic. Again, we sent out some Christmas cards to friends and family (if anyone didn't get one that would like one, just let me know and I'll add your address to the list). We always enjoy getting some back and adding them to our Christmas decor. We took a drive to Watt Christmas Wonderland -- a nearby farm with a road about a mile long packed full with hundreds of lights and every inflatable lawn Christmas decoration you can imagine . It's an impressive amount of randomly arranged stuff with a bit of Christmas hoarding energy to it. And like last year, we bundled up for a chilly walk around the Orange County Arboretum, which is always tastefully decorated with lights for Christmas. Our ward had a somewhat subdued Christmas party that included musical performances by various people, crafts for the kids, and pies to take home. The ward also did a giving tree for families in need. And we enjoyed an extended weekend at the house in Binghamton for the Christmas holiday itself (more below).

Christmas in Binghamton

We came to the house the day before Christmas eve (Thursday), and that evening we got dinner at Core Life Eatery and then walked around the Oakdale Mall for some last-minute gifts with all the other shoppers, where Alex is always happy to see his blue coin-operated Cobra and some of the other kid things at the arcade. That's the only mall in Binghamton, and it always seems to be struggling, so it's nice to see it in its full commercial glory with shoppers, Santa, and live music before Christmas. 

Christmas eve (Friday) we slept in and had fruity waffles for breakfast. That morning, Alex got his first COVID vaccine at CVS (Becky and I got boosters this month as well). We did a bit more last-minute shopping at Target -- another place that Alex loves going to. After some relaxation and naptime, we went to a nearby park and tried to sled on what little snow there was. We made a Christmas eve feast of ham, potatoes, rolls, broccoli, and candied yams that provided us many leftovers the rest of the weekend. For a little Christmas devotional, we watched The Christ Child video that the church recently made. The Christmas miracle this year was that Alex sat with us and watched all 15 minutes of it -- he rarely sits still that long, even for his favorite cartoons. 

On Christmas morning (Saturday), we opened presents sporadically while eating cinnamon rolls sent to us by Becky's mom for breakfast (thanks Debbie!). Alex doesn't really grasp the concept of Christmas or Santa, but by now he understands what a present is and wants to open any that are in sight. His big gift from Santa (that he didn't unwrap) was a Razr Crazy Cart like his cousins in Utah have. He did unwrap a few other new toys, including a box of toys my parents wrapped and sent. Among other things he got, you'll see us playing with color changing cars in some of the videos. As for me and Becky, Christmas is the time of year when we wrap up new things that we were probably going to buy anyway and put them under the tree. So we got some new socks and clothes, a fancy toaster with four slots instead of two, a nice cooking pan, and Becky got me a book I wanted to read that is Scottie Pippen's memoir (really enjoying it so far). Also, Alex got a Razor Crazy Go Kart like his cousins had in Utah, which he'll hopefully learn to enjoy as much as they did with some practice. Christmas Day was rainy, so later that morning, just to get out of the house, we bundled up and went over to a playground that is beneath a raised up elementary school -- a great place to take your kids on a rainy day. Alex ran around endlessly there while we chatted for a while with a guy there doing the same thing with his toddler. He happened to be a Geology faculty member at the university who I had heard of, but never met when I worked there. Later on, we enjoyed an afternoon of relaxing, napping, playing,  and chatting with family. Then that evening, we went for a walk to see neighborhood Christmas lights and then got sushi and noodles at a Japanese place -- one of the few restaurants open on Christmas. We thought the COVID shot might drain Alex a bit on Christmas, but he was as happy and energetic as ever throughout the day, and had a very happy Christmas.

Sunday me and Alex went to church at the old ward in Binghamton, where Alex was happy to see the old nursery toys. I thought I might be happy to see some old ward members, but the ward has changed a lot and there weren't many there that I knew.  Later on we went for a walk at Otsiningo park and played on the playground there for a while. That evening Becky and Alex loaded up and drove back to the apartment, as Alex has school on Monday. I stayed behind to clean up and get the house ready for the next AirBnB guests. Sometimes the joy and spirit of Christmas doesn't really hit you until it's over as you start putting things away. I just want to say how much I appreciate all the gifts, cards, and messages of love and support from our family and friends this year. I think we receive so much more from the amazing people in our lives than we give.

New Years Eve

As parents with a small child, the NYE holiday festivities are limited and I'm ok with that. I did have the day off work, and after Alex got out of school we took a drive down to Paramus to explore Ikea. Then we went over to mall to walk around a bit and get some dinner. One of Alex's favorite activities is to ride the escalator up and down, but he won't do it alone. So after the mall closed, we did that many times.

2021 Milestones

Looking back at the past year, we've seen a few positive changes and milestones. For me, starting a new job has been a big change. The work itself is not that different, but being fully remote has been a nice change. For Becky, the best part of 2021 was not having any big changes, and being able to settle into a groove with her job, her calling in Relief Society, and everything she does for Alex, and find a balance there. For Alex, perhaps his biggest accomplishment this year was learning to use the potty. It took many Hot Wheels as rewards, but we are very proud of him for learning it so quickly. He now goes all the time on his own. He very rarely has an accident (although he sometimes decides to go next to the potty instead of in the potty as an act of rebellion maybe) and we've recently let him sleep without a diaper which has gone really well. His vocabulary has also continued to grow and we've been able to establish some very basic communication related to our everyday routines. Next year, we'll work on getting him to drink from a cup. He's learned to ask for "milk" when he wants a refill on his sippy cup, which is great. Except now he does after taking just a few sips and its getting kind of ridiculous, so we have to say no and then he doesn't drink it until he gets really thirsty. So it would be great if we could move on from the sippy cup, but also very difficult because it has also been a big comfort object for him his whole life. 

Other News

Two days before Christmas, Becky was in a minor car accident that happened as somebody clipped her from behind while trying to weave around her in traffic. It spun her around ok and left her with some neck and head aches that subsided after a few days, but fortunately no worse than that. Once again, our Prius will be out of commission for a few weeks in auto body repair shop. 

A cute thing Alex does is to dance and sing (in his own way) along with this Peanuts Christmas decoration that Becky gave me years ago when we were dating (see first video below). Alex also really gets into his imagination while he plays games on his iPad, simultaneously acting out with his toy cars, planes, etc. what the game is doing. We've tried to capture some of that in the other videos in the Google album linked at the beginning.