Last Friday evening I attended one of the Bright Nights events at Lauritzen Gardens. If you love any of the things on this list - beautiful lights and decor, toy trains, poinsettias, gorgeous flowers, festive food and drinks, holiday photo ops, outdoor games, visits with Santa, cheerful music, beautiful plants, or just celebrating the holidays this event is for you! My family and I are going closer to Christmas but I also wanted to go early in the event to take photos. It is GORGEOUS!

I just came home tonight from the most FUN weekend with childhood friends in Le Mars, Iowa! It was awesome!

As many of you know, I like to spend time at the Iowa Great Lakes (Okoboji). It is one of my growing list of happy places. 😁 I love to sit and enjoy the water lap against the shore and take photos of the lakes and the natural beauty of the area.

One of the best things about travel is taking advantage of local special events. I got to go on a lovely holiday tour of homes recently in the Iowa Great Lakes area. The homes were all decked out for Thanksgiving and Christmas with many beautiful decorations.