What I did on Christmas Vacation - Part Two!

We eventually got to Florida to see my mom. Seen here with Desmond the bird, named after Desmond Tutu, she had a great time with the kids. It had been 12 years since I had been with my mom for Christmas and this christmas was special so we could be together.

The kids had fun decorating the tree and seeing the ornaments I made when I was their age. We went to a family party on Christmas Eve Eve and they had a hot tub which the kids enjoyed immensly.

We stayed in a condo on the beach. It was about 300 yards from my moms house so we could go back and forth. It gave us enough room to spread out some and for the kids to have some space. Although you cannot see it here, this condo looked out onto the beach and almost everyday the kids were able to go out. They collected shells and saw all sorts of sites. Kate took Maggie out one day and they saw a shark caught by fisherman on the beach. Needless to say we didn't get in the water. Contrary to this picture, the kids did like the beach. They built sandcastles and loved getting their feet wet in the water. Max, our resident engineer, built the most elaborate structures.