what i did on my Christmas vacation.....

I didn't try to blog once during Christmas vacation, other than the brief post on Christmas morning. Here's a synopsis of what happened during my 11 days off:

12/23
Came into work for about an hour. Shopped around Cool Springs until the theater ticket office opened so I could get tickets for the afternoon "Narnia." Great, wonderful movie. Some scenes will give you chills. Mark and Jennifer went with us, then we went back to our house for the evening.

12/24
If I remember correctly, I ran a few errands that morning, then we went to Christmas Eve service at 3:00. Very nice. Watched a movie that night.

12/25
The big day! Our poor daughters didn't get hardly anything for Christmas. My three girls surprised me with an n-scale train set! Looking forward to building a layout this coming year! Mark, Jennifer and Cole came over that afternoon, and we all played an extremely long game of Yahtzee. Hint - keep the number of players under 6 or you'll be there all day. Not that the company wasn't wonderful!



12/26
Got up that morning and did some after-Christmas shopping. Bought a new softball glove, then some train stuff at Hobby Lobby (50% off). Went to the bride's parents' house for family Christmas that night. Had a great time and ate too much.

12/27
Left for Mom's and Dad's that morning, and stopped off to see Helen and Shelby on the way. Had a nice drive up, except for going through Knoxville. Thought of mailing a nasty letter to TDOT and asking them why Knoxville is always in a mess. Never got past the thought process. Fried chicken, mashed potatoes, gravy and green beans for dinner. Again, ate too much.

12/28
Spent the most of the day at Mamaw's and had a good time there. Had dinner that evening with the Moffits. You just can't beat Christmas with family and friends. Had too much to eat at lunch and dinner. (There's a pattern developing here.....)

12/29
Dad and I spent the day driving around Kingsport and Bristol. Went by our first two houses. Ate at Pal's (chili bun, frenchie fries) for lunch. The neighborhood looked both different and the same, if that's even possible.

12/30
Drove back to Franklin. Knoxville traffic was much lighter. The girls watched a movie while the bride read a book. It was great being in East Tennessee, but just as good to be back home.

12/31
The bride and I ran some errands that morning. Picked up tickets for "Cheaper by the Dozen 2" for the late showing. I love Steve Martin, but he won't have an Oscar on his mantle for this movie later on this year. We actually stayed up to watch the ball drop. Good to see Dick Clark back, but it was hard to watch. Hope he can get back to normal soon.

1/1/06
Did the late service that morning. Came home and ate. Spent the rest of the day undecorating for Christmas. While it's necessary, I don't like it because that means Christmas is officially over. After that, while the bride and Meg were out, I completely rearranged the bonus room. I was dead tired by the time my head hit the pillow that night. I'm getting old.

1/2
Watched football most of the day. Alot of good games. The SEC didn't fare too well this bowl season. At least UT didn't lose! Put the bride's elliptical machine (surprise Christmas present!) together that afternoon. After less than 10 minutes of use, it locked up. The repair guy is supposed to come Wednesday. Disappointing, but it'll be fixed or we'll get a new one.

Here's a little tip for you - if, the night before you have to go back to work after being off for Christmas, you wonder aloud to someone "gee, I hope my work clothes still fit", you probably ate too much while you were off.....

*Please note that this is not my gut, but rather what my gut will look like if Sears doesn't fix the bride's elliptical machine.....