Christmas 2010 and beyond!

So, Tony and I set off to the charming West Coast for a blissfully green Christmas :) After a not so painful flight Tony met my family and I got to, at long, long last, meet my new nephew, Ethan! :)

We spent a day with my family, before heading off to the Island to spend four days with various members of Tony's clan. We wandered around Victoria for a few days with Gwen and Charlie and saw some pretty lovely sights :) 

We visited Craigdarroch Castle, which was all dolled up for Christmas!

We saw and judged the Christmas trees at the Empress Hotel. 

It was hard to keep track of your favourite for all the choices! :) There were all kinds to chose from! :)

We saw some wackier things, such as knitted-up trees! 

I suppose this is yet another form of graffiti, which I dig :)

We had drinks and calamari at a local lounge, 

soaking in the sights and lights of Victoria from across the harbour :)

And we got together with Gwen, Charlie, Joyce, Les, Craig, and Rosio at Butchart Gardens to have a fine, fine meal and see the lights! :)

We had a great time in Victoria and then got to spend a night and a day on Pender Island. It was a great trip and I enjoyed the opportunity to get to know more of Tony's family :) We then headed back to the mainland to enjoy Christmas with the my quirky bunch :)

Us on the ferry having had fun and looking forward to having more fun :)

We spent Christmas day at my brother's house on account of the wee laddie and it was a lovely day :)

Christmas dinner, a group effort and a fantastic meal. Yes, they made us wear those damn hats! :)

 

Group shot! Compliments of Tony's snazzy camera :) We have me, Tony, Robbie and my dad in the back row, then Colleen's mom with Ethan, Colleen, and my mom in the front row :) 

A fine crew for a fine day, I'd say :)

We went for a Christmas Day wander near my brother's house.

The lovely Fraser, only a different arm that I am accustomed to visiting :)

Tony snapping and artsy shot in a pristine location :) 

The next day we went to a different part of the Fraser. Only, this time, conditions were much windier! :)

Moderate bundling required! :)

We ventured in to downtown Vancouver. 

I am not overly familiar with the area...so, Tony, our visitor, did much of the navigating... :) 

Steam clock in Gastown 

A naked BC Place :) 

And, best of all, I got to know Ethan a little bit! :) Such a cutie and we got along quite well :)

 Robbie and Ethan doing some baby aerobics :)

Bitty hand :)

Cutie! :) A charming mixture of his mom and dad :) Handsome devil! :)

And Ethan and I getting to know each other a wee bit :) Such a charmer :)

Then, back to Ottawa with us to ring in the new year. Due to unseasonably warm conditions, we had to go skating in doors. Tony is bound and determined to become a masterful skater, so we went out for a little practice :) Here's Tony doing quite well, I'd say! :) We managed to go without spill or injury! :)

A blurry shot just for kicks, but not due to falling :)

Skates! :)

Tony enjoying dodging around all the kiddies, feeling quite savvy on his own skates :)

So, it's been a great few days of holidays! Our time in Vancouver went much to quickly and I took far too few photos! None the less, we had a wonderful time, seeing lots of good friends, great family, eating yummy food, and feeling quite jolly and festive :)