Mrs. Claus and Riley the Elf go caroling

One of the things we decided to do this year as part of our goal to restore meaning to Christmas was to go caroling at Cagui's assisted living community. So the kids dressed up...

Violet wore her Mrs. Claus costume that Mamalali made her last year, and Riley wore the elf costume I slapped together this afternoon. Yay for felt! I can sew felt. Just add a couple fun Christmas socks and you have yourself a regular costume!

We had our friends the Gomez family join us... Eli played guitar while the girls joined my two kids in the singing and merriment. I made their costumes too. Seriously felt makes me incredibly happy! I can't screw it up!

We walked through the halls, tying bows to everyone's doorknobs and singing our hearts out. The kids were adorable and everyone loved them, of course!
We stopped by Cagui's apartment and entertained him with a rousing rendition of "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer", which he enjoyed immensely. :)
Afterward we enjoyed hot cocoa at Starbucks...


and Violet and Riley conked out in the car on the way home. ;)

Hopefully we can make this an annual tradition. It was so much fun to bring joy to the residents and see their happy faces. We got lots of hugs and thank yous, some joined us in song, and everyone was left with a smile on their faces. It was a great night. ♥