Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #377 – Holiday Fun

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This week Ann-Christine is asking us to share some Holiday memories. We can choose any happy memories from any holidays we have enjoyed. The Christmas season is here and I will be sharing some of my fondest Christmas memories with you.

My favorite Christmas memories go way back to when our children and then our grandchildren were young. Those were magical times when they would get more and more excited the closer we got to Christmas. In the following gallery our grandson was 4 when we had a magical day with him at Busch Gardens in Tampa right before Christmas. I love this photo of him looking up at the giant Christmas tree. Later in December of the same year his family came to our house for Christmas. He and his little sister loved looking out our living room windows at Christmas Train lights and seeing our living room transformed into a snowy Christmas village.

Busch Gardens, Tampa, Florida

Most of the ornaments on our tree have special meaning. My favorite ones are the ones our children and grandchildren made. Below on the left is a reindeer made by one of our grandchildren. On the right the two paper star Santas were made by our children almost 50 years ago.

We have lived on the Georgia coast for many years. Many of the Christmas light displays have a beach theme with lighted palm trees and even mermaids.

One summer we were in North Pole, Alaska on the Fourth of July. We visited the Santa Claus house and although we didn’t celebrate Christmas with Santa we had fun watching the North Pole Independence Day Parade which of course featured Santa Claus!

It was my pleasure to be your host for last week’s challenge of Wings. I enjoyed every one of your creative posts. Thank you everyone who responded with natural wings of birds and insects from around the world. There were even a few airplanes, angel wings, dragons, and gargoyles.

Many thanks to Ann-Christine for her challenge Holiday Fun. I hope you will join us for this fun challenge.

Be sure to check back on Saturday, December 13 at noon eastern time for our last challenge of the year.

For information on how to join the Len-Artists challenge please click here.

Every Day is a Gift

38 thoughts on “Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #377 – Holiday Fun”

  1. I am with you on this, the best Christmas memories are from when our children and our grandchildren were young, children make the Christmas spirit to me. I do also like the shot of your grandson looking at the tree in awe it is a moment to remember, and you have captured it beautifully

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  2. Beth, your holiday gallery brings me memories of the light displays at Albuquerque’s River of Lights, and Phoenix’s Zoolights, both similar in outdoor holiday displays to your Georgia coast displays.
    I always enjoy holiday villages. A few years ago, we started a collection by buying one piece each year (on closeout after Christmas. We now have as many as my storage space allows. We’ve got almost as large a village as yours, and it’s fun to invite our grandson over each year to help set it up.

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    1. Thanks John! Glad my photos brought back memories for you. I started my village about 40 years ago. I kept adding to it each year and after a while it took up so much space and took so long to set up I finally stopped buying new pieces. When our grandkids got too bit to enjoy it I quit setting it up but I still have all the pieces.

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  4. I cannot agree more, Beth! Children. I used to love Christmas when the children were small, but lost it later…Now I have two little grandchildren, and suddenly Christmas Is coming alive here again. To see them shine, play and decorate, sing and dance! Joy to remember! You have captured it so well.

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    1. Ann-Christine, I really enjoyed this challenge. Looking at the photos from long ago brought back many happy memories. Sadly, we don’t have any small grandchildren any more. They have all grown up too fast!

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  6. Beth, I love your Christmas village. My MIL used to arrange a beautiful display with her collection. It is a lot of work, and with no little ones around to enjoy it, we don’t bother. I wish we could find a good home for her pieces, but it seems it’s not a big hobby for folks today. Handmade ornaments on the tree are such sweet memories.

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    1. Thanks Suzanne, I enjoyed the village for years but I stopped putting up the village when the grandkids got too old to enjoy it. It was too much work. I still have all the pieces. I would love to donate them somewhere but I haven’t had any luck finding anyone who wants them.

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    1. Thanks Tina. This post brought back many happy memories. I really miss having little ones at Christmas. I really enjoyed the Christmas village when the grandkids were still small but now it’s too much work.

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  9. What a heartwarming stroll through festive memories, Beth!
    Tiny hands crafting ornaments, snowy villages, and beachy lights—every detail sparkles with joy. Those snapshots of wonder capture the magic of holidays that linger in the heart long after the season ends.
    Toy train, my favourite.

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  10. What a heartwarming stroll through festive memories, Beth!
    Tiny hands crafting ornaments, snowy villages, and beachy lights—every detail sparkles with joy. Those snapshots of wonder capture the magic of holidays that linger in the heart long after the season ends.
    Toy train, my favourite.

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