Christmas in Alaska

On Christmas Eve we got dressed up and went to visit Santa at Nordstrom. Grayson treated Santa the same way he does everything else that is new...with a cautious eye. He checked him out, and was more than happy to sit on his lap but wasn't too full of smiles. Pictures with Santa was something Adam did growing up, and I think it will be a fun tradition to start with Grayson. Doesn't this Santa have a beautiful outfit?

We went to the candle light service at church. Unfortunately, everyone agreed that it was a very different service and left much to be desired as far as celebrating the reason for Christmas. I was glad that we read the Nativity story as a family that evening so we all had time to reflect on the precious gift God gave us, Jesus.
As we read through the Bible, I felt a new understanding about what Mary may have been feeling especially in Luke 2:19 which says, "But Mary treasured up all of these things and pondered them in her heart". When Grayson was born we had many visitors come to meet him and ooh and ahh over how adorable he was. It was a whirlwind of emotions and a new role as a mom all blurred together by sleep deprivation. It was when everything was quiet that I was able to truly soak in everything that had happened, to be thankful for the love our family and friends had for this little boy, and to reflect on my new role as a mom. I think that is a minuscule amount of what Mary must have been feeling as she watched the shepherds and wise men come to worship the newborn King. She soaked in all of these special experiences and reflected on them in those quiet moments with the Savior.

Thank you God for sending us your Son as a sweet baby boy so that we might be saved from our fallen world. What an amazing God we have!

Adam grew up having his Dad read The Polar Express on Christmas Eve. We found the book in Adam's room at his parent's house and asked Stan to carry on that tradition with Grayson. Grayson looked on while he drank his bottle before bed. It was such a sweet moment.

On Christmas morning Grayson gave us our cue to wake up around 8:00am. We grabbed our cups of coffee (and bottle) and dug into our presents. Grayson loved all the paper and boxes. It took him quiet awhile to unwrap a gift, but he loved doing it.
Taking a ride in his new walker wagon.
Since he always wants to play with my wallet I decided to give him his own.
It's been a BIG hit so far.
Grandpa Stan made Grayson a set of beautiful wooden blocks.
We got bundled up and went out for another sled ride and walk through the neighborhood.
Grayson loves the sled!

Checking in with Grandma Lew.
It's like a roller coaster ride!
Miniature boots.
It was VERY cold, but the crisp air was just what we needed. We ended our day with a drive to look at Christmas lights. We saw three...THREE...moose, and Grayson loved looking at the twinkling lights. It was a very merry Christmas!