Christmas in Florida!

How fun it was to finally be able to host my brothers Steve and Paul for Christmas! It was their first visit to Florida since we'd moved here and we were really looking forward to showing them around. Since mom and dad hadn't spent a Christmas with us since Ohio and had no one to host in Utah, we planned for them to spend Christmas with us as well! And they are always happy to escape the cold and dreary December weather in Utah. Unfortunately the weather didn't cooperate as well as we had hoped during their visit ranging from fairly warm but overcast, to sunny and windy, to rainy and humid but we didn't let that stop us from showing everyone a good time even if at times I was really sad they weren't experiencing the beautiful winter weather Florida is known for! With it being Steve and Paul's first visit we wanted to show them a true Florida experience so we did the Apopka nature drive, Wild Florida for an air boat ride, and Busch Gardens...because Florida roller coasters never disappoint!

You certainly can't come to Florida and not experience seeing some alligators in their natural environment so this is the perfect way to see them. Mom and dad preferred to stay in the car on most of the journey...haha!



Once Steve arrived we wanted to show him a Florida experience too and after debating between Gatorland, which we had done before and Wild Florida which we had heard good things about we decided to go with the place we hadn't been...Wild Florida. The advantage of Wild Florida was they offered an air boat tour which if you've never been on an air boat is a fun experience. While this tour wasn't like the private one we did in the Everglades it still was a great way to see alligators in their natural habitat. As a bonus, we got to see a lost cow in the lake too. So we've now seen both cows and pigs in water this year...







On Christmas Eve day, we decided to head out to Busch Gardens to ride roller coasters something Steve and Paul hadn't done in years! While we miss our days of going straight to the front of the lines, we still managed to ride just about every good ride there, take in an ice skating show for mom and dad and enjoy the beautiful holiday lights.






Of course after a long but fun day, Mrs. Clause had a busy night ahead of her...While I had wrapped the majority of the presents earlier in the week, there was plenty still to be done. But boy do I love that peaceful moment after everyone is in bed, presents are all wrapped and placed under the tree, and the preparations leading up to the big day are finally paying off.



How thankful I am that 6:00 am Christmas morning wake-ups are a thing of the past...Hello 11:00 am!




The perfect gift for Grandpa! No more complaining about how cold he is!!!



One of Sage's Christmas list items was a stocking for Nova full of treats!



Every summer we make a photo book for mom and dad of our memories from the summer. Had to laugh though this year when she opened it up at Christmas to find a photo of her on the opening page wearing the exact same thing she was wearing Christmas morning when she received it! lol!



Connor has been collecting vinyls for some time but this year I decided to surprise him with a retro record player to test out some of his vinyls on. While Connor's doesn't have the nice sound quality that the one Steve got Jack and I does, it's still fun for him!



Christmas day activities in Florida!




Every year I take a photo of the kids with their gifts as a reminder of what we've bought them. From fitbits to air pod pros to apple watches to blue tooth speakers and everything in between, the kids seemed very happy with their Christmas. And I have to say it's easy to want to shop for them at Christmas because not only do they not ask for much throughout the year but they continue to amaze us with their desire to do good and work hard, whether it be in the pool or at school. We truly are blessed.



Christmas dinner!



It's always hard saying goodbye. Another wonderful Christmas in the books...

Getting into the spirit of Christmas!

After successfully getting the house decorated for Christmas before heading out to Utah for Thanksgiving and then getting our photo with Santa done while out in Utah during Thanksgiving I was feeling a step ahead of where I normally am this time of year. Of course in addition to all the holiday shopping and menu planning that had yet to be done the holiday photo and newsletter still loomed in the background, but I was determined to get the card out and keep the tradition alive...even if sending out cards is beginning to feel like a dying tradition and does stress me out each year. To be honest, if I hadn't a binder full of our annual newsletters dating back to the 90's and acts as a diary of sorts outlining the highlights of each year, I'd have stopped the tradition a long time ago but I love my holiday binder where I can go back through the years and see each photo with Santa, card, and holiday newsletter all in one place.

So next came the moment everyone dreads in the Roddy house...the moment I'm yelling for everyone to quickly throw on something decent and meet me in the backyard for that annual last minute holiday photo attempt. Like all years, there are usually a couple attempts and this year was no different. We tried everything from setting up the camera on the tripod with the timer to having our landscaper attempt to snap a couple as he worked in the yard, to finally having my neighbor run over to work some magic. Luckily, she did not disappoint and captured one photo decent enough to send out to the masses. We really are due for a professional family photo but between Jack having his head shaved weeks before Christmas (albeit for an amazing and wonderful cause) to me waiting until the last moment to think about hiring someone, it just wasn't going to happen this year. So here is our photo and a few activities that Sage and I still managed to squeeze in in between the craziness of the holiday rush!

Merry Christmas from the Roddy's!



Getting into the spirit with holiday decorations and lighting!




Making gingerbread houses and memories with Sage!