Good Reads

by Darcy Connor

Preschool/Toddler Turtle Walk

Written and Illustrated by Matt Phelan

Take a season-by-season journey with our little turtle family in this adorable tale by award-winning author and artist Matt Phelan. The accompanying watercolor artwork brings each season to life and each season brings a little adventure for the family to tackle. “Turtle walk. Nice and slow.”

Picture Book Blizzard

Written and Illustrated by John Rocco

Based on the New England blizzard of 1978 that dropped 53 inches of snow over two days, author John Rocco recounts his experience as a young boy. Rocco’s illustrations are fantastic as he tells the tale, from the first snowflake falling while he was at school to the strange white landscape that blanketed his neighborhood to being forced to climb out a window because the snow blocked his front door. While I don’t wish for the nearly four feet of snow Rocco describes in Blizzard, a few inches may be nice to get that feeling of a winter wonderland.

Early Elementary School Princess Evie, The Forest Fairy Pony Written by Sarah KilBride Illustrated by Sophie Tilley

The first book in a four-book series, Princess Evie, The Forest Fairy Pony enters the reader into a magical world of drama, adventure and, of course, ponies. As Evie is worried about making new friends when she joins a new class at school, her magical pony, Willow, eases her concerns. To take her mind off her anxiety, Evie and Willow go exploring, soon discovering an enchanted forest filled with fairies. Let the adventure begin. A sweet book series for early readers to enjoy.

Middle School City Spies

By James Ponti

The protagonist, 12-year-old Sara Martinez, is a hacker who gets arrested for hacking into the New York City foster care system in order to expose her foster parents as cheats and frauds. Facing years in a juvenile detention center, Sara is unexpectedly visited by a British spy who offers her a chance to escape punishment. Oh, and also save the world. Thus, Sara is recruited to join an elite British spy agency consisting of four other talented kids from around the world who take on tasks in the realm of espionage that adults can’t do. Part of a three-book series. Your middle schooler will love these stories.

Adult The Secret of Snow By Viola Shipman

The “second chance” genre is a tried and true storytelling technique and, sometimes, it can get a bit formulaic. The Secret of Snow has all the second chance elements you would expect but there’s something about this quaint story that had me hooked. Maybe it’s the vivid contrast between Sonny Dune’s former life in sunny California and her current one in cold, snowy Michigan. Maybe it’s the determination she exhibits as she tries to find her new niche. Maybe it’s the idea that second chances can give us all a little hope. This one’s a stocking stuffer for those readers contemplating what’s next.

A few other suggestions for your holiday reading list ...

Kids Change Sings Written by Amanda Gorman Illustrated by Loren Long Better Together! Written by Amy Robach and Andrew Shue Illustrated by Lenny Wen Teens The Wild by Owen Laukkanen The Electric Kingdom by David Arnold Adults Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whitehead Burnt Toast and Other Disasters by Cal Peternell

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Let There Be Light!

Story by Amanda Oden Photos by Amanda Jakl

At the start of every holiday season, he makes a list, and checks it twice: Thousands of LED lights? Check. Massive inflatables? Check. FM radio receiver for looped crooning Christmas classics? Check. Micro-computers that project spirited tidings of comfort and joy to true believers of Kris Kringle in the Sandhills? Check.

For David Lollar, and his wife Katrina, of Pinehurst, the Christmas season doesn’t come with just the usual trimming of the tree and stockings hung by the chimney with care. For the last six years the couple have converted their lawn in the Pinehurst hamlet of Village Acres into a massive luminescent holiday extravaganza, complete with animatronics, programmed lighting effects, a veritable army of elvish inflatables, and their own low-power radio station that belts out holiday melodies. What began as a quaint attempt to spark some cheer through some simple outdoor holiday decor has turned into a perennial event and a beloved annual neighborhood attraction.

The shift from casual Christmas decorations to full-on Clark Griswold Christmas spectacular seems like a natural progression for both Lollars, who bonded in part from their shared enthusiasm for the holiday as a children.

“Christmas is huge in my family!” says Katrina, noting that the women in her family all have matching “Crazy Christmas Lady” t-shirts made as a sign of Santa solidarity. “I have so many fantastic holiday memories from growing up it would be impossible to choose a favorite.”

She adds: “I’ve always been an insane decorator. The inside of my house would blow your mind! I mean, I put my Christmas tree up in October. I decorate for all holidays and David’s always gone along with it. About six years ago, I found a pretty inexpensive box at a

hardware store that would make your Christmas lights flash and add music. David works in IT and he looked at it and said, ‘You know, I could really make this something,’ and it just kind of snowballed from there. We never set out to be the crazy Christmas house, but here we are. Just a couple of psychos working together.”

While the display itself is impressive to watch, the inner workings of the show are just as intricate and captivating, and it is in this arena where David really lights up.

“I’ve always really liked lights and I remember as a kid just lying under the Christmas tree and looking up at all the lights.” Using his knowledge of technology, he devised a system that he hoped would replicate that childhood experience on a much grander scale.

“I operate everything from a small transmitter called a Raspberry Pi. It’s a micro-computer that translates from the lights to the screen we have set up and runs the whole system. My program runs the show on a timer, so it’s not like every night I have to flip a switch at 5:30 or anything like that.”

The production has grown each year, and the feedback amongst the community proved so enthusiastic that the Lollars were asked to extend their skills into the Spooky Season as well.

“We started the Holly Jolly light show and interest in that continued to grow and after a couple years people kept saying, ‘This is really cool—y ’all should decorate for Halloween too.”

For most people, Halloween decorating consists of hanging up a few fake spider webs and slapping a jack-olantern or two on the front porch. But for the Lollars, of course, it was a chance to step it up a notch: animated lights, creepy creatures of enormous size, and a radio station set up to blast the Monster Mash on repeat. As you can imagine, all of this takes massive amounts of preparation.

“We start setting up for our Halloween Spooktacular in early September so that it will be ready to view at the beginning of October,” adding that the amount of lighting is so substantial, heavy equipment is now utilized to make the decorative deadlines.

“We have to rent a bucket truck every year to put the lights on the roof and once those are set, they stay up through December for the Holly Jolly light show as well. Then the day after Halloween, we break down all of that decor and get started setting up for Christmas because we like those lights to be up by Thanksgiving.”

Much like Saint Nick’s own special day, the Holly Jolly Light Show is a year-in-the-making project, but the Lollars are happy to invest the time in a passion project that lights up the whole neighborhood.

“I have no idea exactly how much time we spend on this every year but it’s probably more than most people for sure. David is working on writing sequences all year long,” says

Katrina. “This is easily weeks of work each year, but we’ve never timed anything and, honestly, we probably wouldn’t want to.”

Unlike Santa’s elvish employees, the Lollars go at it alone and the lights, truck rentals and equipment can make this a pretty pricey hobby (and that’s before you even factor in what is surely a staggering electric bill). They estimate the full light display is more than 3,000 lights.

Katrina says: “It’s not as bad as when we first started out. Switching most everything to LED lights certainly helped a bit but there’s no denying that our electric bill is significantly higher during the holiday season. Every year we have to replace certain bulbs and strings of lights, not to mention that we are constantly adding to and improving the displays. It gets expensive, but we have a donation box in front of the house and those donations really help us grow the show every year.”

Because the light show is so unique, there can be a lot of congestion in front of the Lollar’s house on a quiet street located in the idyllic Pinehurst suburb.

“It’s normally a peaceful little street and I get worried every year about what the neighbors will think. So far, we have been really lucky and everyone has been very respectful and courteous. We’ve actually gotten feedback that we’ve inspired more people in the neighborhood to decorate because of our display. Our very sweet neighbor across the street, Miss Doreen, who is in her 80s, tells us every year she loves it because she doesn’t have to decorate. She feels like we do it all for her.”

It was in that spirit of giving two years ago that the Lollars upped their holiday game another notch by hosting the Big Man himself. For one special evening, children in the community could come out and get a selfie with Santa. And they have their Letters to Santa mailbox available if any of the children visiting the light display would like to leave a wish list.

“We empty the mailbox every night and give the letters to our elves which fly them to the North Pole for us. We do read some of the letters and they can just break your heart. Last year a couple of the letters were from kids whose families were going through a hard time and weren’t going to be able to provide Christmas. Fortunately, we were able to partner with some elves right here in our community that came together to help provide some much-needed assistance for neighbors in need.”

It may seem like a lot of work for the Lollars, but much like another certain someone who spends all year preparing to bring joy to the masses during the holiday season, they are happy to do it.

It’s all but impossible not to feel that same happiness as you crest the hill on Fox Run Road and slow down, turn the dial on the radio, and hear the excitable gasps of your own children seeing the Grinch, Santa, Olaf and the rest. It’s impossible not to feel the spark of some much-needed Christmas spirit. For a moment, the Lollars make us all feel a bit like a kid again, staring in wonder at the twinkling lights on a quiet holiday evening, and that is no small gift.

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The Perfect Holiday Toast

Whiskey Old FashiOned

1 sugar cube 2 to 3 dashes Woodford Reserve orange bitters 2 ounces whiskey Splash of club soda (optional) Orange twist (for garnish)

Place the sugar cube at the bottom of an old-fashioned glass. Saturate the cube with Woodford Reserve aromatic bitters, add an orange slice if you like, and muddle. Fill the glass with ice. Add the whiskey and stir well. Finish off with a splash of club soda if you prefer. Garnish with an orange peel and cherry. Serve and enjoy!

Aromatic, orange, and spiced cherry bitters from Woodford Reserve for all your holiday cocktails. Available exclusively at The Purple Thistle.

As the saying goes, “There is no place like home for the holidays,” but we realize that sometimes you just get the urge to get your ho-ho-ho on the go.

Here at Sand & Pine, we pride ourselves on being, as Clark Griswold so delicately put it, the jolliest bunch of you-know-whats this side of the nuthouse. In that spirit, we researched tons of fun, festive and quirky activities for those of you looking to plan a Christmas vacation (hopefully not of the National Lampoon variety). Fill up your thermos with (non-alcoholic) eggnog, throw your suitcase in the sleigh and hit the road because your holiday adventure awaits!

Asheville, North Carolina

Here in the home of the Tar Heels and Cheerwine, Santa slips into his hiking boots and climbs 315 feet down Chimney Rock. Once he completes his treacherous descent, he joins “Santa on the Chimney” festivities in the park, which include carnival rides, a holiday breakfast and animal petting attractions.

Camden, New Jersey

Santa opts for an underwater appearance instead of the traditional sleigh with reindeer. At the Adventure Aquarium’s Ocean Realm tank, Old Saint Nick takes a dip while donning the traditional hat and robe. Visitors can pose for photos, deliver their wish lists (which will likely get pretty soggy), check out the world’s tallest underwater Christmas tree and let Santa know whether they are nautical or nice.

Mobile, Alabama

Residents skip the Santa outfits and dress up like his little helpers for the annual Elfapalooza. Participants sing Christmas karaoke, watch the Christmas classic Elf and sip hot chocolate while aiming to beat the Guinness world record for most Santa’s elves in a single location (1,762), which is currently held by Bangkok, Thailand.

Chandler, Arizona

The West is notoriously wild, and for the last 50 years the citizens of Chandler have constructed their own take on the traditional Christmas tree. Beginning around September, city workers begin collecting the dried invasive Russian thistle bushes (better known as tumbleweeds) that roll across the landscape. Once they have amassed around 1,000 tumbleweeds, they begin building the world’s largest (and likely only) tumbleweed Christmas tree. The extremely dry Tannenbaum is sprayed with a flame retardant material, lit and put on view for the entire town to enjoy.

Portland, Oregon

Not to be outdone by the good people of Chandler,

Arizona, the city of Portland has their own Christmas tree made out of an unusual material. The Oregonians’ conifer is constructed out of people, ... singing people to be more exact. Portland’s Singing Christmas tree is in its 59th season and prides itself in having never been cancelled. The tree consists of more than 350 carolers arranged in a tree formation and includes dancing, a nativity scene and light show.

New Shoreham, Rhode Island

Just when you thought you’d seen them make a Christmas tree out of everything, Block Island says, “Hold my lobster” or, rather, lobster trap. Every year shellfish-loving volunteers selflessly turn more than 200 traps, known to the pros as lobster pots, into a beautifully lit Christmas tree installation that draws tourists from all over the world.

Mount Vernon, Virginia

In 1767, George Washington (who happened to have a fascination with rare and exotic animals) paid 18 shillings to have a camel delivered to his Mount Vernon home for the Christmas holiday. Now, every holiday season a camel named Aladdin travels to Mount Vernon from his home in Berryville, Virginia, as the Christmas Camel. There are all sorts of holiday-themed activities to choose from, but the most popular attraction is the chance to take a selfie with Aladdin himself.

Reno, Nevada

Each December, upwards of 12,000 celebrants dressed in Santa suits flock to the town of Reno for its famed Santa Pub Crawl. The wassailers, however, aren’t just drinking for fun. They are also ensuring their names will be added to the Nice list because all of the proceeds from the annual event are donated to local schools in need.

Laguna Niguel, California

If hearing Santa say “cowabunga” sounds interesting to you, then we suggest you head to Salt Creek Beach at Dana Point to watch surfers in full Santa regalia ditch the sleigh in lieu of a surfboard. The annual Surfing Santa Competition is a fundraiser for the charity Surfers Healing, which helps to enrich the lives of people with autism by giving them the unique healing experience of surfing.

Cleveland, Ohio

This one you can technically do all year round, but we think it would be most the memorable Christmas adventure to visit the famed house from everyone’s favorite (or at least most watched) holiday movie A Christmas Story. Complete with the iconic glowing leg lamp in the window, this house has been completely restored to its movie glory and is available for tours or even to spend the night. Drop in for a visit. We triple dog dare you!

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