With Christmas on its way, we attended several events in our area to celebrate the weeks preceding the holiday. When we explained to Emma that Santa would be visiting soon and asked her what she wanted him to bring, she responded, "Cake, and pwesents!" Since we had also talked about Christmas being Jesus' birthday, this made perfect sense to her! On the first Friday in December, we went on the luminary tour at Dawes Arboretum near our house. After the driving tour, we went inside the visitor's center, where Emma made some crafts, ate cookies, and enjoyed the fire (since we don't have a fireplace at home). The next evening was "Christmas in the Country" at one of our metroparks. A horse-drawn wagon ride (complete with Christmas lights), carolers, and another visit with Santa were the highlights. The next weekend, we visited a Victorian house in town which was decorated with Christmas trees and displays and were treated to another horse-drawn wagon ride. Finally, the Friday before Christmas, our church put on "A Night in Bethlehem," where our fellowship hall was set up to resemble the town and we conducted several hands-on activities, followed by a procession into the sanctuary for a live nativity. Emma got to wear her Halloween costume as a heavenly angel! She and a friend ran up and down the aisle shrieking and laughing. We didn't stop them; weren't the real angels excited when Jesus was born?!
