Christmas

I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed by how far behind I am on here.  So this may be broken up into two parts if I have that in me.  Can't say I'm getting a ton of sleep these days but I may be getting ahead of myself with that statement.

Christmas vacation started Thursday, December 12 when we departed at 8:45 pm for Boston with a stopover in Washington D.C.  Ron and Elaine were up in Pennsylvania and decided to drive to DC with Derek and Tyler for the weekend and asked if we wanted to stop on our way through.  I thought it was a fantastic idea because A) I've never been to DC during Christmas and B) Stopping there would allow us to break up the trip into two segments both of which entailed driving mostly during the night which is very appealing with a 3 1/2 month old infant and finally C) It's always nice for the kids to spend time with their cousins.

The ride up was pretty uneventful.  Duncan drove until about 2 am.  Up until then, I was salivating at the thought of allowing myself some Mountain Dew which I hadn't had since Colby's birth.  Since Colby could possibly need to eat a few hours from my drinking it, I was a little concerned but after some research, I discovered that only about 1% of the caffeine gets into the mother's bloodstream and MD has way less caffeine than coffee to begin with (which many nursing mother's drink in moderation).  So I felt like it was okay.  It was indeed glorious.  Some people may wonder how I can stay awake for so long at night but honestly, get me in a quiet car, my headphones tuned in to Dr. Laura, sipping on my Mountain Dew and the open road in front of me and I'm a pretty happy camper.  I've never had a problem with nodding off or anything close.  However, come around 7 - 8 am when we stop for breakfast, I'm ready for Duncan to take over when we resume the trip.  The kids were great in the car with Colby waking up only once at about 4 am to nurse.

We didn't rush things in the morning because we didn't want to try and check into the hotel too early.  It was about noon when we finally did....a Residence Inn in Alexandria, Virginia.  Ron and Elaine and the boys arrived a few hours later.  The plan was to take the train to downtown but first I wanted to stop by Walmart or Target to look for some winter gear for the kids.  Some years I've bought boots, snow pants, etc ahead of time only to not have any snow which is frustrating (often buying them used so it's cheaper but then they can't be returned).  This year I decided to hold off any buy it up in Boston if the weather called for it.  Well, as it turned out, the weather was going to call for it right upon our arrival and I didn't want to have to hold the kids hostage in my parent's house waiting for me to go buy them boots.  Unfortunately, driving three miles away to a Walmart when you are in a city it just not a good idea.  We took some wrong turns and all said, the round trip took like 1.5 hours.  It was ridiculous.  What's worse, I paid $35 for a pair of snow boots for Calleigh at Target.  Oh, how the thrifty person in me just about had a heart attack over that but what can you do? I wonder if the hackers were laughing over my purchase when they were stealing my data.

We finally got rolling on our trip to downtown DC on the Metro.  Ron and Elaine had brought our double stroller up with them in their van because obviously we did not have the room ourselves.  This was very helpful because Aubree is a pathetic walker and Brady, at age two, can't last that long either.  We had the Bjorn for Colby but he switched back and forth.  Our ultimate destination was to see the National Christmas Tree and catch a glimpse of the White House.  Next to the National Christmas Tree they have trees from each state (although I'm not sure if they are literally from each state) all decorated.  Frankly they all looked the same so I'm not sure what the deal was with that.  But the biggest highlight for me was when we were leaving the area and came across a family of singers...a dad and four children singing Christmas carols.  The mom was standing nearby with the two youngest children.  As you know, I love Christmas music and to hear that in such a beautiful setting as our country's capital was quite an experience.  They even sang "We Three Kings" for us which is Calleigh's favorite Christmas song.

When we finally made it back to our hotel room, we made the decision that we weren't going to stay overnight after all. The plan was to stay in DC all day Saturday and leave at bedtime Saturday night to arrive in Boston on Sunday morning.  But a snowstorm was due to hit the eastern coast starting late Saturday morning/early afternoon and we did not want to get stuck there.  So despite the fact that we had driven all night Thursday with minimal sleep for the non-driver, we went to sleep at 10 pm and woke up at midnight for the drive up to Boston.  When I checked out, the hotel clerk was clearly confused but I managed to ramble out an explanation.  Trying to get everyone to the car was a little adventure.  Clearly we couldn't carry everyone out together and it's not like we could take one each and then go back for the others.  We had to wake up the girls and have them walk and that was no easy feat.  You may have noticed that children sleep VERY heavily at night so we had to shake them like five or six times very forcefully to get them to wake up and then after they got their shoes and such on they would keep falling back onto the bed like dead weight. They were total zombies.  But somehow we made it to the van.  

Even thought this segment (about nine hours with a nursing baby and no traffic) of the trip is much shorter than the first part, it was obviously more challenging since we had limited sleep and some snow started falling in Connecticut.  Boy, were we ever happy when we pulled into my parent's house.  They were waiting to take the kids to church so we could sleep.  Thank goodness that I had brought my pump because I was able to quickly pump a bottle to send my mother off with Colby too.

It indeed snowed and honestly, my whole trip was made when I saw the joy the kids had in the snow.  It's just wonderful.  They really couldn't get enough of it, especially the girls, and most of Sunday they spent outside.

Here are some of the other highlights of the trip since I'm not going to go into great detail on everything we did:

• Tuesday we went to the Natick Mall so we could go to the American Girl doll store.  This was the big thing on the girls' list this year thanks to seeing friends at church with them.  People without girls may not realize how pricey these dolls are but they are about four times as much as a comparable doll at a department store.  You are paying for the name but I do think they are probably better quality and the hair is definitely better.  Not only are the dolls expensive but the clothes and accessories are just ridiculously priced.  Hey, if people pay the prices I can't blame the company for selling them for that much but I certainly have no intention of buying the clothes from them.  The dolls will fit any brand of 18-inch doll clothes so you can get them from Target, Michaels, on eBay (which I did) etc. for WAY cheaper.  Afterall, who is about to pay $30 for one measly doll outfit??  Anyway, as we browsed the aisles and the girls ooh'd and ahhh'd, we smiled to ourselves that was had already gotten the dolls and were waiting for their arrival from the store. 
• Also on Tuesday, my brother Shawn, Camille, Camden, and Acadia arrived from Maine.  Yay!  Let the real fun begin.
• Wednesday morning we attempted to get a family picture for our Christmas card in downtown Norfolk (where my folks live).  This proved to be VERY difficult as it was FREEZING outside and Brady was in a completely foul mood.  We couldn't take off our jackets and we never did get Brady to smile but you work with what you can get I guess.
• Wednesday afternoon we left for Newport - - our third year in a row for going down there with a good portion of the Latimer (my mom's) extended family.  As before, Aunt Lori and Uncle Charlie were able to get us some rooms because they have a time share.  It is really a fantastic time especially since we hadn't seen many people since June due to our non-attendance in Nova Scotia this year. There were 32 of us there which included Ricky, Ana, and Aunt Wanda who arrived Wednesday night from down here.  But via plane.  Lucky ducks!  
• Thursday was a gorgeous day in Newport and we had a lovely stroll around the downtown where we were able to get a second picture that I liked better for our Christmas card.  That afternoon I spent hours, HOURS, trying to get a card together.  Usually it's a snap because I can get it done in an hour at Walmart but this time they were saying they needed 24-hours.  Since it was Thursday afternoon and I wanted to mail all the cards by Friday afternoon in an attempt to get them to people before Christmas, that just wasn't going to work.  I tried CVS, Walgreens, Target.  I could not find a single portrait layout card that I liked so I had to use the original picture from Wednesday that was a landscape shot.  Honestly, that whole thing was an extremely frustrating experience (websites weren't working or were really slow, etc).  The final product ended up being from Target and Duncan didn't even like it.  Again, hopefully the hackers enjoyed all that.  I suppose this is what happens one waits until the last second!
• Friday morning, we headed back to my folks but without Calleigh.  She went with Ricky to watch the guys play hockey and then she and Camden went with my dad to answer some questions about Christmas on his radio program.  He has a show he does each Sunday and surprise, surprise, this week's segment was about Christmas.  We weren't sure how the kids would do but they did great and we got to listen to them Sunday morning when the showed aired.  Calleigh apparently wasn't nervous at all.  I can't remember what she said though or I would report it here!
• Saturday we were at church, obviously, and then Saturday night the three of us siblings and our spouses left the six kids behind with the folks and headed into Boston.  It was the first time we had ever gone out just the six of us so that was a real treat.  We drove into the North End where we had reservations at an Itailian (duh) restaurant called Antico Forno.  The atmosphere was a little loud as the tables are pretty squished in but honestly, it didn't bother me a bit.  It was just fun to have some time with adults only.  After a great meal (So I heard. I only had Caesar salad so I can't attest personally as to how good the real food was) we went and hung out at Faneuil Hall Quincy Market for a bit.  A lot of the shops were closing up but we were able to get a couple of treats and then saw a light/music show involving the huge tree they now put up there.  This is the first time we had seen it and although I know I am biased, it put the National Christmas Tree to shame. When we arrived home, the kids were all asleep but Colby had been a little pill crying for quite some time.  I felt pretty bad about that.
• Sunday was Pops day.  As is our tradition, it starts with a meal at the Cheesecake Factory at the Prudential Center, a post-meal stroll around the Prudential Center, and then we walk over to Symphony Hall.  Sometimes those can be very cold walks but this year it was fairly warm and no precipitation.  As is also usual, I gave the attendant who takes the tickets a dirty look when I had to hand over my ticket for Colby, you know, my infant that sits on my lap but nonetheless is required to have a $33 ticket.  Just ridiculous.  Said infant was fairly well behaved but I did have to do a little walking, standing, seat shifting, nursing to keep things quiet.  Brady was also a challenge but we got through it with nary a dirty look and I did get to hear most of the program which is always a pleasure.
• Monday night we had planned a trip to Edaville Railroad but alas, Mother Nature had other plans.  It was a rainy day so Edaville was tabled for this year.  Nonetheless, we still drove over to Carver because David and Yully bought a house nearby and we wanted to check it out.  They served us lunch and gave us a tour of their very lovely house.  Afterwards, we drove a few miles away to Boomer's Playland which is a play space with ropes, balls, an arcade, and all that.  I had found a deal for it on Living Social a few weeks back where we could get four kids in for $20, normally a $40 price.  When we arrived, what do you know, they were having a special of $5/kid.  So yes, if you are good at math you can see that the Living Social deal turned out to be the same price as the special they were having when we arrived so it didn't feel like I had gotten this special deal in the end.  The kids had a blast though.  Bruno ended up being there too and they probably could have closed the place out but after a few hours we had to move on.  We capped the evening with a stop at Jordan's Furniture to see the Enchanted Village.  They also have a Polar Express "ride" there but it was sold out unfortunately.
• Tuesday was Christmas Eve so this entailed some last minute shopping.  I, like most people these days, did a lot of shopping on-line but there were still some in-store shopping that I had to do.  I'm sure I've mentioned in previous years on here but I LOVE Christmas shopping.  In fact, this is why I usually procrastinate so much with getting it done because I don't want it to be over.  If I didn't have kids, I'm sure I would do way more shopping in actual brick and mortar stores because I love the excitement of the crowds, the lines, the Christmas music blaring over the speakers.  There's just something about it.  But alas, when you have small children, there just isn't much time to soak all that in any more.  
• For Christmas Eve we had, thank goodness, our usual people of Aunt Lori, Uncle Charlie, Kelly, Steve, and Caleb over.  Cassy (our pediatrician friend) and her family also came by and joined us for supper and the games that I put together.  It was lots of good fun with the victory going to the team of Uncle Charlie/Steve/Shawn.  It was a little harder to keep score this year though because of my own stupidity.  I had left my laptop on the floor and had discovered on Monday morning when I went to open it that someone had stepped on it or something (we think Aubree) and there was major screen damage to it. Lesson learned.  I don't know what I was thinking to leave it out like that...This year was also the first year that I had actually wrapped most of the gifts in advance so I wasn't up until all hours of the night wrapping them all.  Wrapping is another thing that I love and usually save it for the end but sometimes I'm up until 2:00 or 3:00 getting it all done.  Not good.
• It was a wonderful Christmas day.  The kids were super excited, obviously, but so was I! It's the best day of the year.  It took us about two and half hours to open all the gifts.  Some people had reduced spending budgets but because we have so many people, there are still plenty of gifts to be opened. My mother hands out the gifts and then we wait for the person to open it before going on to the next one.  So it's a longer drawn out affair but that's just the way I like it.  The kids get pretty antsy though waiting for their next one to open.  Not sure what age this starts to dissipate!  The girls were thrilled with their dolls and Brady did well in the gift department with a bunch of cars, motorcycles, planes, and trains.  You know, boy stuff. We had a fabulous brunch (some say the best ever) and just relaxed the rest of the day.  Shawn and family, however, left mid-afternoon to head to North Carolina and ultimately here.