Christmas Eve!

On the off-chance that any of my readers don't receive a Christmas card from me already...here is my Christmas letter for the year.

I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas...and hopefully I'll have a new post before the new year!

2013: The Year of Travel

Doug & Beckie Hales Family

Since we spent so much time on the road this year, we decided to put together a top 10 favorite destinations. Our favorite part of travelling: the wonderful people we were able to spend time with – especially our own family! For 2014, we may not leave our house. At all.

Top 10 Favorite Destinations for 2013

10.       Tokyo, Japan

This was only Doug, but he was impressed with the cleanliness of the city and the kindness of the people. But mostly, it was different. The family enjoyed helping Doug prep for the trip, placing flash cards in Japanese throughout the house and beyond. The one in the chicken coop was for “cake”. Not sure why.

9.   CornFest, Enterprise, Utah

The last trip of the summer, CornFest was a blast. It’s basically a local farmer’s market, but it is always fun to hang with family and spend money.

8.   New Orleans, Louisiana

Our favorite part of New Orleans was driving over Lake Pontchartrain. The bridge is 13 miles long, and in the middle of the bridge you cannot see the sides of the lake. It’s a little freaky, and it makes you understand how sailors can lose their minds at sea. Luckily, we were on dry land not long after, looking at turtles with moss growing on their backs. Love Louisiana humidity!

7.   Albany, Illinois

Driving through Albany to find the Moundbuilders site, we got caught in a tornado watch. We took shelter at the local firehouse, along with a small family from the town. Most everyone was a little (or a lot) frightened, but the tornado was a no-show and it turned out to be just a wild experience.

6.   Niagara Falls, Niagara, New York

Busy, busy, busy, but really beautiful. This was the one place on our super-long trip that we would for sure like to see again. Luckily, none of the kids jumped. Although Malena offered.

5.   Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming (and Montana)

Here we enjoyed (kind of) long days in the car while we looked for animals. We saw the typical elk, deer, and even got to see a black bear up close. Roasted marshmallows back at the cabin, lots of family time, lots of fun.

4.   Zion National Park, Utah

This is always one of our favorite destinations. We hiked for two days, one of those days with cousins (hooray!). Collin took off on the buses and it was four hours before he rejoined us. Talk about a heart attack for his family.

3.   Beach House, Long Beach Island, New Jersey

The front-runner for all the kids, this was the location of our Andersen family reunion this year. They loved the fishing, the swimming, and basically the chill-out atmosphere of living on the Atlantic Ocean for a week.

2.   Jenkins Cabin, Freedom, Wyoming

Site of the Hales Family Reunion, the kids went tubing in the canal, rafting in a river, and we even watched a movie of the back of a barn. Even better: an airplane dive-bombed the kids with candy. Like they need more of that. And boy-oh-boy, was it cold sleeping in a tent, even in July!

1.    Hales Cabin, Ventura County, California

This is where we spent Thanksgiving. The kids thoroughly enjoyed themselves, even without the internet. Board games, puzzles, visits to the Indian fort and even some authentic Indian caves. Not to mention an amazing Thanksgiving dinner, courtesy of Doug’s mom (aka Omi).

Hope you have a Merry Christmas, Happy New Year and a wonderful 2014! We are so grateful for friends and family, and count you as one of our greatest blessings.

Love, the Hales!