Tag Archives: Christmas

A Day of Testing Out Athena’s Gifts

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PlayWheels Quad Skates
Since we were traveling during the holidays, we opted for the multiple Christmases. Santa’s elves delivered some of Athena’s gifts early so we could open them at home and the Big Guy delivered the rest on Christmas Day in Wisconsin. It was a great plan that worked wonderfully for us, but the only downside was that Athena didn’t have much time to test out her favorite Christmas gifts before leaving the state. The minute we returned, we took the time to use her PlayWheels Quad Skates and her PlayWheels Skateboard. They were the first item on her list so we wanted to make the most of it.  Continue reading →

Open Doors at The Landing

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The Landing, Door County, Wisconsin
This Christmas was a world of new for Athena and I. We decided to spend it with my partner’s family in Wisconsin. (I still haven’t found the “boyfriend” term that fits for me but I’m working on it.) It was the first time Athena and I weren’t in our own home, opening gifts from Santa and family that were placed under our Christmas tree with loving care; but home isn’t your own tree or a familiar room. It’s the people who surround you that make it home. Cord’s family has shown us an abundance of love in the last few months. They opened their homes and their hearts to Athena and I. Even though we spent Christmas day, and the two days following Christmas, at The Landing in Door County, Wisconsin, it was the most at home I felt in almost a decade.  Continue reading →

25 Travel Books in Time for the Holidays

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Reading on the Beach

With a travel book in hand, you can experience a new culture or a new land while seeing it through the eyes of another. The only thing better would be to experience it for yourself. Until you can explore the vast corners of this world, here’s a list of 25 travel books, in no particular order, to take you there. With Amazon’s quick shipping options, you could have a few new stocking suffers in time for Christmas.  Continue reading →

A New Christmas Tradition that Doesn’t Break the Bank

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IllumOcean LEDLight

Living in Orange County, California, we have endless options for holiday events and activities. I never thought I would have too many options to consider but concerts, ballets, ice shows, and even an afternoon of skating can get expensive. It’s not like we can just sharpen our skates and hop on a frozen lake. We want to create holiday traditions for our family without breaking the bank. Dana Point IlluminOcean is a free event that lights up our hearts with holiday cheers. We drove down to Dana Point Marina last night to view the light show. Minus a few dollars for gas and ice cream treats, IlluminOcean is the cheapest way to ring in the holiday season.  Continue reading →

Another Disney Bucket List Dream is About to Come True – Disney On Ice

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Minnie's Royal Ball

Growing up in eastern Canada, I had lots of reminders of the upcoming holiday season. I could just look out the window and the feet of ice and snow was usually a good indication that Christmas was almost upon us. While I made up for it with sledding and ice skating, I truly longed for the elaborate celebrations in other parts of the world. Oh how I wanted to see a professional ballet production of The Nutcracker or The Macy’s Parade. And even more than those, I wanted to go to Disney On Ice. Alas, they were just frozen pipe dreams; things like that didn’t exist in Cape Breton. Now that we live in California, I’m a short drive to the snow and even a shorter drive to Disney On Ice. I say we’re going to the production for Athena, but honestly… it’s all for me. Merry Christmas to me; oh and Athena, another Disney bucket list dream is about to come true.  Continue reading →

Should We Go Big or Stay Home for the Holidays This Year?

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Bermuda Travel

With trips to Mexico, St. Lucia, and Hawaii coming up before December, we’re starting to think about the holidays. Should we go big or stay home this year? Since I started writing a few sponsored posts for Contiki, I haven’t been able to get off of their site or get a few destinations out of my mind. It’s become a starting board for me; a place where dreams begin and the wheels start turning for new adventures. Thailand has moved up on my list as well as Australia. Darren only has so much vacation time; maybe we should utilize it for a Asian or Australian vacation. Do we need to be in our home to enjoy the holidays? Let’s weigh the options. Continue reading →

Dear Santa, I Want to Sell My House for Christmas

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Our New Home

Right now, I should be in Banff, Alberta on a sleigh ride with my daughter… dashing through the snow with the cold Alberta air filling our lungs. Instead, I flew home last minute to pack up my house in Charlotte, North Carolina and move to California. It was a dream come true. We put our house on the market less than a month ago and we had an offer on December, Friday 13th. Should that have been a sign? I didn’t think of it. Continue reading →

Holiday Gift Guide – Turn Your Bucket List into a Wish List

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No matter how old you are, waking up on Christmas morning only to find a piece of coal in your stocking and a pair of socks under the tree is enough to dampen anyone’s festive spirit. It’s a good job then that we’ve scoured the internet landscape to bring you unique Christmas gift ideas – whether it’s for mom, dad, spouse, kids or even your furry friends.

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No Preparing for The Ultimate Christmas Show (abridged)

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There are no words to describe The Ultimate Christmas Show by The Reduced Ultimate Christmas Show Shakespeare Company that would truly prepare you for what’s to come. The slapstick interfaith holiday variety show and pageant sounds cute and family friendly, but the level of inappropriate social irreverence was extremely shocking yet absolutely hilarious. Continue reading →

Happy Holidays! Too Soon? Not if You’re Doing a Holiday Card at Shutterfly

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Now that we have a baby, we’re actually considering a personalized holiday card for our Shutterfly photofamily. Don’t get me wrong, we’re a far cry from matching, red, knitted sweaters but the idea of sending our parents, siblings, and grandparents a family picture is appealing. After all, they ask for pictures daily and they do live in another country and miss Athena, and us, dearly. Continue reading →