leavenworth // travel tuesday

I am taking a break from chronicling this summer's Europe trip because I wanted to share some of the memories from this weekend's trip to a Christmas wonderland. It was something I was really excited to cross off from my winter wish list: 

leavenworth, wa.

The first three weeks of December are filled to the brim with Christmas cheer in this quaint little village surrounded by mountains in eastern Washington. Dazzling lights on evergreens and German-style buildings. Joyful carols under the gazebo at the center of the village. Thousands of tourists warming up in the dozens of gift shops. German sausages, chestnuts roasting on an open fire, warm cider being sold at street corners. Cozy armchairs, a delicious holiday latte, and warming up frozen toes next to a warm fireplace. 

so much to love! 

 We stopped at Starbucks as soon as we arrived to use the restrooms and get a warm cup of something magical. I wanted a cute instagram-worthy pic, so I took a quick gulp of my latte and proceeded to burn my tongue! The photo sequence is priceless. haha

 We then started wandering around this magical Christmas town

We stopped for a yummy lunch at Pavz Cafe Bistro 

 

The next morning, we drove from our Holiday Inn in Wenatchee (20miles away) into Leavenworth to explore the village again.

 The quaint bookstore, A Book For All Seasons.  Of coarse I always end up in the children's corner.

The throng of people in the above photo are all waiting for Bavarian sausages. 

 We saw so many intricately hand-crafted beauties at the Leavenworth Nutcracker Museum

 

My beautiful sisters. The only one missing is my sister-in-law, who couldn't make it this weekend.

 One of the reasons I chose this weekend to visit Leavenworth is because three of my siblings were planning on coming up with the church's youth choir to sing carols in the gazebo. It was fun to listen to their beautiful voices declaring the birth of the Savior King, Jesus!

 My brothers are the two handsome fellas to the right of the mic (green hats)

My sister is to the right of the second row from the bottom (in the mint headband)

 My brother and sisters (above) and my "Little Sis" below :)

 One of my favorite places in Leavenworth is the Bergdorg Cellars, which is a unique winery that is interwoven with beautiful antiques. What an awesome concept, right? I am not much of a wine drinker, but I sure do appreciate antiques, so I had a lovely time exploring this gem!

 Warming up in a cozy coffee shop selling local coffee.

Stay tuned for more photos from the dazzling Christmas lights as well as our family horse-drawn sleigh ride!