Our Merry Yuletide

December 24, 2014
Oscar Scherer State Park
Osprey, Florida

 

Since it’s so warm, we leave the door open for Santa and he sneaks in and leaves beautiful packages for us to have fun opening.

 

 

 

 

We hung the stockings right on the door so Santa couldn’t miss them and when we come out in the morning we see that he has filled them up.   We begin our morning looking in to see what goodies there are.  Lots of dried fruits instead of candies this year.  Nice Santa.  He brought David a quick change valve for doing oil changes.  He seemed really excited about this.  I got a zester which I’m going to love.  Carrie got a non stick spatula which can take up to 600 degrees.  Santa thinks of everything.

Then it’s time to get into those pastries as a breakfast appetizer.

 

 

 

David is really enjoying this week off of his no fat, no oil diet.

 

 

Because none of us is much of a shopper or really has many wants, our gifts are pretty simple and things we need.  Carrie always looks forward to getting the Sierra Club calendar.  She’s thrilled every single year.

 

 

I love books so those luckily always find their way into packages for me.  This year I get the National Geographic Guide to State Parks and the separate Guide to National Parks.   I can hardly wait to sit down and spend time looking at the beautiful pictures and planning how to visit the ones we have not yet seen.

 

 

 

David is thrilled to find the Beer Lovers Mustard collection from Raye’s Mustard in Eastport Maine.  When we were in Lubec we took a trip over to Eastport and it was love at first taste for David.  You can’t get Rayes in most of the country and he declares it the best mustard anywhere.

 

 

 

It takes us a long time to open our packages.  Hours actually.  We open one at a time and exclaim over each thing.  If it needs to be tried on then for sure.  If it needs to be tested, right away.

Carrie shows off one of the beautifully wrapped presents with her name on it.  David models his sporty new summer cap given to him with love by his daughter.  Carrie reads aloud the quotations in a new blank journal she gets from us.  She and I both have volumes and volumes of filled journals so it’s always great to get a new blank one.

 

 

 

 

Time to take a break for a full tilt breakfast.   Opening gifts really works up an appetite.   It’s just beautiful outside so we eat our breakfast at the picnic table.

 

 

 

Back to opening gifts.  David models another hat gift.  These are sleeping caps.  David demonstrates how to use these in a situation where you have too much light in your room.  Street light problems, neighbor’s porch light?  Here’s the answer.

 

 

There is a package for Carrie and her family in Baltimore.  It’s a laser mouse.  The cats will  love it!  Carrie and Matthew will too.

 

 

 

Here’s a present from Ho! Ho! Ho!  to the three of us.

 

Mexican Train Dominoes in a great carrying case.  Well now, we’ll have to stop everything and play this game.

 

 

But first I really do have to open the great present from my younger brother David and his wife Cindy.  Those who have been with us a while know that ever since I left for college my mother always gave me a box of Esther Price chocolates at Christmas time.   When she died my brother lovingly took over the task so that my home town candy queen still comes to my house.  And this year it is a pound of my VERY FAVORITES from my favorite candy maker, an entire box of milk chocolate coconut creams.  Shhhhh – don’t tell Caldwell Esselstyn.

 

 

HEAVENLY!!

 

So now we put the packages aside for some rounds of Mexican Train.  First round and Carrie skunks us.  Hmmm this is looking like Hearts.

 

It’s getting dark but we’re still playing.  But it’s time for dinner.  We’ll eat this one inside.

 

 

Then the last few presents under the tree.  Those who remember last winter when my kayak paddles were stolen may also know that I have been using paddles that are too heavy and too long for me ever since.  But no more!!  HooRAY!

 

 

 

 

Carrie receives a cadillac pair of running gloves.  These gloves are not only warm but they have finger and thumb tips to enable you to change the songs on your ipod or to do any other electronic things you might want to as you are pounding the pavement.  She’s thrilled!

 

Our dinner dessert is yet another piece of the Solstice Cake.  Oh dear we are over halfway finished with the cake.   But good thing the cake is so moist that it is every bit as good now as it was with the first piece.   We finish off our celebration with more rounds of Mexican Train.  I won’t gloat about winning 7 rounds in a row since this really is a game of total luck as far as I can tell.

 

 

Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah and Joyous Yuletide to you in whatever tradition you celebrate the love that is the reason for the season.

Sherry, Carrie and David