Happy Ending: Tale of the Broken Ornament

On this day after Christmas, it seems very appropriate to tell how the tale of the broken ball ornament came to such a happy conclusion this holiday season.

You may remember that about a month ago I wrote how Atticus accidentally broke an inexpensive but meaningful Christmas ornament.

I searched online for a replacement without luck, and even posted in a couple of local Facebook "for sale" sites without much hope.

However, the first week of December -- on our way to Baltimore to board our cruise, in fact -- I got a surprise message in my Facebook inbox. A woman in my neighborhood had found the same ornament and wanted to give it to me.

When I went to pick it up about a week later, she refused payment. Instead, she told me how she came to find a replacement. From what I understand, she saw a listing on eBay, but it was taken down. She reached out to that person and was told that there were some chips or whatnot on the ornaments and they had been discarded. But the seller found one more and sent it her way.

A Christmas miracle! And this miracle, I have decided, will stay far from Atticus's fingers for a long, long time.

Visit with Santa

We finally squeezed in a visit to Santa this past weekend at Oakland Park Nurseries, and I think for the first time ever there were no tears! Edith got comfortable with Santa just about the time Atticus was born, so then it was his turn to make a fuss. Although he was looking forward to meeting the man from the North Pole, it was still hard to coax a smile. I did the best I could.

Cruise 2017: Baltimore to the Bahamas

Freeport, Bahamas

Booking a December cruise to the Bahamas is a great idea. Leaving from Baltimore may be a bit unconventional. Yet that's exactly what we did all last week.

Our Carnival cruise left cold Baltimore on a Sunday, traveled south to Port Canaveral, Fla., for a day and then to Nassau and Freeport in the Bahamas before arriving in a snowy Maryland the following Sunday. This was our second cruise but the first with Carnival. It was an easy choice -- unlike most cruise lines, its kids' club (aka free babysitting) starts at age two instead of age three.

It wasn't the most exciting vacation we've ever taken, but it was relaxing and enjoyable and just what we needed. Edith and Atticus loved the kid area -- along with the unlimited soft serve ice cream. Paul and I not only got kid-free time, but lots of it. We actually got to eat several meals without cutting up a small human's entree. And the molten chocolate cake was superb.

Although we left from the Northeast, the weather was warm enough to use our balcony by the first morning. The last full day on the ship was cold and rocky, but that's the chance you take when you don't leave from Florida or Texas. And spending the day holed up reading a book really isn't so bad. Not sure I would choose a winter cruise again from a cold-weather port, but I don't regret booking it.

Of course I was sad on Sunday as we made the 6+ hour drive home, but I was ready to be back. Just not ready for life to be anything but all-inclusive.

Here are some photo highlights, but I'll focus on a couple of our destinations in future posts.

Baltimore

View from balcony, first morning

Face painting!

Kennedy Space Center

More face painting - pirates!

Atticus loves syrup.

Nassau, Bahamas

The ship in Nassau.

Surprised by a birthday cake!

The Longest Birthday Ever

Edith's fifth birthday was two weeks ago today, and it lasted nearly as long. Due to the long Thanksgiving break and the sickness of a teacher who was to bring in baking supplies to her class, Edith just made birthday brownies and was sung to by her classmates last Friday! But no complaints -- I like having special events strung out, and I think Edith does to.

We had a birthday party with family a couple of weekends ago, but this year we did something special. We invited her friends to our house on her birthday for an extended play date after school. I called it her "birthday un-party." I requested no gifts, but instead provided temporary tattoos, cookies to decorate and paper crowns for the kids to color and sticker.

Around 15 or so kids showed up, and it was a blast. And low-stress. It was great to make her fifth birthday so memorable, and in such an easy way.