In anticipation of the holiday next week and in an effort to get somewhat caught up, the boys and I all took yesterday off for a full day of shopping and cheer.

We went across the river over into downtown Saint Charles for some lunch and a bit of shopping. I don’t get over there very often, but wow, it’s beautiful at this time of year.

These recycled bottle creations cracked us up. Some people are so creative.

See Tanner?

Then last night, we headed in the other direction to South City for Big River Running’s Holiday Lights Run. Except we didn’t run. We walked and gawked along the route.

As the boys get older, outings like this are less and less frequent. Full days are almost unheard of. This was a great day.