Victorian Village

Most years, my parents take the kids to a local business who puts on a very impressive holiday event, a Victorian Village. This year, with Grandpa's passing and all the arrangements, they weren't able to and so Kevin and I were able to go with them instead.

We really lucked out with the weather! It was about 40-degrees when we went, as opposed to the low teens and single digits it had been earlier in the week. We went with hats and gloves, but waiting in the long line to see Santa wasn't as impossible as I worried it would be.

It's so much fun with Meredith this year! She loves the lights and the decorations, and actually squealed when she peered into the tiny houses decorated for Christmas by the elves. I wish I had a video camera to show you how excited she was! I can't wait until the days around the 25th when we get together with family. Maybe I'll be able to take a few seconds of video to share.

They have about 8-10 houses that the employees built for the village, small enough just for kids. The first one you come to, you write a letter to Santa. Some are just so you can peek in to see the decorations. Others, you get a candy cane, hot chocolate (which is very good!), and a cookie.

They have a couple of people doing balloon hats, as seen above. There's a stable with a "reindeer" inside. The setting is so nice, with bridges going over a creek and Christmas carols being played on speakers.

We waited in line for Santa a bit longer than it took to get through the rest of the village. Like I said, it could have been a lot worse if it was colder! The kids all rehearsed what they were going to ask Santa. I think Benny might have been the only one to speak up. Maybe Lou, but Charlie and Meredith screamed at the sight of the bearded man. Kevin had to hold Meredith so that she would be in the picture!

The "small" house where Santa was waiting for us. It was deceptive because it looked just like all the other tiny buildings in the village, but when the door opens there are lots of people in there! We were given a very nice photo of the kids, just as nice as you'd get at a mall, but for free--even better! And all the company asks for is a donation of canned goods. It really is a nice event.

I changed the color to sepia because with all the unsmiling faces, it reminded me of back in the day when they took pictures and the exposure would take so long that no one was smiling by the time the photograph was taken. Just go with me on this one...