This holiday season we steeled ourselves for an aggressive
Midwest-east coast visiting schedule. In the space of 8
days, we planned to visit two families in two locations in
Michigan - Scott's parents in Dexter and Caroline's sister Jen's
family in Lake Orion - and Caroline's dad's side in Alexandria,
VA. Were we crazy?! In retrospect, most definitely!
But while being incredibly hectic and exhausting, it was also a
very satisfying visit in every respect.
Very late on Saturday, December 20th we arrived at Scott's
parents' house in Dexter, Michigan, after a long and crowded but
otherwise uneventful flight from Albuquerque. Although
there in Dexter for only one full day, thanks to Scott's mom
Denise's planning prowess, we had an opportunity to catch up and
exchange gifts with Scott's parents, brothers, grandpa and aunt
and uncle. On Monday, we relocated to the Hyatt Place near
Caroline's sister's family's house for the next few days in
order to get maximum nephew-visiting in. During the week,
we had fun roughhousing and running around with our rambunctious
3-year-old nephew Christopher, but he sure wore us out!
It's always fun to see how he's grown since we last saw him.
We also scheduled time during the week to have dinner with
Scott's cousin Don and his wife Kathy, whom we don't see nearly
enough, at the pleasantly upscale, trendy Crust pizza restaurant
in Bloomfield. As a great surprise, Don invited all of
their shared cousins, many of whom were able to join in the
festivities. It was a fun and relaxing evening enjoyed by
all! While visiting Scott's childhood friend John at his
office earlier in the week, we arranged to meet him, his
parents, sister and his delightful new girlfriend Sarah, at a
favorite old steak restaurant of Caroline's, Filippa's, at their
convenient Utica location - also a wonderful reunion!
Towards the end of our Michigan visit, Caroline's parents joined
us at Jen & Ivan's house to celebrate a fun- and laughter-filled
Christmas Eve in front of a cozy fire. That evening, after
driving on roads becoming slippery as the snow fell, we
spent the night at the Westin located right at the airport so we
could hop an early-morning flight to Baltimore. From
there, we drove to Virginia to spend the remainder of our
holiday visit with Caroline's grandparents, dad, step-mom and
aunt at Aunt Nancy's beautiful home in the woods of Hollin
Hills, near Old Town Alexandria. Caroline's sister's
family decided to join us there also so that Christopher could
meet his great-grandparents for the first time. It was a
wonderful and very special holiday reunion, as this entire
group, being scattered all around the country, had never before
all been in the same place at once! We truly enjoyed the
opportunity to visit with everyone, eating and drinking merrily
and heartily. We even got in a little exercise while
strolling Old Town Alexandria around our hotel, The Lorien, and
also through Aunt Nancy's wonderful neighborhood on a walk with
Caroline's dad and step-mom. It was refreshing and
invigorating, even if it was raining much of the time!
On our way back to Baltimore on Sunday, we even had a chance to
stop in Washington D.C. to visit friends Janet and Mark from San
Francisco who have since relocated there. They treated us
to a homemade-quiche-and-cocktail brunch that we won't soon
forget - thanks you two, it's always great to see you! It
was definitely a rewarding trip, so fantastic to see everyone,
but it proved to be a hectic and chaotic schedule that we do not
intend to repeat in future years!
Happy New Year everyone - it was wonderful to see you all!
Playing on the pool table at Jen & Ivan's house
Uncle Scott looooves reading about Transformers!
Caroline & Christopher's mom, Jen
Performing our very special rendition of Styx's 'Mr. Roboto'
Our ice skating expedition turned into an unofficial adult
skate, since Christopher didn't want to wear the skates - maybe
next time!
A surprise dinner with the Brooks/Kowalewski cousins at Crust in
Bloomfield, MI!
Scott's cousins Don & Dana, the ever-photogenic siblings, at
Crust
Playing in the snow at Jen's house in Lake Orion
Playing in the snow at Jen's house in Lake Orion
Playing in the snow at Jen's house in Lake Orion
Ivan built a cozy fire on Christmas Eve for our family
celebration
Grammy & Grandpa like to be where the action is!
Look what Santa brought me...
Scott gets creative with Christopher's new art project pipe
cleaners!
The twins model their fab new Christmas gifts
Jamie & Christopher get acquainted at Aunt Nancy's house in
Alexandria
Fun with Great-Grandpa Bill!
A wonderful family celebration - Christmas dinner at Aunt
Nancy's in Alexandria, VA
Old Town Alexandria is festively decorated for the holidays
The
Rytina Family
Friends Mark & Janet graciously hosted us for brunch in their
Washington D.C. apartment
Janet, Mark, Caroline & Scott