Local Christmas Parade

Getting our spot set up for viewing the parade

Last night was the Deltona Christmas Parade that Grandma had been telling the girls about since we first moved here. We arrived early to park and stake out our spot to watch.  We set up our chairs, then headed to a little diner nearby for dinner and to pass some time.  The temperature has been in the low 80's again, so it doesn't FEEL very Christmasy, we're hoping the cold fronts that have moved through a few times already return again. Still, can't complain as I watch the news with the freezing temperatures throughout so much of the country.

As it grew dark the parade began with the fire department doing the honor guard.

Then groups of school kids in local middle and high school bands were mixed in with a combination of simple to more complex floats came by for over an hour.

Cameron's favorite the sheriff's battering tank, with star decoration : )

Our neighbor's across the street built this float over at their home for their church to participate

The girls LOVED it!!!  They cheered, waved and gave thumbs up to all that passed by.  They loaded up on the candy that was handed out by virtually every group that passed by.  I let them eat one piece there and put the rest in my purse and a bag to store here at home for enjoying later.

For a small town, this parade was well represented by participants and enjoyed by a little over a mile of exuberant onlookers.  This was a fun evening for the whole family.

Santa and his float finishing up the parade

 
 
"It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas", keeps going through my head.  Need to put on the Christmas music and finish decorating the house. 

Epcot Christmas Visit

Wednesday we finished school and made a late afternoon trip over to Disney with Grandma to check out Epcot's Christmas decorations.  I have to admit, compared to pictures online of previous years decorations, this years were really disappointing!!  Still we enjoyed our time and visited the countries to learn about the traditions of those that celebrate this season, and the traditions they practice.

We heard the telling of the journey to the Posada with Los Tres Reyes Magos, or Three Kings in Mexico.  Mr. and Mrs. Claus were in America, and  The Monkey King told his tale in China.

Saw several of the fern and poinsettia "trees" (left), then a few of these poinsettia "trees" pictured on the right.

In Norway, Sigrid and Julenissen, the Christmas Gnome were really funny in the telling of their story and traditions.

In Germany we missed the storyteller, so just took pictures of the decorations.

Italy had La Befana, the "kind hearted witch" telling her story.  Honestly I thought this a bit creepy- sorry to any tradition keeping Italians- and with the heat of the afternoon, we neglected to stay for the whole story.

Somehow we missed Canada altogether, but made a couple trips to United Kingdom to catch the story of Father Christmas, who despite my serious looking pictures, was really a very jovial guy.

Then Pere Noel in France was great!!  He was funny and really sweet with the girls. He asked them what they wanted for Christmas and promised he'd pass it on to "the fat guy" Santa, who according to him,they "went to college together" (smile) Lauren surprised us when she said that what she wanted for Christmas was a T-shirt that read "I Love You More".  We'll have to make sure Santa gets the word on that.

It was an enjoyable day and we really got our exercise in, as Hannah said " we walked around the world two times"!!

Pretty sunset as night moved in.

Have a wonderful day - Lynda

4-H Lesson and Hay Ride

Last night was the girls 4-H meeting.  The location that we meet at was all decorated for the Christmas Season with their "Christmas in the Country" Theme. After checking the feed and condition of the animals, we sat for our lesson on eggs and how they are formed within the chicken.

It was really interesting, even for me learning that the color on the egg shells develops at different stages depending on the type of chicken. That blue or greenish tints come earlier in the development, while brown eggs have the color added just before the egg is laid.   Also the yolk isn't the baby chicken as I'd always assumed, but is what nourishes the chick as it develops.  I'll download the information sheets and print them for the girls to use in their schooling as we explore this subject further.  There are so many wonderful online resources that will help us in this process.

Then after the lesson, everyone was treated to a hayride through the extensive light and display show that was set up.  It was really fun, and we were all quite impressed with all they'd done to prepare for this presentation.

Our group ready to go

Our meeting hall all lit up

A 40 foot magnolia all lit up

After the ride we all gathered around the fire that had been made and had roasted marshmallows. YUM!!!

Kevin putting marshmallows on roasting fork

Time to roast them

Enjoying the results

With that our meeting ended and since it's not our month to feed animals, we won't be back over until after the new year begins.

Today after our schooling, we'll head over to Epcot to see Christmas around the World and the lights there. We're hoping with it being the middle of the week and school is still in session that it won't be as crowded as later in the month would be.  Keeping my fingers crossed.  Either way it will be pretty to see, and I know the kids will love it.  Will post these photos later.

Let the Decorating Begin!!!

Holding to what has become a family tradition for us, on Thanksgiving day after our big meal had settled some, we headed outside to begin to put up the Christmas lights on the house.  We had given away loads of working lights before our move and threw out any that weren't functioning.  We even had 3 full boxes of never opened lights in our collection.  Kevin had taken all of these out the night before and tested them all and even left them plugged in for awhile to be sure they were working.

Lights laid out and on for testing

So, with all this preparation done the process of hanging the lights began.  We chose to use our white "icicle lights" and I'd bought clips for hanging them on this house, as we no longer had the tracks up that we had installed on our last home for placing the lights into.  Kevin and Cameron worked as a team moving their ladders while the other held the already installed lights to keep the whole string from coming down, (just saying we had some experience with this - smile) and Grandma, the girls and I all held ladders, handed clips or new sets of lights to continue the progress.

Icicle lights being strung

Grandma and girls running in yard as Kevin and Cameron prepare lights

They placed the lights over the garage and around the first corner to just in front of the entry door, when we ran out!!  The lengths listed on the front of the boxes may have been the total feet in the string WITH the icicle parts, but it definitely was not the linear length of the string sets, because we were really short of the area we needed to cover. 

Then, after all his careful preparations, when the lights were turned on, Kevin found the ones in the middle of a set just at the garage peak were all out.  He carefully took out and test each light and the fuses and couldn't find any reason for that section to be out.  So needless to say our first attempt at putting up the outside lights was a dud!!

We turned them on anyway, even with the dead middle section, and just determined to buy new and finish the job over the weekend, as there is NO WAY I will be out and about on "Black Friday" shopping with all the mobs at the stores.  So, jump ahead to early Saturday morning and Kevin and I headed out to Walmart, then Lowes and actually decided to purchase 3 rolls of larger LED lights to string up on the house. 

Second attempt - A SUCCESS!

Cameron and Kevin were now pros with their ladder system and using these new clips, and made good time getting the light up over the whole front of the house, the side and in back of Hannah's room.  Then attaching an older string of similar lights they strung them over and around Cameron's shed to finish the job.  YAY, we have lights!!  We still need to put up more decorative items and these are now in the planning stage, but the main feature is done.

Evening front view

Evening side of house view

Evening garage and Cameron's shed

Lights at night

Tree in Kevin's office up and front door - Think I need a bigger wreath : )

Garage and shed, night view

So, on to the interior and trying to figure out where I'll put things this year.  After 12 years in our old house we had a system down for where decorations went.  We'll just have to work out a new plan for here and keep it fresh with some new additions.

Check back and see our progress.