The season of lights

I hope you are all enjoying this holiday season.  We are doing our best to make the most of every day.  Over the last few years, I've found several fun holiday events within an hour of Lansing that we enjoyed attending.  This year, I decided to stay a little closer to home and get out throughout the Greater Lansing area to enjoy some small town holiday spirit as many nights as we can.  I have to get the dogs out for a walk every day anyway, so we might as well add a little Christmas spirit to those walks.

I've also decided that, if the girls are okay with it, some days are best spent just snuggling by the Christmas tree, especially when it's cold and I'm tired after a long day of work.  Both Peaches and Mina have been happy to oblige most days that I've needed this.

Other days, when the weather cooperates, and I can make it work, I like to get the girls out into the woods for a little adventure.  With the sunsetting just after 5pm, I love the days when we can get out for a lunchtime adventure.  Last week, Fenner Nature Center was the perfect spot to do just that.  The girls were thrilled to be able to get in some good sniffs.   I was surprised to find some of the maple trees already tapped, this usually doesn't happen at Fenner until February.  Now I'm ready for Spring!

On Wednesday, the girls and I made a lunchtime drive to Soldan's to make a donation to Operation Santa Paws.  This is a pet food/supply drive which Ingham County Animal Control holds every year to help local families in need.  This helps keep pets in homes while families are going through tough times, and I'm always happy to support the effort.  We brought a few things from home-extra treats, tennis balls, and toys-and then made a quick trip into Soldan's to buy a few more items.  It always feels great to give to those who need it most, especially if it means a pet stays with it's family instead of ending up in the shelter.  

After work on Wednesday, I had a nice walk with the Dog Walking Club.  Melba is one of the dogs we walked.  She is so darn sweet.

After Dog walking club, I still had to get the girls out for a walk, so we drove out to Eaton Rapids for a walk around town.  It's always pretty festive for the holidays.

I especially like the island park all decorated for the holidays. It's hard to get pictures at night, but of course I still forced the girls to pose for a few. 

We had a really nice walk around town before heading home.  This little adventure got us home a little later than I'd normally like on a week night, but I was glad we went. 

Thursday was a crazy day at work so I decided that a special after work adventure was in order.  Every year we make a trip to Kalamazoo, Battle Creek. and Marshall to take in the holiday light displays, and I decided Thursday would be a great day for the trip, so I loaded up the car to make the drive to Battle Creek.

We arrived in Battle Creek, parked in Friendship Park, and started our walk along the North Country Trail.  Every year along the trail through Battle Creek there are some light displays, including the 12 Days of Christmas.

We were able to get in about 2 1/2 miles on the trail and take in some of the sights along the way.  It was a beautiful night to be out on the trail.

We then walked down the block to Mill Race Park to take in the holiday display there.  

The light display in Mill Race Park is always one of my favorites. 

I love the lights dancing to the music.  It's so festive.

We had such a nice time that we spent more time than I had planned in Battle Creek, so we skipped our visit to Kalamazoo, and instead, headed to Marshall for a trip through the Merry Mile at the Calhoun County Fairgrounds.

I've been visiting this light display for several years, and it's always a nice drive and display.

I think the corn stalks are one of my favorite parts of this display every year.  The girls also love this drive through because they can stick their heads out the windows and take in all of the smells and sights while we slowly meander our way through the maze of lights.  

After we finished the drive through the Merry Mile, we parked, I bought a hot chocolate from the vendor on site, and then we walked the block down to the North Country trail for another quick walk.

This part of the trail goes through the sidewalks in town, and I enjoyed seeing the houses decorated for the season.

After just under a mile on the trail, we got back in the car to head home, but not before we took a drive by the Holiday house.  I was glad to see it all dressed up for the season.  It was the perfect way to end our light-filled evening.

On Friday, I took the afternoon off from work.  The weatherman promised temperatures in the 50s, and I couldn't resist taking the opportunity to get out with the girls for the afternoon.

I took this day as an opportunity to head North to Ithaca to do some geocaching along the Mid-Michigan Community Pathway.  This trail is paved and runs parallel to US 127, so it isn't really scenic, but it is a nice trail and there were lots of geocaches along the way.

We walked and geocached for about 2 3/4 miles and then turned around to head South back to the car.  We did a little walk toward town and ended our walk back at the car with a total of 6 miles.  It had been a great day of geocaching.

We left the Ithaca area around sunset and took a slow drive through the country all the way home, hitting some small towns and seeing some beautiful homes decorated for the season.  It was the perfect end to our day.

Saturday morning was another mild 50 degree day.  The girls and I started our morning at the Soldan's Dog Park for a good run and some sniffing in the woods.  We had the best time exploring and Mina did a lot of work on recall.  It so much fun!

Afterward, I headed out to the shelter to walk my buddy Besito.  He is such a nice dog, and I had to take advantage of the mild weather.  There isn't a better way to do that in my world than walking a shelter dog.

After my 40 minute walk with Besito, it started to rain, but since I still had a little time, I decided to get DJ Khaled out for some one on one time with me.  We ended up taking a short walk in the rain and then spent some time inside doing some training.  Just look at that adorable face.

I also took Melba out for a little walk and one on one time.  She is the sweetest girl and I could tell she really needed some time out of her kennel.  

As I was putting Melba away and preparing to leave the shelter, I looked over and saw Kringla excitedly waiting at the front of her kennel for her turn.  She has been a nervous girl at the shelter, so seeing her so excited was wonderful and I couldn't resist getting her out for a potty walk.  Since she was recently spayed, she is on limited activity, but I think the 15 minutes I spent with her outside of the shelter in the grass was the best time she'd had in awhile.  

I left the shelter feeling fulfilled and happy that I had made the time for these precious pups.  I really do love my time volunteering there.

Saturday night, the girls and I headed to Old Town for the Krampusnacht.  I wanted to check out the activities, and the weather was perfect to get out for some fun.  The crowds at this event were crazy, and honestly, I didn't expect it to be as popular as it was.  I almost stayed in the car to head home, but decided we'd get out and see how things went.  I am so proud of my girls because they were so well-behaved and took the crowds in stride.  I know this situation could have been really stressful for them, and I never want to put them into a bad situation, but they really did great.  I got so many compliments on how well-behaved they were, I couldn't have been any more proud of them.  

On the way home from Old Town, we picked up a pizza and took our annual drive around town looking at Christmas lights.  We ended the night with a drive through Frances Park.  It had been an excellent day. 

After our busy Friday and Saturday, we started Sunday slowly.  It was a wonderful quiet morning at home enjoying the Christmas tree and snuggling with Mina.   I also did some fun meal prep for the rest of the week.  While I was enjoying the day and I thought maybe we'd just stay home, I did have a few errands to run, so mid-afternoon I got ready and left home to get some things done and have a little fun with the girls.

After a couple of quick stops, I headed to the Meridian Historical Village for their Christmas in the Village event.  This was a great way to get the girls out for a short walk and enjoy some holiday spirit.

After a walk around the village, I left them in the car for a short time so that I could go into the buildings and check out some of the activities, and then I got them out again for another short walk around the property and to watch as Santa led the Christmas tree lighting and a couple of Christmas carols.

I was glad we had taken this short adventure and gotten outside, but I was happy to head home too.  We spent the rest of our evening at home relaxing and enjoying our Christmas tree.  It was a wonderful end to our weekend.

I have really been enjoying these small local events and walks around some of the small towns in the area, and I plan to continue to make the most of these kinds of experiences throughout the holiday season.  I look forward to sharing more holiday fun with you.  

Christmas is quickly approaching.  I hope you are making the most of this holiday season.  

Small Town Holidays

Our week started off on a really positive note with the adoption of our foster, Riff.  I knew he wouldn't be here long since he was such a good boy and the shelter is participating in the Bissell Empty the Shelter event.  

After work I took the girls to the dog park.  I knew that they'd need a little extra excercise  after the quiet Sunday we had had.

It was pretty quiet because of the snow and colder temperatures, but that did not slow down these two.  They had a great time zooming around and we were the last to leave. 

On the drive home we made a stop at Tractor Supply.  I love this Gingerbread chicken coop.

Tuesday was another cold snowy day.  While I was busy working, Peaches decided to take a nap in Mina's crate.  

Mina turned 19 months old on Tuesday and , while we didn't do anything exciting, we did make sure to spend some time snuggling. 

On Wednesday,  I went to the shelter after work to walk a shelter dog.  There was only one dog, Pinwheel, who hadn't recently had surgery and could join me for a walk. She and I had a nice walk together 

The girls had ridden to Mason with me, so after I finished my walk with Pinwheel, I got them out for a walk too. We took a short walk by the shelter before I drove to downtown Mason for a walk around the Courthouse Square. 

Downtown was glowing with Christmas window displays and holiday decorations. We had a nice walk and the girls even sat nicely for a picture in front of the giant Santa.

Before leaving Mason, I stopped to get us all ice cream at the Daily Scoop.  It had been a nice little week night adventure. 

Thursday was a beautiful sunny day.  When the girls weren't outside, Mina made the most of napping in the sun much of the afternoon.  

Because the weather was so nice, I knew we had to make a trip to the dog park for it's final day before closing for the year.  Many of Peaches' and Mina's friends were there and they had a wonderful time.

After leaving the dog park, we drove to downtown Dewitt to take a walk.  I found this cute gazebo in a little park in town.  The town was pretty festive with most store fronts decorated for the holidays. 

After our walk, I did a little holiday shopping at a cute little shop before heading home.

Friday was another rainy day.  It feels like most of the week it has either been snowing or raining, but that doesn't stop us from getting out still.

With a drizzly rain falling, we made the drive to downtown Lansing after work on Friday to check out the Kringle Market at Reutter Park.  There were a small group.of people using the ice skating rink, but it was pretty quiet.  

The girls enjoyed our walk around the park and got some love from some of the people we met along the way.

After making the drive home, we walked down to the Holiday in the Square event being held near home.  This was a new community event in the area.  

There was Santa, a S'mores station, hot chocolate, and the kids from a local dance schools performed.  Peaches and Mina loved the event and got to meet some of our first responders.  It was a nice little event. 

Saturday morning I went to the shelter to walk Besito.  He is such a sweet boy and we had a great walk.

Just look at this adorable face!

We had a busy Saturday full of fun.  Our first stop was the Holt Farmer's Market.   I did a little shopping and then the girls got to visit with their friend from Fur Real Dog Snacks.

Then I made a stop at the Winter Artisan Farmer's Market.  It was great to see some of my favorite vendors from the South Lansing Farmer's Market and to pick up some goodies. 

The girls and I got out for a nice walk near Benjamin Davis Park before heading home.

Later in the day, we ran a few errands, including a stop in REO Town for the Holiday Book Hop.  We went to pick up a couple of children's books to donate to the book drive being held at Saturday's Kringle Market and found some great deals.

The final event of the day was a trip to the Wonderland of Lights at Potter Park Zoo.  

It was their annual Toys for Tots night and I attend every year.  I always donate a toy to Toys for Tots, so getting free admission to the Zoo event is just a bonus.

I got there early before the crowds. 

This has been a favorite event of mine for years and I enjoyed the peaceful walk through the Zoo.

I ended my walk with a stop for S'mores over a campfire. 

Before heading home for the night, I got the girls out for one last walk along the River Trail through the park.

Sunday was another rainy day.  I had hoped to be able to get the girls out for a walk before leaving home for a family Christmas party, but they had no interest in spending any time outside.

We did make a quick stop at Soldan's for our annual Santa photo.  We love the Santa at Soldan's because he bred and raised GSPs for years and understands my crazy girls.  I can't wait to see this year's picture.

We then made the rainy drive to Brady Township for the party.  It was nice seeing some extended family members and catching up with them.

After the party we made a slow drive home in the rain, picking up a few geocaches along the way.  We made a quick stop in St. John's since the rain had slowed to a drizzle and I wanted to get the girls out for a walk.

We enjoyed the festive downtown area with Christmas music playing in the streets and we were able to get in just under a mile walk before the rain began to pick up again. 

With rain falling, we made the rest of the drive home and where we've had a peaceful night at home enjoying our own Christmas tree.