Friday December 19th was so snowy, school was canceled. It was also our scheduled "D-Day" (departure day). Here's what it looked like outside that day...
It was good and bad in that I had less running around because I didn't have to get the kids to and from school, but they were interfering with my packing progress throughout the day. Allie was so excited to go out of town. She kept saying she was getting ready for her Christmas party (she had been to a bunch of her brother's parties and concerts and was ready for her own party in Arizona). Here's a picture of Allie. She dressed herself for the big "party"....
Finally around 4:30pm (only and hour and a half behind schedule- not so bad for us), we hit the road. The kids were so excited. Here they are (already watching a movie) as we are pulling out of the garage....
This is what the weather was like as we left....
Thankfully the weather improved considerably outside of Erie, Pennsylvania and was completely clear by the time we were a little south of Cleveland, Ohio. Bob and I took turns driving. We switched every time we had to refuel. We drove through the night, all day Saturday, and into the night again. I was really wiped out by Saturday night. I had a hard time sleeping during my breaks so Bob had to finish the last hour of driving even though it was technically my turn. We arrived in Phoenix around 2:30am EST Sunday morning (34 hours). Just thinking about the drive makes me want to take a nap...On Sunday the first order of business (after trying to recover from the drive) was decorating the Christmas tree. My kids were chomping at the bit to decorate the tree after being denied the right to do so at our home (what can I say?.... I'm lazy). When my mom took out the ornaments, they descended on the box like a pack of wolves. Here are some tree photos...
At this point of the trip (the second day in!), I started getting lazy about taking pictures. It always happens. Unfortunately, I did not take a picture of Matt jumping into the swimming pool (I really wish I had). He was determined to swim even if it was 58 degrees out. That pool must have been mighty cold, and he jumped in not once but twice.Although cold for swimming, it was nice walking weather (with a light jacket) and we did that a bit and tossed the football around a bit too (always a treat in December). I did snap a few pictures of our visit to the botanical gardens (I think it was on Monday the 22nd). It was nice, but our kids, determined to embrace the warmth of Arizona, refused to bring jackets. As a result, they were cold the whole time. There was a cool glass exhibit that was intermingled with the flora. I forget the name of the artist, but he has done some famous work worldwide and looks like a fat pirate.... seriously... eye patch and all. Anywho, here are some photos from the gardens....
The next couple of days were just hang out days. We visited with my parents, my grandmother, and spent a bit of time my brother, his wife and twin sons who were also in town visiting. We went to the park with them too. It was great to see the twins, they are so cute and active! They constantly kept the kids quite entertained. I have to say though, only very special people are blessed with twins, and I'm grateful I'm not that special. They kept Matt and Julie on their toes. I really felt for them. I remember feeling like that when my kids were younger and we visited Bob's parent's cottage which is on the water. You can never relax because of impending danger. My parents home, not being baby-proofed, had lots of hazards they could have injured themselves on.... lots of double teaming that week. So while I saw my brother, he was usually addressing the needs of his kids... not much chat time. Oh well, that is just his stage of life. I'm sure he's happy to be home and relax in his baby-proofed home.Ok, I got a little off topic... sorry. Christmas Eve rolled around and we had a really nice dinner. It was fun because my mom had to work so Bob, my dad, and I had to help prepare dinner. My mom had done a bit of legwork so it was easy, but we had a nice afternoon puttering around the kitchen. That night after a great dinner, Sam was determined to go to bed early so he could be well rested for the big day. Tom and Allie thought that was a great idea and wanted in on the action. The only problem was that they weren't serious about going to bed and Sam was. There were a lot of tears and frustration from Sam and I was saying things to Tom and Allie like... "If you don't quiet down you won't be allowed to go to bed and you will have to stay up later with me and Dad".... it was a first, I assure you. =) Here they are during one of the attempts to fall asleep...
Finally everyone settled down and fell asleep.... for a few hours. Tom woke up at 4:30 and woke up the rest of the crew. They were under strict orders not to get out of the room until 7:30. They followed those orders but were so noisy, they kept waking me up (I think Bob slept through it.... he can sleep through almost anything). Finally, 7:30 rolled around and they were allowed to open gifts. Here they are eating the stocking stuffers of Christmas tree shaped rice krispy treats (I won't go into my rant about how versatile rice krispy treats are...)....
Christmas was a relatively simple affair. Our packing space in the car was limited, budget was limited, and I had signed the handmade pledge to give handmade gifts. All contributed to a simple Christmas, it was nice though. Here's Allie opening up her cabbage patch doll from Santa....
Ok, so maybe Santa did not sign the handmade pledge. Just one gift wouldn't hurt, right? =)Well that wraps up part one of how I spent my Christmas Vacation, part two focuses more on Allie's birthday celebration(s)...
1 comment:
isn't that the crazy bellagio pirate? didn't you money the daily?
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