More Christmas fun!

Saturday Morning we went to Swanson’s nursery in Seattle to see Curly the Camel , his friend Moe the miniature donkey and some reindeer. Last year Payton got to feed Curly a marshmallow this year the kids didn’t get to find him and he had to eat bread. Payton loved watching Curly and Moe play , they were pretty funny chasing each other and giving each other little nips.

Moe getting Curly – they were so funny!

Later Payton watched the reindeer eat and talked to Santa. She was a little shy but it is amazing how much she has grown up since last year. She was so scared to talk to him last year and she talked to him by herself this year.




We had to get a family picture in the sleigh and Payton tried out the little red sled which was perfect for her. Then we headed inside to check out the train and decorations.

Watching the train

 


We had to go see the fish before we left  even Logan enjoyed the fish.  Then we headed to Starbucks for treats and a warm drink to end our morning of fun.

Payton and Grandma Verver looking at the fish

Christmas extravaganza–Downtown Seattle

This past Thursday we went downtown and made the rounds to our favorite holidays spots and added a new one. Our first stop was the Fairmont Olympic Hotel to see the Teddy Bear Suites. I love visiting this beautiful hotel every time I go I feel like I step back in time to 1924 when it was built. I always imagine what it would have been like back then and what beautiful parties they would have had there back in the day.

The Teddy bear suite is a fun place for kids to come check out some fun teddy bears. It is decorated by a designer and donations are given to Seattle Children’s Hospital. There are books to read while you are there too. Payton loves to give the Teddy Bears hugs and sit on the Giant Teddy bears lap. Logan was not as excited, maybe next year.













Our next stop was the Sheraton to see the Gingerbread houses. This was our first year going and it was a fun experience. I thought Payton would like it since she was older and she had made her own Gingerbread house earlier this month. The theme was train stations which was perfect for my Dad. The tree below has a train going around it , no it didn’t move but it was a cool tree. The train stations were real stations from all over the world from New York to New Zealand. The details and size was amazing! I can’t imagine how long it would take to make them but they are fun to look at and so creative.

Grand Central Station

Canadian station

London’s King Circle Station

Australian Station

New Zealand Station

North Pole station 

Happy girl she loved the gingerbread houses!

Our last stop was the Holiday Carousel which is located by Westlake shopping Center where the Holiday Tree is and the Huge Macy’s star. The wait was a little longer this year since we went on a day that a lot of Preschools decided to go too. Payton had fun and Logan just watched the lights and the horses go up and down.  I over that all of our stops were free ( all but the carousel) and that they money collected at each went to charity.





After a quick bite to eat and a stop at the Seahawks Pro Shop we headed home with a lot of great memories and two tired kids.

Santa hurry down the tree tonight!

Payton loves the song Santa Baby and she thinks it says and hurry down the tree tonight instead of"hurry down the chimney tonight" it makes me wonder if she thinks that is why we get a tree - it makes me smile to hear her sing songs. So Saturday Morning we got ready to take the kids to see Santa at University Village and then get our tree ( for Santa to climb down). We have done it almost every year since Kevin and I started dating. We didn’t do it the year Payton was born since we were snowed in , that year my dad stepped in a was our Santa.
We try to get there early so we don’t have to wait in the long lines. Kevin usually goes and get us Starbucks while we wait. This year there weren’t to many families in front of us so that was good. This cute little boy kept coming up to Payton and saying see I have super fast shoes on the would run off to show her how fast  he was, later he came over and asked her what her name was then he told us his name – all with some prompting from the parents. He had to show us all his super fast shoes, I think his name was Keikoa – not sure how to spell that. It was really cute. We also had a dog in line which was a good distraction for Payton she thought it was funny that a dog was going to see Santa. Not to much later we saw Santa walking down the street toward us and he waved and gave kids high fives. Logan was not a fan of Santa and cried the whole time.



After Santa and brief stop and Grandpa and Grandma Verver’s  we went to get our tree. We go to Hunter Farms tree lot to find our tree every year the same place Kevin’s family goes.We found a few trees we liked right away and let Payton decide which one we should take.While the gave it a fresh cut and got it ready for us to take home we visited the reindeer. Logan didn’t really like Juno the  reindeer either.

 Payton watching the reindeer eat.

 Logan checking out the reindeer.

Our Tree

Peppermint Fudge.

The other night we decided to make peppermint fudge. I had found a recipe on Martha Stewarts website and wanted to try it out. I always make cookies but I have made fudge before so it was a new adventure for us. It was really easy and fun to make.
Here is what you need:

Nonstick spray, for baking pan

• 2 1/4 cups (16 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup round peppermint candies, plus 18 for garnish
• 3/4 cup heavy cream
• 3 1/2 cups mini marshmallows
• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 1/4 cups sugar
• 1 teaspoon coarse salt

First  get a 9 inch square baking pan and spray with nonstick spray and line with parchment paper. Next you put Marshmallows , Heavy Cream, Crushed up peppermint candies, butter and salt in a medium sauce pan. Before you put it on the heat get a bowl and add chocolate chips.

Whisk until smooth.

Then Pour mixture through a strainer into bowl with chocolate; let stand 1 minute, then stir until smooth.


Pour into 9 inch baking pan and chill for 3 hours. Cut into squares and serve. You can ad half a peppermint candy to the top, it you want.