A very Merry Christmas to all our blog readers! December flew, and I can’t believe Christmas is here! I really did my best to get into the spirit of things this holiday season, taking part in some iconic holiday traditions in the area. Two friends and I set off on what we dubbed our “holiday adventures.” We kicked it off Nov. 28, traveling to New York for the Rockettes Christmas Spectacular. It was before the Rockefeller Center tree was lit, but we still took in the other holiday décor and all of the elaborately decorated window displays along Fifth Avenue. My next holiday foray was checking out A Christmas Story at Philadelphia’s Walnut Street Theater. The musical version of the holiday classic was an enjoyable way to spend a Sunday afternoon in December and marked the show’s first time in the City of Brotherly Love. The following weekend, I visited Longwood Gardens for the first time. The holiday light display is a tradition in the Philadelphia area, and the light and flower displays throughout the grounds and in the conservatory were stunning. Although it felt a bit weird checking it all out in 60-degree weather. Last Sunday, I took two of my teenage cousins ice skating at Philadelphia’s Winterfest, a pop-up ice skating rink at Penn’s Landing. We skated around to Christmas tunes and enjoyed hot cocoa floats. Santa Claus himself even took a few turns on the ice with us! I finished my holiday adventures with a visit to the city’s Christmas Village on Wednesday evening before stopping in to view the Comcast holiday show at The Comcast Center. I hope you all enjoyed your own adventures this holiday season! — Kim Krol, managing editor/vice president