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The hub and I have a tradition of buying a new Department 56 building every year to add to our Village O'Christmastime Cheer. This year he was disappointed in the shopping options in the Dallas Fort Worth Metroplex, so at 6:00 am Saturday morning we drove up to Oklahoma City. Let me tell you - it did not disappoint! Our favorite Christmas store (though, can you really beat the Christmas Mouse?) is North Pole City. Just walking in gets you in the Christmas mood. And we weren't the only ones looking for a little early-season dose of jolly - the parking lot was packed 5 minutes before they opened.

Think I'm exaggerating? Check this out:




Because it's not a real Christmas store unless there is a train for the kids...



Which, unfortunately, Britton didn't get to ride, because she was back home with Memaw. We just couldn't force her into the car for a 7 hour roundtrip one-day getaway.

We did get lost in the little villages of Department 56 buildings. And we had the hardest time deciding on one. If they had had Ralphie's house from "A Christmas Story" I would have bought it in a heartbeat. But according to Chris the Clerk, "A Christmas Story" isn't a big seller, so they don't carry it. Wait, huh? I just cannot fathom why it isn't a big seller.



See that firehouse to the left of the picture below? That's the one we decided on!



And a close-up of the box...



And the hub spotted this sign, which was a have-to-get-that...



And our miniature village needs a mailbox! Sure it does!



But was the trip JUST for Christmas fun? No. We had an ulterior motive too. We wanted, no we NEEDED, some Johnnie's. Not familiar? You should be. This is a Theta with cheese. A hamburger topped with the secret Johnnie's hickory sauce I am completed unable to replicate, plus shredded cheddar cheese and mayo. It alone was worth the drive.



And some pumpkin cookies from City Bites. I miss these too much. And the peanut butter swirl, and lemon swirl, and red velvet cookies.... It's totally normal to spend $12 on cookies, right?



While we were in the area, we drove by our old house so we could see how it looked. They replaced the redbud tree out front. But check out that rose bush! That's my first Mother's Day gift - a rosebush from Memaw and PawPaw. And when we moved I didn't want to kill it by taking it with us, so it stayed. And grew!



And the fall colors were in! Living in Texas, we don't get to see fall like we're used to, frankly - like we should, so this was a treat. And motivation to plant more deciduous trees. We had a blast and now we just can't wait for Christmas!