Two Christmases

This year we just spent 2 hours on Christmas morning with my family (since we are going to be with them for 2 weeks in South Africa), then we drove down to the beach to spend from Christmas evening til this past Sunday with David's family.

We got some really cool gifts for Christmas. I got a great sweater coat from my mom, David got this cool gift in the picture below, and we both got a new camera to capture all the great memories we will have on our upcoming trip. 

On Christmas morning we had a nice big breakfast of omlettes, waffles, bacon and sausage with my family before opening our presents. Then at David's mom's house, we opened our presents there before the annual large Christmas dinner party they had. The food was so good and there was so much of it, I stuffed myself full. I'll really need to work it all off this coming year. After the dinner, we went back to David's dad's house (where we were staying) and openend presents there too. Unfortunately I didnt' take any pictures of either of these events.

The next day, David went to play golf all morning, and I just lazed around the house reading, watching tv, and playing with my iphone. When he and his dad got back, we all went down to a nearby town called Harker's Island. David's dad found this really authentically down-east style restaurant and wanted to take us to experience it. Unfortunately since they had just opened after the Christmas holiday, they had a limited menu, but we were able to go back the next day and get the full experience. The restaurant is called "Fish Hook Grill" and the lady who owns it cooks the food fresh every day. She is also so nice and personable that she'll sit right down with you at your table and chat. The food was delicious - we had fish and shrimp baskets the 1st day, and the next day we had the famous down-east clam chowder with the best hush puppies I've ever tasted. It was a quaint, informal, but wonderful dining experience, and if you ever find yourself down in Harker's Island, NC, be sure to stop in at "Fish Hook Grill" restuarant and ask for Miss Faye.

Moving right along, while we were in Harker's Island the 2nd time, we went to visit the Core Sound Museum. This museum showcased not only the history of the island and surrounding areas, but also many many core sound duck decoys, like the one David won at the Seafood Festival. Here is David and his dad next to a big display of the decoys.

One other thing that I feel is worth mentioning is that the next morning after breakfast with David's mom, we went out for a few minutes to play with the little hunting dog puppies that her husband is training. They were so rambunctious, but very cute too. David was the photographer/videographer for the puppy play session. Here's some of what he took.

We left on Sunday afternoon in time to swing by some other extended family and drop off gifts there on the way home. When we got there, the kids wanted to show me their new present from Grammie (David's mom) - a big new trampoline. Of course they roped me into jumping with them for a while, but no pictures of that either. And I guess that's about it. Once we got home, we had to go into planning/packing mode, and we've been in that ever since.

We are so excited to be leaving in the morning for South Africa. Stay tuned to the blog for the next 2 weeks as I will try to give trip updates as frequently as possible.