A couple of weeks ago we attended the most magnificent outdoor "Journey to Bethlehem". I really wanted to take my kids...but Rick was in Asia. It was an hour away, the thought of packing all of them up, then coming home late at night, all by himself was seeming rather daunting.
But...long ago, I promised myself that I wouldn't let the fact that I had so many little kids deter me from doing fun things, even if it was going to be really hard. So, I pulled my boot straps up, packed the bags, bundled the kids up, (it was super cold for Texas--around 32 degrees, and the humidity in the air makes it feel 10 degrees colder than that, at least) and met our good friends to make the trek. I'm SO, SO glad we did--it was amazing!
We arrived, and the wind was blowing hard, it was so cold, and I almost regretted it, but our friends jumped in to help, and we got everyone out and ready. When we first entered, we were met by Roman soldiers, who demanded that our taxes be paid. I had given each of the kids 2 quarters, so we were all able to enter. ☺ We saw King Herod, heard him tell the Three Wise Men to find baby Jesus, and then heard him direct his soldiers to kill all the baby boys that were 2 and under. We entered into Bethlehem, where there was a prison, inn, stable, church, bakery, spice shop, fishmonger, potter, calligrapher, and many more. They were all dressed as they would have been then, and were acting as though it was that time. We tasted bread, figs, and olived, smelled spices, listened to a church meeting, had our names written in Hebrew, Greek and Arabic, visited the inn, and even danced at a wedding!!
The kids were in heaven, and despite the wind and cold, thoroughly enjoyed our time there. It was definitely a night to remember, and we will be back next year!
Good night. ☺(Although I had to haul Henry in by myself, and I don't know WHY he sleeps on the top bunk!)
