Christmas In New Jersey

We headed to New Jersey for Christmas this year. Its the first time Santa didn't come to our house and it was a bit of a challenge. But Connor didn't seem to notice the difference so it all worked out fine.

On Christmas Eve we had a nice dinner out with Nana at the Lobster Shanty. That's a three pound crustacean you're looking at there!



We had a really nice waiter named Bob and he joked around with Connor alot. Consequently, Connor thought he was on some kind of comedy show and as soon as Waiter Bob set down his ice cream sundae, Connor promptly dunked his face in the whipped cream for a little slapstick. Result was hysterics everywhere. Just as he likes.




There aren't an abundance of good Christmas morning/present opening pictures. But here's a great shot of the boy in his new Bolle ski goggles. He really could have used them in the snow storm last week!



And here's my silly little Winter Wonderland cake--made entirely from a box and commercial icing. But, it was a big hit. That's red velvet cake inside, so the colors were seasonally appropriate! In the magazine, there were coconut flakes on everything, but we have some coconut haters in the house, so I skipped that. And I also skipped fashioning tiny winter woodland creatures from marzipan. Mainly, because I have no sculpting skills.

The very best thing of the entire holiday, though, occured on Christmas morning. During the night, Connor woke me three or four times asking "is it time to get up?" or "do you think HE was here yet?". So, he was pretty excited. Finally, at 7:15am I told him he could get up, but not until I could wake Nana and Daddy and not until the coffee pot was turned on. Until then, he had to stay in my room. So, he was like a bucking bronco in a cage. Got the picture? Hold it for a moment...

Now, Bob and I are not big gift exchangers. We buy what we want and we're hard to surprise. But we have tried to set a good example for our son and make sure to get each other something so that he sees us modeling something positive. On Christmas Eve, therefore, father and son picked out a pair of lovely princess cut cubic zirconia earrings for me. Now go back to Christmas morning as the bucking bronco emerges from his cage...

He runs down the hallway toward the living room, eyes wide with anticipation. He heads for the loot pile where he sees a few unwrapped toys luring him in. Jumping. Excited. Suddenly, though, he stops. He changes direction and plucks a small box off a different pile. He hands it to me and says "Wait. Here. Merry Christmas, Mom." Wow. Wow. The three grown ups in the room almost fell over in shock. I nearly cried. It was so genuine and heartfelt. Clearly, that was his priority. He got much praise from all of us and a huge hug and kiss from me. I think it was my best gift ever.

And this is the best face of joy that very morning. Happy Christmas, everyone. Hope yours was as sweet and simple as ours.