How'd you like to spend Christmas on Christmas Island?

It's taken me 7 years to get used to 75F weather in December. Our first Christmas here was exciting! We were all in shorts, Scott's family was down visiting and the idea of a 'Florida' Christmas was just cool (for lack of a better word). The next few Christmases were full of me complaining about how much I hated Florida's warm winters and even more, how much I was dreading the disgustingly humid summer months. The first Christmas after we built our home was a fun one. Number one, we were thankful that we had a home since so many of our neighbors lost theirs when Hurricane Charley destroyed our town. I remember playing Jimmy Buffett's Christmas Island CD to help me get into the mood and I think we watched National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation about a dozen times.

Christmas of 2006 was terrible. My mother-in-law had passed away from breast cancer and we spent most of December in New Jersey. Nobody was in a Christmas mood. 2007 wasn't much better. Scott's grandfather died in late September and the stress from his death coupled with having lost mom not even one year earlier was enough to make my husband proclaim that he was no longer celebrating the Christmas holiday. It was cancelled forever! I cried, he cried, we cried... and then we put up the tree.

This year, there is no tree, no decorations and there are no expensive gifts. We tend to gift to each other all year long; so we really don't need Christmas as an excuse. I wouldn't necessarily say that we aren't in the Christmas spirit; I think it's a lovely time of year. It's just that it's become so darn commercial. My mom's car sports a magnetic "Keep Christ in Christmas" banner during this time of year. I'm not overly religious, but anyone can clearly see that Christmas has become mostly about the beautiful wrapped packages under the tree.

This Christmas is going to be different for us and honestly, I'm actually looking forward to the minimalism. On Christmas morning, Sondra and I are going to do our long run together. The guys have agreed to follow us on their mountain bikes. In the afternoon, Scott & I will be at my mother's house for the 'feast'. I love getting together with my family members, but honestly... we do it all of the time. Christmas isn't an excuse for us to all get together. In the evening, we're hoping to catch up with Sondra & Jeff again. Maybe a movie out or maybe a movie in.

Wishing health and happiness to all of my blogland friends this holiday season... no matter how you celebrate!

Training Updates

A few quick training updates before I peace-out for a few days:

• I have successfully made outdoor riding a weekend habit. Yay for me!
• I have committed to getting myself either a good bike fit OR a good fitting bike... on Dec 30th.
• 10 mile long runs don't seem all that long anymore. I'm really beginning to look forward to the 1/2 marathon in February.
• I'm still 50/50 on the Newtons. Now that I'm running correctly in them, I am loving the forefoot cushioning, but my calves still get a wee bit sore after use. Scott is telling me to stick with them for a bit longer; my calves continue to tell me to send them back. I e-mailed Newton Running today and asked if I could have an extension on their 30-day return policy. if they give it to me, they're staying a while longer. If they say 'no' then the shoes are going back. We shall see....
• I'm still not back in the pool. Making my way back there has become my New Year's resolution.