I rolled out of bed at 6:24 yesterday after deciding to sleep for "just a few more minutes" (I had planned to get up at 6). I came downstairs, sorted the laundry, then hopped in the shower. We actually got out of the house before 8, and that's even with me having to go back in the house for my purse. The trip to Deerfield, MA wasn't too bad; I read to the girls, and they read independently as well. We made good time, getting there before 10, when they opened. So we drove around a bit, planning to go to a bookstore and a candy store after Yankee Candle.
The grounds were beautiful--tulips and daffodils and lupines and a few other flowers decorated many flower beds, the grass was green, and of course the Yankee Candle store was picturesque. A wooden porch ran the length of the building on all sides, and there were several benches just right for pictures. A very helpful woman greeted us when we went in, telling us all about the different stores, and told us of a butterfly garden just minutes away, the same garden I've wanted to take the girls to for years. We'll probably go back later this summer.
Anyway, we had a lot of fun looking around. Santa's there, and so much of the store is Christmas themed. Big Santa dolls are everywhere, as are winter scenes. One room even snows, and the girls rushed over to catch the snowflakes on their tongues. Two women kindly offered to take family pictures, and I was so thankful. It's not very often all five of us are in a picture together! The best part, though, was the room where you can make candles and hand molds.
First, we let each child pick out a wax mold (Jill and Kate picked a butterfly, Beth a dinosaur) and they got to dip it in different colored paraffin. After that, we decided to do one candle that all the girls could share. We got a glass jar and that's when a woman came over to tell us how to do it. She was very helpful and quite liked our girls; she was impressed that they would share one candle, then handed us a golden ticket. That ticket made it so all five of us could get a candle as well as dip our hands to make molds for free! Her kindness made the visit that much more special. :D
It's really cool making candles; you place your glass jar under these huge containers (I think I have a picture) and press a button; out come wax granules. You do this eight times to fill your jar, and the girls had fun going from one scent to the next (there were little bottles so you could smell what you were picking). Then you take your filled jar to the counter, write your name on the lid, and they melt the top layer so it's smooth. The lady who had helped us brought them over when they were done.
Next, the girls did molds of their hands (Jon and I would have, but the line was huge behind us; we got there at a great time). Beth was fearless, but Jill took some persuading. First, you dunk your hand in soapy water for 15 seconds, then in icy water, then hot paraffin, then back in the icy water. You do the water and paraffin four times, then dip your waxy hand in the paraffin color of your choice. After you dunk in whatever color, the woman cut off the wax from the girls' hands and slid it off like a glove. You could pick another color to dunk the other side of the hand in, and voila, you had a hand mold!
After we did all that, the girls were pretty tired. Kate wanted to see the boat again (in the candy store), so we wandered over there, but stopped for fudge first. Then we took them to the candy shop so they could play on the boat; again, I was glad we'd come so early. They'd been able to play on the boat easily earlier and I'd gotten some pictures. When we went that last time, there were kids all over that boat! On the way out, we picked up a really pretty picture, then headed to the car with our treasures. Up next, a visit with grandma!
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