Living Nativity: Dale City/Woodbridge, VA

As we have moved around in the last decade, it is always important to us to come up with new (if temporary) traditions in our new towns.  Tonight, I think I found another Christmas one.  I heard about a living nativity put on by The Worship Center on the grounds of the Hylton Memorial Chapel, just down the road from us in Dale City.  It runs tonight through Saturday, from 6:30-9:00 pm.

It was just a short drive away, and the searchlight and line of cars led us right to it.  We waited in traffic for a good twenty minutes or so, but it was worth it.  Since it you drive through, it is perfect to take the kids to in their pajamas (and they may even fall asleep on the ride home).

From their website:  "The DRIVE-THRU Living Nativity features multiple scenes staged on the grassy field along Golansky Boulevard. They include the shepherds in the field watching their flocks, the inn in Bethlehem where Mary and Joseph were turned away, and the manager scene featuring the Holy Family, the announcing angel high in the sky, the Magi, live camels, donkeys, sheep, chickens and many townspeople. All characters are played by church members and friends."

Here are pics from the beginning in the end, but there is a whole lot more in the middle.

They do take donations, and you can park across from the scene and watch more after driving through.  We loved it, though it prompted about a hundred questions from Theo (why do the camels have blankets, why do they have a hole in their blanket, why are they brown, why do they have a hump?...).  He is at such a fun age.

On the way there, I was asking Theo about Jesus's connection to Christmas, and he said that Jesus was born on the first Christmas.  And that he came down, but he went back up.  And that sometimes, he comes back down for a slice of Birthday cake each Christmas and then goes back up.