Christmas In Plymouth

Christmas Time!!!  

As it crept closer and closer, we got more and more excited.  The Advent calendar was busting at the seams with new activities and fun things to do since we were in a new city... this momma was excited.  My kids on the other hand... yes they were excited, but I did see a a glimpse of bratty behavior throughout- ha!  Maybe not that extreme, but next year that tree of fun may just be filled with 24 days of acts of kindness- ha!  Regardless, we had fun as a family... 

 

...even when Ms. Evelyn decided to eat (each activity has a hershey kiss with it) the remaining days of the calendar!  OOPS!  That face is half "oh no I've been caught' and 'momma, I think I feel sick'... 10 minutes before she threw up a chocolate river on the table.  This child.  Endless stories.

There is a Macy's store in downtown Minneapolis.  It's HUGE.  Eight floors with a large Santa Land attraction that happens every year!  We heard of its festive nature and decided we should make it a tradition while we're here... or maybe a tradition of 1 year- ha!  We soon learned that Macy's is closing that downtown location in 2017- NO!  Well, it was a beautiful finale;)!

It was set up as Santa's workshop, showing the way of life in elf world- haha!  It reminded us so much of 'It's a Small World' in Disney World.  

 

  

{Where the elves sleep, help take care of the reindeer, and go to school}

{check it out- even the North Pole is accessible- hehe- LOVE}

The rest of the month, to say we saw Minnesota's true colors, would be an understatement.  The temperatures went down and the snow came... BRRR!!!!

We opted for INDOOR snow painting...hehe...

 

...and indoor tour of Christmas lights!

We even got some Christmas cookies made and decorated!

 

...and Maggie got an early Christmas gift!  We (will mostly just Pete;)) repurposed his grandmother's desk/dresser for her room.  Maggie was named after her and we felt it fitting to add to her 'big girl room'.

I thought maybe it was 'festivity exhaustion', but the week before Christmas I started feeling less than stellar.  Then Maggie tested positive for strep.  And then I did.  BOOOO!!!  I was trying to just suck it up... because truly, who has time for illness?!  LOL!  I held it together for a couple days, but even on antibiotics my fingernails hurt,I couldn't break the fever, and I was just wiped.  Husband to the rescue for a day: taking care of me...and helping the household run smoothly- he was a rockstar!!!

He came back to work to find this.  His team at work is HILARIOUS- nothing like returning to work to find all items on your desk wrapped up- haha!!

I started feeling better just in time: Harper and I got to have a mommy-daughter date to see the musical, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer!  So sweet until the alarm was pulled 3/4th of the way through and we were told to wait outside to make sure all was ok.  We couldn't do it- TOO COLD!!!  So, Harper had to hear from yours truly how the Rudolph story turns out- ha!  Regardless, we had a fun afternoon together!!!

  

Friends!!!!!  

It was wonderful having a fun playdate and dinner with longtime friends and receiving this sweet picture from a few of Arkansas' finest... love for the munchkins warms my heart!

Merry Christmas, Jack & Nora!!!

Laura~ thank you for spending an evening so close to the holiday to catch up!!!  

Jen and family~ thank you for never seizing to amaze me with you love for our littlest munchkins- we're so grateful!!

Since we travel back to Indiana for Christmas each year, we cleared it by Santa to make an early stop at the Lee household.  We wanted to be sure to enjoy some quiet Christmas time before loading up for Indy- fun times!

Pete and I poured a couple glasses of wine and exchanged a few gifts with each other- he may or may not have been SUPER excited about his nail gun- haha {basement renovation anyone?!?!}  I for one, was pretty excited about my 20 new pairs of warm socks, crazy warm boots, and an electric blanket- I think Arkansas rubbed off on me- struggling with the cold temps!!!

...and the next morning, Santa came!!  

Harper was so tickled that he remembered a couple gifts for her pets, Maggie loved her magna tiles, and Evelyn was a pro un-wrapper... especially when an iPad was inside.  I know- I know...she is one years old WITH an iPad.  But when the other two have one (Maggie is learning to communicate with hers;)), the girl was beginning to feel a bit left out- lol!

All in all... Christmas in Plymouth was so nice.  We enjoyed our cozy home and exploring a new city during a magical time of year!!

Merry Christmas, everyone!!!!  

We hope your holiday was full of smiles, love, and fun!!