"This week feels like the final mile of a marathon...Whatever the future may bring, let 2020 remind you that you can do scary, courageous, important, necessary, beautiful things."

-Sarah Thebarge

We did so many scary, brave, important, necessary, beautiful things in 2020....

Started school amidst a pandemic.  

We celebrated with donuts on the driveway and confetti poppers because...why not?

These girlies are ROCKING krazy kindergarten!

And then we adapted to the back and forth 

and back and forth 

and back and forth 

of virtual school, in person school, & hybrid school (*rinse. repeat*).  

It looked a bit like this:

 and this...

and this...

and a whole lot of this....

6th grade wasn't quite what Ellie had expected, but she is making the best of it. I'm very proud of her diligence and positivity. 

Bonus: I get a private trumpet concert every day! 

And violin! 

Sometimes at the same time! 

I actually love it.  It's fun to see the kids excelling at something that I have NO idea how to do.  

We have never appreciated our teachers as much as we do now- 2020 reminded us that they are true superheroes! 

We grieved some heavy losses this year.  

We honor the lives of loved ones lost by hugging our littles even tighter, and being grateful for all of the togetherness we didn't choose, but get to have.  

We adapted to different social norms. 

The kids didn't complain once about the mask-wearing.  

When we couldn't play with friends, we read to our stuffies instead :) 

I've never been more grateful to have a big family.  

It was chaotic and crowded and LOUD but we were never lonely! 

Jersey was a huge fan of social distancing, because she got to see us a LOT more! Ellie taught her tons of new tricks too. 

We made it though the year without the usual sports and activities that keep us running.  Caleb did get to play some baseball over the summer/fall, and a highlight was his out of the park home run.  

We hope 2021 brings more opportunities to be active and play sports again!

Dan has been working from home, and took the opportunity to grow his hair out in 2020.

You're welcome.

2020 halloween with no trick-or-treating.  That was definitely a first. 

Another bright spot- William turned 9!

So of course he had Coke for breakfast :) 

He got a new Xbox for his birthday.....and then had to wait 2 MONTHS to get it...

2020 has taught us patience for sure. 

It was hard having to avoid family and friends during peak quarantine times.  

But it did make our time together SO much sweeter. 

Cousin time is extra fun! 

We undertook a master bathroom/bedroom renovation, and all of the dust was totally worth it!  

This has become my escape!

And in case you are wondering, my fancy new tub also doubles as a fantastic mermaid Barbie lagoon!

Ellie got to put her bravery on display when she got a *bonus* trip to the dentist after cracking a molar on a candy cane.  

I had lots of time at home, and used it to develop some new Ellie.belle Sweets recipes.  

(no children were harmed in the making of these treats! LOL)

We made 100's of holiday treats this year!

We are giving our dentist lots of new business this year! haha

Tessa has decided she wants to be a baker (or a dentist) when she grows up.

Our ornery little Christmas elf showed up again to keep us company!

Christmas felt a little different this year, but it was nice to slow down a bit. 

I found myself enjoying wrapping presents with coordinating paper and bows (because I had lots more time at home to look at them under the tree), finishing my (online) Christmas shopping early, creating some new family traditions, and not feeling guilty about letting go of the traditions and activities that didn't work for us this year.

The family saran ball challenge was one tradition we decided to keep!

And we introduced a friends version as well, along with an impromptu Christmas Eve brunch! 

Dan wore his best sweater for the occasion.

The sweetest little elves this side of the North Pole:

Matching jammies! Elfred sent one for Teffie too :)

Every year, the kids say that their favorite Christmas tradition is our family gift exchange. We take them to buy small gifts for each person in the family, wrap them in secret, and we open them after the Christmas Eve church service. 

 (Side note, I have exactly zero pictures of Christmas Eve service this year.  It was SOOOOO cold- an outdoor service!  But also so special, cuddled up in masks and hats and coats and blankets, and gathering with our church family. Everything has felt so uncomfortable this year, that this actually felt like the perfect kind of Christmas Eve celebration.)

It's always hilarious to see what the kids pick for each other, and for us.  This year, Ellie bought Dan earrings, to poke fun at the fact that he had his ear pierced as a teenager. After getting a good laugh out of everyone, Ellie whispers, "and when you're done with them, I can borrow them right?"

Dan had a silver Eiffel tower dangling from his ear all day long.  

Caleb had to poke some fun too.....

We created some cookies for Santa! And for us....

Christmas morning was cozy at home this year. 

Bonus: We actually got to sleep until 7:30!  

Someone got coal in his stocking! 

We started a new tradition! 

Ellie found the pickle in the tree this year- It's harder than you think!

And we capped off the festivities with Christmas at Grandpa Fred and Grandma Sally's!

This year, when things felt hard and frustrating, and anxiety and impatience started bubbling over ('when did it not?' would be an easier question to answer), it forced us to find gratefulness and seek a new perspective. 

We recognized the gift of a warm bed to sleep in at night, and food on the table.  And it brought joy to give some of those things to others as well. 

Advent reminded us that joy is more than a happy mood, and that joy can coexist with sadness and grief and disappointment and loss.

God reminds us that life's troubles are an opportunity to experience His joy.  

Dan and I read through the entire Bible this year- a first for both of us.  I've tried so many times to do this and have always given up or gotten distracted.  But this year I made it to the end...and I am looking forward to starting again.  It's been a humbling and grounding experience, both a discipline and a joy. 

...and 2020 also brought a new appreciation for funny memes! 

And finally, reflecting on this year reminds me of something that happened when we were in Italy.

While exploring the coast of Cinque Terre,  we decided to take a shortcut and hopped on a boat (the line was so short!) and quickly realized we were traveling to the wrong destination....and no one spoke English.  All we could do was enjoy the ride (and stress about when and where the boat would land?!?!). It took us about an hour off-course, and we BARELY made it back on the last boat heading upstream. The locals were so confused about how we were allowed on the boat in the first place, as we didn't even have a ticket!  We laugh so much about this memory now.  

We got to see some beautiful sights on that unplanned journey. 

It just proves that sometimes life veers off course, but if we look hard enough, we can see treasures we never would have found...and oh, the memories! 

But still....

Are we there yet?????