While it's been a bit quiet on our blog, it's been anything but that in our home over the past few weeks. It seems that the time between Thanksgiving and Christmas went by in a wink, as did the passing of Sam's 10th month.
In the beginning of November, Sam started crawling on all fours. He was slow and cautious at first, taking several breaks just to cross the room. Then, seemingly the next day, he was gone in a flash! He went from barely scooting along, to crawling lightening fast. Sam is now able to walk while holding only our fingers (like handlebars), and is pulling himself up to cruise along every piece of furniture he can find. He has even started walking on his own behind a push toy! It scared him at first to do it, but he's quickly gained a lot of confidence. It's been an amazingly transformative two months.
Christmas is our absolute favorite time of year. We've been looking forward to sharing this holiday with our little man since before he was born. And we've been especially excited to carry on some very special family traditions. We kicked off our Christmas celebration with a visit to the big guy, Santa Claus! Sam had a very "nice" visit with Santa, despite the photographers distracting him with toys in order to get the best photos. He did finally look right up at Santa curiously, and smiled at the jolly old fella. He must have been thinking, "I've been good this year. I promise!"
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| Santa! |
The weekend before Christmas brought a whirlwind of family visitors. First, Uncle Mike and Aunt Kath, along with Craig, Shell and Lleyon, came to visit us. We had a lovely meal together and then the boys got to exchange gifts. Sam figured out quickly how to rip the paper off of the packages. He received some pretty fantastic toys including a drum, a classic spinning top, two Little People books and a Cloud B turtle that shines stars and the Moon onto the ceiling when the lights are out. It's pretty neat! The grown-ups shared many delicious treats including a glazed ham, plus Mommy's rockin' homemade au grautin potatoes and perfect pumpkin pie. Aunt Kath was kind enough to leave behind some of her home-baked sweets, including her famous cut-out sugar cookies and some Chex mix (which Sam has enjoyed munching on every day since)!
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| Cousin time with Lleyton |
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| Playing his new drum (Daddy quickly taught him to turn it on it's side for proper bass drumming) |
On Christmas Eve, we went to Grandpa Ewen's house where we enjoyed another delicious meal. Bella, the house dog, made Sam's nice list, for sure! Have we mentioned how much he loves dogs? Sam kept chasing Bella (crawling, of course) and hugging her when he would finally catch up. And appropriately, Grandpa Ewen gave Sam a toy dog that walks, barks and pants. Sam also received a remote control Thomas the Train which, we have to admit, we enjoy playing with more than he does! He also got some new clothes, pajamas, a cute book and stacking rings. Sam also really dug into his Christmas dinner. He had a sampling of ham and stuffing - both firsts for him - which he put away with sheer delight.
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| Love for Bella |
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| A big boy Christmas dinner |
Christmas morning was spent relaxing at home. Sam magically slept until 7 a.m., which was a nice Christmas present for Mom and Dad! When we all woke up, we headed straight for the tree where Sam received his first Christmas stocking. Santa packed it with two new books, Sesame Street's Murray's First Words and Doggies, a new Sesame Street sippy cup with a big boy straw, and a Let's Dance Disney CD. Then, after some picture taking, we moved on to unwrap some new clothes, a magnetic fishing pole and a toddler dice/card game. Sam also received The Giving Tree book, a personalized place mat and, the ultimate gift, the Little People Barn from Santa! As much as Sam liked the gifts, we think he had the most fun ripping off the paper and playing in the midst of all the trash.
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| Sam's First Christmas |
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| "Whoa, Santa. You really outdid yourself." |
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| "I like this mess, but my favorite thing is Daddy's iPhone." |
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| "I've got this unwrapping business down." |
When Shawn was a child, his mother made sure that they celebrated Mary and her baby Jesus on Christmas morning. Mary received a rose and Baby Jesus had his own birthday cake. We've adopted the same tradition by singing Happy Birthday to Baby Jesus (blowing out a candle on His special birthday cupcake) and presenting Mary with the traditional rose. It was a really special moment and one we will continue to share with Sam every Christmas as he grows older and can appreciate the tradition as much as we do.
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| A birthday cake and a rose with the same Nativity pieces from Shawn's childhood (thank you, Grandma Kramer!) |
It was a very merry Christmas in this Kramer household. We enjoyed spending so much quality time with our family and, most of all, with our sweet little boy who is the most special gift of all. Sam brings light to our life in every single moment and makes our hearts overflow with joy. We are so grateful for this wonderful first Christmas and will treasure these memories forever.
