~13th day of Christmas~

~Christmas lights in the parks AND LET IT SNOW. 
Colombians LOVE to decorate for Christmas.  Here they decorate with lots of flowers and butterflies. They light up lots of parks for Christmas and they are fun to see.
I snapped this pic of a tall Christmas tree with flowers... from my taxi window while we were waiting at a red light.~

  ~There is a park in between Pastor Jimmy's house and ours that just recently lit up for Christmas.  So the other evening after our kids finished their school work for the day, we walked over and had a fun visit with Pastor Jimmy and family and then asked if we could walk with their girls to see this fun park.
'Scuze the dark/blurry pics.  This is Gaby and Sarah.~

 ~Pretty lights!~

 ~Nataly, Mary, and Kimberly.  The neat thing about THIS park is that every hour in the evenings these little white "houses" that you see above Kimberly's head...blow out "SNOW!"  It's a fake snow similar to shaving cream that blows out so that the Colombians can "experience snow!" =) ~

 ~The pretty red and white Christmas tree in the center of the park.~

 ~Us under the "Snow".~

 ~IT'S "SNOWING!!!!!!"  =) ~

 ~Mommy and Mary enjoying the "snow." (She doesn't have a clue what REAL snow is like, since she was only 3 1/2 months when we left the USA.)~

 ~It was so fun to see the Colombians enjoying the "snow!" ~

 ~Elijah, Noah, and Phillip getting "snow" on their heads.~

 ~Noah in his fun Christmas hat, Mary, and Elijah in his fun hat looking at a lighted tree.~

 Nearly EVERYONE decorates for Christmas here, and it's fun to see their decor/lights. =)    (That's one thing we missed last year while in Argentina. For hardly anyone decorates for Christmas there.  BUT, on Christmas eve we found out one reason why.  They all spent their money on HUGE colorful fireworks and the city was BRIGHT with fireworks for probably 30 mins. or so.  Each culture is fun and different.)
Just a little interesting Cultural note.  MOST people here in Colombia have a Nativity also.   Growing up in the USA, we didn't have a clue what Nativities mean here.
But we soon learned that they WORSHIP Joseph, Mary, and baby Jesus in the Nativity.  They Sing to them, have a party for 9 straight evenings around them, get drunk, etc.
So thus the Christians don't have Nativities here.)
~I snapped this pic so you could see the fun lights (and a flower) on these apt. buildings.~

 ~This tree is in National Park where we took our family Christmas picture.  We enjoy seeing the fun lights in the parks as we walk/drive by~