A Christmas Tradition

I love homes decked out in lights for the holidays - the tackier the better. So every year, Phillip and I and our good friends Thomas and Katie, bundle up, grab some hot chocolate and scour Raleigh's neighborhoods for the best and brightest lights. 

And this year did not disappoint. We started out on Downtown on Fayetteville Street to get in the holiday spirit and then began the hunt. 

{Christmas lights, Raleigh, NC Photographer, Downtown Raleigh, Fayetteville Street, Progress Energy Memorial Auditorium, BB&T Building}

Hot Cocoa with the R Family

It was sooooo cold outside on this beautifully sunny day at the North Carolina Museum of Art, but you wouldn't know it by looking at the smiles of the R family. They snuggled up close to keep warm and became very adept at throwing their coats back on in 2.5 seconds. The hot chocolate helped a bit too.

I loved spending my morning with this family. They were so laid back and kept each other giggling the entire time. Oh, and they're seriously photogenic. I found myself repeating, "I love this, this is gorgeous," I think after every shot. But it's true - and when people are beautiful on the inside, it's shows outward as well.

  

 

A Fair to Remember

One of my favorite things about Fall is the arrival of the state fair. The food, the rides, the animals, the people watching... And I don't know that there's any other place where it's acceptable to fry anything and everything imaginable or get people to pay to eat interesting combinations of food... last year it was chocolate covered bacon, this year it was the Krispy Kreme burger and kool-aid pickles.

I love the fair and have gotten it pretty much down to a science when it comes to eating there, with breaks in between eating to play games, visit exhibits, see the animals, and ride the farris wheel.

Warning: The fair is not for the faint of heart. You eat A LOT and most of it's fried and delicious.

 First food of the day - gyros and a coke. Yum.

 

 You can do a lot of shopping in a motorized shopping cart.

Animals!

 I'm not sure if he's trying to break out or take himself on a walk...

 Nap time with mom.

 That's a ginormous pumpkin...

 The BEST fries at the fair.

 The BEST roasted corn at the fair.

 Fried snickers!

 Not sure what a pig licker is...

 Don't you just want to snuggle up with them.

 Fried PB&J? Delicious.