Christmas.

Get ready for a long post of storytelling! We just got back from 10 days up at my parents' house in the Central Valley celebrating Christmas. It felt like we didn't do anything but relax, but now that I've compiled our pictures I see that we--especially Soren--had an eventful trip! Besides laying around, drinking coffee, and chatting with family by the fire, this is what the rest of our trip looked like...We took walks almost daily around my dad's vineyard and experienced some incredible Valley sunsets.My dad took Bran and Soren to John Deere and Soren got his first toy tractor (with many more to come, I'm sure). What a treat for my dad who never had a son!Soren got re-acquainted with his Uncle Scotty and Aunty Dani and just laughed and laughed.Bran and I took advantage of free babysitting and enjoyed a getaway in Shaver Lake where we snowboarded, relaxed at a B & B, and woke up to fresh snow in the morning! We know Mamae loved being with Soren at least as much as we loved the break.Soren had his first Christmas! It was a bit overwhelming for him, but we sure loved watching him get all kinds of "big kid" toys like a golf set, a basketball hoop, and an "autographed" Chargers football.And surrounded by all of his new toys Soren had the most fun playing in an empty basket!Soren made friends with Cooper (Scotty's nephew) who is just 2 weeks older than him. It was hilarious to watch the two meet by staring at each other and grabbing each other's faces! It made me wish Soren had a friend his age close by.And one of my highlights is getting to see all of my extended family at Christmas. Of course Soren had fun charming them as well!We so enjoyed just soaking up quality time with my sisters, brothers-in-law and parents. That is what makes Christmas for me.