Holiday Fun in the Fort

We've had a busy couple of weekends, as I'm sure everyone has. The time between Thanksgiving and Christmas has absolutely flown by. This weekend has been the only weekend we haven't had something on the calendar to do. Still, we were quite busy with last minute shopping and visiting Santa.

Last weekend, the kids made gingerbread houses. Actually, Spencer and I made a gingerbread house and Syd and Christine made a gingerbread train. They both turned out pretty good.









Today, we planned on going out to see Santa at Jefferson Pointe. First, we took a couple of photos in front of the tree (you know, before clothes, hair and faces got dirty!).








So, it was off to see Santa. We were third in line so we didn't have to wait long. The weather was a bit misty and foggy, but otherwise not bad. We were worried about Syd, as it's been crying and clutching my neck for the last 3 years. She made Spencer hold her hand, and a little reluctantly, she made her way to Santa's lap. A note about Santa this year. It might be noticeable from the pictures, but this guy creeped me out. He wasn't really sitting per se, but more like lounging in his chair. Legs were thrown over the one side and he was slouched to the other side. And there were two fans blowing on him, like they have on a model's photo shoot to blow their hair around. The one fan was blowing right in the kids' faces. I was keeping a close eye on him. I didn't want to have to lay Santa out with a right hook, but I wasn't going to let Santa take advantage of anyone. Either way, the kids had a good time and got a sucker out of the deal. Plus, we dropped $20 on a couple of cheezy photos taken by Santa's helpers. The photos we took with our own camera turned out better.







Here's one of the kids outside by the big tree at the mall.










This Saturday, Christine and the kids are off to Canada to visit her family. I'll be home alone, just me and the christmas lights. By the way, I got all my electrical issues figured out (I think). No breakers have tripped, no more smoke, no more burnt GFI outlets. And after seeing lots of LED lights on people's houses, it's convinced me to stick with the old fashion ceramic bulbs. They are brighter, more colorful and just more fun to look at. This means getting an electrician in here next summer to run a couple of 40 amp circuits, dedicated to outdoor lighting. Please save your speeches. I know the old bulbs cost more to run, burn more electricity and are all-around bad for the environment. Call me a traditionalist, call me old fashioned, or call me Clark. All would be compliments in my book. Thanks, Dad, for putting up the big bulbs when we were little. I can only hope Spencer has the chance to do it when he's grown!





Have a great Christmas!!