Christmastime

We moved over to Lake Magic the day before Thanksgiving, and the next day enjoyed a 22 lb. turkey.  Yes, I cooked it in our little oven just for the two of us, and it provided us with plenty of leftovers to use later in other recipes.  Now it was time to put up our annual Christmas display in the front window.  Nothing elaborate, just simple things that have special meaning to us…plus lights of course!


LuJo & me

As you may recall, earlier this year I visited the Sisters of Sound Chorus (http://www.sistersofsound.org), members of Harmony, Inc. (http://www.harmonyinc.org/), another women’s barbershop organization.  I’ve stayed in touch with one of the ladies, and once I knew where we’d be spending the winter, I emailed LuJo to see if they
were doing any Christmas performances nearby that I could catch.  She not only told me about a couple but invited me to come sing with them!  I needed to attend a rehearsal and knew I couldn’t make one of the singouts, but you don’t have to ask me twice to “go Christmas caroling”!  I attended the Dec. 17th rehearsal, and though the director was out of town, one of the asst. directors, Tatiana, was in charge.  I didn’t get to meet her on my last visit, but she is a dynamo and very

           knowledgeable as she's also a music teacher.  After vocal warmups, we quickly ran through the Christmas songs and then on to their regular repertoire, several of which I knew (but still glad I had sheet music to follow).  With it being so close to Christmas, a few
     ladies were out of town, and as you can see in the photos above, the chorus has started accepting some very young ladies as members.  The performance was on Dec. 21 in historic downtown Clermont…just singing Christmas carols and
     bringing joy to all nearby.  Tatiana could not be there, but we were in the very capable hands of the other asst. director, Ludimilla, who was there to lead us in song.  Fortunately someone was able to snag a couple of pictures including one of us with Santa!

 

When we’re in town, our Christmas Eve tradition for the last couple of years has been to attend the Candlelight Processional regardless of how many times we may have already seen it.  What better night to listen to the story of the Nativity and revel in the beauty and majesty of the performance.  We were pleasantly surprised that even
though it was Christmas Eve, the line wasn’t too long for the last show, probably because most locals were home and the slight chill in the air may have kept some others away.  The guest narrator was Christian singer/songwriter, Steven Curtis Chapman, and as you can imagine, he sang along with most of the songs.

 

We had found a new spot for watching Illuminations, and afterwards decided to head for the Magic Kingdom to see if we could catch some of their fireworks, too, since for Christmas week they were doing a second set because the park was staying open later.  We got to the parking lot entrance
   just in time to see the last few bursts, and I managed to snap a couple photos as we drove through the kiosks but that was all.  Oh, well, it was a good thought anyway.

 

  Christmas Day arrived with no real big fanfare, but Abby did find that Santa left a little something in her stocking!  She was so excited trying to get it out that I couldn’t get a decent picture.  Too funny!  We joined friends, Judy and Bob, at the resort’s Christmas potluck along with their friends, Cheryl and Rich, who were visiting.  There was lots of good food with the resort providing turkey, ham, mashed
potatoes, stuffing, and gravy and everyone else bringing a side dish or dessert to share.  As you can imagine, we were all stuffed!  And by the way, you may notice something different about Russ.  He decided to shave off his beard Christmas morning!  So what do you think?  Of course, he says he’ll probably let it grow back.

Susan, Judy, Cheryl

Bob, Rich, Russ

It’s hard to believe that another year is nearly over, but we have so much for which to be thankful and we look forward to another year of adventure.  Hope you’ll continue to join us along our journey, and we wish everyone a very Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas!

It’s that special time of year when we take time to reflect on our lives and our loved ones.  We remember those who have passed and those who continue to bring joy to our lives simply by being a part of it.  Whether near or far, you are always in our hearts.  We are grateful for the opportunity we’ve had to travel, see new sights, and meet new people while also being able to reconnect with so many.  We hope you are continuing to enjoy traveling with us as we share our journey through this blog.

Wishing you all the joy, love, hope, and peace of Christmas,

and may the New Year bring you continued health and happiness.

 

Illuminations & Candlelight

As most of you know, one of our favorite things about Disney World at Christmas is Epcot’s Candlelight Processional.  A 50-piece orchestra led by a distinguished conductor, a mass choir of approximately 200 cast members and high school groups from around the country, members of the nationally acclaimed Voices of Liberty, a guest celebrity narrator reading the story of the nativity, a sign language interpreter to translate all that is said and sung…what’s not to love!  There are 3 performances nightly, and the narrators change every few nights.

 

This year our first time to see it was under the narration of Neil Patrick Harris (Doogie Howser, How I Met Your Mother).  We arrived a little more than an hour before the 8:15 show, and we could tell it was doubtful we’d get a seat so decided to simply go find a spot to stand at the back of this outdoor theater where it’s still easy to hear.  Neil
was wonderful, but unfortunately they’ve made some changes to the narration and removed one of our favorite songs Do You Hear What I Hear?  Haven’t been able to find out any reason for these changes though the length of the show is still about the same. The only other narrator we’ve seen so far is the very talented actor Dennis Haysbert (Major League, 24, Allstate commercials), and that time we were able to get a seat.  Unfortunately I wasn’t able to get a picture due to battery issues.
 

When we attend the last performance of the Processional, we generally stay for Illuminations: Reflections of Earth, Epcot’s fireworks show that takes place every night in the World Showcase Lagoon. The show features fireworks, lasers, fire, and water fountains timed to a musical score.
  A large rotating globe of the Earth with curved LED screens is the centerpiece of the show and is used to project images of people and places. Usually I’m not able to get any decent photographs, but with my new camera this time I did.  As an added bonus about
halfway into it, we could also see
some of the Magic Kingdom’s Wishes fireworks in the distance.  At this time of year they also add an additional few moments of fireworks timed to a beautiful rendition of Let There Be Peace On Earth, one of my favorite songs.  Hope you enjoy these pictures though they definitely don’t do it justice.  Just one of those things you have to see to truly appreciate.

Let The Magic Begin!

The rest of the drive to Florida was uneventful, and we arrived safely at our destination of Lake Louisa State Park in Clermont.  This would be our “home” for the next couple of weeks while we checked out some of the area RV resorts and figure out who had the best deal for the winter.  Plus it was still
    close enough to Disney World…the place where the magic begins and dreams come true!

 

With our still valid annual passes we can spend all day at the parks or just a couple of hours, which is generally what we opt to do.  Late

    one afternoon we headed to the Magic Kingdom checking out some of our favorite spots…Pirates of the Caribbean, Jungle Cruise (renamed Jingle Cruise for the holidays), Haunted Mansion, Hall of Presidents, and topping it all off
with a yummy Dole Whip just to name a few things.  We caught a couple of stage shows and even stopped by the Club 626 Dance Party to watch Chip, Dale, Stitch, and Pluto dance the night away with kids of all ages.  We watched the Castle light up with over 200,000 twinkling lights draped over the towers and steeples, and stayed to watch the spectacular Wishes fireworks.

 

A couple of days later it was off to Animal Kingdom, one of our favorite places to walk around just people and animal watching.  Of course, saying it is one of our favorites is almost redundant since each one of the theme parks at Disney World has its own uniqueness and special things and places that we love.
 

The centerpiece of this park is the Tree of Life, a 145 ft. tall, 50 ft. wide structure with about 325 carved animals that make up the trunk of the tree.  Underneath the tree is housed a theater where several times a day It’s Tough To Be A Bug is performed…definitely
     one of our favorites!  We also had to catch performances of the 30-minute Broadway-like Festival of the Lion King and then Flights of Wonder, the 25-minute show featuring exotic and not-so-exotic
      birds flying throughout the outdoor theater and onstage while a cast member describes them and their habitats.

 

Greater Kudu

Of course no trip to Animal Kingdom would be complete without a ride on the Kilimanjaro Safari!  This ride through the “lush African savannah” is always enjoyable, and you never know which animals you will spot making every trip special and unique.


 

Ankole Cattle/Giraffe

Mandrills



Ostrich - female

Ostrich - male guarding eggs

Addax

Cheetah

 

Our stay at Lake Louisa was nearly up, and we’d decided to spend our winter once again at Lake Magic RV Resort.  Not magical like Disney World but a nice place to stay and not far from the most magical place on Earth.