A Step Back In Time .......

On Saturday we took the kids to Brattonsville, SC for their Candlelight Tour. It was so beautiful! We did this 3 years ago when Lilee first came home and the kids have been wanting to go back every Christmas since, but this is the first year that we were able to go back. Just like the first time it was magical. It is truly a step back in time to the 1700 & 1800's. That is the time era that they are reliving. One side of the Street is the 1700 Brattons and the other side of the Street is the 1800 Brattons and how life was for them during that time period and how they celebrated Christmas. This year their were 6 reenactments instead of 4 and they were different. The paths are lighted by lanterns and the inside of the houses our lighted by candles. This is something you should do at least once!

This year it was really cold and made it feel much more like Christmas then the first time we went!

Did you know that this was where "The Patriot" w/ Heath Ledger and Mel Gibson was filmed? It is really cool to watch the movie after you have been here. I'm ready to watch it again. I am still said about Heath Ledger, he was one of my favorite actors! I just loved him! Especially in "The Patriot"!

Upon arriving Brattonsville, we got our Hot Chocolate and Fudge. Mmmmm..... Something the kids were really looking forward to!

Jordan took this picture of Karlton and I. He actually took a couple and none of them turned out, they were all blurry!

The side view of the main house.

Then we stopped to take a few family pictures in front of the main house.

I was hoping Father Christmas or the Old Timey Santa was going to be there this year and sure enough he was! He was telling the kids about what a Santa back in the 1700 & 1800's wore and carried in his sack, what the people back then got or gave as Christmas gifts. It was really neat!

The kids with Santa.

Then we headed over to make some candles. First we dipped strings tied to sticks into hot wax.....

Then we had to walk around a circle get back in line and do this over and over until you had a candle. All the kids, even the big boys, loved doing this.

This lady was cutting my candle off of the stick.

The boy was changing the wax out because it was getting so cold out the wax did not stay hot long!

A young girl helping with  making the candles. Isn't she sweet?

Some period soldiers shooting their extremely loud guns.... Every time one of them went off the kids would jump and scream.... lol...Sometimes it even took me by surprise!

Then we headed over to the Brattons 1700 house to hear about some earlier stories.

Then last but not least we watched them reenact dances that would have been around in that time! I think the kids liked this the best. My pictures did not turn out  because they would not let me use a flash on the inside of the building. But, I think these pictures still look very cool and old fashioned! I think some of these people look like ghosts ;0)

After the dance we checked out their gift shop, got some more hot chocolate , and then followed the lanterns back through the pitch black to our Yukan. We all had a great day at Brattonsville and can not wait to use our season passes to go back for their Civil War reenactment!