Christmas is Coming

When I wrote this we were on the countdown to Christmas. Decorations were everywhere and the shopping was crazy. I went out a week ago on Wednesday with Isabelle to get a few things for Jane and had to fight traffic like a salmon going upstream. Thankfully Isabelle was very good and a big help in the stores. Two weeks ago on the weekend we took a trip up to North Carolina to do some shopping and see the mountains. There still isn't any snow and I don't know when we will see any. Maybe later when we head north to see my sister in Connecticut. We had two main goals in NC: go to REI and hit a stamp shop/sale for Jane. The sale was OK but Jane didn't buy much. REI on the other hand was very cool. It felt just like MEC and actually is a co-op as well. REI has gotten some bad press for being the big box store of the outdoor gear world. I'm not sure how I feel about them yet. We drove through Asheville as well on the way home with the intention of stopping to walk around. It was absolutely overrun with shoppers. We made a few laps but couldn't figure out the parking. There were people everywhere and even a few groups carolling on the streets. In the end we just kept on going and headed for Hendersonville. It's a whole lot smaller-it only has one main street-but it is easier to get around and was not as busy. The last thing we did on the way home was go to Hollywild. This was another of these places where they put up all sorts of lights and have the public drive through for a few dollars a car. In this case it's more like a safari since at one point everyone drives through a field of deer. There had to be about 200 deer in a space the size of a football field surrounded by 100 or so cars. It was a little stressful for me so I can only imagine how the deer felt. The last stop on the safari was a a Christmas village with all sorts of other animals. We saw camels, bison, llamas, and farm animals too. There were a few inflatable bouncy toys, hot chocolate, and a big warm fire to sit around. Our timing was perfect for Hollywild since we arrived a few minutes before the gates opened and only had to wait twenty minutes to get to the two miles of lights. On the way home the line up to get in was over 2 miles long! I'll post pictures later-hopefully I'll have a little more time to blog in the new year and won't be so far behind. All the best to everyone and I hope you all have (or had) a good holiday.

A Coke and a Smile

Here is a look at some of the Christmas lights I got up this year. Of course it wouldn't do to just put them up without trying something a little different. For those of you who know (or remember) there is a house near Port Williams where we used to live that has a beautiful cross on the barn at Christmas time. It is back lit and makes a lovely shadow on the building. I wanted the same effect with some stars. We have this huge space above the garage that we wanted to doctorate so Jane bought the stars, I put them together, and with a little electric ingenuity we have the pictures below. They are unique but the pictures really don't do them justice. My dad has made bigger ones but these were all I could muster with he tools I have. Tonight our friends from home went back to Nova Scotia. It feels kind of empty not having another four year old running around the place. Jane is off to the airport to drop them off. Below is a shot of the BMW Zentrum I mentioned in the last post. I think this is a must see for most visitors and the price is right-it's free! The girls sure had a good time together. Here is another shot of them playing, this time in the Mast General Store downtown. The game was serious. We also got to Georgia to see the Georgia Aquarium and also spent some time in the Olympic Park area nearby.

Just next to the aquarium is the World of Coke. Now I haven't been yet but this weekend they were doing free pictures with Santa. This is what the set-up looked like. It was too cold to be very busy but we did manage to get out picture taken. Unfortunately Isabelle didn't want to have anything to do with the Big Red Elf but Maggie, Jane and I sat with him.Isabelle has written a letter to Santa. Here is a copy below in her own handwriting. For those of you who need help it reads:

Dear Santa,

I have been good this year. For Christmas I was wanting a medical kit for dogs, a pair of binoculars, and some tools like Papa uses. Be careful of my fireplace because it has a glass cover.

Love,

Isabelle

(Please note the letter has already been forwarded to the North Pole and Santa will be dealing with the gifts personally. He doesn't need anyone to help by getting involved with the above mentioned requests.)

A World Wind Tour

Not a long post as we are entertaining friends form home and having a great time doing all sorts of things. Here is a follow-up to Bubba Melanson called Bubba Claus. It was on the radio earlier this week and thought it was pretty good. Have a look if you want to find out a little about southern culture and sense of humor. Otherwise I'm just going to post a few pictures and videos of the girls playing. We've been to the BMW Zentrum, Harley Davidson of Greenville, the malls and some shopping, Monkey Joe's, and had some traditional barbecue from Bucky's. So far it's been a good visit. There's lots more to come. Here are some of the highlights.

Today we have been downtown to do a little more shopping and to take in the last downtown market of the season. It is very cold by South Carolina standards at about 8 degrees Celcius. Tonight was the Greenville Santa Claus Parade and a visit to Roper Mountain. They have a huge lights display at the science center at Roper Mountain that was pretty spectaular.