It's beginning to look (and feel) alot like Christmas!

We are starting to really enjoy the new traditions that Midland has to offer for the holidays!  It starts off in November (around Thanksgiving) with the Santa parade!  We attended last year's event, but it was soooo cold that we were all a little gun-shy this year.  When we woke up to freezing rain the morning of the event, we skipped it.  Even though we totally missed the Chippewa float, and our Ward's Nativity float.  Oh well, hopefully next year's will be more temperate.  :)

The next item on the Christmas agenda was participating in the combined Midland ward's Nativity Exhibit.  It is a huge effort putting this together, and so there are puh-lenty of opportunities to volunteer and serve (which helps getcha in the Christmas spirit too, see?!)  Anyway, it's a new favorite for sure!  This year, Mark and I were able to be hosts for the actual event which was neat because we were able to talk to a lot of people about the exhibits, our testimonies of Christ, our religion, etc.  I just think it's such an excellent missionary tool, and I was excited to see how many lives we touched...you just never know the impact you have on a person.

Next up on the Christmas agenda is a trip the Midland Santa house.  It's downtown next to the courthouse and was one of the first things we saw when we drove through Midland many years ago.  This was right after Mark had applied for the job, and found out that he was getting an interview after the new year...we had driven over for Thanksgiving that year, and took a jaunt up to Midland to "scope it out"...and saw the Santa house on Main street...who would've known that it would become a part of our family traditions for years to come?!?  Anyway, as you know the weather in December was so nice, so it was a great night!  We were able to check out the reindeer and wait outside for Santa to open his house for all to enter!  Lots of fun!

"Look, it's SVEN!" Parker was stoked to see the reindeer outside the house, I was expecting her to say "Look, it's Rudolph, but no...generational gap...big time.

My favorite!

They are getting to the age that trying to get them to smile for the camera like nice, normal people is becoming more and more infrequent.

Signing her name in Santa's guest book.

"What would you like, little girl?"  This year, Parker's wish list included the stuffed animal "Totoro"...look it up online!  Thanks to her big sister's affinity for Japanese anime, Parker has been in love with this furry creature and draws pictures of him in primary when she should be coloring her pictures of CTR emblems and families being together forever.  Santa had to have Totoro shipped all the way from Japan, and was seriously sweating that it would make it in time...haha!!  It was seriously a Christmas miracle when it showed up in time!!

The magic is alive and real.