•1:07 PM
Too...sick....to....go.....camping.....
So that is why we are home instead. We had plans to camp at Kissimmee Prairie Preserve SP this weekend, but quickly realized how foolish it would be, given that two of us have been coughing all through the night. I, at times, had to sit near upright in bed and try to sleep due to my sinuses being a total block. It just wouldn't have gone well to be camping and sleeping in the van. Hopefully our health will go better for our next scheduled camping trip in late January.
Christmas was very pleasant at our house. It was actually the first Christmas ever that our kids got us up and going earlier than normal - around 6:30. We all inspected our stockings first, with video camera rolling. Then we had a simple breakfast, and followed up by opening our presents. We try to do this slowly, one gift at a time, with all other family members watching the gift-opener. But even so, we set a record of having all the presents opened by 8:30 a.m. This is unusual for us - in past years, it has taken nearly all day (due to deliberate slowness). Our now older children did not permit this leisurely pace this year.
We like to have a destination on Christmas day, and this year was no exception. We picked up friends (in this case, an older couple who we know from our local P*nera Bread crowd) and headed to Col*mbia Restaurant in downtown Cel*bration. Cel*bration is a town a little more than an hour from here, that used to be connected with its neighbor, W*lt Disn*y W*rld. The Col*mbia Restaurant is a Spanish / Cuban restaurant whose original location in Tampa has been in business over 100 years, and they have a tradition of serving Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners. They decorate the restaurant so beautifully, the service is so excellent, and the atmosphere is very cheerful, not overly loud and festive. We have gone here a few times over the years on a holiday, due to our not having any family or relatives nearby.
DH received an air pellet rifle, so he has spent a little time practicing hitting targets. Here, he can be seen realizing his dream of being protector of the homestead.
Little Son and Baby Girl are now proud owners of pedal cars. Little Son has outfitted his with a headlight, and Baby Girl wears one light on her head. They are getting very good exercise pedaling these cars around the property, and they especially enjoy doing so in the dark of night.
Beau is happy with his new Christmas present as well.
As for me, I have been enjoying my new LCD monitor. It is so crisp and sharp that I feel like I have a completely new computer. Our old CRT was damaged by a strong magnet back in May, and had a very annoying discolored spot in the middle of the display. Not so anymore.Here are some photos of the exterior of our house at night this time of the year.
Now somehow every Christmas, we fall into the techno trap. Whereby, on the first day of Christmas we open up our gifts, and on the remaining of the twelve days, we end up dealing with the frailties and insufficiencies of said gifts. This year, it meant emailing the seller of an R/C hovercraft that did not hover. Tomorrow, we should hear whether they will replace it, or refund our money. When DH unbuttoned the hovercraft to see what was wrong, he discovered that a previous customer had totally destroyed the styrofoam framework. It was broken into pieces and reassembled with toothpicks, then reclosed and made to look good as new. So, hopefully, we won't get burned. The pedal cars were not assembled very carefully at the store, and we ended up at Home Depot looking for replacement bolts. Fortunately, the computer monitor took off without a hitch.
Low tech gifts are the best. Nothing goes wrong with them. I have never had to send back a book because it didn't work.
I am actually thankful that we have stayed home from camping. It has given us a few extra days to unwind and relax, free from schedules and responsibilities. DH is home from work for the rest of 2008, and this gives us a chance to mentally and spiritually prepare for the rigors of our 2009 homeschool year. More about that in my next post!
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5 comments:
Wow--those pedal cars are neat!
Lois
We like to spread our gift-opening throughout the day as well, and we still manage to do so. You have to figure, though, that w/each of my kids giving a gift to each other and to us, that is 4 x 5 = 20 gifts given just by the kids, and then there are the gifts Hubz & give on top of that! So there is a lot to open. We don't even start stockings til about 8:30, then do a couple rounds of gifts, then have brunch & showers, open a few more gifts...
Anyway-- sorry your camping didn't work oput, but it sounds like you had a nice holiday anyway. The pedal cars look like fun! (And so much better than the motorized cars that many kids have.) We have a pedal car, but the kids don't get it out too often; they seem to prefer their bikes.
Sounds like you all had a wonderful Christmas even with the glitches of the high-tech gifts.
We were pleasantly surprised when our gifts were fairly easy to work with. Only one kiddie digital camera is giving me some trouble. Thankfully, my son is occupied with other gifts and is being really patient!
Looks like a great day! Very ambitious lighting project you have going on there; I'm sure the kids will remember it with glee when they're adults. Sorry you're ill, but you have to "go with the flow", as they say!
The pedal cars are really cool. My girls would love those...if we had any flat ground.
We open our gifts one at a time, also. We like to enjoy each person's delight.
I hope you have a wonderfully blessed new year.