Sherman PRIDE

Christingle

Christmas in England comes with a few new traditions and a few new words. Today we went to a Christingle service. I had never heard of a Christingle. The orange represents the world. The red ribbon represents Gods love. The 4 sticks with treats represent the 4 seasons and the fruits on the spirit. The candle represents the light of the world.

The service involves some scripture readings, a talk, offering for the needy children, and singing. I don't know why but the singing in a British accent just sounds prettier! The candle is lit at the end of the service, but as you can tell from the pics Abigail and Roslyn's oranges did not make it through the service!

Midnight service tonight which starts at 11:00. And tomorrow we get the listen to the Queen's speech before opening presents!

Merry Christmas
Melinda

Christingle

Christmas in England comes with a few new traditions and a few new words. Today we went to a Christingle service. I had never heard of a Christingle. The orange represents the world. The red ribbon represents Gods love. The 4 sticks with treats represent the 4 seasons and the fruits on the spirit. The candle represents the light of the world.

The service involves some scripture readings, a talk, offering for the needy children, and singing. I don't know why but the singing in a British accent just sounds prettier! The candle is lit at the end of the service, but as you can tell from the pics Abigail and Roslyn's oranges did not make it through the service!

Midnight service tonight which starts at 11:00. And tomorrow we get the listen to the Queen's speech before opening presents!

Merry Christmas
Melinda

Dollywood Lights

One of my favorite holiday traditions is to go to Dollywood during the Christmas season.  We always have our picture made into an ornament for our tree; a tradition we started when Abigail was born. If you like Christmas lights Dollywood is a dream. I am always amazed at the number of lights and how fast they are put up. 4 million lights in 6 days. I will let the pictures speak for themselves. I highly recommend going, just remember to bundle up!

 

 

The happiest place on earth!

You guessed it....Disney world.

We came to FL to visit my brother who lives in Melbourne. I have always wanted to take Phil and the girls to Disney. I was hesitant to spend the money, but Roslyn is only 2 so we don't have to buy a ticket for her yet.

There is so much to write about the experience. I could tell you all the happy moments. I could tell you about the weather (it was 90 something degrees and miserably hot), I could tell you about the grumpy moments. Instead I want to share the ironic moments that make me laugh.

I was standing in line for it's a small world and I noticed the man in front of me asking his daughter to "walk" or "come on" I did not recognize the language, but it made me laugh on the inside. For supposedly the happiest place on earth there are sure a lot of unhappy moments! How many times do small children get fussed at for not waking, climbing on a rail, or touching something they were not supposed to.

We waited in line for the girls to see Belle. When it was our turn I handed Belle the autograph books and Roslyn became very shy and would not look at the camera. Then she had a melt down crying fit because Belle wrote in her book! We had to rip the page out. However, and hour later it was ok the Snow White signed her book. (Who understands kids)?

The kids of the family in front of us in line while we were waiting for Belle were fighting over which stroller they were each going to ride in and the older brother was sitting on top of his sister. I heard another mother tell her kids everyone was going in time out when they got back to the hotel.

I think this is why Disney changed the slogan from the happiest place on earth to where dreams come true!

I did have a great moment at the end of the day. As we were waiting to see the fireworks over the castle I got Abigail a cone and she told me it was the best day ever!

I think attitude is very important in life. And any time I right a blog post I always want it to reflect my attitude and outlook on life. My advice for any parent going to Disney is take an extra cup of patience with you. Worrying over crowds and wait times, kids hanging on the chains while in line, or touching everything breakable in a shop is not worth the stress. Take a deep breath, relax, and enjoy the ride!