This morning, I awoke with a smile on my face. After a good night’s sleep, I knew I had an easy day. Dinner was prepared, and I had only a salad to make. This made me almost leap out of bed.
I couldn’t get showered and dressed quickly enough, although I spent a little more time on my hair and makeup than usual. Although it’s only the two of us today, I felt festive and determined to embrace this day enthusiastically. Of course, part of my excitement was knowing I’d be posting our new itinerary today, indicative of our renewed hopes for the future.
No, we don’t have a Christmas tree, decorations, gifts to open, ham to bake, or family coming to see us. My son and his GF had vacation plans and won’t return until after the New Year, but we are frequently in touch with our four kids, grandchildren, siblings and friends and feel the love and holiday spirit nonetheless.
Without all the hoopla, we can revel in the meaning of the holiday spirit in this new way over the past 13 Christmases we’ve been away since beginning our worldwide journey.
Christmas wishes have flooded our email, texts, and social media this morning, leaving us feeling special and loved. How blessed we are today and every day of the year!
No doubt, I miss the Christmas mornings with the family, opening gifts and drinking hot cocoa with Christmas music and a roaring fire in the background. But those days are past; we left them behind with love and grace for this new life.
The above main photo of a Christmas-like warthog signifies, in part, what our new lives have brought over the years. This year, after spending months working on my health, we are extending the feeling of a new life. This renewed status enables us to continue our passion for worldwide travel, as indicated in our included new itinerary.
I often wonder if it is a passion for worldwide travel as much as a desire for new experiences, new surroundings, meeting new people, and… spending time with those we’ve met and come to love. It’s no longer about visiting old historic buildings and world-famous sites as it is about the little things we encounter along the way, so clearly illustrated in our 4505 posts (as of today).
Many of our posts have been about the infinitesimal events of our quiet days and nights, uneventful yet meaningful to us in one way or another. Many of our other posts have been enriched by unique experiences that one might only live in a dream we’ve been blessed to experience in real life. We are truly blessed.
Our gifts today consist of the love of one another, the love of our family and friends, and our endless love and search for those moments that fill our hearts and minds with the magic surrounding us, whether we’re in Lake Las Vegas or Africa…fa la la la la…in 68 more days…
Here’s our new itinerary:
| Location or Ship | Days | Dates |
| Road Trip to Nevada | 4 | 12/14/24 – 12/18/2024 |
| Lake Las Vegas, Nevada Condo | 73 | 12/18/24 – 3/1/25 |
| Flight – Las Vegas to Nelspruit/Marloth Park, South Africa | 2 | 3/1/25 – 3/3/25 |
| Marloth Park Holiday Home | 90 | 3/3/25 – 5/31/25 |
| Flight – Minneapolis, Minnesota | 2 | 5/31/2025 – 6/3/2025 |
| Hotel – Minneapolis, Minnesota | 14 | 6/3/2025 – 6/17/2025 |
| Flight – Minneapolis to Nelspruit/Marloth Park | 2 | 6/17/2025 – 6/19/2025 |
| Marloth Park, South Africa Holiday Home | 90 | 6/19/2025 – 9-17-2025 |
| Flight to Barcelona to Spain Holiday home | 40 | 9-17-2025 – 10-27-2025 |
| Cruise – Barcelona, Spain to Cape Town, South Africa | 18 | 10/27/2025 – 11-14-25 |
| Cruise – Cape Town, South Africa to Singapore | 17 | 11-14-2025 – 12-1-2025 |
| Cruise – Singapore to Brisbane, Australia | 12 | 12-1-2025 – 12-13-2025 |
| Flight – Brisbane, Australia to Auckland, New Zealand | 0 | 12-13–2025 – 12-13-2025 |
| New Zealand Holiday Home | 60 | 13-13-2025 – 2-12-2026 |
| Flight – New Zealand to Tasmania | 0 | 2-12-2026 – 2-12-2026 |
| Tasmania Holiday Home | 60 | 2-12-2026 – 4-13-2026 |
| Flight – Tasmania to Brisbane, Australia | 0 | 4-13-2026 – 4-13-2026 |
| Cruise – Brisbane, Australia, to Seattle, Washington | 24 | 4-14-2026 – 5-8-2026 |
| Flight – Seattle, Washington to Minneapolis, Minnesota | 0 | 5-8-2026 – 5-8-2026 |
| Hotel – Minneapolis, Minnesota | 38 | 5-8-2026 – 6-15-2026 |
| To be determined… | ||
| Total Days | 546 |
Merry Christmas!
Photo from ten years ago today, December 25, 2014:
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