Christmas Festivities

A few things we've learned this December...Roanoke goes all out for Christmas lights, they have amazing festivals all month long in all weather, I definitely needed my parka here and sometimes 2 pairs of pants, I am still loving my hiking boots, and I hate driving on winding 2 lane Appalachian mountain roads. I'm used to the grid like roads of the southwest and the midwest. I continuosly miss my turn if the boys ask me a question while I am driving...with my navigation on. If you know me, you know I am terrible at navigating. M will often tell me that I missed my turn...my 5yo is better at remembering where to go than I am. Anyway, back to the Christmas festivals. During the days we spend time with friends, live at the YMCA, and get outside when the weather allows. At night, we look at Christmas lights and do all the things. Here's the highlight reel! 




Vinton Parade:

This was a major fail on our part. Apologizing now for the bit of complaining you're about to read through. Everything else we've done has been great, so skip ahead if you need some positivity. We parked in the wrong spot, the weather was too cold for the kids, and we got trapped in parade traffic. We visited the library first for crafts, but arrived too early and M ended up playing a computer game while we waited while EZ and I wrangled X in the library. The library was a great place to kill time, but the boys were antsy! We met our lovely friends here and had good conversations while the parade paraded by. M was hoping for a giant candy cane. We're big on limiting sugar and this was to be his only one, but no one was handing them out. This was the longest parade I have ever been to...maybe because we were trapped in the parking lot and traffic until 9PM. The parade started at 6PM just for some context...lesson learned universe, lesson learned.


Fashions for Evergreens - Hotel Roanoke

This was a major win after the last activity. We headed to Hotel Roanoke (a beautiful historical hotel that has been rebuilt and added on to and is fully functioning) to tour the Christmas trees. I was excited for an excuse to roam around the hotel and the boys loved seeing the various trees. I would highly recommend this to anyone local! We have a similar event in DSM, but this one here is free to view with paid voting to raise money for local programs. M lost a tooth earlier that day, so we went for ice cream at Blue Cow, our local favorite, and had dark chocolate peppermint ice cream after viewing the trees!





 
 
Christmas Lights:
We have some great lights in the area around our rental house and the whole city really does an excellent job. We've driven through them all over town and went on a night walk with friends through a Grandin neighborhood. Roanoke puts DSM to shame in the home Christmas light department. Our favorite house is the first pictures with the Roanoke star. It also reminds of our old home that we sold before we started this grand adventure.









Dickens of a Christmas - Downtown Roanoke

We had lovely friends from Knoxville come stay with us for the weekend and we did our best to entertain them in the dreary weather while EZ worked all weekend. We went to the Dickens of a Christmas parade in downtown Roanoke. I'd give this one a much better rating. The weather was better for one. Parking was a challenge, but doable. Shout out to our designated driver for the weekend. He was the real star of the show. They also had inflatables, vendors, crafts, and plenty of shopping. We may return here the next weekend without the boys to get the full experience. The boys are headed to the Y for kids night out. There's no parade, but the festival is still going on for one last Friday! We started the elf on the shelf hunt that goes through all of the downtown shops. I'm not sure the boys will have time to finish, but we had fun looking for the elves! We also had the best kettle corn, I've ever tasted and some sweet treats. M finally got the candy cane he's been dreaming of and X decided candy canes are too spicy and he is not a fan.

Live Nativity - Shenandoah Baptist

This was the best event we attended. Volunteers guided us to easy parking, you registered at the entrance and were placed in a walking group, then we sipped free hot chocolate, roasted marshmallows, sat by the fire and visited the petting zoo. There was a choir singing and Christmas lights to enjoy too! Then, when our group was called, we followed an in character tour guide throughout the story of the Nativity. We saw an angel visit Mary, then Joseph. X was scared by Herod's frustration at being thwarted from finding baby Jesus and had a hard time staying quiet in the audience after that. The amount of planning and practicing these volunteers put into spreading the true meaning of Christmas was such an inspiration. M loved the experience. He is really getting into watching actors perform on stage. I wasn't sure he would enjoy it, but we all loved it. At the end, we grabbed a goody bag with the spiciest candy canes of all time and a book with the story of the wise men that we have read at least 10 times since we visited.












And we’re off!! To Clearwater, FL! Sunshine here we come…After a frigid Christmas full of family joy at the cuzzies farm in Iowa!!!





Location: Roanoke, VA, USA

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