Having been born in May, Caleb was older at his first Christmas then any of the other kids were at their first Christmas’. Not to take away from any of the other kids’ first holiday, but at seven months old, Caleb was much more in to the holiday spirit. The biggest difference being that he didn’t sleep through it. Instead he sat smiling through the whole night, loving every minute of it.

I got him a really cute outfit on eBay. It was these adorable reindeer overalls with flapping antlers. And the seller tossed in a precious little pair of holiday socks; green with little Santa’s all over them. Caleb looked so handsome in his little holiday outfit.

This year our Christmas Eve celebration moved back over to Grandma O’s house [her new condo]. By now you know the drill. We ate our soup and went out to look at lights. Caleb didn’t sleep through the car ride like the other kids. Instead he sat in his car seat and listened to us all talk about the lights. He was still too young to really appreciate the lights, but he watched and listened intently anyway.

When we got back to Grandma O’s, Santa had been there. All of the kids were so excited and Caleb could sense their enthusiasm which made him excited too. As we all opened our gifts, Caleb crawled back and forth between each of us. He was watching in amazment as we all ripped the colorful paper from our packages. My mom and I helped him open his presents, but like the other kids before him, he was more interested in the paper then what was underneath.

Nontheless, I think Caleb had a great time. Like I said, he had a smile on his face the whole time. Watching his rosy cheeks and his cute little smile just melted my heart.

The next morning we opened gifts at our house. Lee picked up Granny so she could come over and celebrate Christmas with us. They each got their lifesaver storybooks [which was something I always got as a child too]. They also got all kinds of cool toys and games [and clothes].

Lee helped Caleb open most of his gifts. Caleb wasn’t all that interested in the presents, but he did sit patiently as his daddy ripped off the paper.

This was our last “first” Christmas. We won’t have anymore children to start these holiday traditions with. At least not until our kids grow up and have kids of their own. But for now it’s fun to remember back to these special days. And it’s even better to continue to create new memories every year. It’s just wonderful to spend these days with our kids.