Kicking Off the Holidays

I love Spring, I love Summer...heck, I even love Fall.  Basically, I have an appreciation for every season...except winter!  BUT my all-time favorite time of the year is the month or so between Thanksgiving and Christmas.  There is so much excitement in the air...and love...and reasons to get together with friends and family...and fun things to do with the kids, and it's just a really special time that makes your heart warm.
Honestly, I've always loved this time of year, but I must admit my fondness for it got escalated to near-obsessive levels once my boys came along.  If there's a holiday activity for us to do, chances are I'm going to try my darndest to make it happen!
Case in point: the Virgina Beach Town Center Illumination Parade.  It was this past Saturday, and of course, we bundled up (luckily the temperatures were just beginning to fall and hadn't plummeted like they did the next morning, or I may not have been able to handle it!) and headed out...with our neighbors and their adorable little girl...to watch it, wave to Santa, and gather some candy canes (the highlight of any parade to Colton is getting candy).

In retrospect, Colton was clearly not feeling well that night (he was diagnosed with a very "angry" ear infection the next morning), but we barely realized it then.  If there's one thing for certain it's that my love for the holidays and the festivities that surround them has been passed down to my oldest (and probably to Levi though he can't quite verbalize it in the same way).  He is very aware of Santa, the reindeer, the songs, and all other things Christmas this year, and I, for one, can't wait to experience the magic of the season with my boys!