Parade

Last night we had the opportunity to go to the local Christmas parade. Sorry, forgot the camera, so no pictures! We had fun, though. We went first to an open house at one of the local banks. Santa and Mrs. Claus were there for pictures, but only Olivia wanted to go see them. Steven and Angela were perfectly content to find a corner with Daddy where they could sip on hot chocolate and munch on cookies. Oh, and look at the alligator! An enormous stuffed alligator was on display in the lobby, and Steven thought it was the most awesome thing in the world! We actually did snap a couple of pictures on the cell phones so that Steven could look at them whenever he wanted to see the alligator. Silly boy.

The parade was fun. The girls had actually never been to one before, so they had lots of questions. They really seemed to enjoy it, though. And, I realized that God's timing on Angela's new coat was so perfect because she had it just in time to wear it to the parade - she was nice and toasty warm through the whole thing!

We all so greatly love the Christmas season. The kids are having a wonderful time with our advent calendars and the nativity scenes displayed all over the living room. Doug and I are greatly enjoying the fact that this is the least harried and stressful Christmas we've had in years, now that Doug is no longer employed in either the retail/restaurant industry or the shipping/logistics industry. We're savoring the peacefulness and truly enjoying the extended celebration of our Savior's birth.