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Mike helps Kathi's mother prepare the
traditional Christmas breakfast quiche (he must have thought his assistance
was required for the grits--ha ha!)
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Sierra shows off her new Abercrombie &
Fitch gifts (her fondest dream is to personally keep that retailer in
business) |
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Kathi's sister Sandy opens gifts with
her mother Faye |
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Kathi's dad and a few of his grandkids
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Sandy and kids, including the newest member
of the family, Gypsy |
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Sunny skies beckon the bravest outside for a
walk--and Mike and Robbie to the golf course (unfortunately, there are no
photographic records of what we hear were some interesting shots)
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we enjoy one of Sandy's favorite Tallahassee
pasttimes--visiting in the Whataburger parking lot (or maybe she likes visiting
during the Whataburger meal, but the photography staff was slacking off then)
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Robbie and Mike relive their golf
heroics, discuss the relative merits of Whataburgers vs. Gulf seafood,
and undoubtedly marvel at their good fortune to be a part of a family
with such high standards in haute cuisine
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Aunt Gladys celebrated her 90th birthday
in 2004. She and Uncle Lewie still enjoy sitting in their sunroom and watching
the birds, geese, and other wildlife that frequents their back yard on Lake
Jackson
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Cousin Tiffany and her family drop by
for a quick visit
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We inspect the new Bobby Bowden
statue at Doak Campbell stadium, in preparation for cheering the Seminoles
to a Gator Bowl victory
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St. Augustine
St. Augustine was founded in 1565 by Spanish explorers and is the oldest permanent settlement in the United States. On a previous visit, we toured the Castillo de San Marcos fort and took a quick walking tour of the historic district. This time, we wanted a little more time to explore the area and check out the beaches.
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We enjoyed a leisurely stroll at
Anastasia State Park while Mike checked out his new GPS' tracking
features
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Mike gets acquainted with the local fishermen
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Ponce de Leon, founder of Florida, points
the way to the Bridge of Lions
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Obnoxious tourists pose at the entrance to
the Bridge of Lions
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A pair of lions guard the landmark bridge
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The Bridge of Lions spans the intracoastal
waterway separating historic St. Augustine from the beaches
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DisneyWorld and Merrit Island
Our Christmas vacation isn't complete without visiting the relatives in central Florida, where we enjoy fresh citrus, our favorite shrimp restaurant in the whole world, and (sometimes) warm weather on the beaches. With two days left on our Disney multi-park passes, we also decided to spend one day there focusing on the virtues of patience. While Mike fished with the male cousins, Kathi and Sierra hung out with the female cousins and the kids at the beaches and at Ron Jon's, a local institution of unexplicable reknown and, as far as we know, the gaudiest surf shop in existence. We all enjoyed meeting the newest addition to the family, 1-year-old Josh, and visually inspecting various programming on both Tom's and Andy's large-screen HDTVs so that Mike could be sure he really wants one. Guess what he decided...he does!
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After a 1-hour drive, a 45-minute crawl to
the parking lot, and 20 minutes in search of a restroom, we are finally ready to
stand in line for 90 minutes waiting for the Mission to Space. In a stroke of
extreme luck, someone gave us a Fast Pass for 3, thus
streamlining our trip to Mars and enabling us to hurry on to the MGM theme park
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Eeyore waits in line...impatiently and
interminably...for the Tower of Terror
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Kathi assures her companions that a 2-minute,
13-story drop is well worth a 90-minute wait...and that we might have had all the
fun we can stand for a few decades at Disney and want to consider other
destinations for our next Christmas vacation in Florida
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Cousin Josh meets the cousins and eventually
even lets us hold him!
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Cousins Tommy and Steven continue to
perfect the construction projects that we enjoyed
watching two years ago
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Though not quite warm enough to entice
Sierra into a bathing suit, she succeeds in practicing for her future
role as Florida beach beauty
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Proud parents Jessica and Andy pose with
Josh
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Okay, who switched the momma??? You
can't fool me
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Mike loaned a helping hand in building a "tree-less" house for Tommy and Steven. We will post photos when it is complete. Last we heard, it was even going to have an air-conditiner??? Hey guys, is that for real? What about a television? Can we stay there next time we visit?