Week 52a

Welcome back and happy Tuesday!  I hope everyone had a fabulous Christmas and is looking forward to a great New Year.  We enjoyed a lot of time together and are happy to be on a break from work and school to regroup before heading full force into another year.  This past week was a busy one with a lot of holiday craziness so buckle up and enjoy the ride.

Here are last week's pictures:

Day 356- Monday 12/21/20

After getting some much needed rest recovering from finals, Justin has rejoined the world and is happy to show some holiday spirit by helping to finish decorate the tree and bake some of our favorite cookies.  In other news there was a big celestial event where Saturn and Jupiter aligned to form a Christmas star.  This great conjunction event was last seen some 800 yrs ago.  Sadly it was too foggy here to see but there were some great pictures online with amazing detail looking through observatory telescopes. (photo credit on picture)

Day 357- Tuesday 12/22/20

It's John's last day of work until Monday and his boss gave him this growler filled with home brewed beer as a holiday gift--perfect for him! The second shot is for a photo prompt about attitude adjustment and who better to lighten the mood and find the good in all things simple than Charlie Brown.  Love this ornament.

Day 358- Wednesday, 12/23/20

Tyler got his Pfizer COVID vaccine yesterday as a 1st responder.  He had to drive to Stockton to get it and wait for over an hour even with an appointment but it's done until the booster anyway.  He's had no side effects for this one so all is good. He's off for the next few days so is enjoying time with the dog giving her advent calendar treats and helping us make and decorate sugar cookies.  All the boys helped and I think the cookies turned out great.  I used this cookie photo for a prompt about traditions.

Day 359- Thursday, 12/24/20

Christmas Eve was crazy busy but fun.  It started out very foggy as seen out the window from the new lab space in Davis.  Yes, I had to work for a couple hours, but I got in early and out as quickly as possible.  After that we all did last minute things to prepare for Christmas and then worked to make pizzas together for dinner. The day ended with us heading out, cocoa in hand, to drive around looking at Christmas lights.  We decided to go to the Fabulous 40's area which we heard has the best lights but turns out everyone else had the same idea.  It was crazy busy with traffic but still a great sight to see. We would like to see more but without all the craziness. Next year we'll try again on an off night and not on Christmas Eve!  Once we got home it was time to open one gift before bed and then dream of the goodness tomorrow will bring.

Day 360- Friday, 12/25/20

Merry Christmas!  It started out quiet and calm before they boys finally stirred and then we  did stockings, ate eggnog French toast for breakfast, and opened presents after.  We finished the day enjoying our gifts, eating a prime rib dinner, and of course devouring cake.  Tyler had to head to work around 2:30pm so he missed diner and cake, but we were grateful to have him for all of yesterday and most of today.  There are plenty of leftovers I'm sure he'll grub on tomorrow.

Day 361- Saturday, 12/26/20

It's the day after Christmas and I took this first picture for a photo prompt about a beautiful mess.  This final candle went crazy as it burned during dinner and made a master piece with it's wax.  I also had to run back into work real quick and took this cute gift with me.  It's perfect for my desk and for my sea otter related work.  Later, it wouldn't be the day after Christmas without someone playing a new video game or us watching a new release movie.  Of course this year the movie had to be streamed and not seen in a theater.  I can't even remember the last movie we saw in the theater--such a crazy, messed up year!

Day 362- Sunday, 12/27/20

Today I started to put away Christmas.  It's a process that will take a few days so the earlier I start the better.  It was also a wonderfully sunny day so Bella and I took a nice long walk to get a breath of fresh air.  I feel like we've been locked up and home bound all week so it was nice to get back to nature a bit.  Plus I needed to photo for a prompt about fresh air.  LOL!  This would have happened anyway regardless, but it was nice the photo prompt for today was on a day when it was my turn to walk the dog.

Wait!  One more--

December's Family Photo

Taken on Christmas morning before opening presents and of course Justin just had to squeeze in a little naughty by sticking out his tongue.  That is so him, and the back up shot I took where he's smiling normal has everyone else with closed eyes.  LOL!  This will have to do.  That's 2020 for ya!!

Ok--mega post is done.  See you next week in a new year!  Bye-bye 2020!!!  We're so ready to move on.

Week 51

Welcome back and happy Tuesday!  It's crazy to think Christmas is in just a few days.  At least we have some time off and can spend it with the family. I think we're all ready to be done with this year and look forward to a fresh start.  

Until then, take a look at last week's pictures:

Day 349- Monday, 12/14/20

The neighborhood is full of houses lit up with festive lights including ours.  It makes walking the dog in the dark so much more fun even when it's super cold out.  After our walk tonight Brandon bundled Bella up to help her warm, and it put her right to sleep.  Such a spoiled girl but we wouldn't have it any other way.

Day 350- Tuesday, 12/15/20

Tyler's home tonight and not working so he decided to make dinner for us--gotta love warm comfort food on cold winter nights.  The second shot is one for a photo prompt about a simple thing being captured in a special way.  Love this simple little reindeer.

Day 351- Wednesday, 12/16/20

Wednesday at work I'm packing things up, loading them on a cart, and moving them from the very old Tupper building to the nice new VM3B building.  So excited for this new phase in a new space at least for the QC work right now.  Tonight I made the warm comfort food for dinner--Pad Thai.   Yum! And it tasted even better the next day as leftovers for lunch.

Day 352- Thursday, 12/17/20

There's only about a week left before Christmas and I still have this huge pile of packages to go through and wrap.  It's so easy to buy but so daunting to manage once it's all here.  I'll have to just dig in and get it done.  Also, finally both the advent calendars for the pets came.  We've had the cat's for a few days but the dog's was held up a bit.  Tomorrow we'll bust them open and see how the pets like them--so fun!

Day 353- Friday, 12/18/20

I spent the day working in the new lab space and trying to get things all set up so we can start our QC work here after the holiday break.  Once I got home, before loosing the light, I took this picture of some decoration trees for a photo prompt about a holiday collection, and then, when the sun started to drop, I took a walk at twilight to enjoy the beautiful crescent moon that's been shining super bright lately.  Not a bad way to end the work week and start winter break.  Hooray for the Holidays!

Day 354- Saturday, 12/19/20

Today was an all day drive day to and from Humboldt to pick up Justin who just finished finals.  Once I got there we had we had just enough time to grab a hand pie and slice of Humboldt pie for lunch before hitting the road to make our way back.  It's great to see him home again.  The third picture was for a prompt about a holiday star.

Day 355- Sunday, 12/20/20

It's a beautiful sunny Sunday that was full or wrapping presents, doing chores, and also making some Christmas crack to enjoy this week.  We have a full and happy house for the next few weeks so we'll make the most of it while it lasts.

That's it!  Only a few more sleeps before Christmas, and I hope every one has a Merry holiday even if it may not be the one we all wanted or expected.  It will at least make next year's feel that much more special.

Week 50

Welcome back and happy Tuesday.  We are done with our self-isolation period and back to work.  No one else had any symptoms or tested positive so were thankful for that and happy to be back to a regular schedule as there is really not enough space for all of us to work from home efficiently.  Regardless, we still had a full week continuing to enjoy getting ready for the holidays in between work meetings and tasks.

Here are last week's pictures:

Day 342- Monday 12/7/20

What are the pets up to these days?  They are happy to be able to relax in a home with no more construction.  Our sweet Bella girl usually naps in the home office which is the only place downstairs with carpet, but for the past couple months that wasn't possible since the cat, his food, and his box all had to be housed here. Now that the cat is free to mostly live elsewhere, Bella can pick back up on her naps in here.  Rusty is happy to roam wherever he wants, and as soon as we put the lights on the tree he was all about resting right under there.  This will happen nightly until we add presents that will leave no more room for him.

Day 343- Tuesday, 12/8/20

I was looking for "beauty in the bare" while on a walk with the dog for a photo prompt.  I took these two pictures of bare winter branches against a pretty blue but cloudy sky and bare roots that spread out from the tree is an artistic way.

Day 344- Wednesday, 12/9/20

On Wednesday's I'm usually working in the lab but because of self-isolation I'm working from home on the couch since the office is occupied by John also working from home.  At least I have the better view and more comfortable seat.  Later after work was done I continued to get things done in this spot by working on things I need to get done for the holidays.  This picture was also used for a photo prompt about making lists.

Day 345- Thursday, 12/10/20

After finishing an online school day Brandon wrapped the gifts he's giving to family members and is excited to get them under the tree.  This glittery blue reindeer is also his ornament and we decided together it would be the one I use for a photo prompt about holiday sparkle.

Day 346- Friday, 12/11/20

TGIF! We made it through self-isolation with no ill effects and have both tested negative again so we can return to work next week.  That is cause for cheer!  We're celebrating with a sparkling Christmas fruit punch and looking forward to our last full work week before the holidays hit.  The second picture is for a photo prompt about a prized possession and this Christmas plate is mine.  It was hand painted by Grandma Shook and given to me when I was 7.  I only know the age because she signed and dated the back which is almost even more precious than the gift itself.

Day 347- Saturday, 12/12/20

We've decided that because of the pandemic and safety concerns we are are not giving out cookie plates to the neighbors this year which is really sad for my boys, but we'll still make a few of our favorite treats every few days for us to enjoy as a family.  Today Tyler, Brandon, and I made buckeyes which was John's choice. We'll take turns picking which treats to make. Later the big UCLA vs USC rivalry game was on and it's the first time Tyler has been home for us to watch with him. He also just so happened to be wearing his UCLA sweatshirt which was not planned since he didn't even know the game was today. It's so strange to see no fans in the stands and to not hear of all the rivalry pranks that usually happen this week leading up to the big game.  What  a sad sign of the times, but also fun to have this alumni home to watch with us.

Day 348- Sunday, 12/13/20

It's finally raining!  We've had quite a dry spell so this was really needed and we were happy to see it poured today.  It was also cold and super windy out so we all hunkered down and started a new series on HBO Max.  I thought this would be different like a comedy so I was kind of shocked when it took a dark turn in the 1st episode but it's still good and interesting.  In other news the 1st shipment of vaccine went out today (photo credit USA Today). Let's hope and pray this is a game changer and helps us all get back to the real normal.

OK! That's all for this week.  Check back next week for more holiday fun with a little work thrown it.