This year, fall was slow to move in, but winter has fallen in quickly behind with freezing temperatures and a beautiful early snowfall. Kids, and those with a youthful heart, gleamed with joy as they awakened on Tuesday, November 12 to a beautifully, cotton tinted blanket of snow across the county. The excitement swept across the smiles of many faces as they sprinted out in the early morning hours, some unable to wait until sunrise, in their bundles beneath the gray clouded skies.

The chili temperatures and cheerful snow joined together in sweeping a festive holiday spirit across the homes of the community. Children, teachers, and some lucky parents were awarded the first snow day of the year and spent time indulging into the winter holiday activities. Many enjoyed a cozy fire and coffee in their pajamas all day while others spent hours outdoors tossing snowballs and freezing their fingertips enjoying what could be the only snow before the new year.

With the magical feel of snowflakes and an early snow day off school, many children, as much as their parents, were thrilled that Disney + was released the very same day. Disney + is an on-demand video streaming subscription featuring many family favorites from new releases to classic Walt Disney films. This television network is trending across the county and country. So, many families spent hours warm and cozy sharing memories of childhood films with their children.

This trend also set the mood for the recent Disney on Ice event that is held annually at the Knoxville Convention Center. The 2019 theme was Celebrate Memories and featured many princesses and their princes as well as the traditional Disney characters, as Mickey and Minnie looked back on their favorite memories through the years with highlighting performances. Magic gleamed in the eyes of all the costume inspired children at the event.

Since the holiday spirit is in the air and an enormous amount of homes are already decked out for the Christmas season, be sure to join in on the spirit and share your lovely lights with others. Just fill out a quick form and enter your outdoor Christmas lights, at home, church, your business or club, into the Light Up Union County event. There will be prizes awarded in three categories, but most of all you will be sharing your embellished light creations with folks across the county as well as visitors in creating memories of their own in taking a cool winters night and turning it into a family fun memory of cruising and enjoying Christmas lights and jingling holiday tunes.

An early snowfall has kicked off a blissful spirit in the community as we head into the holidays this season. Fingers crossed for more winter weather as we approach Christmas. What would be more magical than an East Tennessee glistening white Christmas, after all.