Merry Christmas!

This was A's first Christmas and it was so magical to see how much he loved the lights, the tree, the presents—everything!

He was so cute when he met Santa. He doesn't like being held by other people but did surprisingly well on Santa's lap at first... but after about thirty seconds, decided he'd had enough of this man with the big fluffy beard and tried to break free!

We have a tree at our local park that we loved playing under all summer; and now it's decorated festively for Christmas! I just love where we live!

Our little family's tradition is to visit Temple Square in downtown Salt Lake every year on Christmas Eve. It's been an enjoyable reminder each year about the true meaning of Christmas as we watch the nativity display celebrating the birth of our Savior. This year was extra special because A loved all the lights and the people, leaving him totally enthralled with the whole experience.

And, of course, he loved the Starbucks hot chocolate afterward.

Then we came home, and took the mandatory family picture by the tree.

After that, we opened our Christmas Eve game {a shape sorter for ages 12M+—see what life becomes once it's ruled by a kid?!} and matching pajama pants.

By then, A had reached his maximum capacity for excitement and was ready to crash for the night. While he slept and sugarplums danced in his head {I'm not sure what that even means...}, Santa came and left him lots of surprises!

We decided he was completely spoiled by Santa, Mom and Dad, and the grandparents. But he loved all the new toys! Watching his excitement and gratitude for everything he received definitely made this our most fun Christmas yet!