Minion winning kids’ hearts and Christmas lights

My wife loves being a Gramma (“Mam-mam-mam”, according to our 2 year old grandson) and also loves Minions. Starting a few years ago, she wanted to decorate at Christmas with some Minion yard inflatables. The fact that we never see snow, and in recent years, that we have no lawn but mostly dirt, has been my issue to resolve. Over the last two years, we have accumulated a number of decorations. This year will probably be one of the most unusual, with people driving through the area to see lights, instead of getting out and mingling with people. Our neighborhood in El Cajon, California may not boast the most ostentatious neighborhood Christmas lights, but perhaps the longest-running annual show in the East County. Thanks to COVID, we probably have seen a large increase in visitors, who desperately need to find some encouragement in 2020. But I digress.

With all the negativity of the year and continuing isolation – particularly for little children, our Minions went up before Thanksgiving – we were actually first in the neighborhood, unless you count the folks with the inflatable Thanksgiving turkey – this year. All to help usher in a Christmas, and soon, a newer, better year. The first squeal of excitement, from our new neighbor’s children seeing Minions across the street warmed our hearts. But it was the addition of an inflatable Minion suit- that my spouse found and bought online, that brought peals of laughter, squeals of delight, and gratitude from several parents driving around the neighborhood.