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Astronaut’s Daughter: Celebrating the Holidays With My Dad

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Ideas
Charlotte Kelly, the 12-year-old daughter of astronaut Scott Kelly, is a TIME For Kids correspondent for the year

Since I last checked in, my dad has done a video conference with my class at school, and we have celebrated Thanksgiving. My classmates were very thrilled to be able to speak to an astronaut aboard the space station. I must admit, they asked some pretty interesting question, and, just as I expected, laughed loudly when he performed his zero-gravity tricks, such as flipping upside down while spinning and playing with his food. I wish he would have let me play with my food when I was younger!

Our Thanksgiving was very low-key. My mom and I celebrated with some friends from Japan, as well as a few others. Before dinner, I had a video conference with my dad, and he met my friends and classmate. He was even able to introduce them to the Japanese astronaut on board with him.

This will be a short month as we prepare for the holidays. Star Wars will come out soon, and I can’t wait for my dad to get his Christmas gift!

TIME is producing a series of documentary films about Scott Kelly’s record-breaking mission in space. Watch them here.

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