Mall Santa + Christmas on Main Street

Saturday I decided we needed to take our annual trip to see Santa. We didn't have any plans for Saturday so it was perfect. I wanted to go early so we could make it back to watch the Iron Bowl. Santa shows up at 10 am and we made it a little after that. He was smitten with Santa and there were no issues getting him to sit on Santa's lap. This was the first picture they took and it was perfect. 

My mom went with us so while she went and got her hair done, Jack and I went to a small fun space they have in the mall. He slide down that slide over and over. Since no one was in there that early I went down a couple of times myself. He thought it was the funniest thing me going down the slide. He would say 1-2-3 go and I'd push myself off. I'm not one for this type of thing but it was pretty fun. We ate nachos in the food court and then headed home.

Our small town holds a Christmas on Main Street every year so it has been on our calendar for awhile. This was our first year to go since Jack really hadn't been old enough before to enjoy it. Here he is sporting his new shirt I got him. 

Our first stop was Santa. Look at the candy canes they gave out-the M & M filled kind-SCORE! See the train in the background, well Jack couldn't wait to get on it. I've been wanting to take Jack to play on this train for awhile but we don't really go downtown (there isn't much there anymore). So this was a perfect opportunity. He really enjoyed playing on it. Our town is a big train town and so we walked over to the tracks and the other trains so Jack could see it all up close. 

Here he is standing infront of one of the trees to be lite up during the tree lighting ceremony. As you can see I have his backpack leash on him. I actually got a few judgemental comments but like I told them losing Jack or him getting run over would be much worse. Jack is a darter and there were numerous times where that leash was VERY much needed. 

The Junior League painted this back in October and I loved it so I had to snap a picture.

I didn't get any of the pictures of the parade. I was busy making sure Jack didn't run out into the parade. They threw candy so it was hard getting him to stand on the side. I would let him get the candy that came close. Our town is so small that getting plenty of candy wasn't an issue at all. Since our town is so small it was mostly a bunch of tractors and 4-wheelers. There were a few cute floats but for the most part it was simple things. Jack loved it though.

If we would have gotten there at 3 we could have had free cookies and hot chocolate but I knew waiting 2 hours before the parade to start would be too much. We instead got there a little after 4 and then didn't have to stand in line long to see Santa. After the parade was the tree lighting ceremony and then there was a singing with the last song being a community singing of "We Wish You a Merry Christmas". It was very cute and small town. 

It was the perfect weekend to start all of our holiday celebrations and seeing Santa twice is always a good thing. When we left the house Jack threw a fit because we turned left and on the day before we had turned right to go see Santa. Kids can be so smart. I'm sure he was thinking "you said we were going to see Santa but we aren't going the same way as before". 

Do you have any fun holiday plans? 

Thanksgiving Pictures

I just love Arkansas. On Thanksgiving it has the beauty of fall and comfortable weather. We had the windows open which was nice because the house was cooking with the heat of the oven. As you can tell, we don't rake our five acres. You have also noticed that Jack's shirt had to get changed. He had a shirt like Bennett but the cranberries were too much for the shirt. Since Bennett would only eat deviled eggs and bread he wasn't messy at all. The dress that Maybree has on had to be washed after her only wearing it for 30 minutes. Oh life with kids! Take a look at some cute kids having fall fun.

During my Thanksgiving break I was able to do so much. I'm extremly proud of myself. I'm recovering from gallbladder surgery but have recovered so well. The Christmas decor is out, Christmas gifts are bought and wrapped, and fun holiday plans have been made. I'm ready for all the festivities. This is the first year where I feel like Jack really gets it. When he sees presents he knows there is something exciting inside. He knows who Santa is and loves seeing all of our Christmas decor. I am actually giddy thinking about Christmas morning. There is nothing like seeing Christmas through the eyes of your child. 

What are you most looking forward to this holiday season? 

Getting Thanksgiving Ready

It has been a whirlwind here this week. Wednesday I had my gallbladder removed and came home from the hospital Thursday. Friday my mom had her elbow replaced and came home from the hospital the next day. Her arm will be in a cast for two weeks. Typically we host the family Thanksgiving but with all the craziness we are just doing a small Thanksgiving with our immediate family. Even with less people and less food it still takes a lot of prep. Since Jack and Bennett are out of school they have been my sidekicks. We've been getting ready for Thanksgiving and also doing some fun Christmas crafts.

I've done the Thanksgiving shopping and only forgot five things so another shopping trip will have to be made. Our menu consists of turkey, dressing, hashbrown casserole, broccoli rice casserole, corn on the cob, rolls, and gravy. For dessert there will be banana pudding, pecan pie, and coconut cream pie.

I bought some cute iron-ons for Jack and Bennett and got those ironed on yesterday. They will only be worn for one day but that is okay because I always enjoy a cute Thanksgiving outfit.

We needed a project to do so after seeing other cute kid made placecards I put the kids to work. We found colorful leaves outside and got some fall colored paint. I let the boys just put paint on however they wanted and then we glued leaves onto the cards. As they dry I am writing the names on the cards. My paint pen isn't doing all that great on the paint so it is going to take a take a few tries to get the names filled in. I'll let the boys place the cards in the right spots on Thursday. 

The plan was to make hand turkeys but I decided to do reindeer instead after seeing cute ones on Pinterest. I think they turned out super cute. I painted the antlers on and the boys glued on the eyes and nose. Once they were dried I hung them both up by the Christmas tree. All of the Christmas decor is out. I'm out all week and decided it would be best to do it now instead of doing it after Thanksgiving. The cold weather that came in got me in the holiday spirit and I am loving having the twinkle of the lights as the house is quiet at night.

I hope y'all have a wonderful Thanksgiving!