After the boys opened their Santa presents and we (including Guinea) all emptied our stockings, we packed the van and head down the 401 and 403 to spend a few days with Babcia and Grandpa in Brantford.
The drive was uneventful. Next to no trucks but lots of cars. No police to be seen.
We had a wonderful turkey dinner and then we opened presents. Babcia naturally had presents for everyone - even Tina and myself. The boys opened their presents with eagerness and excitement.
Corbin loved the new WWE Smackdown Vs Raw DS game and Jeremy loved his Hot Wheels 10 in 1 racing track and Kung Fu Panda DS game.
Babcia was amazed with her Samsug Q1 mp3 player and Grandpa quickly stowed his Tim Hortons Gift Card.
On Friday, Tina and I headed out for some browsing and shopping (Jeremy's race track needed batteries - doh). The stores did not seem that busy. The Christmas section at Canadian Tire was full of stock - there were plenty of lights. I don't think retailers did that well this year. We maximized our time away from the boys, returning after a three hour trip.
Saturday was "Babcia and Jeremy Day". We drove over to Walmart so that Jeremy could pick out his birthday presents from Babcia. Corbin and I checked out the electronic section. We didn't spend too much time at Walmart.
Then we headed over to Future Shop to look for a DVD Jeremy wanted. While the store was busy, we were able to find everything we wanted. I suggested to my mom that she pay at the digital camera counter, thereby avoiding the long line at the front of the store. My mom appreciated that.
The rest of the afternoon was spent relaxing watching TV, playing games or just hanging out. Jeremy chose Boston Pizza (after some campaigning on my part) for his Birthday supper. Corbin, Tina and I split a Great White North Pizza, Jeremy had the grilled cheese, Alex had the Ribber and Babcia had the Chicken Parm. After dinner, the staff came out and sang happy birthday to Jeremy and gave him a desert. He seemed to enjoy himself.
After a quick breakfast Sunday, we packed up and headed back to Windsor. The drive was okay save for the winds. The van was not driving in a straight line.
Our four Christmases went well this year. No one went to the hospital and the outbursts and breakdowns were minimal. Woo hoo.
Posted by Adam
Showing posts with label Christmas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Christmas. Show all posts
Sunday, 28 December 2008
Wednesday, 24 December 2008
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year
The Szymczak Family wishes everyone a very Merry Christmas and a happy New Year.
Posted by Adam
Posted by Adam
Friday, 19 December 2008
A Snowy and Cold Christmas in Goderich
Despite "Snowagedden", we managed to make it up Goderich with no issues.
We left around 7 pm, stopping for gasoline at the Pilot in Tilbury and a food and bathroom break in Watford. The roads were, for the most part, clear. The worst part was Highway 21 between Grand Bend and Port Franks - the road was not that well cleared.
Arriving at Bev & Gerry's house, we put Jeremy on the couch to fall back asleep and unpacked the van. It was cold. Really cold.
The next morning, Tina and I went out for breakfast. After that I went out looking for a snowblower (none to be had).
As some point, Corbin had dropped his Nintendo DS and broken the case. It still worked. Tina and I told Corbin he had to be much more careful and that he will pay for his replacement. I knew that most of the stores in Windsor were out of the DS, so Corbin and I drove over to Walmart and they had one left. I purchased it but I didn't let Corbin play with it.
I patched up the 'old' DS with some electrical tape and gave it to Jeremy to play with.
Teegan and Madigan came over and the four kids played and played and played. They went outside at one point, but that did not last long.
Late afternoon, Chris and Lisa came over and we opened presents. Then we had a wonderful roast beef dinner with mashed potatoes and gravy. Yummy. We let the food digest and packed the van.
We left Goderich around 6:00 pm and arrived back in Windsor around 9:20 pm.
A nice Christmas in Goderich.
Posted by Adam
We left around 7 pm, stopping for gasoline at the Pilot in Tilbury and a food and bathroom break in Watford. The roads were, for the most part, clear. The worst part was Highway 21 between Grand Bend and Port Franks - the road was not that well cleared.
Arriving at Bev & Gerry's house, we put Jeremy on the couch to fall back asleep and unpacked the van. It was cold. Really cold.
The next morning, Tina and I went out for breakfast. After that I went out looking for a snowblower (none to be had).
As some point, Corbin had dropped his Nintendo DS and broken the case. It still worked. Tina and I told Corbin he had to be much more careful and that he will pay for his replacement. I knew that most of the stores in Windsor were out of the DS, so Corbin and I drove over to Walmart and they had one left. I purchased it but I didn't let Corbin play with it.
I patched up the 'old' DS with some electrical tape and gave it to Jeremy to play with.
Teegan and Madigan came over and the four kids played and played and played. They went outside at one point, but that did not last long.
Late afternoon, Chris and Lisa came over and we opened presents. Then we had a wonderful roast beef dinner with mashed potatoes and gravy. Yummy. We let the food digest and packed the van.
We left Goderich around 6:00 pm and arrived back in Windsor around 9:20 pm.
A nice Christmas in Goderich.
Posted by Adam
Tuesday, 11 November 2008
No Kids for Three Hours
In past years, Tina and I would do the boys Christmas shopping on Remembrance Day since we both had the day off. Usually we had an idea of what to get for the boys and would head off first thing in the morning to Toys R Us.
This year was different. Jeremy spent the morning with us. We walked him to school and then headed for lunch and shopping. Lunch took longer than expected, which cut into our shopping time.
We arrived at Toys R Us with no real idea what to get the boys. Corbin is 10 and he is moving away from toys (or at least we are 'guiding' him down that path). He showing more interest in electronic gadgets like a digital camera, video games and science sets. Jeremy is still into toys - he loves playing with his dinky cars and is just getting into Playmobil.
We walked around and grabbed a few things, and got a few ideas. At the end we decided to not buy the few things we had in our cart. It was a very strange feeling, leaving Toys R Us empty handed.
Our plan is to make a list and buy things over the next few weeks, either online or do a day of brick and mortar shopping.
Posted by Adam
This year was different. Jeremy spent the morning with us. We walked him to school and then headed for lunch and shopping. Lunch took longer than expected, which cut into our shopping time.
We arrived at Toys R Us with no real idea what to get the boys. Corbin is 10 and he is moving away from toys (or at least we are 'guiding' him down that path). He showing more interest in electronic gadgets like a digital camera, video games and science sets. Jeremy is still into toys - he loves playing with his dinky cars and is just getting into Playmobil.
We walked around and grabbed a few things, and got a few ideas. At the end we decided to not buy the few things we had in our cart. It was a very strange feeling, leaving Toys R Us empty handed.
Our plan is to make a list and buy things over the next few weeks, either online or do a day of brick and mortar shopping.
Posted by Adam
Tuesday, 1 January 2008
Christmas Travel Time - Brantford
We departed Goderich around 4:00 pm Sunday afternoon. The weather was overcast and no snow was called for.
I decided to avoid Highway 8 - too many towns, too much traffic and possibly too many police - and take the back roads. The back road was clear and mostly traffic free. We made good time, arriving in Woodstock in little under two hours. The rest of the drive was on the 401 and 403 and we arrived in Brantford shortly after 6:30 pm.
One thing we did notice that about 15 minutes southeast of Goderich was the amount of snow still on the ground. As we got closer to Woodstock and Brantford, the amount increased. In a reversal, Brantford had much more snow than Goderich. Very strange.
We settled in. Corbin and Jeremy gave Babcia and Grandpa their presents. Next, it was all about playing with Babcia until bedtime.
Monday was Jeremy's birthday - more in the post below - so the day was mostly focused around Jeremy. Tina and I did manage to get out to do some browsing at the local stores. The Canadian Tire was confusing as it is being expanded. I stopped by Staples to pick up another USB thumb drive. Next was the new Lowes. It's not as big as the ones found in larger cities, but it has an excellent appliance section and a good selection of kitchen and bath items. A nice store overall.
Jeremy and Corbin continued to play with Babcia, with Corbin taking breaks to play his NintendoDS. Jeremy was a non-stop ball of energy.
We woke up to new snow Tuesday morning. Not as much as two weeks ago. This was perfect snowman snow - very wet. The van was loaded up and we said our good byes. My mom and Alex were naturally worried about the driving conditions. Once we got on the main road, the roads were clear.
The only rough spot on the entire trip was a snow squall around Chatham. Not usually a problem but with the temperature hovering around zero, the squall consisted mostly of sleet, which collected on the highway. By the time we got to Tilbury, all was clear and we arrived safe and sound in Windsor - which had received about an inch or so of wet snow.
Posted by Adam
I decided to avoid Highway 8 - too many towns, too much traffic and possibly too many police - and take the back roads. The back road was clear and mostly traffic free. We made good time, arriving in Woodstock in little under two hours. The rest of the drive was on the 401 and 403 and we arrived in Brantford shortly after 6:30 pm.
One thing we did notice that about 15 minutes southeast of Goderich was the amount of snow still on the ground. As we got closer to Woodstock and Brantford, the amount increased. In a reversal, Brantford had much more snow than Goderich. Very strange.
We settled in. Corbin and Jeremy gave Babcia and Grandpa their presents. Next, it was all about playing with Babcia until bedtime.
Monday was Jeremy's birthday - more in the post below - so the day was mostly focused around Jeremy. Tina and I did manage to get out to do some browsing at the local stores. The Canadian Tire was confusing as it is being expanded. I stopped by Staples to pick up another USB thumb drive. Next was the new Lowes. It's not as big as the ones found in larger cities, but it has an excellent appliance section and a good selection of kitchen and bath items. A nice store overall.
Jeremy and Corbin continued to play with Babcia, with Corbin taking breaks to play his NintendoDS. Jeremy was a non-stop ball of energy.
We woke up to new snow Tuesday morning. Not as much as two weeks ago. This was perfect snowman snow - very wet. The van was loaded up and we said our good byes. My mom and Alex were naturally worried about the driving conditions. Once we got on the main road, the roads were clear.
The only rough spot on the entire trip was a snow squall around Chatham. Not usually a problem but with the temperature hovering around zero, the squall consisted mostly of sleet, which collected on the highway. By the time we got to Tilbury, all was clear and we arrived safe and sound in Windsor - which had received about an inch or so of wet snow.
Posted by Adam
Sunday, 30 December 2007
Christmas Travel Time - Goderich
The drive up to Goderich was uneventful. What was surprising was the lack of snow north of Grand Bend. Save for the icy piles left over from the snow fall two weeks ago, Goderich was bare. Very unusual.
We spent the day not doing much. Teegan and Madigan came over to Nanny's and brought their NintendoDS units. Corbin had fun playing different games with Teegan. At one point Teegan, Madigan, Corbin and myself were chatting using the PictoChat program. What brave new world we live in.
We had dinner at Bev & Gerry's along with Chris, Lisa, Teegan and Madigan. Next the kids opened presents. It was crazy. The boys were very excited with their GI Joe, Transformers and Robot presents. Later that night Tina and I along with Chris and Lisa went to Wal-Mart to check out the video game and movie selection.
I found a Harry Potter three-pack of video games for the PS2 for $29.84. A remarkable price considering that the latest Harry Potter game was on sale for $24.84. I had to call Tina over to make sure I wasn't seeing things. Corbin constantly rents these games, so I decided to buy it as a 'reward' for Corbin.
Sunday was a relaxing day. Tina did some more scrapbooking. We had lunch from A&W, hung around some more before packing the van and heading out to Brantford.
Posted by Adam
We spent the day not doing much. Teegan and Madigan came over to Nanny's and brought their NintendoDS units. Corbin had fun playing different games with Teegan. At one point Teegan, Madigan, Corbin and myself were chatting using the PictoChat program. What brave new world we live in.
We had dinner at Bev & Gerry's along with Chris, Lisa, Teegan and Madigan. Next the kids opened presents. It was crazy. The boys were very excited with their GI Joe, Transformers and Robot presents. Later that night Tina and I along with Chris and Lisa went to Wal-Mart to check out the video game and movie selection.
I found a Harry Potter three-pack of video games for the PS2 for $29.84. A remarkable price considering that the latest Harry Potter game was on sale for $24.84. I had to call Tina over to make sure I wasn't seeing things. Corbin constantly rents these games, so I decided to buy it as a 'reward' for Corbin.
Sunday was a relaxing day. Tina did some more scrapbooking. We had lunch from A&W, hung around some more before packing the van and heading out to Brantford.
Posted by Adam
Tuesday, 25 December 2007
Christmas Day - What Did Santa Bring This Year?
Jeremy playing with his Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Van
Santa brought Corbin a new sled - all we need is some snow in Windsor. Yes, that is Corbin is in his underwear.
Santa always leaves a present on his way out. Corbin all most fell over getting the box. This year it was a single present for both boys: Headbangers Ice Hockey set.
Monday, 24 December 2007
Merry Christmas
The house is clean and the shopping is done. It's time to sit back and relax with the boys and enjoy Christmas. Plenty of presents under the tree this year.
The Szymczak Family extends a Merry Christmas to all family and friends.
Thursday, 28 December 2006
Christmas With Chris, Lisa, Teegan & Madigan
The trip up to Goderich was uneventful. It was freaky as there was no snow, anywhere. Typically, when you drive up to Goderich at the end of December, there is lots of snow. Nothing in 2006. It did start to snow after arrived, but it amounted to nothing much.
The kids opened their presents. We had an awesome turkey dinner. We watched TV, did some shopping and just hung out. It was a good end to Christmas.
Monday, 25 December 2006
Christmas With Nanny & Poppy
Bev & Gerry decided to spend Christmas here in Windsor. They arrived mid-day on Saturday, and the boys were very excited to see Nanny & Poppy. We went out for Chinese buffet and filled our plates many times. We were all stuffed afterwards.
Sunday was Christmas Eve, so we spent the day hanging out around the house. We had the traditional 'Szymczak Family Buffet' later in the afternoon. This was followed by opening presents. It was interesting to watch the boys. When Corbin was opening a present, Jeremy would move in for a closer look and vice-a-versa. Everyone opened their presents and everyone was happy with their haul. We even took a small break to eat some more food.
When 8:00 pm rolled around, Adam abandoned the family and joined the rush of people trying to buy items at the annual Future Shop Boxing Day sale. Just after 9:30 pm, Adam was able to add three items to his basket and successfully checkout. What did he buy? A 500GB External Hard Drive for $199.99, a 2GB SD memory card for $39.99 (after a $15 rebate), and a SanDisk Sansa 2GB mp3 player for $69.99. Not a bad haul. The boys eventually went to bed after playing with their toys. After all, Santa could not come if they did not fall asleep.
Christmas Day arrived and the boys were hopping out of bed. They ripped open their presents from Santa - Corbin went for the present that Santa 'hides' in the kitchen. Santa also leaves a toy unwrapped so the boys can play right away. We emptied out our stockings, including Guinea's, and unwrapped the small prizes. The day was weird because there was absolutely no snow on the ground, in fact we got rain. Talk about a green Christmas. Gerry put together a toy table for Jeremy - it came with a train set and blocks. It will be nice to have in the living room.
Sunday was Christmas Eve, so we spent the day hanging out around the house. We had the traditional 'Szymczak Family Buffet' later in the afternoon. This was followed by opening presents. It was interesting to watch the boys. When Corbin was opening a present, Jeremy would move in for a closer look and vice-a-versa. Everyone opened their presents and everyone was happy with their haul. We even took a small break to eat some more food.
When 8:00 pm rolled around, Adam abandoned the family and joined the rush of people trying to buy items at the annual Future Shop Boxing Day sale. Just after 9:30 pm, Adam was able to add three items to his basket and successfully checkout. What did he buy? A 500GB External Hard Drive for $199.99, a 2GB SD memory card for $39.99 (after a $15 rebate), and a SanDisk Sansa 2GB mp3 player for $69.99. Not a bad haul. The boys eventually went to bed after playing with their toys. After all, Santa could not come if they did not fall asleep.
Christmas Day arrived and the boys were hopping out of bed. They ripped open their presents from Santa - Corbin went for the present that Santa 'hides' in the kitchen. Santa also leaves a toy unwrapped so the boys can play right away. We emptied out our stockings, including Guinea's, and unwrapped the small prizes. The day was weird because there was absolutely no snow on the ground, in fact we got rain. Talk about a green Christmas. Gerry put together a toy table for Jeremy - it came with a train set and blocks. It will be nice to have in the living room.
Sunday, 17 December 2006
Christmas with Babcia and Grandpa
Babcia (Adam's mom) and Grandpa travelled by train to Windsor to celebrate Christmas. Though the train was advertised as being 15 minutes late, it was only 5 minutes late. That meant that Corbin did not have to wait around too long for Babcia. On the way back home, Adam picked up Jeremy from Jenn's house and Jeremy was happy to see Babcia and Grandpa.
Shortly after we had a pasta dinner with home made alfredo sauce. The boys and Babcia began to play shortly thereafter. Tina bought new clothes for the boys, so Jeremy and Corbin showed off their smart and sharp looking outfits consisting of pants, dress shirt and a jacket. Babcia was mighty impressed.
Saturday morning began with a continental breakfast and with the boys eager to open their presents. Adam told Corbin that we will open them after lunch. Corbin said "fine". Sure enough, after having some delicious perogies for lunch, we opened presents. The boys were very pleased with their presents. Among other things, Corbin received a bunch of Narnia characters and Jeremy received a Spiderman car and a Safari set. Babcia was impressed with the scrapbook created by Tina - she cried as Corbin read the sayings. Grandpa was busy checking out his new book.
After supper, Babcia, Tina, Adam and the boys set out to Toledo, Ohio, to check out the Lights Before Christmas display at the Toledo Zoo. The drive to Toledo was uneventful, but it took 45 minutes to get into the Zoo parking lot. There were more people at the Zoo then during the summer. The weather was nice, slightly on the warm side. Adam's mom could not believe how wonderful the Christmas lights were - she was impressed. We arrived back in Windsor just before 11 pm - both boys fell asleep on the trip home.
Adam made waffles, while Tina nuked the bacon and prepared other items, for breakfast. Babcia played some more with the boys. Eventually, it was time for Adam to take Grandpa and Babcia to the train station for their trip back to Brantford. They boys were sad to see Babcia go - they wanted her to stay and play some more.
Shortly after we had a pasta dinner with home made alfredo sauce. The boys and Babcia began to play shortly thereafter. Tina bought new clothes for the boys, so Jeremy and Corbin showed off their smart and sharp looking outfits consisting of pants, dress shirt and a jacket. Babcia was mighty impressed.
Saturday morning began with a continental breakfast and with the boys eager to open their presents. Adam told Corbin that we will open them after lunch. Corbin said "fine". Sure enough, after having some delicious perogies for lunch, we opened presents. The boys were very pleased with their presents. Among other things, Corbin received a bunch of Narnia characters and Jeremy received a Spiderman car and a Safari set. Babcia was impressed with the scrapbook created by Tina - she cried as Corbin read the sayings. Grandpa was busy checking out his new book.
After supper, Babcia, Tina, Adam and the boys set out to Toledo, Ohio, to check out the Lights Before Christmas display at the Toledo Zoo. The drive to Toledo was uneventful, but it took 45 minutes to get into the Zoo parking lot. There were more people at the Zoo then during the summer. The weather was nice, slightly on the warm side. Adam's mom could not believe how wonderful the Christmas lights were - she was impressed. We arrived back in Windsor just before 11 pm - both boys fell asleep on the trip home.
Adam made waffles, while Tina nuked the bacon and prepared other items, for breakfast. Babcia played some more with the boys. Eventually, it was time for Adam to take Grandpa and Babcia to the train station for their trip back to Brantford. They boys were sad to see Babcia go - they wanted her to stay and play some more.
Tuesday, 27 December 2005
Christmas Is Over
The Christmas portion of the "Holiday Season" is officially over today. Adam and the boys, took his mother and Alex to the train station for their trip back to Brantford. After saying goodbye, the boys headed up to Future Shop and Best Buy to check out some things and to give Tina a break from everyone. During that time, Tina stripped the Christmas Tree of all the decorations and Adam removed the lights and took the tree apart and stored it in the box. Later during the winter season, Tina plans on going through our decorations and tossing those that are old and tired (we have had some decorations for almost a decade). We plan on visiting Bronners in Frankenmuth, Michigan sometime in February to get some ideas and new decorations. Now to clean the house up, put the gifts in the appropriate places and look forward to a quiet New Year celebration with the Karb Family.
Saturday, 24 December 2005
Christmas Eve 2005
Christmas Eve went without a hitch. Babcia, Adam's mom, prepared the perogies by frying up some bacon and onion (expertly cut by Alex). We broke the wafer, a Polish tradition, before eating, wishing each person a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. We ate the perogies, pizza bites and bacon-wrapped scallop and washed it down with wine. After tea and deserts it was time to open the presents. One by one the presents were opened and a few hours later, the Christmas Tree was barren of presents. Corbin loves his boxing gloves and shooting arcade. Jeremy liked the bowling set and alphabet magnets. Adam was excited about getting sports and dress socks (no, really, he was) and Tina was overwhelmed by books, DVDs and scrapbooking stuff. Babcia and Grandpa were trying to figure out how to get that DVD/VCR combo back home via the train. Just before going to bed, Corbin spread out some food for the Santa's reindeer, left a magic key so Santa could get into the house and put out some milk and cookies for Santa.
Friday, 23 December 2005
Getting Ready For Christmas
We have spent the last few days getting the house in tip-top shape for the holiday season. Essentially, we are cleaning the house for the eventual mess that will happen on Christmas Day. Every room has been dusted, vacuumed and tidied up. The house looks clean and tidy. That won't last for long.
Sunday, 18 December 2005
Christmas In the Prettiest Town in Canada
We traveled up to Goderich Friday evening. Encountered some snow fall between the 401 and Bayfield - to be expected this time year. Arriving in at Chris and Lisa's house, we promptly unpacked the van and got a tour of the newly renovated and expanded Muggridge home. Chris and Lisa added a 2-storey extension with a full basement to their house. The extension contains the master bedroom complete with it's own bathroom and walk-in closet, a new kitchen and a fully functional rec room in the basement. The transition between new and old is flawless. The amount of floor area has doubled. The old kitchen is now the new office of Atomic North New Media (formerly located on the Square).
The kids opened their presents on Saturday and for the most part, they all played well and they all got along well. Corbin played with Teegan and Madigan's toys in the basement and a few games on the Playstation2. Jeremy did what Jeremy does best: play here there and everywhere. A few toys would make it out of the basement but when asked to take them downstairs, Jeremy would comply. Sleeping worked out well. All in all, it was a very relaxing weekend. Kudo's to Chris and Lisa on the expansion.
The kids opened their presents on Saturday and for the most part, they all played well and they all got along well. Corbin played with Teegan and Madigan's toys in the basement and a few games on the Playstation2. Jeremy did what Jeremy does best: play here there and everywhere. A few toys would make it out of the basement but when asked to take them downstairs, Jeremy would comply. Sleeping worked out well. All in all, it was a very relaxing weekend. Kudo's to Chris and Lisa on the expansion.
Thursday, 15 December 2005
Christmas Newsletter Out
We have mailed out our annual Christmas Wastebasket Newsletter and it should be arriving in your mailbox shortly. If it doesn't, let us know, we will gladly mail one out, or, if you are technologically advanced, we can email you a PDF version. Only 8 more days to Christmas Eve, 9 more days to Christmas Day and 16 days to the New Year.
Sunday, 11 December 2005
Kids Holiday Party
We attended the Kids Holiday Party organized for City employees. The party was held at the Cleary International Centre. Tina dressed the boys up in cute matching outfits. We arrived early and staked our claim at a table near the stage. Eventually we were joined by Mike Cooke and his family.
There was lots for the kids to do: eat, make gingerbread cookies (complete with icing and sprinkles), different kinds of crafts, facepainting, and running on the dance floor. Beebo, a childrens performer, kept the crowd busy. Mr. and Mrs. Claus arrived by fire truck - which Corbin had been waiting for and he had a great view from his spot at the window. The kids got books as gifts, which, seemed to fit their personality and likes. The event was well organized and well attended.
There was lots for the kids to do: eat, make gingerbread cookies (complete with icing and sprinkles), different kinds of crafts, facepainting, and running on the dance floor. Beebo, a childrens performer, kept the crowd busy. Mr. and Mrs. Claus arrived by fire truck - which Corbin had been waiting for and he had a great view from his spot at the window. The kids got books as gifts, which, seemed to fit their personality and likes. The event was well organized and well attended.
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