Sights and Sounds

San Marcos has a sweet little Christmas tradition that Tom and I have enjoyed each year since we were dating. It's called Sights and Sounds of Christmas and it's pretty much your typical small town Christmas festival. One of the endearing main attractions, for me anyway, is a whole Bethlehem set up, with live nativity, camels and donkeys, candlemaking, breadmaking, and angels that stand sentinal on either side of the "city" entrance. As all good things do, Sights and Sounds has grown through the years to include carnival rides and lots of food and craft booths - more than I think is necessary. But, it still remains one of our favorite events to fit in each December. Petting the donkeys

Valie at the water well

At the Nativity
Cambria by the fire

Making candles

On the carousel

Non-Christmas Pictures

With the babies, I've always tried to do pictures every 3 months until they are 1 year and since Cambria was at the 6 month mark - it was time. So, I called Penney's and scheduled our appointment for the earliest time possible for last Saturday. Anyone that has taken young children to get pictures done knows - go during the week and go early. Unfortunately, now that Carson's in school and I'm working M-F I knew my first rule would have to be broken. I scheduled it for a Saturday but at least I was able to get 1030, thinking that they opened at 10am. 10:30 would be only the 2nd appt of the day so they shouldn't be too far behind, right?

After the appt was made, I then (agonized) umm, contemplated for a week over what they could wear that wouldn't require me spending lots of money on new clothes (darn it)!

And the day arrives. We pack everyone up in the car with extra brush, spray bottle, hair spray, hair bows and clips, bib for the baby, etc (you all know) and we headed to the mall. Because we are always on the verge of being late, if not already way past late, a jumble of May kids plus 2 parents bustle through the mall and are then stopped short by (literally) a crowd of people standing OUTSIDE of the studio waiting area at Penney's. Lots of kids and less parents all standing around in their Christmas finest, waiting.... I think we were the only crazies who were there to NOT get Christmas pictures. Why I didn't remember never to go get pictures on a Saturday close to Christmas - I don't know. And as it turns out they open at 9am during the holiday season, not 10 as I originally thought. So, what are we to do, but join the waiting. And we did. Our appointment was at 10:30, I believe we were taking pictures at 11:30 and finally out the door at 12:15. And not a moment too soon since all of our kiddos were, of course, dying of starvation! Oh well, it is almost a humorous memory by now, made somewhat better by the CUTE kids in (the non Christmas) pictures I now have. :)

And if that wasn't enough cute for ya, feel free to login to our Smiles by Wire at https://www.smilesbywire.com/home.asp?AC=LTPP0822102971JCP and just type in Kim May next to customer name. Enjoy!