Our Christmas Adventures - Part 1

     Christmas Eve started out for us at 4:30am, with no power, and Mark trying to get ready in the dark.  I got up and set out candles everywhere in an effort to help him see.  Luckily, it was only off for an hour or so and it only got down to 63 degrees in the house.  The power came back on, heat pumped back into our home, and we were rocking once again.
     As the day continued, Marcus and I had PLENTY to do to get ready for our big trip.  Mark worked and we scurried around the house, trying to pack and prepare.  The pouring rain outside slowed us down, but nonetheless, we got it all done.  Mark came home, showered, and we were off for our first stop: Pilot Mountain, NC.  This is where my sister and her husband now live, not too far away from my mom and John.  We ate a yummy Southern meal filled with potato casserole, collared greens, and sweet baked ham.  After eating, Marcus was eager to open presents so with Christmas music playing in the background and big, beautiful candles blazing in the fireplace, we enjoyed a time of gift-giving together.  The hit of the evening was a big dump truck for Marcus, while Mark and I were stunned that we received a google tablet. 
     As it got late, Mom & John went home and we left shortly after them.  We drove an hour up the mountain to my dad and Sonya's home in Dugspur, Virginia.  Marcus chatted and talked the whole way there, in an effort to keep himself awake.  Once we arrived, Mark and I unpacked the car while Marcus played inside, telling them all about his new dump truck.  We all three slept well and HARD that night, then got up Christmas morning at different times.  Marcus was up and at 'em by 7:30 and my precious husband slept in until after 9am, and that's only because I woke him up.  He works so hard, that when we're on "vacation" I like to let him rest as much as possible. 
     When my step-brother, Josh arrived, we all opened Christmas presents upstairs.  Marcus enjoyed his toy phone and sit-n-spin the most, while I was happy to get some new clothes for this growing boy and a snazzy new wallet.  We cleaned up, hung around the house, showered, and just tried to relax, then had a late lunch/early supper with Dad, Sonya, Josh, and his girlfriend, Taylor.  Marcus was so tired he asked to stop eating and go take a nap, so who was I to say no?  I was then ordered to take a nap while he was napping since I apparently looked tired myself. I took a brief nap, then we got our belongings together, re-packed the car, and rode 4 hours to Morgantown, West Virginia.  We stayed at a Microtel Hotel for the night so we'd have a shorter drive the next day.  What we thought was a room with a king sized bed had a queen in it, so with Marcus between us, we slept very little.  He, on the other hand, loved every minute of wallowing us to death and laying on our faces.
     We got up and drove the next morning in some pretty awful weather.  What started out as rain, quickly turned to sleet, then a HEAVY wet snow.  Mark did an AMAZING job of driving in some treacherous conditions, sometimes where there was a good two inches of snow on the highway.  We averaged between 40-50 miles per hour and added an extra 2-3 hours to our journey.  At one point we met a car in our lane, that was stopped and facing us head-on.  In an effort to change lanes and avoid him, we fish-tailed, slid, and barely missed the other car by feet.  Mark did an incredible job of not panicking but we are most grateful to the Lord for sparing us in that situation and overall, through the trip.  And then, just for fun, when we stopped in Buffalo, we just so happened to be at the same exit as the stadium where the Bills play.  Yes, we had to drive a few miles out of the way and check it out.
     Finally, around 5:30pm we arrived at Mark's parents house and got to see our precious family.  Marcus walked in like he owned the place and we straight for Grandma's toy stash.  We had supper, opened presents, and then sat back at the children played together with their new gadgets.  It was a very relaxing way to end what was a pretty stressful and difficult day of driving.  More in Part 2.

Uncle TJ helping Marcus open his new dump truck. (sorry it's blurry)

Papa John opening gifts

Uncle TJ, Marcus, and Aunt Liv (warming herself by the "fire")

Grandma B looking all stylish with her snazzy scarf.

Marcus took apart his new numbers/letters puzzles and put all the pieces in his truck.

Christmas morning - opening his first gift

He's so into everyone else's cell phone that he got his own.

Helping Daddy open his gifts.

Granny helping him turn the sit-n-spin.

His stocking was almost as big as him!

Marcus and Granddad (with 4-wheeler and bulldozer in hand)

Somewhere in Pennsylvania

He had no idea how bad the driving conditions were.

We found it!

Ralph Wilson Stadium - not really in Buffalo, not really that impressive

Sweet blue eyes

Reading books in the couch

Grandpa reading to his youngest grand-daughter.

Chillin' with Uncle Greg

This picture just makes me laugh because both Grandpa and Mark "tried" putting the batteries in this one toy, but finally, Lisa got the right tool and successfully installed them.  Marcus had a ball with that toy after that.