We decided since Christmas break was so short this year, at least for Scott and Tom, that we would schedule a mini vacation close to home. And of course we decided to include Mom B. Busch Gardens in Williamsburg has hosted ChristmasTown for many years now and we visited once before with Tom's parents. Last time we went it was very cold. We decided give it another try since they advertised it as "Bigger and Better". And because we have season passes. So on Monday morning we packed up the van, dropped off the dog and picked up Mom B and headed out. We were in no rush and even considered dropping into the new MGM Casino that opened near DC. However, the traffic was so heavy our 3 hour trip ended up taking 6 hours! We stopped for some shopping and dinner on the way down to take a break.
On Tuesday the weather was actually in the 60s-a bit warm for this time of year. The park did not open until 2pm, so Tom and the kids got some early morning shopping done before we all headed over to the park. They really did a wonderful job on all the lights and the new shows. We enjoyed a mini musical version of Scrooge and a Jazzy, Gospel version of the Nativity. However, they had to cancel the outside ice skating show since it was too warm! No matter, we had lots of time to walk through the park and take in all the Christmas lights, shop in the German Christmas village and eat way too much food, including Christmas Sampler plates of turkey, ham, brisket, ribs and chicken. Not to mention several different desserts including pumpkin and gingerbread cheesecake, apple strudel and of course decadent chocolate cake! And Allison tried Gluhwein-a warm, German wine in a small tankard.
Thursday, December 29, 2016
Tuesday, December 13, 2016
Looks like it is time to get into the Christmas spirit! How quickly the year flies by and now it is December already. Tom spent most of Thanksgiving weekend putting up Christmas lights on the outside of our house. It was time to take advantage of the good weather. I have been busy putting away all the Thanksgiving/Fall decorations and pulling out the Christmas trimmings. I have also been busy Christmas shopping(when I can). St Nick's Day was just around the corner on Dec 6th. Our family (or I) decided to celebrate St Nick's Day with our Christmas stockings. That way we can get Christmas tshirts, socks, hats, jewelry, treats and ornaments and use them/have them before Christmas is over!
Allison was able to come home for the weekend again! This was a perfect time to hand over her St Nick's Day stocking, as well as the stockings I put together for her roommates. I also asked her to come home so she could attend the neighborhood Bunco Christmas party on Friday night. We usually have a White Elephant gift exchange instead of playing Bunco. Allison really enjoys joining our group and chatting to all the neighborhood ladies(just like her mother!). She was thrilled to pick out an old fashioned popcorn popper for our game-the kind with the crank handle that you put on the stovetop. Sister in law Susan Seitz makes the best popcorn in one of these contraptions and now Allison is excited to be able to do the same with her roommates! They all love popcorn. And I took home a festive set of Christmas candle holders. Overall a Win-Win for both of us. Although cash works too!
I had already started out my Friday with a party. I picked up my Mom early in the morning for a Christmas luncheon at her Sr Center. I was so happy to be able to attend one of her events with her. The program hosted entertainment before lunch-a retired group of singers that put on a program which consisted of songs from the WWII era. My favorite was "They're Either Too Old or Too Young"! Very funny. And the group of singers were very cute! Afterwards we had a catered luncheon from Mission BBQ and cake from a local bakery. I then dropped into the hairdressers for a haircut and for Mom to get a perm. Overall a very busy day.
But we weren't done. On Saturday morning the kids and I got up early to participate in the Jingle Bell Run/Walk which raises money for the Arthritis Foundation. Scott usually runs the event, but I walk. Allison has been nursing a sore knee, so she skipped the running too. So instead we all walked. We were making up for skipping the Turkey Trot this year. And Cookie joined us! We dressed her up as a present, complete with a bow. But I guess she wasn't as cute as the other dogs and did not win the costume dog contest. But she did enjoy her very long walk around the lake(just like Thanksgiving weekend but with lots more people and dogs). And thankfully not too cold. Afterwards we tried to go out to breakfast at a local diner(I really wanted a big plate of bacon and eggs and hash browns). But all the local breakfast restaurants were packed, so we settled for McDonalds(not the same thing). We needed to get a few things done around the house before getting cleaned up for an evening out. Scott stayed home, but Tom, Allison and I headed into Baltimore for a concert that evening. Tom had purchased tickets for my birthday to see "Straight, No Chaser". The accopella group only puts on one concert a year in Baltimore as they travel all around the US. Apparently they have also branched out to Europe now. They are scheduled to perform in Paris. We have seen the group from Indiana U perform for several years now. They put on a fantastic show singing Pop songs, Christmas songs and songs they make up. All without instruments-just their voices. Last year one of the main singers was out with his wife while she was having a baby. We really missed his talent. This year he returned and the show was fabulous. We decided to introduce Allison to this incredible group. And we invited her boyfriend Taylor along since he enjoys concerts as well. And Straight No Chaser is enjoyable for everyone from little kids to the elderly. We invited Taylor to dinner, however he was out on a mission that involved cats during the day. He recently moved into his own apartment and was adopting two huge, fluffy black cats from his grandmother. Tyler actually rescued the pair as kittens 5 years ago at a local park and his grandmother has been raising them. She recently moved to a nursing home, so Tyler becomes the proud parent. So he had to travel down to his Grandmothers in southern Maryland for the day to pick up the cats and he couldn't make dinner with us. But he did attend the concert, and Allison got to see his new apartment(with cats). The concert by the way was Awesome! And Allison and Tyler are new fans of Straight No Chaser. We also enjoyed our dinner out at a new restaurant in Towson beforehand. It is actually a chain restaurant called BJs Tavern. Tom has eaten at this restaurant before in his travels and we also really enjoyed their food. We are happy to see they are building the same restaurant in our area. We even got a free cookie and ice cream as first time customers(some of us) which we delivered to Tyler before heading to the symphony hall.
On Sunday I was up early again to participate in the Baltimore Mayor's Christmas Parade through the historical town of Hampden to sing with the GS choir. I actually dread this parade-it is very long and hilly and usually rather cold. And last year they put a crazy lady in front of us. And this year it was exactly the same! And they put the same crazy lady in front of us again! Our choir leads the rest of the Girl Scout and Boy Scout troops in the parade. This parade is a bit unconventional. All kinds of crazy groups show up-Roller Derby girls, Big Time Wrestlers riding on toilet seat bikes, and Darth Vader as Santa Claus at the end. And the current Baltimore Mayor did not even show up and neither did the Mayor-Elect. Plus all the bars are open so it is one big street party for the crowds. And I say the crazy lady was in front of us again. She calls herself the Green Angel and she wears a green dress with a white shawl and a halo. And frankly she looks like they picked her up off the streets(poor thing). Her tennis shoes are falling apart and usually untied and her hair is filthy(it's an OT thing). I don't know how she walks the entire parade route, up and down hilly streets. I get worn out! They usually have a parade worker walk with her. Last year she yelled at our group because we sing and it was drowning out her singing too. She had the parade worker carrying a portable microphone and speaker last year and kept holding up the parade to stop and sing to the crowds. The people seem to love her. I guess she has been walking the parade for many years-they even run out in the street to get a selfie with her! This year the parade workers got smart and took away her microphone, but she came over and yelled at our group anyway during the parade. We just kept singing. Did I mention she looks homeless and a bit crazy? I am all for her participating in the parade, but I wish they would let her ride on a float! Away from us! I am hoping next year we consider participating in the Horse and Tractor Christmas parade in Lisbon, MD. We can deal with horse poop in the street-just walk around. It doesn't yell at you! Being a Girl Scout is a tough business. And naturally this year they put us at the end of the parade. So we had to stand around for 2 hours before we even started walking! It was a long day. And there is more to come.
On a personal note, we were saddened to hear of the passing of Tom's Aunt Mary. She was an incredible woman and very sweet to Tom and our family as well. She had been battling Alzheimers for about 10 years now and was residing in a nursing home in Richmond. The funeral was last weekend, and with all our prescheduled plans, we just did not think we could make the 3+ hour trip down and back to Richmond on Saturday, especially having to travel around the DC area. And I am sure we would have loved to have stayed longer to visit with all of Tom's relatives. Tom's parents were able to travel up from Florida and Tom's brother Mark and his wife Linda drove in from Indiana to attend the funeral. I'm glad part of our family was represented.
Meanwhile, Allison had packed up and headed back to school on Sunday afternoon. She was hosting a Frisbee White Elephant party at her condo that evening and needed to get back with her roommates to clean and pick up food for the party. At least she had some time to stop and do some Christmas shopping on the ride home with her roommate. She needed to pick up a dress for her end of the season Frisbee party(a formal affair). She is also starting to study for Finals and finishing up the last of her school projects and tests. Scott was busy at work and also has quite a bit of classwork to wrap up before the end of the year and Christmas break. Quite a busy time of the year!
Allison was able to come home for the weekend again! This was a perfect time to hand over her St Nick's Day stocking, as well as the stockings I put together for her roommates. I also asked her to come home so she could attend the neighborhood Bunco Christmas party on Friday night. We usually have a White Elephant gift exchange instead of playing Bunco. Allison really enjoys joining our group and chatting to all the neighborhood ladies(just like her mother!). She was thrilled to pick out an old fashioned popcorn popper for our game-the kind with the crank handle that you put on the stovetop. Sister in law Susan Seitz makes the best popcorn in one of these contraptions and now Allison is excited to be able to do the same with her roommates! They all love popcorn. And I took home a festive set of Christmas candle holders. Overall a Win-Win for both of us. Although cash works too!
I had already started out my Friday with a party. I picked up my Mom early in the morning for a Christmas luncheon at her Sr Center. I was so happy to be able to attend one of her events with her. The program hosted entertainment before lunch-a retired group of singers that put on a program which consisted of songs from the WWII era. My favorite was "They're Either Too Old or Too Young"! Very funny. And the group of singers were very cute! Afterwards we had a catered luncheon from Mission BBQ and cake from a local bakery. I then dropped into the hairdressers for a haircut and for Mom to get a perm. Overall a very busy day.
But we weren't done. On Saturday morning the kids and I got up early to participate in the Jingle Bell Run/Walk which raises money for the Arthritis Foundation. Scott usually runs the event, but I walk. Allison has been nursing a sore knee, so she skipped the running too. So instead we all walked. We were making up for skipping the Turkey Trot this year. And Cookie joined us! We dressed her up as a present, complete with a bow. But I guess she wasn't as cute as the other dogs and did not win the costume dog contest. But she did enjoy her very long walk around the lake(just like Thanksgiving weekend but with lots more people and dogs). And thankfully not too cold. Afterwards we tried to go out to breakfast at a local diner(I really wanted a big plate of bacon and eggs and hash browns). But all the local breakfast restaurants were packed, so we settled for McDonalds(not the same thing). We needed to get a few things done around the house before getting cleaned up for an evening out. Scott stayed home, but Tom, Allison and I headed into Baltimore for a concert that evening. Tom had purchased tickets for my birthday to see "Straight, No Chaser". The accopella group only puts on one concert a year in Baltimore as they travel all around the US. Apparently they have also branched out to Europe now. They are scheduled to perform in Paris. We have seen the group from Indiana U perform for several years now. They put on a fantastic show singing Pop songs, Christmas songs and songs they make up. All without instruments-just their voices. Last year one of the main singers was out with his wife while she was having a baby. We really missed his talent. This year he returned and the show was fabulous. We decided to introduce Allison to this incredible group. And we invited her boyfriend Taylor along since he enjoys concerts as well. And Straight No Chaser is enjoyable for everyone from little kids to the elderly. We invited Taylor to dinner, however he was out on a mission that involved cats during the day. He recently moved into his own apartment and was adopting two huge, fluffy black cats from his grandmother. Tyler actually rescued the pair as kittens 5 years ago at a local park and his grandmother has been raising them. She recently moved to a nursing home, so Tyler becomes the proud parent. So he had to travel down to his Grandmothers in southern Maryland for the day to pick up the cats and he couldn't make dinner with us. But he did attend the concert, and Allison got to see his new apartment(with cats). The concert by the way was Awesome! And Allison and Tyler are new fans of Straight No Chaser. We also enjoyed our dinner out at a new restaurant in Towson beforehand. It is actually a chain restaurant called BJs Tavern. Tom has eaten at this restaurant before in his travels and we also really enjoyed their food. We are happy to see they are building the same restaurant in our area. We even got a free cookie and ice cream as first time customers(some of us) which we delivered to Tyler before heading to the symphony hall.
On Sunday I was up early again to participate in the Baltimore Mayor's Christmas Parade through the historical town of Hampden to sing with the GS choir. I actually dread this parade-it is very long and hilly and usually rather cold. And last year they put a crazy lady in front of us. And this year it was exactly the same! And they put the same crazy lady in front of us again! Our choir leads the rest of the Girl Scout and Boy Scout troops in the parade. This parade is a bit unconventional. All kinds of crazy groups show up-Roller Derby girls, Big Time Wrestlers riding on toilet seat bikes, and Darth Vader as Santa Claus at the end. And the current Baltimore Mayor did not even show up and neither did the Mayor-Elect. Plus all the bars are open so it is one big street party for the crowds. And I say the crazy lady was in front of us again. She calls herself the Green Angel and she wears a green dress with a white shawl and a halo. And frankly she looks like they picked her up off the streets(poor thing). Her tennis shoes are falling apart and usually untied and her hair is filthy(it's an OT thing). I don't know how she walks the entire parade route, up and down hilly streets. I get worn out! They usually have a parade worker walk with her. Last year she yelled at our group because we sing and it was drowning out her singing too. She had the parade worker carrying a portable microphone and speaker last year and kept holding up the parade to stop and sing to the crowds. The people seem to love her. I guess she has been walking the parade for many years-they even run out in the street to get a selfie with her! This year the parade workers got smart and took away her microphone, but she came over and yelled at our group anyway during the parade. We just kept singing. Did I mention she looks homeless and a bit crazy? I am all for her participating in the parade, but I wish they would let her ride on a float! Away from us! I am hoping next year we consider participating in the Horse and Tractor Christmas parade in Lisbon, MD. We can deal with horse poop in the street-just walk around. It doesn't yell at you! Being a Girl Scout is a tough business. And naturally this year they put us at the end of the parade. So we had to stand around for 2 hours before we even started walking! It was a long day. And there is more to come.
On a personal note, we were saddened to hear of the passing of Tom's Aunt Mary. She was an incredible woman and very sweet to Tom and our family as well. She had been battling Alzheimers for about 10 years now and was residing in a nursing home in Richmond. The funeral was last weekend, and with all our prescheduled plans, we just did not think we could make the 3+ hour trip down and back to Richmond on Saturday, especially having to travel around the DC area. And I am sure we would have loved to have stayed longer to visit with all of Tom's relatives. Tom's parents were able to travel up from Florida and Tom's brother Mark and his wife Linda drove in from Indiana to attend the funeral. I'm glad part of our family was represented.
Meanwhile, Allison had packed up and headed back to school on Sunday afternoon. She was hosting a Frisbee White Elephant party at her condo that evening and needed to get back with her roommates to clean and pick up food for the party. At least she had some time to stop and do some Christmas shopping on the ride home with her roommate. She needed to pick up a dress for her end of the season Frisbee party(a formal affair). She is also starting to study for Finals and finishing up the last of her school projects and tests. Scott was busy at work and also has quite a bit of classwork to wrap up before the end of the year and Christmas break. Quite a busy time of the year!
Thursday, December 1, 2016
Happy Thanksgiving! What a wonderful Holiday week. Our weather was beautiful. Allison came home on Tuesday evening. Scott had two half days of school and was off from Weds to Friday. So the whole family had time to spend together. And we certainly filled up our time with lots of activities! I worked most of the week and Tom took time off. He finished his last class and was glad to have some free time with the kids and with his video games! He did take Scott out for driving practice to a nearby church to drop off some cookies. Scott earned some NHS volunteer hours for donating cookies to a church sponsored Thanksgiving meal for the homeless. So he was doing a good deed and getting in lots of driving practice around some winding roads through the woods. Scott and Tom also took advantage of the good weather to put up our outside Christmas lights over the weekend before the rain. I see lights are popping up all over the neighborhood, along with a few Christmas trees.
I was sad to see all the Fall/Thanksgiving decorations put away. I think Thanksgiving is my most favorite holiday. It brings family together, and it is fun to sit down to a big meal without worrying about the presents. We hosted Thanksgiving dinner at our house for our family, along with my mom, our friend John D., Allison's boyfriend Tyler and his sister. 8 people fit very nicely around our kitchen table. Turns out Tyler's sister did not make it to dinner though since she wasn't feeling well. Maybe we'll catch her again some other time. Tyler would have been with his family except his parents had traveled to New Orleans to celebrate their wedding anniversary. So we were very happy to host and Tyler even baked chocolate chip cookies and made chex mix to go along with our big dinner as well as contributing a bottle of wine. I love having all the family helping to cook dinner. Tom was busy roasting our turkey on the grill. Allison and Scott were busy helping in the kitchen with loaded mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole, stuffing, crescent rolls, green salad and fruit salad. Needless to say we had plenty of food. We had so much food for dinner, none of us had any room for pie! Instead, we enjoyed Tyler's chocolate chip cookies!
Our guests arrived around 2pm. I picked up my mom, and Tyler drove down from his apt. Since the weather was so nice, Tyler, Allison and Scott decided to head out for a hike around the lake at the local park with Cookie. They were busy working up their appetites. We opted out of the local YMCA Turkey Trot in the morning. I decided we would be too busy getting ready for our dinner guests. I made some hot crab dip as an appetizer to keep guests busy while everything was in the oven. The "kids" stayed busy with computer games and we adults caught up with football games. After dinner, Scott asked if we could celebrate his Birthday a few days early since we had so many guests. Scott wanted a pecan pie which he got with a singing birthday candle. However, as I mentioned, we were all stuffed so we just munched on the cookies while he opened his gifts. Scott was very happy with lots of computer gifts and video games. Of course I had to pick up some warm clothes for him, and Tom found some good luck math socks to top off his new wardrobe, along with a couple of Western Michigan shirts. Scott used some of his birthday money to purchase a large hamburger backpack. It's a thing. He needed something to carry all his video gaming equipment to school for his weekly club. We had a wonderful dinner and enjoyed topping it off with Scott's 17th Birthday celebration. I spent the evening putting away all the leftover food, making Seitz casserole(leftover turkey and stuffing with gravy) and relaxing on the couch with chocolate chip cookies! I tried to talk my mom into starting her Christmas cards, but she was too tired. I put her to work in the kitchen as well! Tom gave her a ride home later in the evening.
With Turkey dinner and Birthday dinner out of the way it was time to get down to enjoying a relaxing weekend. On Friday Scott had to work in the afternoon. I ran some shopping errands while waiting for Scott to get off work so we could go see the new JK Rowling movie, "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them". Tom opted out of this movie. We enjoyed our big bucket of popcorn. On Saturday morning, Allison and I were up early to attend the Christmas Tree Festival with my mom. I was singing at the event with my Girl Scout choir. While I was singing, Allison toured my mom around the decorated Christmas trees. All the trees and wreaths have theme decorations, like Mickey Mouse or Maryland theme trees and then they are auctioned off. The proceeds go to the local Children's hospital. After I finished singing I joined Allison and Mom to tour the trees, gingerbread houses and gift vendors. We stopped for lunch and enjoyed a few more Holiday shows on the main stage before heading home. Later that afternoon after Scott got off work, our family went to see the new Disney movie Moana with Tom along this time. We liked the movie, but it was no "Little Mermaid" or "Lion King". At least we got another big bucket of popcorn!
On Sunday I dragged the family off for our Christmas photo. I know that is not how Scott planned to spend his Birthday! But he was a good sport and we all had fun with our photo session. Afterwards we headed to lunch at BWs(Buffalo Wild Wings) to officially celebrate Scott's birthday. We then headed home to pack up Allison with lots of Turkey leftovers and plenty of snacks to get her through the next few weeks to finals. Meanwhile, we took advantage of the good weather to finish putting up outside Christmas lights and raking leaves! I discovered that not all the leaves blew away. Instead, I found large piles hiding under bushes. I am sure I will have many more bags to fill, but at least we can say we are done cutting the grass!(probably).
On a sad note, we heard from Tom's family that his Aunt Mary passed away on Sunday. Sadly she had been suffering from Alzheimer's for many years, so in some ways it was a blessing. Her funeral will be in Richmond VA next weekend, but we don't think we can fit the trip into our busy schedule.
I was sad to see all the Fall/Thanksgiving decorations put away. I think Thanksgiving is my most favorite holiday. It brings family together, and it is fun to sit down to a big meal without worrying about the presents. We hosted Thanksgiving dinner at our house for our family, along with my mom, our friend John D., Allison's boyfriend Tyler and his sister. 8 people fit very nicely around our kitchen table. Turns out Tyler's sister did not make it to dinner though since she wasn't feeling well. Maybe we'll catch her again some other time. Tyler would have been with his family except his parents had traveled to New Orleans to celebrate their wedding anniversary. So we were very happy to host and Tyler even baked chocolate chip cookies and made chex mix to go along with our big dinner as well as contributing a bottle of wine. I love having all the family helping to cook dinner. Tom was busy roasting our turkey on the grill. Allison and Scott were busy helping in the kitchen with loaded mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole, stuffing, crescent rolls, green salad and fruit salad. Needless to say we had plenty of food. We had so much food for dinner, none of us had any room for pie! Instead, we enjoyed Tyler's chocolate chip cookies!
Our guests arrived around 2pm. I picked up my mom, and Tyler drove down from his apt. Since the weather was so nice, Tyler, Allison and Scott decided to head out for a hike around the lake at the local park with Cookie. They were busy working up their appetites. We opted out of the local YMCA Turkey Trot in the morning. I decided we would be too busy getting ready for our dinner guests. I made some hot crab dip as an appetizer to keep guests busy while everything was in the oven. The "kids" stayed busy with computer games and we adults caught up with football games. After dinner, Scott asked if we could celebrate his Birthday a few days early since we had so many guests. Scott wanted a pecan pie which he got with a singing birthday candle. However, as I mentioned, we were all stuffed so we just munched on the cookies while he opened his gifts. Scott was very happy with lots of computer gifts and video games. Of course I had to pick up some warm clothes for him, and Tom found some good luck math socks to top off his new wardrobe, along with a couple of Western Michigan shirts. Scott used some of his birthday money to purchase a large hamburger backpack. It's a thing. He needed something to carry all his video gaming equipment to school for his weekly club. We had a wonderful dinner and enjoyed topping it off with Scott's 17th Birthday celebration. I spent the evening putting away all the leftover food, making Seitz casserole(leftover turkey and stuffing with gravy) and relaxing on the couch with chocolate chip cookies! I tried to talk my mom into starting her Christmas cards, but she was too tired. I put her to work in the kitchen as well! Tom gave her a ride home later in the evening.
With Turkey dinner and Birthday dinner out of the way it was time to get down to enjoying a relaxing weekend. On Friday Scott had to work in the afternoon. I ran some shopping errands while waiting for Scott to get off work so we could go see the new JK Rowling movie, "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them". Tom opted out of this movie. We enjoyed our big bucket of popcorn. On Saturday morning, Allison and I were up early to attend the Christmas Tree Festival with my mom. I was singing at the event with my Girl Scout choir. While I was singing, Allison toured my mom around the decorated Christmas trees. All the trees and wreaths have theme decorations, like Mickey Mouse or Maryland theme trees and then they are auctioned off. The proceeds go to the local Children's hospital. After I finished singing I joined Allison and Mom to tour the trees, gingerbread houses and gift vendors. We stopped for lunch and enjoyed a few more Holiday shows on the main stage before heading home. Later that afternoon after Scott got off work, our family went to see the new Disney movie Moana with Tom along this time. We liked the movie, but it was no "Little Mermaid" or "Lion King". At least we got another big bucket of popcorn!
On Sunday I dragged the family off for our Christmas photo. I know that is not how Scott planned to spend his Birthday! But he was a good sport and we all had fun with our photo session. Afterwards we headed to lunch at BWs(Buffalo Wild Wings) to officially celebrate Scott's birthday. We then headed home to pack up Allison with lots of Turkey leftovers and plenty of snacks to get her through the next few weeks to finals. Meanwhile, we took advantage of the good weather to finish putting up outside Christmas lights and raking leaves! I discovered that not all the leaves blew away. Instead, I found large piles hiding under bushes. I am sure I will have many more bags to fill, but at least we can say we are done cutting the grass!(probably).
On a sad note, we heard from Tom's family that his Aunt Mary passed away on Sunday. Sadly she had been suffering from Alzheimer's for many years, so in some ways it was a blessing. Her funeral will be in Richmond VA next weekend, but we don't think we can fit the trip into our busy schedule.
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