Christmas in Maryland

When we arrived back from our trip to Canada and Rhode Island, we came home to find more presents that Santa left in our apartment in Maryland while we were away. Tyler received a letter from Santa on Christmas Day indicating that there more presents and ever since he had been quite excited about seeing what they were. To our surprise there were a lot of presents that Santa left. And not only did Tyler find them in the living room, but there was also one very special present left in his bed. It was the tool bench that he asked Santa for. That night was a late night for us as Tyler wanted to play with all his new toys. Tyler thanks everyone for all the nice gifts that they gave him. He loves them all and he will be quite busy playing with all of them.

Last Day in Cape Breton

My brother, Joe, and his wife, Kristin, flew into Halifax late Christmas night and took the shuttle up to Cape Breton the morning after. We picked them up from the "shuttle stop" and we were overjoyed to see them. It had been a year since the last time we got to see each other. After we drove them to pick up their car rental, we all met at the cemetery to visit Dad's and Grampy's graves. Mom had got a lovely heart shaped Christmas wreath from all of us. For those who have lost loved ones, you can certainly understand how difficult it is especially during the holidays. It had been a lonely time for my mom during the past while, so she was very happy to have us all together. After lunch, we went home and pretty much sat and talked until it was time to go to bed. Unfortunately, this was our last full day on the Island. The next morning we had to wake up extra early and get in the car to start our journey back home. It is too bad that we didn't get to spend more time with Joe and Kristin, but I'm glad that they will be there with Mom to keep her company now.

Merry Christmas!!! Part 1

The day that Tyler had been so excitedly waiting for finally arrived. Tyler woke up at a pretty decent time and wandered out by himself to Nanny's living room to find that Santa left presents the night before! Daddy, Nanny, and I heard his little pitter pats so we quickly got up and followed him to the tree. Tyler had fun opening all his presents. He got a lot of nice things this year including the Elefun game, several DVDs, Transformers, cars and trucks. After Tyler thought he opened all his gifts, we noticed there was still a huge box way in the back of the tree. Turns out it was for Tyler and it was the Geo Trax he asked Santa for. Daddy and Tyler put it all together and then had a blast playing with it. Tyler was very fortunate and thankful to receive all these wonderful gifts, but we soon found out that Santa had delivered more for him at our apartment! Santa left Tyler a letter just for him that read that there were more gifts waiting back home!!! Tyler is very excited to see what else Santa left for him. Our Christmas morning didn't stop there, stay turned to hear about the rest of our Christmas morning...

Merry Christmas!!! Part 2

As our morning continued we decided to get out and see the snow that fell the night before. Steve suggested that we go for a little drive around part still of the Cabot Trail so that we could take some photos. So we ended up driving to Ingonish and back. Turns out that it didn't even snow on that part of the Island, but we still enjoyed the beautiful scenery. Later on in the evening, our friends Tena, Robb, and their son, Dawsyn, came over for a visit. Tyler had a blast showing Dawsyn all the toys that Santa brought him. Dawsyn LOVES dinosaurs, so he also enjoyed riding on Tyler's big gift from last year, Kota the Triceratops, that we keep at Nanny's house. Soon it was time for our company to go back home and for Tyler to go to bed and dream of all his new toys. Overall, it was a good Christmas and most of all we are very thankful and happy to be together this year.

Tracking Santa

Another Play Date

This afternoon Tyler had another play date with another one of his buddy's. His mom, Tena, invited us over for a visit while Tyler played with Dawsyn. This was the first time Steve had met my friend, Tena, and her mom. We enjoyed a great afternoon with Tena's goodies and an even better conversation. The boys exchanged Christmas presents and Tyler painted a Christmas ordament that we took home for Nanny's tree. We're glad that we'll be seeing Tena and Dawsyn in a few days. They are coming over on Christmas Day for a visit. :)

Holiday Fun

One of the best things about being home is that you get to spend some time with our friends. The other day, Mara, called and asked if we would like to go over to her house so that the boys can get together and decorate a gingerbread house. Tyler had really missed his buddy, Andrew, since they spent so much time together when we were home last. The boys had fun, not only decorating a gingerbread house, but also decorating cookies for Santa as well making special reindeer food. Thanks Mara for inviting us over. Hopefully we can get the boys together again before we leave.

More Cake Boss

On the way to Rhode Island, Steve suggested that we swing by Carlos Bakery again to pick up a Christmas cake for my mom. Having just visited the Cake Boss bakery about a month ago and tasting their delicious cake, I was not about to say no. LOL This visit we got to see Buddy's mom in the bakery! If you ever watched the show before, you know how much of a character she is. We also got to see the other members of his family featured on the show. One of Buddy's sisters checked us out and asked Tyler what his name was, but he was much too shy to answer. So she gave him two cookies. It was funny because when we went back to the car, I asked which of the two cookies he wanted first and he said he would rather his salad that we had for him. He does loves his salads. LOL Charmaine asked us to pick up a cake for her. This is what it looked like: This is the cake we picked out for my mom. We cut it tonight. It is very yummy!!!

Home for the Holidays

After a long 14 hour drive yesterday, we finally arrived home last night. For the most part, we had clear skies until we reached Antigonish where it started to snow and we still had 3 hours before reaching my mom's house. The bed felt like heaven last night; we were totally exhausted. This morning we woke up renewed and ready for a brand new day. We did some shopping and when we were coming out of Wal-Mart, Steve said he thought he heard a firetruck and someone yelling out, "Ho Ho Ho", that could only mean one thing...Santa is going around in his fire truck. So we quickly jumped in the car and followed the sounds until we found the jolly man in red. We stopped the car and waited for him to pass by so that Tyler could see him. Santa told Tyler that he was having a Christmas party at the fire station. However, when we got home to drop off our things, Tyler decided he would rather stay home and play instead. I guess the thoughts of getting back in the car after the long trip yesterday, wasn't too appealing to him and he needed to be reacquainted with the toys he left behind at Nanny's house the last time we were here. So Steve and I went and picked out a tree for my mom. We drove it back home and then started to decorate. Most of the decorations are the ones I made from years past. It was nice having Tyler hang them and having the opportunity to tell him the stories behind each of them. Also while decorating, I couldn't help but think about last year when we were decorating it and Steve was deployed. He watched us decorate the tree via webcam. It made me so happy that he was actually here with us this year! Also it is so nice being home with my mom again. Yes, this is going to be a WONDERFUL Christmas!!! :)

Pre-Christmas Celebration

Since we couldn't be in Rhode Island for Christmas, Wanda took Friday off to spend with us and to have a pre-Christmas celebration with us. We really appreciated that she did this for us. After breakfast, we went to see 'Christmas at Blithewold-Fairy Tales and Fantasies' which was an fabulous exhibit in one of the Newport Mansions. Each of the rooms was exquisitely decorated for the holidays. It was incredible to see the amount of work and detail that went into the themed rooms. Then it was time to go back home as Tyler could not contain his suspense any longer, he just had to see what was in those wrapped presents underneath the Christmas tree that Grandpa and Grandma had for him. He received a lot of terrific gifts that Tyler loved. Dad and Wanda prepared a beautiful Christmas dinner and invited Sue, Teddy, and Aunt Nancy to join us. Tyler was super excited to see his cousin, Teddy. Steve and I were so happy to see Sue and Teddy as we missed them the last time we were in town. When Aunt Nancy showed up, she had a surprise for Tyler. She gave him a train set for Christmas. Speaking of trains, after dinner Grandpa took Tyler and Teddy over to his neighbours house to show him his amazing train display. Both the boys were in awe of his trains. After the train viewing, it was time for dessert! So everyone headed back to Dad and Wanda's and picked what they wanted to eat. There was a huge selection of pies, ice cream, cookies and a delicious chocolate truffle. Thank you Wanda for taking the day off to spend with us. We really enjoyed spending the day with you and Dad. Unfortunately, that was our last full day in Rhode Island before departing to Canada. However, we had a wonderful time seeing everyone!

Visit with Great Grandma Smith

Last night we arrived in Rhode Island. As always we are staying at Dad and Wanda's and we are really enjoying our visit. Tyler absolutely loves his grandparents and is having a great time here. This afternoon we went over to visit Steve's grandmother. It had been awhile since we visited her. She is one of the sweetest people we know. We stayed for a delicious dinner and while we were there, Aunt Nancy showed up. Overall, we enjoyed each other's company. However, it was soon getting late and it was time to get Tyler to bed. When we got back to Dad and Wanda's, there was a surprise waiting for Tyler! Wanda bought a really neat Cars blow up mattress and an attached sleeping bag. It was just the prefect way for Tyler to end his day. On another note, Wanda and I weighed Tyler tonight and he now weighs 35 lbs!

Visit from the Elves!!!

Wow! What a surprise we received this morning! When we got in the car to start our trip to Rhode Island and Canada, Tyler noticed something different in his car seat. It was wrapped Christmas presents and a note! The note was from Santa's elves. They said Santa knew that Tyler was going on a big trip and he wanted him to have some of his toys early to play with during the long trip. Tyler was so delighted that he couldn't stop laughing. He unwrapped them to find some travel games, a Lightning Ramone, and a stuffed penguin. Santa must have known how difficult the past few car trips had been for Tyler. LOL Daddy also purchased a DVD player for the car for Tyler to watch movies. So far the trip is going much smoother.

Last Day of Preschool

It was a sad day indeed. Today was Tyler's last day of preschool. We had been dreading this day for quite some time now. Even though we sold our house and moved 45 minutes away from the school, we weren't sure how much longer we would be attending because of the distance. At first, we said we would give it a try and see if Tyler can wake up extra early for the commute, but not once did Tyler complain. In fact, the first words out of his mouth in the morning was that it was a preschool day and let's go, Mommy. So with this being said, today he said goodbye to his fellow classmates and to his wonderful teacher, Ms. Angie. After class, which was a special Jammie and Bring your Stuffed Animal Day, we sadly said goodbye to Ms. Angie. She knew exactly what we were experiencing as she too is a Navy wife and had to move around a lot with her children. We promised we would keep in touch after we get settled. Our goodbyes weren't over yet. Tyler's buddy and favourite classmate, Trevor, met us for lunch with his grandmother. These two guys get along so great and we know that they will definitely miss each other because they both keep saying so each day. After lunch and they finished their fun in the play area, we exchanged contact info and promised we would stay in touch. We're hoping that maybe they can come visit us in our new home. Tyler would be so happy!

Watching Winnie looking at Winnie with Winnie.

Family Farewell

One of the hardest things about being a military family is leaving those wonderful friends with whom we had the great pleasure of spending our tour with. These people were not only friends we hung out with, but they became part of our "family". They have shared our laughter, as well as our pain in tough times. Last night, we spent the evening with some of our "family" to say not goodbye, but rather see you later. Katherine, Rodney, Diane, Dan & Barb treated us to a wonderful dinner where we ate fabulous food and even better conversation. After dinner, we all headed over to see Sue and Mark because they were unable to have dinner with us due to work commitments. They also are part of our family. With only a few days left before we head to Canada, we hope to get together with more of our Maryland friends before we leave. During our stay here in Maryland, we have grown to know how great Marylanders are and will always remain close in our hearts. We will greatly miss everyone we have met and spent time with, but we are fortunate that we'll only be 3 hours away so we are sure that we'll definitely be seeing each other again.

Visit with Santa

This morning we went to the mall to see Santa.

Tyler was very excited to tell Santa what he would like for Christmas.

Tyler Says the Darndest Things

Early one morning, while driving in the car. Tyler: I see the sun coming up! Daddy: How does the sun come up? Tyler: The people on the other side wear baker's mitts and push it up. They have cars with ladders on them and firemen help too!

Command Christmas Party

Today was Steve's command Christmas party. It was held at the Washington Navy Yard which is oldest navy base in the U.S. This was the first time I had ever been on this base and I was impressed. Most of the original buildings were still there. The Christmas party was a few hours long. As always, the food was pretty good. After we ate, they had the raffle drawing for some great prizes, including a LCD 40 inch TV. Unfortunately, we didn't win a thing, but we still had fun! Tyler was glad that his buddy, Jack, was there and after they finished eating, they ran around and played together in the lobby. Overall, it was a great way to say goodbye to those we were stationed with for the past 3 and a half years.

Santa Letter

It's that time again! The other day Tyler prepared his letter for Santa. He printed out the words "Dear Santa" and signed his name, while I wrote out the main part of the letter while he told me what he wished Santa to bring him this year. It may be a little difficult to read because it is written in pencil, however if you click on the photo, you can see it enlarged. Then it was off to mail the letter. Dunkin Donuts has a special mailbox this year that gets the letter straight to Santa. Tyler was very excited to put his letter in the mailbox in hopes that Santa will bring him what he asked for.

On the Hunt

Hello from Virginia! We drove down this morning to get a feel of what the houses are like here, since we'll be calling Virginia our home next month. Steve did a bit of researching last night and this afternoon we checked out some of the houses that we were interested in. After driving around for a bit, we now know what areas we like. We're not exactly sure whether we want to buy or rent yet, so tomorrow we'll check out the apartment complexes. We didn't really plan on staying the night, but since we're already here we decided to get a hotel. Keep your fingers crossed for us!

Congratulations Steve!!!

This morning Steve officially committed himself to serving another 4 years to this country. With his command at attendance, as well as, Tyler and I, Captain Werner administered the Oath of Enlistment. Steve requested to have the ceremony in the television studio with monitors showing the American flag flying. Also, as part of the process he was honorably discharged before the actual swearing in took place. Captain Werner said some great things about Steve and his work. He will surely be missed at his command when we move in January to start his new posting. After Steve was sworn back into the Navy, the Captain also presented me with a certificate in recognition of being a supporting spouse. Here's to another 4 years of military life, after that we'll only have 2 left before Steve's retirement!

Macy's Parade Video 2

Macy's Parade Video 1

The Smiths in Times Square