It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like a Spectacular Minnesota Christmas
Todd Swank's Diary Update for December 7, 2025
Friday night dropped us right back into the Christmas Spectacular at River Valley Church in Apple Valley, our second year in a row, and somehow it hit even harder this time. The whole thing is this whirlwind of live music and enough Christmas energy to power the Mall of America for a week. It’s inspirational, it’s spiritual, it’s uplifting and it sneaks up on you in that good way where you suddenly realize you’re smiling like a kid again. Just an absolutely beautiful show that kicks the season into gear and reminds you why this time of year still matters.
Ted and Marcia rounded up the crew and invited us out, so we kicked things off with dinner at Newt’s, where the popcorn was flowing and the laughs were even louder. It’s one of those meals where the conversation bounces all over the place, everyone’s in a good mood and you remember why you actually like leaving the house in December. From there we headed to the show, still riding the energy from dinner, and the whole night turned into this perfect mix of fun, music and inspiration. A pretty great way to launch the weekend.
Miss Sheri and I are heading into our 34th Christmas together, which is impressive considering she’s had three decades to realize what she’s working with. We hit 31 years of marriage in 2025, and somehow she still makes the season brighter just by showing up. Sweet enough to warm your heart, sarcastic enough to keep me honest. Perfect combo.
Sunday brought us back to US Bank Stadium, because what else are Vikings fans gonna do but show up and hope for the best? It’s been a tough season, no sugarcoating it, but we still walked in thinking maybe this would be the one that turns things around. The stadium looked great, the crowd was fired up and, for a moment, it felt like anything was possible. Minnesota optimism is undefeated, even if the team isn’t.
It was Avery’s turn to join me at the game, and of course it happened to be about ten below outside, because Minnesota likes to keep us humble. Getting there wasn’t exactly a joyride, but we hopped on the light rail and it dropped us right at the stadium doors, saving us from turning into father-son popsicles. Cold or not, always fun getting to take him to a game.
Miss Sheri and Luke ended up having their own little adventure. They heard Minnesota Hall of Famer John Randle was at Launch Pad Golf, so they made a beeline over to meet him and launch a few drives into the snowy abyss. Randle’s one of the greatest defensive tackles ever, the face-painted, trash-talking spark plug who basically ran on pure chaos and quarterback fear, so getting a few minutes with him made their quick stop feel pretty legendary. They weren’t there long, but it definitely counted as a win for Team Sheri and Luke.
JJ McCarthy got the start again, which at this point feels like the right call. It’s been a rough couple of months watching him try to figure it out, but after last week in Seattle, we learned Max Brosmer isn’t exactly riding in on a white horse either. Might as well let the kid play the rest of the season and see if he’s going to grow into an NFL quarterback or if we need to start sketching out a new plan for next year.
Our opponent today was Jayden Daniels and the Washington Commanders. They’ve had plenty of their own challenges this season, which is a surprise after the electric year Daniels put together in 2024. Still, he’s fun to watch, and we were looking forward to seeing what he could do up close. Of course, that didn’t mean we wanted anything good to actually happen for them. Admire the talent, hope for the loss. Classic game-day mindset.
The Vikings finally gave us something to cheer about, unloading on Washington 31–0 and snapping that brutal losing streak with their first home win in months. After two weeks of looking completely lost, JJ McCarthy came out firing with three touchdowns and the kind of confidence we’ve been begging to see, while the defense grabbed three takeaways and sent Jayden Daniels to the sideline after shutting down the Commanders early. It doesn’t magically fix the season, but it does make the final stretch a lot more fun, and for one Sunday at least, Minnesota optimism actually paid off.
