Christmas Crafts and Holiday Cheer

 You can feel the holiday season upon us. The air is crisp, restaurants are filling up with patrons celebrating and stores are buzzing with happy shoppers.  I have recently given in to the spirit and started to join in the fun.

 Saturday morning was off to a whirlwind start. The girls were up early and we had a busy day planned. I had been anticipating the 1000 Islands Mall Annual Craft Sale for weeks and it was finally here. I love the idea of hand-made and unique gifts plus, as you all know , I’m a huge advocate for supporting local. The parking lot was full and upon entering the mall, you could see people were in the shopping mood. From door to door, vendors lined the corridor showing their products and services. There were beautiful hand-made soaps, knitting, Christmas ornaments, wood carvings and various other offerings. Everywhere I looked, people were carrying bags full of their new purchases and it instantly threw me into the holiday spirit! I can’t tell you what I bought, because that would ruin the surprise for some reading this – but I’m very happy that I was able to attend the Uniquely Creative Craft Sale and will be back next year!

Now that we were all shopped out, it was time to relax with the family and get ready for the Annual Athens' Christmas Parade. It has been a busy month and unfortunately we had missed all the local parades to this point, so I was very excited to take the kids to see Santa. The Athens' Parade of Lights is held later in the evening (starting at 7 pm) so with small children, it was a bit of a gamble for us. We packed up the hot chocolate in our thermos, brought blankets and dressed the kids in their flannels and warm snowsuits.

 

We made sure to arrive early enough to find parking and get the kids situated. As we have a mini-van (with stow-and-go seating) we parked the van so we could pop the back hatch and watch from the comfort of our vehicle. This proved to be a smart move, as the entire main street quickly filled up. My aunt and uncle, cousin and family friends met us and we all waited for the parade to start. This year was especially fun as both my kids are at the age where an event like this is sheer magic!

The floats were lit and started to make their way towards us. With the OPP starting things off, followed by local fire departments and then the parade of business and entertainers, this was a big hit with all of us. There were great school bands, a fun group of bikers showing their "light" side, and of course – Old Saint Nick, himself. The girls were very happy that Santa was able to see them behaving (for once!) and he may possibly bring them more then coal now. 

Hope you've found some time in the hustle and bustle of the holiday season to stop and enjoy some fun local events like these. All the best of the season to you and yours.