"Saturday With The Kids....."

Late Saturday afternoon, Don and I drove down and met Patrick, Julie, and Abigail to watch Manistee's 25th Annual Victorian Sleighbell Parade.  It was a very cold day/evening, but thousands of people joined us along River Street, the main street of Manistee.

Patrick had Abigail in her old backpack so that she would be able to see everything "from up high", but she is almost too big for it and this may have been the last time she will be in it.

Julie did her part and dressed in the outerwear of a woman during the Victorian era.

We made plans with the kids to meet in front of Schyler Binkley's Daybreak Gallery and Studio (https://www.facebook.com/DaybreakGallery), the same place we sat for the July 4th Parade.  Thats Schyler and his dad, Bob, behind us in the window.

Don did his best to get photos for me but it was so dark and the photos subjects so far away that they didn't always turn out as good as he would have liked, but they still show how beautifully decorated the horses and carriages were that evening.

Yes, the old fashioned bicycles were out along with newer versions, too.  :)

The end of the parade was signaled by the huge Christmas tree drawn by a team of 4 horses.  It would be taken to the park at the end of the business district and plugged in, at which time Christmas carols would be sung and fireworks set off.

We wimped out and did not follow the tree to its final spot, but headed back to our cars and made plans to meet for dinner "outside" of town (due to the crowds).  We met at Rico's and had a very enjoyable time.

We said our goodbyes and headed home.  Don and I were pleasantly surprised when we got to Bear Lake and saw that the town had a huge Christmas light display set up in the seasonal campground on the shore of Bear Lake.  Each campsite had its own display that was sponsored by local businesses.  It was quite dazzling with its thousands upon thousands of lights.

It was a fulfilled time and we obviously made it home safely.  ;)