SUNDAYS WITH CELIA VOL 24

SUNDAYS WITH CELIA VOL 24

Greetings and thank you for stopping into the blog today for Sundays With Celia Vol 24.

I hope you had a fantastic Thanksgiving. We spent the week of Thanksgiving in Washington, DC, as our oldest son and his wife wanted to host their very first Thanksgiving at their home. Having done the honors myself for over 30 years, I was happy to pass the torch to them, knowing it would be wonderful.

The beautiful colors of fall were still evident everywhere in the city, including in my son’s front yard.

My daughter-in-law is very talented in the area of decor and flower arranging.

This is her magnificent Thanksgiving table where we enjoyed a wonderful family feast. All 3 of my boys were there. Austin came in from Colorado and Taylor and his girlfriend came in from Chicago and Philadelphia.

My son’s in-laws were also in town to join us. It was so great having everyone together, as we are normally splintered all across the country most of the time.

My son, the host, is very capable and talented  in the kitchen, having been my Sou Chef since he was a small boy so he did almost all of the cooking. Speaking of Sou Chefs, this year it was my sweet little Granddaughter who filled that role. Wearing the pink Tutu I gifted her this trip, and her adorable matching apron & chef’s hat, she was a big help in the making of a cheesecake. Here she is pounding out the graham cracker crust with a miniature rolling pin from her own play kitchen.

She also helped me make this patriotic Cookie White House.  I purchased the kit at Trader Joe’s. So apropos for Thanksgiving in our nation’s capital. My granddaughter, with her tiny little fingers, placed most of the candy balls on top, which make up the flag. A good number of them also ended up in her tummy as well!

When she wasn’t in the kitchen helping out, she and her brother were being entertained by their Uncle Austin, my youngest son.

It was a wonderful, happy day of family, feasting and fun.

The First Sunday of Advent

If you’ve been following along lately you may have seen my blog post on how to make a fun Advent Calendar.

The Sunday after Thanksgiving was the first Sunday of Advent so we presented the kids with my Special Delivery Santa Bag filled with 1 gift for every day of Advent.

It was so heartwarming to see how thrilled they were to get to open their first gift. Their other Grandmother taught them the lesson of Advent, lighting the first candle and reading them an Advent children’s story. It was a great way to remember things we are thankful for while we usher in the Christmas season.

Visiting the Smithsonian National Zoo on Sunday

Did you know that one of the Smithsonian institutions in DC is the National Zoo?

This really attractive zoo located right in the heart of DC is free to the public, so it’s a great place to visit regularly if you’ve got kids in Washington, DC. But hey, it’s just as enjoyable for adults too. So, last Sunday we decided to load up the family and pay the animals, reptiles and friendly fish a visit. My favorite section was the Tropical Rain Forest area called Amazonia where you can get up close to the animals that thrive along the Amazon River, the largest river basin in the world. Here we met an amazing California Sea Lion that literally entertained us by quickly swimming past us then diving suddenly right before our eyes.

We also got to see an Arapaima, one of the largest freshwater fishes.

Swimming nearby were large schools of Piranhas.

There were slimy Salamanders…

very colorful poisonous frogs…

and frogs just about to catch their dinner. The kids were fascinated by all the unusual creatures, as was I. It was a great day.

Unfortunately we didn’t stay late enough to enjoy the annual Zoolights, when more than 500,000 environmentally-friendly LED lights transform the Zoo into a winter wonderland complete with a dazzling light show set to music!  If you’re in the DC area Zoolights runs from 5-9pm nightly from November 25 to January 1, except December 24 & 25. It’s an annual event, one that I hope to catch next year.

Ice Skating on a Holiday Weekend in Virginia

We managed to squeeze in lots of great activities while in DC including ice skating at Town Center in Reston, Virginia. They rent skating Penguins so that the little ones have something to hold on to while they learn to skate. Elle loved it!

Reston Town Center was all dressed up for the holidays and was beautiful and festive. Such a nice way to spend the evening.

Back Home in Lake Arrowhead on Sunday

We are now back home in Lake Arrowhead and had a chance to stop in to see our new fixer-upper cabin. If you missed my last post, click here to get a sneak peek inside. Then vote for your favorite design ideas.

Santa’s workshop is now in full swing at our house. Good thing I have a giant dining table that gets transformed into a wrapping station this time of year.

In closing I thought I’d give you one last taste of Thanksgiving. It’s a fun video of the Hough family, as in Julianne & Derek Hough of Dancing With The Stars fame. The family gathered together to celebrate Thanksgiving at the home of sister Marabeth, who lives in a gorgeous home in Nashville, TN. They look like a lovely family having a lot of holiday fun together. Plus, the house and pretty neighborhood make watching the video even more worthwhile.

So there you have it: SUNDAYS WITH CELIA VOL 24

Thanks so much for dropping in! 

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All opinions expressed in this post are my own. Unless otherwise noted, all photos are the original property of Celia Becker @ www.AfterOrangeCounty.com and may not be reproduced without specific permission.