Merry Christmas!

Well, I'd like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas! And I hope everyone had a great day.

We haven't done any letterboxing since I last posted. Yesterday was a lay around and do nothing day - mainly because it rained all day here in Lafayette. It was actually kind of nice having all that water - being from Santa Fe I almost always welcome a good rain. I also got to watch the New Orleans Saints play a good game. I don't get to see them much in Santa Fe - they are not usually shown on TV there unless they are playing the Cowboys, Broncos or Cardinals. They have a good team this year and will be in the playoffs - I think this is good for New Orleans. The Superdome was remodeled for this season and I think the winning year brought a much needed boost to the spirit of New Orleans. It was also good to see my brother-in-law so enthused about the Saints. He has been a die-hard fan through thick and thin - he deserves to have them be a winning team. I'll be cheering them on during the playoffs, that's for sure.

My sister cooked a big pot of chicken and sausage gumbo on Saturday. Talk about good on a chilly and rainy day. I am being so spoiled I may never leave. Then last night we got together with my Dad's family. My grandparents are no longer with us but there are eight siblings to arrange the Christmas Eve get-together. There were fun & games, music, gift exchanges, conversations and great food. Around 11:00 pm we returned home and called it a night. I have to say it was a most enjoyable day.

This morning we slept in (if you call 7:30 am sleeping in) until my sister's kids woke us all up to let us know Santa had come by the house that night. We had some coffee and enjoyed the kids enjoying their gifts. At about 11:00 am we made our way to my Dad's for lunch. We sat around visiting until about 1:00 pm and then we ate, and ate, and ate, and ate. Fried turkey, beef roast, glazed ham, candied yams, shrimp casserole, rice dressing as well as rice and gravy, bread and corn macque choux. And then dessert: an assortment of cookies, fruit salad, fudge and brownies. After all this all I could think about was a nap - of course that didn't happen - the kids were all too excited. We watched football and exchanged gifts and visited with friends that dropped by. At about 5:00 pm we went to my Aunt's house to pick up a key to her apartment in New Orleans. She lives in Lafayette but has an apartment in New Orleans that the family uses on weekends. She loaned it to Thomas and I for a couple of nights. As I finish this post we are about 30 minutes from The Big Easy. Hopefully we can find a few boxes there tomorrow. I'll keep you posted.