Man, working on setting this tree up is tiring business! I better take a break and drink some eggnog! I cannot describe how happy I am that Little Man loves eggnog as much as Mike and I. In fact, he has been known to find it in the fridge and haul it all over the house with a cup until he finds one of us to open it for him. If the answer is no, we get a full blown temper tantrum. {sigh} He is getting too good at those tantrums. He hasn't learned yet that it is just a waste of time and energy.
After the tree got set up, Little Man got to put the first ornaments on the tree. Grandma Proctor has given him his very own ornaments for every year of his life. He got to put those on the tree first. He didn't quite get the concept of hanging them and wanted to just lay them on the branches, but with a little help, he did awesome!
Of course, after you put an ornament on the tree, you have to stand back and admire your handiwork! Do you see that stool Little Man is standing on? It has become the bane of Mike's and I existence. That stool helps Little Man get into many things he couldn't before. He hauls that thing all over the house and uses it to his benefit! He has also discovered our kitchen stools can help him reach as high as the refrigerator. There goes that hiding place!
After the tree was decorated, Mike helped Little Man put the star on the tree, or Little Man helped Mike. He loved it and can be found pointing at the star and jabbering away to whoever about Daddy and Star. If you are over to our house and he does this, ask back, "Did you help daddy put the star on the tree?" That is what he is trying to tell you!
Can you see why this is such a magical age? He is so happy and excited about everything this year! Last year with the snow, he was fascinated, until he had to touch it, and then it was "Get me out of this!" This year, on the few times we have had snow, it is a fascination of, "Look Mom! I am making footprints in this stuff!" I love watching his discoveries!
Since I am the one normally behind the camera, I wanted to have a picture to document that I was there with Little Man too! 
On Saturday, we went to see Santa Claus. We discovered Santa at the Riverwoods in Provo last year and we loved it! He is outside, so it gets a little cold, but he is so real! Not like these "fake" ones found in the malls nowdays. We met up with our friends, the Peacocks at 5, only to discover that Santa wasn't there until 6. No worries, we entertained ourselves!
The Riverwoods has an amazing light display. Not only that, but they have these warming stations! Little Man and his friend, Little Miss loved them! They would stand right by the pole and grab hold. 
Somebody made a joke about licking the pole and all of a sudden, that is all Little Man wanted to do. Heaven help me, I may be in trouble with this boy as he grows older! 
Little Man is such a daddy's boy! He loves his daddy and it is very rare indeed when he will choose his mommy over his daddy. The night wouldn't be complete without some silly shots with Daddy!
If there is water, I can guarantee that is where you will find Little Man. The fountains at the Riverwoods are amazing and are a mixture of water and fire. Of course, Little Man and Little Miss were completely fascinated and would catch our gaze and shout, "Water! Mommy water!"
We had a hard time keeping them away from the fountains, even though their gloves got soaked through from the water splashing up on the rims.
Here is an example of the fire/water fountain. If you have time, you should really go down and wander through here. It is pretty!
Of course we had to take some pictures. Little Man sat himself right down and put his arm around Little Miss. Too bad he then appeared to ignore her!
All the kiddos! I can't tell you how awesome it is to have older kids to send off chasing the little ones. "Look Little Man is escaping again, can you go get him?" or "Look, Little Miss is getting away!" They were definately helpful and didn't complain whenever I sent them running!
If you are going to sit on a concrete planter to take pictures on cold winter's night, bring something to sit on! Don't I have a cute little family though?
We only lasted about 30 minutes out in the cold and decided to check out this awesome toy store, Blickenstaffs. It was so crowded with all the families waiting to see Santa! They had a scavenger hunt that occupied the older kiddos and they had toys set up that you could play with. Leave it to Little Man to find the trains. They entertained him for quite a while and then I introduced him to Jack-in-the-box. He loved them! The best? Watching W turn his Jack-in-the-box and jump everytime it jumped out at him! Finally he put it back and said, "It scares me."
We finally went out and joined the line that formed immediately upon Santa coming. It was cold! it was fun! Little Man can often be found with his mouth open. One of my friend's daughters refers to him as Napoleon. 
I have been amazed lately at how big my boy is getting. I often wonder who snuck into my house and replaced my baby with this big boy!
When it was our turn to see Santa, Little Miss immediately started crying. While excited for it beforehand, it now scared her to see this big stranger all dressed in red. We were a little worried that Little Man would exhibit the same signs, but Mike put him down and gave him a nudge towards Santa, and this is what happened. 
He was shy, he didn't say a word, but he looked at us for pictures and was so excited about it after. If asked, "Did you see Santa?" he shouts, "Yea!"
We hoped that if Little Miss sat on Santa's lap with Little Man she would calm down, but alas, it wasn't to be. She just didn't like being that close to the man in red. She was only ok once more when she was in her mom's arms. As we were walking back to our cars she was her happy, joyful self!
I can't wait for the magic of Christmas morning this year as Little Man is starting to understand the concept of things. We have a little nativity that stays on his bedside table, or in his bed with him, or somewhere around. He knows which one is baby Jesus and Mommy and Daddy. He is a little confused by the angel, but all of them get a goodnight kiss from him.
While this season is fun and joyful, I want to always instill in my children what this season in really all about. While we should remember our Savior everyday, this is such a special time of the year when we can really focus our thoughts on Him.
Merry Christmas everybody!
