The Christmas Spirit

Do you have the Christmas spirit?

After last week, Greg and I can say that indeed we do have the spirit of Christmas!

In historic Franklin, Tennessee, we attended "Dickens of a Christmas" which is a festival where Christmas comes alive around the time of author Charles Dickens.

Costumed characters abounded on the streets of Franklin-

A little girl is talking to Scrooge, the Dickens character who finally gets the Christmas spirit in "A Christmas Carol."

Another character looked like a statue!

Some of the vendors even got into the act...

as did some of the visiting dogs-

There was Christmas music-

of different types-

There was plenty of yummy food to try...

and coffee to help keep warm on a cold day,

although some found other ways to stay warm-

After the festival, it was on to Nashville, to visit the Hermitage Hotel which is in a word-

elegant, especially at Christmas!

Across the street is the Tennessee Performing Arts Center which presented-

the Nashville Ballet's "Nashville's Nutcracker,"

in which we are proud to say that our little niece performed, and did a great job!

Afterwards, we visited with family at their house which was beautifully decorated for Christmas.

Hear ye! Hear ye! Have a very merry Christmas, and a happy New Year!

If you like the paranormal, check out my other blog, "Spirit Photographs."
www.spiritphotographs.blogspot.com

Also, I have a book which might make a nice Christmas gift for someone that enjoys the paranormal,, "Photographic Encounters of the Spirit Kind" which is available now, either in paperback or as a kindle download.
http://amzn.to/2usXWIO

Positive thought: Always remember the spirit of Christmas which is love.

Thanks for visiting! Until Sunday, January 7, 2018, Becky

A Pre-Christmas Celebration

Welcome!

Just yesterday, Greg and I met some of our family in Nashville for a wonderful pre-Christmas celebration.  We had lunch at the four-star Capitol Grille at The Hermitage Hotel in downtown Nashville, Tennessee.

Downtown Nashville

This exquisite hotel was all dressed up in its Christmas finery.  It was, in fact, awe-inspiring.  It made me want to run home and decorate, but it would be hard to come up to the splendor of this place.

After dining on a delicious lunch and soaking up the opulent atmosphere of the hotel, we went on to another superlative experience, the annual Nashville Ballet's performance of "Nashville's Nutcracker" to see our little niece who was talented enough to be one of the dancers with this stellar dance company.  The lovely, familiar "Nutcracker" music was provided by no less than the Nashville Symphony.

The Nutcracker

Our Little Niece, After Her Performance with the Nashville Ballet

I'm about to run out of superlatives to describe this fantastic day.

I guess I'll just end this post with the words of someone else:

"Be merry all, be merry all,
With holly dress the festive hall,
Prepare the song, the feast, the ball,
To welcome merry Christmas."
-William Robert Spencer

Here are our photographs on iStock:
http://www.istockphoto.com/portfolio/rebecca-arnott#10f6e9a3

Positive thought:  Happy pre-Christmas preparations and celebrations!
Thanks for visiting!  Until next Sunday, Becky