Some very fine gentlemen have asked me to sing in the Lincoln Adventist Mens Chorus. They must have figured that if I could stand up, I could sing. When it’s not scary, it’s fun, and I’ll admit I’m learning a lot. We sang as part of a sacred Christmas concert at the Capital View church.

The next morning we got up very early (for a Sunday) and headed for Branson with our kids and grandkids. We would meet up with sisters and nieces and cousins and such, and share a nice big house in the woods, very near Silver Dollar City.

I happen to really enjoy Silver Dollar City. In case you’ve never been, it is a cross between Colonial Williamsburg and Knott’s Berry Farm, but set in the Ozarks! Confused yet? Like Williamsburg, there are lots of crafts being displayed, like blacksmithing, woodworking, glass blowing, etc. (Except in very cold weather lots of those are closed.) (Guess what weather we had!) Like Knott’s Berry Farm, there are lots of shops with folksy stuff, pies, pastries, funnel cakes, and a crazy old Grandfather’s Mansion where perspective is all off, and gravity seems severely shifted. But here the setting is in 1880’s Ozarks, and a bit of regional history is mixed with a subtle Christian vibe, making it an interesting and friendly place. Oh, and with Roller Coasters! Some really great, world class Roller Coasters! Ahhh.

The amusement park got its start as a cave tour, which was first explored in 1869. It was originally called “Marble Cave,” because early spelunkers thought they saw marble inside. The Marble Cave Mining Company was formed, and quickly failed, when it was noticed there really was no marble inside. In 1889, the cave was bought privately, and cave tours were given. In 1950, it was sold again, and the cave renovated for easier tours. To give folks something to do while waiting for their turn in the cave, they started providing entertainment above ground… and Silver Dollar City was formed. It’s grown tremendously since then!

Here are some grandkids and their cousins after a six plus hour drive, about to enter the cool amusement park.

Here the kids try out the gravity defying chair in Grandpa’s Mansion.

We timed this trip to take in what SDC calls an Old Time Christmas… somewhat ironic, since they cover the 1880’s architecture with over 6.5 million lights!

We spent two afternoons and evenings in the park, reveling in all the amazing lights, and trying not to freeze to death!

A fun little Parade of Lights runs through the park twice nightly:

A well lit waterfall, and an interesting water tower and water wheel:

They have lots of rides like you’d expect at a Disney or Six Flags park. And the decorations to amuse you while standing in line can be, well, amusing. I liked this contraption… Wondering why they haven’t built one for us to see?

An Old Time Christmas did include carolers!

The steam train is very popular, and for the season is extravagantly decked out with lights.

Both nights, all the sane folks in our group elected to go “home” long before the 9pm closing time. That left Becky, Kevin and I to ride the Coasters till closing, in spite of the 34 degree weather. “Coasters till Closing”… not a bad motto if you’re crazy!

Tuesday we slept in a bit and enjoyed a bit of rest. We would attend the “Miracle of Christmas” show at Sight and Sound that afternoon.

The Sight and Sound theater is gorgeous, and they put on a really great show. This one traced Jesus’ birth, from Angels’ announcements to Wise Men showing up. Really well done.

We all drove home Wednesday, and met up again on Thanksgiving for a fabulous meal! No shots of folks eating here… you probably know what that looks like.

The day after Thanksgiving, we had an exciting event at our house… our new table was delivered! We’ve been happy using an old card table, but it’s going to be great having a real, nice table! Amish build out of Hickory, it is very beautiful, and quite heavy. Should last forever! It was fun watching them deliver and assemble the table.

I have to finish with a beautiful picture reminding us of the point of the whole Thanksgiving and Christmas season… We can rejoice, because of Jesus’ love and grace towards us!!

I thank all those who contributed pictures this time: Kevin and Becky, maybe Steve, Craig… who knows? I’m not sure where a couple of the shared pictures originated.