My Winter Break
I had an excellent Winter Break.
Dennis and I left DC on Dec. 21. Dennis got caught up at work getting things together for the sub - so by the time we loaded up the car and hit the road it was 5pm. Getting to I-95 was no problem and there was ZERO traffic in Maryland and even getting out of DC. But sure enough once we hit Virginia traffic came to a halt. Traffic is ALWAYS horrible in VA - no matter the time of day, there is traffic. They only part that is ok in VA is when you take 295 to avoid Richmond. Other than that it was at a crawl the entire time. Leaving late and the excessive traffic didn’t put us to the halfway point from our apartment to Dennis’ house in Miami (Walterboro, SC) until 3am. Midnight - 1am were the worst - after that I got a second wind - but it was terrible to get there so late. We slept til about 9am and then had some waffle house before hitting the road. We got to Dennis’ house by 8:30pm. The ride that day was great. I was so excited when we got into the state of Florida - it always beings me joy to see - the joy quickly ended when I saw there were still about 380 miles left to get to Miami.
After getting through the drive (I was a tough girl and drove the whole way both days) - we finally got to Dennis’ house. It was so wonderful to be done driving. They had warmed dinner up for us (we got there at about 8:30). It was nice to be around family. I felt a little bad about it, but we just stayed at Dennis’, after dinner we just showered and went to bed. I left seeing my family for the next day.
I am not sure if I have ever been that excited to see my family - but I was. I was so joyous. I hugged everyone for the longest time. I have not really felt very homesick because I am not all alone - but I have missed my family. My mom had to work, so we spent the day with my grandparents and brother. We helped set up things for the next day’s celebration - Noche Buena. I also helped Mima get some last minute gifts while Dennis and Pipo worked on getting the pig ready. That evening we went to my house to spend the night.
The next morning, as soon as we got up, we started working on preparations for the party. Dennis and I were sent to the grocery store to pick up some forgotten items and to the Cuban Bakery to pick up some loves of Cuban bread. That place was a zoo. Apparently a lot of people just order their Noche Buena food from there. In addition they didn’t have any bread handy - so we had to wait while it was baking. That was supposed to take 15 minutes. We ended up being there for 40 minutes total. Paying took forever, and then when bread came out all these abuelitas were trying to skip me - I didn’t have it though. I wasn’t rude but I let the women handing out the bread that I had already paid, and they were clearly trying to hand over their dollars for the bread. After the second fresh batch came out we finally got bread and were able to leave. That was an adventure. Thankfully the grocery store wasn’t so bad. Once we got to Mima and Pipo’s we started helping out. Dennis mostly helped with the pig, because I had told him that he’d better learn because one day he would have to do it. We are all about keeping these traditions when we have kids.
That night was great. So much family was over it was nice. It was also the first family party (not counting wedding stuff) where my family and Dennis’ family celebrated together. We had a poker table and a dominoes table set up. I only played at the dominoes table - it is my favorite to play at the holidays. Even Dennis’ parents and bothers played. I was afraid of them feeling awkward, but they fit right in. The dinner, of course was excellent. We had arroz congri, yuca with the red sauce, salad, the whole pig, Cuban bread, and had cidra (apple cider) and more I am sure. China and Carlos brought the turron (a Spanish holiday dessert that is essential for our celebrations). Soon after Dinner Dennis’ family left and we all just chilled for a while. By 11:30 or so everyone had left and at Midnight (technically Christmas) we opened our gifts at Mima and Pipo’s house. That was a lot of fun - we had a lot of laughs. Then we headed to my mom’s house and opened gifts there. That was even more fun. After the celebrations Dennis and I dropped Michelle (Joe’s girlfriend) off at her house and headed to his house - so we could be there for Christmas morning. We got in after 2am. We got up at like 8 to make sure no one had to wait for us for opening gifts. We ended up having to wait for David and his girlfriend til almost 11am. We opened presents and then hung out with family. In the afternoon we went over to Ily and Eduardo’s house (parents of our flower girl). We hadn’t seen the new baby yet. It was nice to be over there. We had a good time.
For the second year in a row, after it has been a tradition four years in a row, we did not have cannelloni. We went out to La Carreta for Cuban food. Dennis and I have vowed to get the Cannelloni’s ourselves next year - to keep traditions alive.
The rest of the trip was spent between Dennis’ house and mine/my grandparents. We went to the beach with Joe one day and alone the next. It was cool but we just wanted to be near the ocean and hope for at least slight tanning. It was really nice to be with family. One day we even went to the Mall with my mom and Joe and met up with some of Dennis’ friends. We played a lot of games at Dave and Busters.
We were at Dennis’ house until about 8 on New Years’ Eve and then headed over to one of my great uncles house. I saw a lot of family there I had not seen in a while. It was nice, and fun. Older drunk people can be hilarious. We spent the whole night laughing. It was great.
Overall I was a great trip, best I can remember, although short. We were there for 11 days. But Dennis had o get back to work on the 3rd, so we left on the first. The drive back wasn’t too bad. The first half was great - the second it was raining all day. We did stop at South of the border for the first time ever - although all we did was put gas in the car and go to the bathroom. We want to come back with more time one day - there is a lot to do. Of course the rain was at it’s worst in Virginia.
It was a great holiday break. I wouldn’t trade it for anything. I love our families and love spending as much time with them as possible.
Dennis and I left DC on Dec. 21. Dennis got caught up at work getting things together for the sub - so by the time we loaded up the car and hit the road it was 5pm. Getting to I-95 was no problem and there was ZERO traffic in Maryland and even getting out of DC. But sure enough once we hit Virginia traffic came to a halt. Traffic is ALWAYS horrible in VA - no matter the time of day, there is traffic. They only part that is ok in VA is when you take 295 to avoid Richmond. Other than that it was at a crawl the entire time. Leaving late and the excessive traffic didn’t put us to the halfway point from our apartment to Dennis’ house in Miami (Walterboro, SC) until 3am. Midnight - 1am were the worst - after that I got a second wind - but it was terrible to get there so late. We slept til about 9am and then had some waffle house before hitting the road. We got to Dennis’ house by 8:30pm. The ride that day was great. I was so excited when we got into the state of Florida - it always beings me joy to see - the joy quickly ended when I saw there were still about 380 miles left to get to Miami.
After getting through the drive (I was a tough girl and drove the whole way both days) - we finally got to Dennis’ house. It was so wonderful to be done driving. They had warmed dinner up for us (we got there at about 8:30). It was nice to be around family. I felt a little bad about it, but we just stayed at Dennis’, after dinner we just showered and went to bed. I left seeing my family for the next day.
I am not sure if I have ever been that excited to see my family - but I was. I was so joyous. I hugged everyone for the longest time. I have not really felt very homesick because I am not all alone - but I have missed my family. My mom had to work, so we spent the day with my grandparents and brother. We helped set up things for the next day’s celebration - Noche Buena. I also helped Mima get some last minute gifts while Dennis and Pipo worked on getting the pig ready. That evening we went to my house to spend the night.
The next morning, as soon as we got up, we started working on preparations for the party. Dennis and I were sent to the grocery store to pick up some forgotten items and to the Cuban Bakery to pick up some loves of Cuban bread. That place was a zoo. Apparently a lot of people just order their Noche Buena food from there. In addition they didn’t have any bread handy - so we had to wait while it was baking. That was supposed to take 15 minutes. We ended up being there for 40 minutes total. Paying took forever, and then when bread came out all these abuelitas were trying to skip me - I didn’t have it though. I wasn’t rude but I let the women handing out the bread that I had already paid, and they were clearly trying to hand over their dollars for the bread. After the second fresh batch came out we finally got bread and were able to leave. That was an adventure. Thankfully the grocery store wasn’t so bad. Once we got to Mima and Pipo’s we started helping out. Dennis mostly helped with the pig, because I had told him that he’d better learn because one day he would have to do it. We are all about keeping these traditions when we have kids.
That night was great. So much family was over it was nice. It was also the first family party (not counting wedding stuff) where my family and Dennis’ family celebrated together. We had a poker table and a dominoes table set up. I only played at the dominoes table - it is my favorite to play at the holidays. Even Dennis’ parents and bothers played. I was afraid of them feeling awkward, but they fit right in. The dinner, of course was excellent. We had arroz congri, yuca with the red sauce, salad, the whole pig, Cuban bread, and had cidra (apple cider) and more I am sure. China and Carlos brought the turron (a Spanish holiday dessert that is essential for our celebrations). Soon after Dinner Dennis’ family left and we all just chilled for a while. By 11:30 or so everyone had left and at Midnight (technically Christmas) we opened our gifts at Mima and Pipo’s house. That was a lot of fun - we had a lot of laughs. Then we headed to my mom’s house and opened gifts there. That was even more fun. After the celebrations Dennis and I dropped Michelle (Joe’s girlfriend) off at her house and headed to his house - so we could be there for Christmas morning. We got in after 2am. We got up at like 8 to make sure no one had to wait for us for opening gifts. We ended up having to wait for David and his girlfriend til almost 11am. We opened presents and then hung out with family. In the afternoon we went over to Ily and Eduardo’s house (parents of our flower girl). We hadn’t seen the new baby yet. It was nice to be over there. We had a good time.
For the second year in a row, after it has been a tradition four years in a row, we did not have cannelloni. We went out to La Carreta for Cuban food. Dennis and I have vowed to get the Cannelloni’s ourselves next year - to keep traditions alive.
The rest of the trip was spent between Dennis’ house and mine/my grandparents. We went to the beach with Joe one day and alone the next. It was cool but we just wanted to be near the ocean and hope for at least slight tanning. It was really nice to be with family. One day we even went to the Mall with my mom and Joe and met up with some of Dennis’ friends. We played a lot of games at Dave and Busters.
We were at Dennis’ house until about 8 on New Years’ Eve and then headed over to one of my great uncles house. I saw a lot of family there I had not seen in a while. It was nice, and fun. Older drunk people can be hilarious. We spent the whole night laughing. It was great.
Overall I was a great trip, best I can remember, although short. We were there for 11 days. But Dennis had o get back to work on the 3rd, so we left on the first. The drive back wasn’t too bad. The first half was great - the second it was raining all day. We did stop at South of the border for the first time ever - although all we did was put gas in the car and go to the bathroom. We want to come back with more time one day - there is a lot to do. Of course the rain was at it’s worst in Virginia.
It was a great holiday break. I wouldn’t trade it for anything. I love our families and love spending as much time with them as possible.