Christmas Eve

Our Christmas fun began Monday evening when my parents and brother arrived.  They got to our house a little bit before Ty did and then we all headed out to look at Christmas lights.  Carter enjoyed them just as much as the last time.  His eyes got big and he just stared and smiled at all of the lights.  We went out to dinner after looking at lights and Carter ended up going to bed a little bit late, but he did really well.

Ty had to work a half-day on Christmas Eve so we went up to his work 30 minutes before he got off and he gave us a tour.  We headed to lunch at Panera afterward and Carter chowed down on the food we brought for him.  From there Ty and my brother, Thomas, went off for some last minute Christmas shopping while the rest of us hung out at home.  I was shocked hours later that they still were not home.  Four hours later they came in with quite the stories.  Ty said it took them 20 minutes just to get out of the Wal-Mart parking lot and they had seen a few broken car windows in different parking lots.  I don't know which I would dislike more, Black Friday shopping or shopping on Christmas Eve!  After all the excitement of Christmas Eve shopping Thomas and Ty opted to stay home while the rest of us headed out to the trails.  Jeremy and I ran while my parents walked with Carter.  Jeremy and I decided to get festive with our running attire.

Standing by a Christmas tree at the trails before our run.

I was getting ready to shower after our run when the doorbell rang.  We were so excited to see it was Santa Claus!  One of our neighbors dresses up as Santa for a nearby community center.  Ty ran into him at the store and mentioned we hadn't gotten to see Santa because the lines were always hours long.  Our neighbor generously offered to stop by for a few pictures with Carter!  Carter was a bit tired and hungry, so he wasn't too pleased, but he got his first picture with Santa!

His face as he looked over and saw Santa cracked me up!

 

We finally got him to give us a small smile!

We enjoyed a Christmas Eve dinner of ham with delicious sides and then it was time for Carter to go to bed.  After he was asleep my parents put together the Laugh & Learn Learning Home Playset they had gotten Carter and put it by the Christmas tree so he could play with it in the morning.  Thomas also put together the basketball hoop he got Carter and set it out by the tree.  I was getting very excited and feeling festive!  I kept imagining Carter playing with his toys and ripping open his presents!  It was hard to fall asleep while picturing all of the fun to come in the morning!  Our Christmas Day recap coming soon!

Ready for Christmas Eve dinner.  Carter LOVES the light that flashes when we use the timer.