In a really big nutshell

So, I took a bit of a blogging hiatus. I didn't mean to; it just happened that way. There are a whole bunch of mundane and irritating things that I could blog about (that have kept me from blogging in the first place), but I won't bore you with the details.

In a nutshell, here's what kept us busy in December:

1. Early in December we took Row to his first theme park... Sea World. Grandma, Grandpa, me and Row took a trip with my school to visit Shamuu and all of his (her?) friends. We had a great time with all of the sea creatures, but really the best show there was the dog and cat show. Seriously, it was so cute it left me a little teary (In case you don't know anything about me.... I have a very soft spot for dogs). Row slept through most of the dog show, but he did wake up in time to see the end, and then got a chance to pet a couple of the dogs from the show. Highlight of his life so far. This kid loves dogs, and came out of the womb that way. From the moment his little brain could register it, he has been absolutely obsessed with Jade and any dog that comes his way.
Even though the dogs were worth the trip on their own, I really wanted to see the Shamuu show, so in we went to the Shamuu Stadium. Those whales never cease to amaze me. How in world do those trainers get those whales to do all of that stuff. I know, I know, they have their methods and their little whistles and things, but seriously, how do you teach a whale to wave, or to methodically splash the crowd, or to jump synchronized out of the water? Amazing. Too bad Row found Grandpa's buttons on his shirt far more interesting than the show. I don't think he even caught a glimpse of Shamuu, but he sure got a good look at the people sitting behind us. I'm still singing the Shamuu song. Oh yea, the Budweiser Clydesdale are kept at Sea World, so Row also got to pet a horse that day; and what a grand first horse to pet. Those are truly beautiful animals.

2. After 7 years of faithful service, it was time to trade in my Jetta for a bigger and better model. A 2008 Touareg has joined our family. I cried when I had to leave my Jetta at the Volkswagen dealership (in the rain) it was a very poignant moment.

3. Christmas Eve my family came to my house for our first official holiday with hopes of many more to follow. Jon made a Turkey and we had a full spread. We finished the night with chocolate fondue, and opened all of our gifts as Santa was nice enough to visit early since he knew Christmas Day would be spent at Disneyland.
I was surprised that Santa was able to get to our house and bring Rowen the presents he wanted since we tried to visit him THREE different times and were never able to get near him. Santa's elves at our mall claimed there was a THREE hour wait to see Santa, and I was not about to test this theory; so to my dismay, Row did not meet Santa this year. If it truly is a three hour wait, Santa needs a lot more helpers, or else Row's only relationship with Santa will be through the mail.


4. We arrived at Disneyland after checking into our hotel at about 11:00 AM. To my amazement, Disneyland was CLOSED! There were so many dang people there that they were not letting anyone else in the park. Luckily, California Adventure was open (and never crowded) so we went there. We had corndogs for lunch (BEST corndogs in the world) and then went to hang out in the kiddie area. Rowen loved the Bug's Land, and he went on his first ride, that Heimlich Caterpillar thing. We also went into the little 3-D bug movie that they have there; where Row seemed unaffected by water and air being sprayed in his face. We were having a great day, but Grandma and Grandpa were not feeling well, so we knew that the day was going to be cut short, so we headed over to Disneyland which had reopened after people started to leave for the afternoon. We had dinner, Grandma and Grandpa left for the day, and then Me, Jon, Row and Uncle Jeff, went on Pirates of the Caribbean. We were seated right in the front of the boat which is usually great, except we knew we were going to get wet and that we would have to keep Row dry. That little Row is a trooper. He loved the ride; loved the pirates; but most of all loved...that's right, the dog holding the keys to the jail cell. He actually craned his head around to keep his eyes on that dog.
After the ride, Rowen was dry, but we were all wet, and cold, and frankly tired of the crowds, so we decided to call it a day. Jeff went home, and we headed back to the hotel. On our way back to our hotel, The Convention Center Hilton, we realized that it used to be called the Anaheim Hilton and Towers... the location of our very first prom and one of our first dates- 16 years ago.

5. Our New Year's Eve was uneventful, but New Year's Day was spent at Jon's dad's house visiting Darcie, Kelly, and little cousin Soren. It's always fun to visit with the cousins, but Rowen better watch himself as Soren is growing and growing, and will one day be able to put quite a thumping on Rowen if Row continues stealing all of the toys.

Happy New Year!!! (Did you actually read this whole thing?)