Time stood still

I am loving this time of season because I get to play with my toys. Most of you have MP3 players, Nooks, Blackberries, IPADS, I Phones and other gizmos that baffle me. Me, I am simple.  Easy to please, easy to entertain. This time of the year means I open all the boxes that hold my village people. Ya, not the ones that sing YMCA, but my Christmas Village.  I step back in time and play Christmas music, sing along, drink hot coffee and attempt to burn another batch of cookies.

This is one of my new little pieces I just added this year. Michael's craft store already put their Christmas stuff all on sale... 50% off because they want to get it out and don't want it hanging around until St. Patty's day. Fine with me, but my bank account wasn't so happy.

Do you drop money in the Red Kettle when you come out of the store? I try to remember to keep some change in my pocket and let the kids make donations. The Salvation Army is a great organization to support.

And this one, hot fresh gingerbread men. Yum.  Who doesn't love gingerbread men?

Here is the fire station, and the firemen are hanging up a sign that tells about their upcoming pancake breakfast. The people and village are set back in time. Its when men wore hats and ladies did too.  Why don't we wear hats anymore. You only see baseball caps anymore, even on women. Why don't we have really cool looking street lamps instead of the big ugly things we have now?

This is my church and the railroad with the train coming down the tracks. 

It actually kinda looks like the church I attend... Kinda. I have a railroad nearby my house and I love to hear the train whistle blow. Do you like the sound of trains?

Another new addition this year is Gary's Gas and Service station. I don't know who Gary is, but he has the coolest shop in my village. Remember when you drove up to the gas station and they came out and pumped gas in your car for you? Then they would check your fluids under the hood and wash your front window while the pump did its thing. Then someone got a good idea to charge more money for that service, now its only a memory. By the time I started driving, I always had to pump my own gas.

And what city would be complete without Cracker Barrel? Ok do you like to eat and then shop, or shop first and then go sit down? The shopping keeps your mind off how long you have been waiting for a table.

Every year happy hubby sets up the train and then I set up the village under the tree around the track. But this year we have a few too many. I need to stop buying them. But really how can you not love them. Looking at them makes you think of simple easy times that didn't have malls, Internet and global warming.

This is also the last real tree. We have decided to go fake. When I was small I could smell the pine in the tree when I came home from school. I can't smell pine tree anymore. They have altered the genetic code of the tree to get a bigger tree faster and in doing this they have killed off the pine tree scent. Well that is my story and I am sticking to it. It makes it easier to accept the fake tree.

This is Girl Schmuck signing off