January saw our 10th wedding anniversary. Couldn't believe it had been 10 years since we were married in Sri Lanka! Wow.
We decided to have a special celebration for this special occasion. We arrived for few days in Kissimmee where we visited Universal Orlando as well as had dinner at the Royal Ball with Cinderella.
After that on January 19th we stepped aboard the Disney Magic cruise ship for the start of our 7 night cruise around the Eastern Carribean. Our ship stopped at St Maarten, St Thomas and Castaway Cay (Disney's private Bahamian Island). Like all plans, somethings didn't work out as we would have liked them to. We had organized a private tour of the island in St Maarten, but the company that had been recommended turned out to have an "interesting history" and didn't work out, so we ended just playing on the beach for a while (which was great!). We almost missed the (very early) customs/passport check in at St Thomas as we were confused by the time changes. Two phone calls from the cast members on board later we rushed in the room with the US Immigration people. Thankfully they were very nice about it AND we were not the last ones!!!One of the reasons we decided on a Disney cruise was the reputation of the cruise line for its kids clubs. We thought it would be wonderful for the kids, they would have a great time in the clubs and mum and dad would get some time to themselves and we could go to the gym, the spa or just chill out and read a book. Well, this was another thing that didn't quite work out as we had planned / hoped! Don't get me wrong, the kids clubs were great. Arran loved his and would have stayed there from opening at 9am until they closed at midnight! The spanner in the works was Iona. She started off not wanting to be left in there for very long. We would get paged after a couple of hours, she wanted to be out! All was not lost, however, slowly she settled in and would stay in the clubs longer and longer. By the end of the cruise, we kept checking the pager to make sure it wasn't broken! Of course, it was working fine, Iona had become more relaxed in the clubs and was happier there.
I could go on and on and on about the cruise, but I will leave it there. Suffice it to say, we all had a wonderful time. So much so, the kids keep asking to go back. (Keep saving those pennies!!)
We disembarked the ship early on the day of our anniversary and travelled to Orlando and Walt Disney World. That evening we had reservations in a restaurant at Disney's Yacht and Beach Club followed by a private boat trip from the hotel into EPCOT for a viewing of their Illuminations show. The slight rain didn't put a damper on our celebrations (the large umbrellas saw to that). We all, adults and kids, had a great time. We stayed at our vacation homes near Walt Disney World for a few days before and after the trip to check them over and keep them updated for our guests.
In April, Neil started a new, full time position with a company called Tensilica that is working out very well.
Arran and Iona both finished their school year in June. Arran completed 2nd grade at Old Orchard School in Campbell and Iona was at a local preschool. Summer was upon us! Although we didn't schedule a lot of items in during the summer months, it seemed to pass quickly! Both Arran and Iona had 3 weeks of summer camp at Campbell. This was Iona's first summer camp and, although she was hesitant at first, she soon settled in.
At the end of summer we took a family trip to Disneyland. We hadn't been there in several years, although it was closer to us than Walt Disney World in Florida. We stayed in the Howard Johnson Hotel which was just across the street from the park. In fact, our room had a view of the Matterhorn (through the very tall pine trees) and we could see the fireworks from our balcony. We had a great time, Iona met princesses, Arran rode roller coasters (again and again and again!). We managed to persuade Iona to ride The Matterhorn and the Rickitty Train Ride (but she says only one time!) . She also managed to ride in the wheelhouse of the Mark Twain paddleboat on the river and pull the whistle. Wow, what a view from up there. A great experience. Unfortunately the camera wasn't working at that time so we don't have any photos from the Mark Twain :-(
We returned from Southern California in time for Arran to start his 3rd Grade Year at Old Orchard School. He has had some tough times with his classmates, but overall he is enjoying himself. They have a great science program and in the first few months he has studied the human body and also looked at rocks and minerals. After the Christmas break they return to study Astronomy which Arran is looking forward to as it has been an interest of his from early on.
Iona didn't return to her preschool in September as her previous one was no longer working for her. She has plenty of opportunity to socialize with friends by way of a mothers playgroup that we belong to and she works on her educational needs at home.
Since September, things don't feel as though they have stopped. Halloween has been - Arran and Iona both dressed up and went out to Trick or Treating. The weather was rainy, but luckily a gap in the rains meant that the Trick or Treating was done in the dry. As usual, a huge haul in candy was gathered. Some was kept but the bulk of it was sent to a local charity that produces care packages for the troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.
October sped into November and Thanksgiving. We celebrated with our neighbors, The Rada's and the D'Angelo's. It was a great day with lots of good food, good company and good fun.
Now we are zooming to Christmas. We cannot believe that it is only a few days away (that shows you how fast it is zooming!!!). By the time you read this it may be Christmas or Christmas may have passed. Where ever you are and whatever you do, have a great time.
Happy Holidays everyone and best wishes for 2009!
Kay, Neil, Arran and Iona
Avalon at Windsor Palms (www.windsorpalmsorlando.com) and The Manor at Emerald Island (www.emeraldislandorlando.com)
