The Christmas Season

/

Gingerbread, peppermint, hot cocoa, cookies, decorated trees, mistletoe, glowing lights, bustling shopping, crackling fires, snowflakes, movies, caroling, annual cards, giving presents, reindeer, advent calendars, jolly Santa...the Christmas season. I LOVE everything about it. It's my favorite time of year. And I get to share it with my son, Caleb. It's been a great season and it's hard to believe Christmas is coming up so soon. 

We've had a wonderful season so far. And there is still so much celebrating to do! 

Santa

I've been looking forward to taking a baby to see Santa and this year I finally got to do it. The weekend after Thanksgiving we headed to the Bass Pro Shop to visit Santa. 

I felt so sure that Caleb wouldn't cry because he's generally a happy fellow and let's most people hold him without much fuss. I couldn't have been more wrong. He was happy in line holding his ticket to see Santa, but as soon as I placed him in Santa's lap the crying started up. Afterwards, he was back to being happy Caleb. Ha! But we got a classic "baby crying in Santa's lap" photo.  

Then last weekend we were at the Proctor Farmer's Market and we had another chance to see Santa. This time Caleb didn't cry, but he wasn't too thrilled about it either. Even with me holding him instead! We got a pretty cute photo, though.

Cookies

You know me, when there is Christmas there has got to be cookies. I didn't think I'd get to make many, but I surprised myself and got a few varieties baked. There was one failed cookie this year: the pepparkakor. Sad, I typed the recipe into Paprika and must have gotten something wrong because it was super goopy. #cookiefail. Pepparkakor is a bit time intensive so I just decided to skip it all together. I did make some other yummy cookies, though. This year's cookie platter includes: bourbon soaked cherry oatmeal chocolate chip, molasses spice, peppermint snowcap meringues, and spiced cider macarons. All are new cookies I tried except the molasses spice and they were all quite delicious. The macarons were good although a bit too delicate and smooched easily (but who cares if you're gonna eat it, right!). The meringues were light and reminded me of a after dinner mint. The oatmeal cookie, well, bourbony and chewy goodness. Nom nom nom. 

I was worried I might not get to all my cookie baking so I hosted a mom and baby Cookie Swap. I had my mom friends from Tacoma and Seattle come over on a week day morning and we swapped cookies, drank some hot cocoa, and let the kiddos play together. It was a blast and fun to taste each others yummy treats. I posted about it over here if you want to read some more. All together we had sugar & spice cookies, chocolate crinkles, wild blueberry oatmeal, and even baby cookies. This may have to be a holiday tradition! 

Tree

Caleb, Asha, and I picked out the tree together one afternoon at the local neighborhood nursery, GardenSphere. I stepped inside on a walk one afternoon and just saw the perfect, little tree just sitting there. I went back the next day and purchased it. They delivered and set it up for us. Score! It looks so beautiful in our new home. We got an adorable baby's first Christmas ornament and our first home ornament to adorn the tree. 

I put up a gate at first to keep the dog and baby away from the tree, but I noticed when we took it down for company they both were pretty behaved around it. Although, I didn't put ornaments on the bottom of the tree except for a felt ornament or two. 

Decorating

With a new home, I had to figure out where to put my decorations. It's funny how you tend to put things out each year in the same place. I hope I picked a good place for each decoration because it's likely to be there for future years. It's a bit like where you chose to sit the first day of class. Ha! 

I realized with more space, I could do with a few more decorations. Maybe I can hit up some sales after Christmas for next year. Josh did hang Christmas lights on the house, so we definitely sparkle in the neighborhood. Next year we think we'll do the bigger, white bulbs instead and cover the bushes. 

Snow

We had snow!!! It's been a few years since it's snowed in Seattle/Tacoma area. It was a winter wonderland for a few hours. It snowed lightly on two different occasions. It didn't stay around long, but we did get to enjoy it a little bit. Of course, we built a fire in our lovely fireplace. So cozy!

Family

My parents and sister are coming tomorrow! Then the Christmas festivities begin! Oh boy, oh boy! We're going to have a feast similar to Thanksgiving. Then stockings and church. It's gonna be great holiday fun.

The Spirit of the Season

We've really enjoyed the season so far! From our daily walks in the neighborhood (even thought it can be chilly) to the poinsettia (that sadly died due to the snow) to snuggles by the fire. I hope you're enjoying the season, too! Merry Christmas!