Here Comes Santa Claus!

Well, less than a week left till Christmas now! In a few more days, we'll have the presents are all wrapped and waiting under the tree and a big, festive feast set on the table for all our friends and family! How exciting!

We had a wonderful visit with Santa yesterday & all the kids seemed to really enjoy their morning! We can't wait to see everyone today and have another fantastic, story-filled morning with Santa! We were also extremely impressed with the turn-out yesterday and we're expecting a 'full-house' today as well! We're also really looking forward to the olde-fashioned carolers that will be getting us in the Christmas spirit today from 12pm - 3pm! Come by and join in! Everyone is welcomed!

I hope everyone will take the time to truly enjoy Christmas this year.  It is a time for family, love, and togetherness.  Take time to appreciate each other, and make the holiday mean something special for you and your family.  For our family, with the busy lives we lead running your own business, I always have fond memories of Christmas in our house as a child, and even still!  I remember Christmas Eve finally arriving and we got to close up the store early, which as a child, was so exciting! Christmas morning it was everything my mom & dad could do to try to get us to sleep past 5am – or at least refrain from tearing the presents apart in the living room before they could at least get up and grab a cup of coffee! Then, the part that I’m sure is front and center in every family’s and child’s memory – present time!  To say we were excited was an understatement! We couldn’t wait to get into that living room – all those presents teasing us, the cookie crumbs from Santa’s plate, half eaten carrots, and even soot across the carpet from the fireplace! All the wrapping and strategic placing of the gifts was ripped apart and over in minutes!  Then, mom would start preparing a breakfast feast as she popped the turkey in the oven (I still don’t know how she did it all)! We ate till our bellies ached and then spent the day lounging at home, playing with our new toys, reading our new books, watching our new movies – all together, as a family – the way it should be!

We didn’t get all dressed up and run around from house to house visiting. We had the occasional family friend pop in to wish us Merry Christmas, but for the most part, it was just us.  Spending those moments with my family is what I remember most – not the gifts nor the lead up to Christmas, but sitting together in the living room, the Christmas tree all lit up, wonderful smells lingering in from the kitchen, and happiness – sheer happiness!  I hope each and every one of you will get to experience those feelings this Christmas season! 

Now that I have a family of my own, Christmas brings a whole new level of excitement! I can’t wait to see the twinkle in my little girls’ eyes as they wonder what surprises Santa will be leaving them under the tree! Though this year they are a little too young to understand the magic of Christmas, I will still try to re-create the memories my parents always made sure they gave us each and every year!

With all this being said, if you have little ones and want to give them a real Christmas experience, you’ll be really excited to hear that The Apple Market will be having a special visitor this year … yes, you guessed it! Santa!!!! He will be making a special appearance at The Apple Market on Saturday, December 17^th & Sunday, December 18^th from 10:00am – 11:00am. It will be an interactive experience for the children – singing, story time and, of course, pictures with Santa himself! Since spaces are very limited, we encourage you to email us at info@theapplemarket.ca with the subject “Santa” as soon as possible to reserve your spot. Go to our Current Events page for more information!

Also, on December 18^th, we are planning on getting you all in the Christmas spirit with olde-fashioned Christmas carolers! They will be singing from 12:00pm – 3:00pm, so come and enjoy the festivities!

You’ll also soon notice a large drum in the store in support of the Mississauga Food Bank. We will have the drums available for your non-perishable food donations from December 13^th until December 27^th. That’s 2 full weeks of supporting our local food bank to help hungry people right here in Mississauga. Each drum can hold up to 300 pounds of food – so let’s fill it up!!! Don’t know what to donate? There is more information available on our Current Events page.

Our second annual Christmas Newsletter has been a great success! Thank you all for the incredible feedback we've been receiving since we handed out our newsletter. It seems everyone loves our update, our recipes, and of course, all our fantastic specials for our 12 Days of Christmas promotion this year!

We are proud of our Christmas corner in the store this year! We have found lots of unique little gift ideas for everyone on your list – from cutting board sets for the host & hostess, to completely adorable Christmas outfits for that little one in your family, to hilarious wine glasses for your best friend! We have so many great gift options from MudPie, as well as a few things you might want to keep for yourself!!! Not to mention, the lovely table full of Christmas chocolates and goodies! We have great ideas for stocking stuffers such as Lindt’s famous milk chocolate Santas and Snowmen – even ornaments filled with their signature truffles. There are also lots of Christmas-inspired treats to have in your home for family and guests over the holidays – Cadbury chocolate collections, Dansk cookies, panetones, truffles with assorted liqueurs, and the list goes on!!

Don’t forget to pre-order your gift baskets and party trays too! This is a busy time of the year for these items, so we’ll need at least 24 hours notice to make up your custom order for you!

Next, on to the meat department! Things are getting very busy behind the counter as customers are already starting to make their Christmas orders! Turkeys, capons, lamb, prime rib roasts, and even our brand new pre-order meat packages are hot items this month! So, stock up your fridge and stock up that freezer, we have some great deals that you won’t want to miss out on!

We also have a great assortment of poinsettias ranging from 4” pots up to 10” pots and in a fantastic range of colours & styles! Outside, on your way into the store, there are gorgeous outdoor planters with mixes of cedar, pine, and decorative branches, plus outdoor hanging baskets, mini Christmas trees, and even bulk pine branches & colourful decorative branches to do your own accenting!

So December is looking like a VERY eventful month! We are very excited with the arrival of Christmas because not only does it mean we get some time to spend with our family, but it is also so nice seeing you all before the holidays! We hope your Christmas shopping days go relatively stress-free and hopefully we’ll see you in store soon!

Merry Christmas!!!

Jen, Mike, Taylor, & Brooklyn

PS - "LIKE" us on facebook!!! We just started our own facebook account (The Apple Market) and would love for you to join us! We'll be keeping you up to date with events at the store, as well as advertising our weekly specials and eventually deals just for our facebook fans!