Christmas Village

A couple days before Christmas we were running some last minute errands and saw this sign by one of the older homes in the area:

It sparked our interest so we pulled in the driveway to check it out. There was an elderly man out in the yard so we inquired about the "Christmas Village." He told us we were welcome to come in and see. And so we did!  The scoop:  This elderly couple has been collecting and displaying their miniature village collection for about 10 years.  They own over 400 pieces and every year they open their home to the public to view them.  They even hand out candy canes!  The kids absolutely loved it!  It was very charming and the Larsens are such warm and friendly people.  It truly made our day.  We want to make it a yearly tradition. (Apologies for the quality of the pictures.  They were taken with my phone.)

Their display filled their front room, kitchen, dining room and enclosed deck.

Most of the pieces were either lit up or were mechanical.  They told us that they add a couple of pieces each year - some bought online and some even bought at yard sales or DI.

Addie loves miniatures and she wanted to take her time to view each and every piece.

I am not sure why we were so touched by this.  Maybe it's because the Larsens are a dying breed.  No longer do people open their homes to complete strangers in this way.  The Larsens start setting up the second week in November and when I asked how many people had come to see their Christmas Village?  75.  I feel so lucky we were able to be part of that small group.  And we thanked them profusely for opening their home to us.  She even gave us her phone number and told us to come back next year.  If we come at night and call first - they will have their whole house lit up.  We will look forward to that!