Ugly Sweaters For All and To All a Good Night.........

Our first family Christmas Card???

Every year Chris and I host an "Ugly Christmas Sweater Party". This year was our third annual and definitely a great one.  All of our friends who were free to come showed up in the ugliest Christmas swag they could find. Chris also made his infamous "Kaismas Punch"......the punch this year proved too much for some of us aginig individuals......the party was over well before midnight. I'm sure Chris measures this as his success for another great holiday party. Here are a few pics from the festivities

Moose is embarrassed

Dani and Shenzi's Christmas card

I swear Moose loves me even though it looks like I'm strangling him.

Jess's great outfit

The ladies

Moose even tried my vest on:)

Finally the Host.......

I love nothing more than having our friends and family visit us in Florida. I always love to show people our world and how we live. I think one of the hardest things for the people we leave back home is not knowing how our lives are and what kind of environment we live in. In November, Chris, Moose and I had VERY special guests. My Aunt Linda and Uncle Doug. My Aunt Linda and Uncle Doug have been two of the most influential people in my life and I am so fortunate for that. They have literally shown me the world and opened my eyes to so many different countries and cultures. I will forever blame them for my travel bug:) They have taken me to places I never could have dreamed have seeing......literally the corners of the earth!

It was great pleasure that I could finally get to expose them to our world. After living overseas for decades (literally) one of my Uncle Doug's biggest dreams was to go to an NCAA football game. What better than to go to a Gator game right!!! Well luck was on our side the day we picked up our tickets because they were literally the best we've gotten in all the years we have been here. FIRST ROW......behind the goal post. My Uncle Doug was like a little kid on Christmas and nothing could have made me happier than to feel like I've finally given him a great life experience in return for all he has done for me:)

The gang in first row:)

 Please excuse Chris's dirty mustache......he was growing it for movember, to raise money for prostate cancer. His team raised over $8,000 so he is off the hook for scratching my face for a month!

not a bad view for a game in a stadium that holds 92.000 people

Aunt Lin even got to meet Alberta:)

Tracks Made in DC......

I know it has been WAY too long since my last post so get ready to get a lot of updates at once:)

 Chris and I got away on a little vacay......our first in many years in fact. Living far away from home, family and friends means that most of the time our "vacation" time is spent visiting our fave people. This trip was much the same, as we were visiting friends, however, it was a very refreshing 4 days away from home because we got to experience so many great things. Our travels took us to Washington DC. DC has been a place I have wanted to visit for the spectacular views and monuments for a long time. Especially since living in Florida and hearing about everyone rave about it! So what better excuse than to visit two of Chris's greatest friends! This trip was spectacular and certainly made me appreciate all the sacrifices that American's have made that have given us so many wonderful opportunities. Although I will always be a true Canadian at heart, the past few years have certainly made me appreciate our neighbour's to the south!

One of the first things we did in DC was go to the Holocaust Museum. I've always been a big reader/watcher of holocaust history so everyone's warnings to me about how disturbing this museum was fell on deaf ears. Boy was I wrong about how affected I would be by this museum. Not only is it a great experience it is also much more disturbing than I ever would imagine. About an hour and half into the tour there was a room full of shoes from people who had perished in the concentration camps. The smell was enough to turn my stomach and I started getting woozy......this is not something that happens to me so I didn't know what to make of it. The next stretch of the tour was the portion that discussed all of the children that were killed in the camps. This is where I finally called it quits and begged for some fresh air. I think this quote on the wall outside of the museum does an adequate job of summarizing the devestation that was felt by this war.

Holocaust Museum Plaque

 Now onto the "brighter" side of things......This trip was exceptionally special for Chris. Unfortunately, he lives much further away from home than I do and with his parents living in Texas temporarily he doesn't get to see his friends very much. Being able to go to DC to visit Paul and Mike was such a special treat for him and we really did have the greatest time with them both.

Chris and Paul

Washington Monument.......much bigger than I anticipated!

WW II Monument

Mr. Kaiser and I at the WW II Monument

Soldiers outside the Lincoln Monument

Abe!!!

The roof of the Lincoln monument was one of my faves.......go figure!!

Korean War Memorial.........I took this picture not only for the monument but also because I've missed the changing colour of the leaves over the past few years!

Lincoln Monument

 Of course, since we were in DC we had to go and see Mike play for the Caps that night. One of our favorite teams!!!! We have seen Mike play multiple times in Tampa but this was a special treat because we got to be back in a true "hockey town" and be amongst the roaring crowd! Mike is definitely a fan favorite there too so it made the experience that much more fun.......especially since he won player of the game:) Woo Hoo GO MIKE!!!

This is Chris's dream child......this baby literally cheered the WHOLE game! So adorable!!!

who's this guy????

Out for dinner after the game

Add caption

Body guards at Obama's house

All in all this was such a great trip. It was refreshing and amazing to see so many great new things. Trips like this just make me so excited for Chris and I to start our lives together, keep travelling, and getting to know one another's friends whom we adore so much!