Reposting of Happy New Year

Happy New Year! I hope you all had a safe and fun new year's eve. We spent the night at home. Bob bought me a fryer for Christmas, so we fried a bunch of different foods (matchstick potatoes, mushrooms, zucchini, mozzarella sticks) and I tried to fry a snickers for Bob, but apparently they need to be frozen first because it melted on contact. I bought a smoker for Bob for Christmas, so he wrapped chicken in bacon and smoked it all afternoon. I could smell the smoker around the corner when I was coming back from doing errands. Glenn said it was the best taste ever. It was really good! After dinner, we had a dance party. The boys stayed up until 9, and then slept together in Glenn's room. Bob and I just made it to midnight, then went to bed.

I promised yesterday that I had more pictures of post-Christmas fun. So, here they are. My parents came back to our house last Thursday. On Friday, we drove down to Disney and took a tour of some of the resorts to view the Christmas decorations. Some of the resorts weren't as decorated as I thought they would be, but we still had fun. Our first stop was the Contemporary Resort. They had a gingerbread tree. It smelled delicious!

 

We took the monorail to it's next resort, the Polynesian Resort. The boys loved going on the monorail. They didn't have a lot of decorations, but there are so many beautiful plants there that we took a walk of the grounds. Here, Bob is putting his finger in the nose of a little tiki guy (I know, classy)!

Our next stop on the monorail was the Grand Floridian. It was beautifully decorated. Unfortunately, a lot of my pictures didn't come out because apparently my lens was smudged (that's why there is a bit of a halo on some of the pictures). They had a life size gingerbread house. 

 

We then took the monorail to the Magic Kingdom, then the boat from there to the Wilderness Lodge. It was great walking around there because that is where Bob and I stayed on our honeymoon. The inside of this resort is like the hotel in Yellowstone Park. It was beautiful.

We then waited a half hour for the bus to Downtown Disney (that's where we parked the car). Here are the boys waiting.

I think Glenn was dancing.

In Downtown Disney:

A couple days ago, Alexander and I were sitting on the couch and he put his arm around me and said, "This means I love you!" I happened to have my phone within reach, so I took this picture. I love him, too!

Bob took video of Alexander's gymnastics program. I've never uploaded it this way, so we'll see if this works. If not, at least you have another picture. 

And here's a bonus picture, Alexander rocking out on the guitar on New Year's Eve. 

 

Reposting of Christmas Fun

I am reposting the last two posts because apparently I'm the only one who can see the pictures. So, hopefully this works.

We've been having a fun Christmas time! Last time I posted, we had just had the Christmas program at our church. Here's a picture of them singing a song. J-O-Y (Joy to the World).

Before school ended, Alexander had a gymnastics program. He did a great job and was very cute! Here, he's doing the table. When the teacher asked what you are going to put on the table, most said cookies. His friend behind him said coffee. :)

 

 

We saw the annual Ocala Christmas Light Parade. We got a good spot without having to put our chairs out and tape a week in advance (seriously, they do that!). We had a picnic snack and a good time! It was perfect weather for a parade. By the time it started, it was getting dark and all the floats had Christmas lights. Our church won third place in the non-profit category.

 

Alexander dressed himself and wore this the whole day!

The weekend before Christmas, my brother Brad, his wife, Julie, and son, Jason came for a visit. We went down to Downtown Disney for the day. 

 

 

Of course they also rode the train. They wanted ice cream (Bob, of course). It was in the low 60's, so I had a cafe mocha instead.

 

After church, Alexander put on his glasses (some $1 readers I got for him to play with) and got out a book to read. :)

Christmas morning was wonderful! The boys got us up just before 7:00. They hadn't seen all the presents under the tree, so we kept them in our room until we were ready to open presents. Alexander is wearing his new Captain America costume. Glenn was too busy playing on his new tablet. 

Angry Birds was the theme of the day. I got bought Alexander these big cardboard blocks. Glenn received a bunch of Angry Birds and pigs. So, they set up the blocks, put the pigs on them and threw the birds at them just like the game. Notice Alexander's one green and one red sock.

My parents came for a late breakfast on Christmas and stayed the night. We went to visit my brother and family at Julie's parents' house just south of here the day after Christmas. Here, the boys are eating a gingerbread train while watching The Polar Express.