Happiest of Holidays

Well, it finally happened.  Christmas came.  And just as suddenly as it came, it was gone.  Poof!  Just like that.  You would think I would've learned by now that there is a time warp that occurs in the month of December.  What looks like a simple day on the calendar feels like a microsecond in retrospect.  It would be logical to anticipate that these days will be moving at warp speed, and to try to counteract this phenomenon with time-stretching activities and slow-moving days.  But, no, we plow through the month of December with so much gusto that come January, it all seems like a dream.  Thank goodness for photographs!

First a look back at your first Christmas.  These are all pre-dslr, and I remember being so frustrated about the lack of control I had over my camera.:

Baby's + Lights...always a favorite.

Yes, I did this to you.  You were in a stocking.

Elf.

Santa Baby.

This year, you spent a lot of the month of December dressed up as one Christmas icon or another.  Sorry about that.

Elf, slightly larger edition.

 The tree proved to be too much temptation for you.  Instead of the novelty wearing off, it became less intimidating and you couldn't keep your chubby hands off of it!

Making a mess of the pine needles and tree skirt, ripping off ornaments, and laughing the entire time.  Thanks.

This festive month brings with it so many fun traditions:

Polar Express Day at School- pj's, cocoa and a movie

Driving through Victoria Park to check out their ridiculously impressive light displays.

Cocoa & light walks in our own neighborhood...preferably on chilly nights.  We could see our breath this night!

Baking cookies (with neighbors).  The peanut butter reindeer cookies have been a part of our Christmas baking for years now.

Clora, our elf, has been busy making mischief all month.  But she outdid herself when she decorated Sydney's room in paper snowflakes and paper chains in the middle of the night.  I assume this must have been fun to wake up to:

Snowflakes everywhere!

Ignore the messy closet backdrop.  I assume Clora put a lot of work into these and would want them showcased.

 

And while there's no chance of actual snowflakes here, we did have the eventual (and very welcome) cool front.

The wind in your hair.

Confusing smelling flowers with tasting flowers.

Obsessed with your shadow!

Finally cool enough to play outside again!

And then, in a flash, it was Christmas Eve.  The best day really.  All of the pomp and circumstance of Christmas with the giddy anticipation thrown in for good measure.  I adore Christmas Eve.  I love the barely contained excitement in your sisters' faces.  I love tracking Santa on the NORAD site all day.  I love opening our home to family for a family meal...nothing fancy, but it's our tradition.  And I really love tucking my girls into bed, knowing that they will have a hard time going to sleep and will be listening close for sleighbells and reindeer hooves.  There is nothing better on earth than the magic of Christmas.

I love this scene.  Family together.  Christmas lights on.  Santa tracker up on the laptop.  And pink paper plates because I forgot to buy Christmas ones.  Oops.

It was so dark for picture-taking.  But you looked like this.  It's almost too much to take!

Spreading Reindeer food in the yard. (You're going to have to trust me on this one.  It was dark.)

Obsessed with gifts.

My girls, getting their Christmas traditional Christmas jammies from grammy.

Heart bursting inside of my chest.

Christmas babe.

Too excited to sleep.

Matching pj's.  Sleep tight my little ones.

I have decided that my New Year's resolution will be to try to get back to the original function of this blog.  I had intended for it to substitute for a baby book.  To record milestones and memories.  And while I am still doing that to some extent, the truth is that things are slipping through the cracks.  You are saying, doing and learning so many things.  I just spend too much time backtracking to remember it all.  So this week I will catch up, split Christmas into two posts, and then start fresh.  New Year, clean slate.  Last year's resolution was to start this blog, so I think we can make this one stick, too!  Next up, Christmas Day!!