~A Tiny Christmas Village~

This little elf has been chin deep in fabric, patterns and projects for the last week or so trying to get everything made for her little grandbabies!!  I feel like I've been glued to my chair as I cut fabric and sew away, but the things I've been making are so doggone cute so it's worth it in the long run.  Later on, I'll show you what I've made. I am taking a breather here as I wanted to share with you some of the Christmas decorating that takes place in my house.  Besides, I haven't posted in a while and I didn't want you to think I had dropped off the end of the earth!

Years ago, I wanted a little Christmas village to display and started buying the little buildings one by one.  All but one comes from Wal-Mart.  I use a card table for my display and I so enjoy setting it up.  It resides in a corner of my living room and, so far, no one has caused any kind of mishap until recently.

Join me as we go on a tour of the Christmas village.  This is the school house.  The bell steeple got knocked off in a bad storm during the summer.  The plan is to replace it come summer.  (If you look real close in the first picture, you can see that it is missing. I accidentally clipped the bell steeple and knocked that baby right off!!  I think I can glue it back on...at least I hope I can. :/ )   )

 You can see that the school is also a boarding school.  Years ago, two children died in a snowstorm on their way home from school.  So when the new school was built, a second story was added to house children who live far out of town.  They are allowed to board in the school during the winter months.

A tire swing hangs from one of the trees that shades the side of the school building.  There's also a stone walkway.  This is a fun place for the children to play.  Around the side of the building, you can see a bicycle leaning against the building.  It belongs to the school teacher.

Next door to the school is this house.  Mrs. Kellison lives here.  She has the steps and one corner of the porch decorated with poinsettias.  Oops, she left her watering can on the porch!  Look in the bottom corner of the house and you can see that the basement lights were left on.  She's awfully forgetful.  She must be busy with all her Christmas projects, too.

The children so enjoy decorating for Christmas that they have decided to start decorating the tree out in front of this house.  Junior is busy bringing in some more firewood before it gets too dark.

 Look inside and you can see the lady of house talking to her husband who is getting a hug from their daughter.  Looks like he just got home from work as he still has his winter coat on.  It may be hard to see in the window, but it looks toasty and warm with the fire blazing in the fireplace.  Look closer and you might be able to see the candelabra and clock on the mantel.  There's also a teddy bear on the far end.

The bed and breakfast sits on a hill just on the edge of town.  (Our home was a bed and breakfast for several years and I just had to add this to my collection.  It came from Bell''s).  Don't you think it looks quite festive with all the garland and red bows?

We got here in time to see the Christmas carolers.  I think these are people from church.  In case you were wondering, there is no church building in town yet so services are held in the school.  Town members are hoping to have enough money to start building next spring.

Some of the carolers have been invited inside for hot chocolate and cookies.  They take turns so that the singing continues.  They do this so that they don't linger too long at any one house and get through town before it get's too late.

Farther out of town is Layne's Farm, which is the largest farm in the district. Mr. Layne loves the beautiful barn that houses his beloved horses and even has it decorated for the holidays.

He had errands to run in town today and chose to ride one of his prize horses.  He is currying him down before putting him in the barn for the night.  Isn't that one horse, looking out the window, a beauty?  Take a deep breath...can you smell the hay?  I love the smell of hay.  It reminds me of the days we used to romp in my grandmother's hay barn.

On the far side of town is the gristmill.  It sits near the creek where water is needed to power the water wheel.  The owner was so glad to have his mill close to town.  If you look in the far corner of the picture, you can see the covered bridge that takes you on the main road leading out of town.

You can see the mill owner carrying in some wheat stalks that got spilled on the ground.  The children have been out sledding on the big hill behind the dairy barn.  They leave their sleds alongside the fence so they don't have to haul them back and forth from home.

This is the Cross Creek Farm.  Mr. Cross was one of the first to settle in this area.  The creek was first named as Cross Creek and then when the town began to grow, it was also named Cross Creek.  Mr. Cross is now gone but his sons still run the large dairy.

They are working late this evening as the lights are still on in the barn.  One of the calves must have gotten loose from his pen.  He seems to be awfully curious of the strange looking contraption coming by.

Far behind the school is Een's Farm.  Mr. Een is quite proud of his farm where he grows wheat and corn.  In fact, he is so proud that he built a very fancy barn to show off his wealth.  (I forgot to take pictures around the sides of the barn with the fancy entryways.)  Mr. Een spends alot of time in his barn, so he put in a wood burning stove and has a stone chimney!  The townfolk are praying that he doesn't burn the town down.

I hope you have enjoyed the tour of the little village of Cross Creek.  It's such a quaint little place.  The folks are quite friendly here.

Every year I put up my Christmas village and I never tire of watching the grandchildren as they get up close to look at all the details.  They are in such awe, I wonder what goes through their minds.  They know the strict rules of "look but don't touch", which they abide by very well.  I don't know who gets more joy out of the Christmas village...me or them!

I hope your day is full of Christmas joy ~