Holiday Magic

There are many things that I enjoy more as a parent, especially when it comes to Christmas. Listening to my daughter sing Christmas carols and watching Parker stare in awe at every light display remind me that Christmas is truly a magical time for children.  We did 'Elf on the Shelf' this year and every morning Ainsley races downstairs to find where 'Sarah the Elf' has decided to perch herself after an overnight visit to Santa.They never get tired of reading The Night Before Christmas every night for the month of December. 

Last week Ainsley's class had a Christmas party. They decorated cookies, played Christmas tree bingo, made reindeer food, and had a coloring book exchange. I know in a few years she won't get excited about making gingerbread houses with her best friend Owen, so I'm enjoying these small magical moments as much as I can. 


We made a semi-conscious decision not to visit Santa this year. It's not that we avoided it, but after last year's ridiculously long wait and anti-climactic chat with the bearded man, we decided that we wouldn't make any huge efforts this year. Parker is still in his scared-of-any-costumed-person phase, so we knew he wouldn't be interested. Santa and Mrs. Clause visited Ainsley's class at school so we figured that was good enough.  Then another magical moment presented itself!

Last night we had planned to take my parents to Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens' GardenFest of Lights, which we visit every year. It had been raining all day but was slowly moving out. We had free tickets, and it was the last night they were open before Christmas. Normally the place is packed and there are lots of lines and crowds. This year we got lucky as no one else wanted to go out in the rain. The kids got to enjoy the indoor train displays for a good 20 minutes and almost had the place to themselves - plenty of time to thoroughly investigate every train, building, and decoration. The rain had mostly stopped so we enjoyed the outdoor light displays. As we were walking into the conservatory for another train display we saw a man dressed in red. YES! Santa was at the Garden! There were no other kids around so Ainsley had a nice little conversation with Santa, sat on his lap for a picture, and got a candy cane. Parker hid behind Nana's legs, as expected. No long lines. No meltdowns. No attempts at perfectly posed pictures. Just a nice, casual, magical moment with the big guy.



Tonight after church we'll sprinkle the reindeer food on the lawn, put out cookies and milk for Santa, and read The Night Before Christmas one last time. As we spend time together as a family on Christmas Eve, let us all remember the real reason that we are celebrating these magical moments with our children. It is all because of the birth of another very special child. Tomorrow will surely be another magical day in the Bowlin home and in other homes around the world. Merry Christmas!

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