New Year's Eve

Doug, Cameron, and I were back in Orlando today. Cal and Maggie were checking out of their room at Port Orleans Riverside to go to a JW Marriott closer to the airport. Cameron and I picked them up at checkout and then got Meg at her hotel before traveling to the rental car facility so that Nick could return his vehicle. The six of us met Doug near the Marriott at a family favorite, Mellow Mushroom. He had gotten off work at noon today and was thankful to be able to have lunch with all of us. Meg and I enjoyed the wings and pretzels, and everyone else said that the pizza was delicious.  After lunch, we said goodbye to Meg and Nick at the restaurant as they Ubered back to their hotel. Doug left for Ocala to hopefully jog before Cameron and I made it back home. We dropped Maggie and Cal off at their hotel. They were looking forward to using the lazy river and watching the fireworks from their hotel room.

Traffic was lighter than I thought it would be for New Year’s Eve, and I was thankful to make it home before dark. Cameron and I talked to Brett on the way back to see what his plans were for the night. He, Sean, and Jovie were going to continue their karaoke tradition at Sean‘s after mass. The three of us in Ocala held onto some of our New Year’s Eve traditions as well. We chose to have a game night and invited Phil over to play Catan.  We also cooked several of our favorite New Year's Eve finger foods, including nachos and cocktail weenies. After Phil left, we turned on our New Year’s Eve television staple, The Twilight Zone. The guys also put on the Penn State football game on the lanai TV.  We watched both programs muted as we listened to music from the record player. Cameron joked that we had to be the only family in America that could watch The Twilight Zone without subtitles and still follow along perfectly.  One thing that I don't think will become a tradition is drinking martinis.  Doug and Cameron wanted to have a martini night to go along with Doug's new Goldfinger album.  They weren't quite as good as Cameron envisioned, but he was glad that he finally tried one.  Midnight came a lot quicker than I expected and soon we were outside watching the fireworks from our front porch. I was so happy that everyone had found a fun way to ring in the new year.

A Great Day at Disney

Although Maggie had traveled to Disney World almost every year since she was born, her family was never big on rope dropping the parks. When she went with us last April, she came to realize the value of 6 AM wake up calls on vacation when the time at Disney is limited. Thus, she and Cal decided to make the most of their day at Magic Kingdom by getting to the parks well before 7:30 AM this morning when the first rides opened. I wasn’t sure how much they would be able to do because of the holiday crowds but was happy to hear from them several times during the day saying that they were having an awesome time. They rode one of Cal‘s favorites, Winnie the Pooh, and even made it on Peter Pan. The two of them tried several different food options that they had read about online including the cheeseburger pods and breakfast pastries at the LeFou's Brew. I loved all of the pictures that they sent and was glad that they even had time today to take the monorail to each resort surrounding Magic Kingdom. Maggie had never been able to get into Trader Sam’s at the Polynesian, but this afternoon they were able to order a drink and sit on the patio. The weather also cooperated as it stayed sunny all day with perfect park going temperatures. 

Maggie and Cal weren’t the only ones enjoying Disney World today. Meg and Nick spent the afternoon and evening in Lake Buena Vista as well. They had a hotel room at a Hilton close to Disney Springs, enjoyed some shopping and made it to the Boardwalk to try a drink at the Boardwalk Inn Lounge. Meg texted that they had had an awesome time, and that they were even able to ride the Skyliner over to Art of Animation for one of their famed cupcakes.

With everyone leaving Ocala, it made for a quiet day for Cameron and I, but that was probably what I needed. I was absolutely exhausted from all of the family fun and my leg needed to rest. Cameron and I had a lot of fun playing Yahtzee hands down on the Wii, watching some of our favorite television shows and enjoying another game night with Doug along with pizza and breadsticks from Piesano's.

Miniature Golf Fun

Cal and Maggie had reservations at Port Orleans Riverside tonight and Brett had a flight to catch at 6:30 this evening to go back to Indiana. I was sad that everybody was starting to leave, but happy that we had made plans to go to Blizzard Beach Miniature Golf and Disney Springs before they did. The day was perfect for our adventure as the sun was shining and it wasn’t too hot. We took two cars to Orlando to make traveling a little bit easier and we all arrived at Blizzard Beach a little bit before noon. There was a long wait for the summer course, so we played the winter one and had a great time. As there were eight of us, we had to split into groups of two, so it was the girls with Cameron against the guys. It was an extremely close match with several holes in ones and a lot of great shots throughout the round. In the end, Cameron beat Cal by one shot which gave us the victory over the guys by one as well. Either way it was a lot of fun.

We had planned on all of us going to Disney Springs for lunch, but Brett‘s flight kept getting delayed. In the end, he and I had to change his flight four times to get him home today in time to rest a little bit before he started work tomorrow. While Brett and Doug were on the way to the airport, the six of us decided that the best choice for lunch today was Chicken Guy. Only Brett and I had ever been there, and the group really wanted to try it. There was a line when we got to Disney Springs as we figured there would be, but we made it through the restaurant relatively quickly. We had ordered and just sat down when Doug called to say that he had left the airport. I was glad that Brett was also able to enjoy chicken and fries at the airport, although we missed having him with the group. Doug made it through the traffic and back to Disney Springs before we left the restaurant. The orders had been so filling that we had plenty of food left for him to eat lunch as well. After everyone finished, we spent the next hour or so walking around Disney Springs and shopping. Cal and Maggie tried a Dole whip and several drinks before their hotel texted to let him know their room was ready. Fortunately, we made it to our car just as a storm hit. Meg and Nick rode with Cal Maggie and I while Doug and Cameron headed straight back to Ocala. I was glad that we were able to take them straight to the building where their room was. I was also happy to see that the rain would let up in an hour or so, as they had plans tonight to go to the Boardwalk.

The trip home was a a little bit stressful with all of the rain, but we made it safely. We decided on leftovers for dinner, and everyone enjoyed trying the Gideons cookies that we bought today for dessert. Meg pointed out that it was our last night to watch Meet Me in St. Louis together. I was glad that we found time as it was one of my favorite Christmas movies. Cameron had never seen it all the way through and enjoyed it as did Nick. After our weekend together the movie was a nice reminder of how wonderful family truly is.

Christmas Comes This Time Each Year

Although we celebrated three days late, it was still a wonderful Christmas celebration.  We followed all of the same traditions as in years past.  First, everyone opened stockings and then gifts were passed out individually for all to open.  It was a lot of fun watching everyone open the surprise presents from each another.  I was also glad to see that Cal's movie trivia book, Maggie's Official Disney Cookbook, Brett's Mr. Snowmiser shirt, Meg's Mary Poppins soundtrack, Nick's I Love Canada puzzle and Cameron's Detroit Lions track pants were all very much appreciated.  I was also thrilled to open my new "comfy" for the cold January nights in Florida, and Doug loved the peanut butter whiskey as well.  Doug had made a wonderful quiche and pancake breakfast for everyone, which we all enjoyed as soon as the last gift was opened.  Cal treated everyone to mimosas on the patio which made for a very relaxing morning.

Everyone took a break after our morning meal. Cameron, Nick and Meg played a round of Super Slugs.  Maggie and Cal went for a walk at Sholom Park while Brett spent his time reading.  I cleaned up while Doug started on dinner.  Phil arrived shortly after Doug started cooking and appreciated the new IU hat that we gave him.  Cal made it home in time to help with the grilling as dinner consisted of steak, salmon, scalloped potatoes, corn casserole and homemade bread.  Everything was absolutely delicious, and we all enjoyed the peanut butter cookies from Meg as well as the puppy chow that Maggie made yesterday for dessert.  

After our early dinner, we played several rounds of Donner Party and Chameleon.  As Doug pointed out to everyone, nothing says family time like "a rowdy game of frontier cannibalism."  It was the perfect way to end a wonderful Christmas celebration that we all enjoyed very much.  

A Wonderful Family Day

Today was an awesome day with my family.  Doug had to work, but we made the most of our time together before he got back to Ocala.  Games of ping pong and pickleball were played.  Walks were taken. Oboes belted out Christmas music in the garage. Gifts were wrapped and a lot of laughter was had by all.  Lunch was at Jaws where a lot of pictures were taken for family back home that loved the movie as much as we all did.  It was one of my favorite afternoons of break.

The fun didn't stop once Doug got home.  The seven of us all headed to downtown Ocala to enjoy the Christmas decorations, pick up dessert at Grandpa Joe's, and eat dinner at Brick City Kitchen since Cal, Maggie and Brett had never eaten there before and it's one of our favorites in Ocala.  The meals tonight were delicious, and the guys all got to try a flight of whiskey as well.  The evening ended with a few games of Scattergories Categories, teaching Maggie to play Clue, drinking eggnog and a visit from Santa once everyone headed to their rooms.  I had such a wonderful day and went to bed thankful that we had another day to all be together to celebrate Christmas tomorrow.  

Super Slugs

It was a quiet day after Christmas here.  Nick, Meg and Cameron decided to fill it with multiple games of Mario Supper Sluggers.  It has been a favorite of Meg and Cameron's for almost a decade.  In fact, while playing it, Cameron created the biggest Christmas faux paw in our family.  While mimicking Waluigi's baseball swing, he fell over and destroyed a side of our new Christmas tree.  Thankfully, no trees were harmed this year, and everyone had a great time.  Cameron has won every game that they have played so far, but that is no surprise as he usually dominates the Wii.  

I stayed out of the Supper Sluggers action, but did watch a few games and joined in when they switched to Swap Meet.  I never dominate any games but always have a lot of fun playing.  Doug only really joins in on Mario Kart, but as a family we love our Wii game nights, and I was glad that this Christmas break was no different.  

Our late afternoon and evening were a little bit busier.  I picked Brett up at the airport after he returned his rental car.  Meg and Nick took a walk and then Brett and Nick played pickle ball in the driveway before dinner.  Doug and Brett went to Shuckin' Shack for dinner as Brett really wanted to try it again.  They enjoyed a plate of oysters and had a wonderful night together.  The non-oyster crowd went to Tijuana Flats tonight for burrito Thursday.  Dinner was nice and everyone had a great evening.

Meg, Nick and Cameron left at 9:30 to pick Maggie and Cal up at the Tampa Bay airport this evening from their late-night flight.  I had planned on going but knew that my leg would struggle with the trip.  Thus, I really appreciated them going instead.  The bonus was that I got to spend some time with Brett once Doug went to bed, and the rest of the family had a fun trip to Ocala.  I was definitely excited to see everyone when they got here and was extremely happy that our family Christmas could officially begin.  

Merry Christmas

Although no one opened gifts today, we still had a wonderful Christmas.  Doug, Meg and Cameron started off the day with making our traditional family Christmas cookies in the morning.  While Doug made baked mostaccioli for lunch, the three of us watched a family favorite Christmas special from Blues Clues.  Uncle Phil joined us for our midday meal, and we all spent the rest of the afternoon playing games.  Nick arrived before dark to join our holiday celebration.  He thought he would be flying until Friday but was thankful to get to Florida earlier.  

Even though Brett and Cal weren't here today, we still heard from them several times.  Cal spent his holiday in the suburbs with Maggie's family.  He had a lot of fun playing games with them and even got a few of them to watch "It's a Wonderful World."  Brett and Karen went to midnight mass last night, opened gifts today and played a few video games together.  I missed having everyone together today but was thankful that we still had our own family Christmas to look forward to on Saturday.