Christmas in the City

When I lived in Toronto and we’d first started dating, Garrett and I would often go to Christmas activities in the city – Casa Loma, Black Creek Pioneer Village and the Toronto Christmas Market to name a few. Since we’ve moved out to the country, it’s pretty rare that we venture into the city unless it’s for visiting family and friends. This past weekend we headed into the city three days in a row to not only see loved ones but have some Christmas fun on our own with Lucy.

Our first stop was to see the Eaton’s Centre Christmas tree in all it’s glory. Standing at 100ft tall (6 ft taller than the one at Rockefeller Centre!) it’s quite the sight to see in person.

I tried to get a picture with Lucy but she wouldn’t look at the camera because she was so captivated by the twinkly lights! We popped into a few shops and then headed outside to see the window displays.

The Hudson Bay windows were beautifully done this year with an Enchanted Forest theme using animatronic creatures combined with video displays. If you’re in the city, it’s definitely worth walking down Queen Street to see them. The little skiing mice were my favourites!

Lucy was more interested in smiling at the kids walking by, than seeing the windows. After almost a month in hot weather in Florida, it’s been quite a change to come home to these chilly temperatures but she was happily bundled up in the stroller with mountains of blankets on top.

We decided to walk through the city instead of driving around trying to find parking and it was really nice to see some of our favourite downtown locations dressed up for the holidays. We easily walked over 6km throughout the day (and I’d picked the wrong footwear for it) but it was nice to get all the fresh air.

We made our way through the streets to the Toronto Christmas Market. It had been three years since we’d been there and so much has changed since then – we got married, got another dog, moved to our house, raised chickens and now a baby!

I always love going to the Distillery District but nothing beats it all done up for the Toronto Christmas Market with the tree, lights and little booths.

It was chilly and there was a little rain but we toughed it out for something important…

Lucy’s first visit with Santa! She was such a good little baby sitting on his lap. Her little hands wrapping around his fingers just about killed me.

A video posted by Amanda • Life At Cloverhill ? (@lifeatcloverhill) on Dec 7, 2016 at 11:03am PST

And then he surprised us with this ^^^

How sweet was that? We’d just finished taking pictures and he asked if I had video on my phone. She is going to love to watch it when she’s older.

We popped into some stores to warm up and then made our way to the main stage to watch some of the performers by the big tree.

All the vintage style decor is so up my alley – gas streetlights, wreaths, garlands and twinkly lights among the old brick buildings.

How can you not get into the feeling of an old-fashioned Christmas here?

The little market booths are always a fun place to find gifts and goodies.

Over the years there have been more and more stores setting up shop in the district too.

I loved seeing them all done up for the holidays.

This little tea and coffee shop is always one of my favourites to check out.

I know I usually show Lucy’s big smiles and grins on Instagram and the blog, but I couldn’t help showing one of her more solemn looks. She’d just woken up from a nap while we walked back to the car and she gave us the most concerned little look. A quick game of peeka boo and she was all smiles again 🙂

She was in good spirits then so we decided to stop for dinner at a restaurant near Yonge Dundas Square before heading back to the farmhouse. With all the lights and screens, it’s looking like Times Square more and more.

The next day we headed back down to the city to visit my sister and her boyfriend at their lovely apartment to celebrate my brother’s birthday with the family. She’s lived there for almost two years and it was the first time we’d really all been there at the same time. Lucy was absolutely fascinated with her real Christmas tree.

She kept trying to pull off the ornaments and needles. I can just see that we’re going to need to be very careful with our ornament placement next year!

After a nice dinner, we put her into cozy pjs before heading back home. I can’t get over how much she is growing so quickly. She’s getting so strong (including pulling out my hair here) and is getting her own little personality.

On our third day to the city, we met up with my university roommates and their sweet little girls for dinner. I can remember just a year ago having them all over for a weekend at the farmhouse and daydreaming about what it would be like to have our own little one in the mix and now she’s here. Lucy was enamoured with her little friends and was all smiles. I can’t wait until she is older to truly play with them.

Seeing your kid play with your friends’ kids – it’s just so heartwarming.

After a busy weekend of festive fun in the city, it’s nice to be back to the warmth and comfort of the farmhouse as we continue to get ready for Christmas. Only 17 days now!