It's a Wonderful Life!

We spent only a few hours doing the Black Friday shopping, and it was plenty -- even after the crowds had died down. We did manage to get some great deals and just about finish shopping for all the kids in the family. Our goal was to do all the NY shopping so we could wrap everything and leave it there and not have to ship it.

After our shopping stint, we went over to Carrie and Chuck's for dinner and to visit and play with the kids (Phoebe and Ellie). Unfortunately I didn't take any pictures there to post for you. We didn't have as much time there as we would've liked, but it's a long drive back to Keuka Lake, and it was still a nice visit (and a good dinner!).

On Saturday, we headed to Skaneatles, which is a ridiculously cute little town that goes all out for Christmas -- Charles Dickens style. On the way, we went through Seneca Falls, which is the town that "It's a Wonderful Life" was filmed in and based on (according to local legend anyway). Check this site out for more. We stopped and took pictures of some of the landmarks here and I walked across the bridge that they say is the one George Bailey jumps off of to save Clarence (his angel -- if you don't know what I'm talking about, you need to watch the movie ... immediately).


This is the famous bridge.




Some cute street signs near the bridge.

After a brief tour through Seneca Falls, we stopped at Swedish Hill Winery for a tasting. I love wine tastings. Nowhere else can you try several good wines and get a nice little buzz for only $1. It was a very nice winery and we bought a few bottles for gifts and to bring to holiday parties.

With all our stops, we actually missed the Dickens Christmas in Skaneatles, but I still got some cute pictures and we had a really good dinner there. Thanks Mom and Dad MacAlpine :)


A cute shot of Skaneatles.

It was a perfect day to kick off the holiday season and spread a little cheer. Plus there was just enough snow that weekend to make everything pretty but not really get in the way.