with love from anne: christmas memories...

this christmas was wonderful, maybe my favorite year so far. this because i was able to experience the joy of the season through my little one's eyes. how she loved walking through the neighborhood at night and looking at the lights, santa claus', reindeer (which she tried to ride), snowmen (which she loved to hug), plus candy canes, gingerbread men and more. all these became a daily part of her vocabulary. she learned christmas carols, and knew the figures in her own nativity.

i have lots of pictures. i will probably post many more that i need to, but when i see them, i can experience the fun all over again. so here goes:

these few were one beautiful morning and aleah still in her pajamas. she had been playing with a little magnetic doll with changeable clothing. one outfit included a cowboy hat, which was teeny but she kept trying to put it on her own head, so i decided to pull hers out again. she put on a show!

we decorated our house with garlands and lights and a beautiful, fresh cut tree. i love to see the transformation and the increase of christmas spirit as each item is placed around.

last year, as we picked out our tree, we had a brief visit with santa. it was a surprise and didn't go so well with aleah, then 10 months old. this year, santa came to our house. although she wasn't exactly outgoing with him, she recognized a familiarity :)

this next one shows the love aleah has for her doggie. she loves hailey. she loves petting her, kissing her, dressing her, adorning her with stickers, feeding her and walking her.

we are still watching polar express on a daily basis. lion king is in the drawer for awhile, but tangled and tarzan make some rare occasions. mostly, it's polar express. it's great because it has beautiful imagery, beautiful music, and a beautiful message. often aleah can be found watching with her baby. yes, that is a rag wrapped around the dolly and yes, this was the wrap of choice :)

lots of yummy christmas treats around the house, and such fun sitting at the table rather than the high chair :)

i had to laugh here at the sweet innocence. watching a mickey mouse video on my phone, meanwhile, mickey mouse was singing christmas music on our tv and aleah showing the mickeys to one another. so cute!

christmas eve was quiet but sweet. baby had a nap while we finished up some final wrapping and readying. we had leftovers for dinner and opened presents. we turned on christmas music and watched the little one experience the magic.

passing out presents, this one to hailey.