Epcot

Another reason I wanted to go to Disney World at Christmas was to experience the Candlelight Processional, which only runs between Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve.  A celebrity narrator reads the Christmas story from the Bible while a full orchestra plays and choir sings hymns and carols.  It was a beautiful way to end our day at EPCOT.

We started our Monday with breakfast at the Garden Grill restaurant.  They recently added breakfast, and we were excited to see three of William's four favorite Disney characters:  Chip, Dale and Pluto!  (Stitch is the other fave.)  The lighting in the restaurant wasn't good for photos, but we did have a lot of fun - especially with multiple visits from those silly chipmunks!   And the food was good: platters of Mickey waffles, bacon, eggs, ham, and tater tots!  And to start the meal is a gooey sticky bun and fruit and POG juice.   Yum!

After breakfast we rode a few rides and then headed back to the hotel for a nap.  We were smart on our return trip (and all trips to the parks after this) and didn't bring any bags or purses.  The bag check lines were just as long as the ride lines!   A nice perk of splitting up our days and heading back to the hotel was that we didn't need to take more than what we could fit in our pockets - namely a cell phone and a chapstick.  When we came back in the evening, we went to the World Showcase side of the park for dinner in Morocco, a picture of the giant tree, and the show.

 

 

Hollywood Studios

A big draw each Christmas at Hollywood Studios is the Osborne Family Lights.  This is their last year since that part of the park is going to be closed/rehabbed to make way for the new Star Wars land.   We were excited to get to experience them one last time.  William loved trying to catch the "snow" which was some sort of soap bubbles.   (All I know is it stung when a "snowflake" landed in my eye!  Haha.)  I tried to get picture of the giant tree at each of the parks, as well.  This one was definitely leaning. . . .We rode a few of our favorite rides like Toy Story Midway Mania while we waited for dark and the lights to come on.

 

 

 

After the lights we checked out the new Star Wars Launch Bay which includes movie props, a movie clip, gift shop, and meet-and-greets with Darth Vader and Chewbacca.  We took our picture with Chewbacca.  He was one tall Wookie!

 

 

We didn't stay for the Star Wars fireworks that night but we returned on our last night to see them.  They were amazing! They were also nearly impossible to photograph, but you can see the videos that people post on You Tube if you'd like to see them.

Disney World Christmas

We surprised William with a pre-Christmas trip to Disney World.  The day before we left, we said we could each open a gift.  He gave us the adorable gift he made at school.  And we let him open an autograph book and a box of magic bands.   He knew what they were and that they would be for our next trip, but when I asked if we should go tomorrow, he looked at us in shock and kept asking if we were serious.   He was so surprised!  We had uneventful, on time flights, and wonderful weather!  It was a fantastic family getaway before the next tax season. 

 

 

 

Countdown to Christmas



Leading up to Christmas we had a lot of activities to get us in the Christmas spirit!  We put up our Christmas tree before Thanksgiving since we used only the artificial trees this year.  Then we did shopping for two angel tree gifts:  a 3 year old boy and a 4 year old boy.  William loved checking out the drums for the littlest boy before putting it under the tree.

December 1 brought the Star Wars Lego Advent calendar.  This was so much fun!  Each morning he had a little Lego to build.   One Sunday morning we helped this Cub Scout pack distribute the wreaths they had sold as a fund raiser.  What that really meant was that I tied the red bows onto the wreaths with another mom and dad while William and his buddy, Nathan, were exploring.  They found a hawk and were quietly tracking it.

Our only holiday baking was these white chocolate covered Oreo snowmen.   We delivered them with our Christmas cards to the neighbors.   William also wrote a letter to his teacher to accompany snacks and a gift card gift.

 December also brought William's Star Day at school.  He proudly showcased his Tiger Scout badges and Lego skills throughout the poster.   It also makes me smile that even though Rachel has been gone for three months, whenever he is asked to list his family members he always says, John, Lisa and Rachel.  She was also on the poster.  He also wrote me a lovely card one day at school.  I'm not sure the occasion but I sure do love it!

This last picture was part of the traditions unit.  For each season, he wrote what our family does:
Fall:  I go to my grandma's (accompanied by a picture of the cousins swinging from hay bales in the barn)
Winter:  I go to the Christmas Market (accompanied by picture of the ornament house)
Summer:  Each summer I go swimming (accompanied by a picture of him jumping off the diving board)
Spring:  I always celebrate my birthday at Chuck E. Cheese (accompanied by drawing of him playing the basketball game)

Thanksgiving at the Farm

We made our annual trip to the farm to celebrate Thanksgiving, Christmas, and birthdays with John's family.  The drive was quick thanks to a combination of napping and reading a Magic Treehouse First Thanksgiving book. All six cousins were here this year, which was our last at the farm, since Grandma and Grandpa are moving closer to Indianapolis in January.  The 6 and 7 year olds had a blast thanks to 14-year old Carter devising a fun game of swinging from the barn rafters!

 

 

 

After eating all of our Thanksgiving foods (including the giant turkey that got stuck in the oven), the kids opened their Christmas presents from their cousins.  And then we had birthday cake for John's birthday which fell on Thanksgiving this year.  On Friday we took some pictures of the cabin before heading to the new house to explore it.  The weather was dreary, but the kids checked out the swing set in the rain!  Then we headed to Pat and Kelly's house for Friday night and Saturday fun including games, lots of laughs, a trip to the bowling alley for the kiddos and dads, and a trip to Kelly's spa for the ladies!   

 

We had a VERY quiet drive home since William slept for 3 hours of the 3 hours and 5 minute drive home!    Once we got unpacked, we headed to Granite City for another birthday dinner for John.