Santa! Santa! I know him!

Ben had stayed awake pretty late Christmas Eve chattering away so he slept longer than all of us by far.  Tante asked at one point if we could wake him up, but instead the adults enjoyed coffee and breakfast prep until Ben joined us.

You can watch a video of Ben coming downstairs on Christmas morning, here.

For better or worse, the video sums up how Ben felt most of the rest of the day.  He had little interest in anything new or any gifts from Santa.  He was mostly interested in his old baby-toy music table until we just took it away. :(

Santa and his entourage enjoyed the treats.

Ben was pretty excited to be an Elf.

Santa was good to us.....

Ben gave little notice to his "black" car or "black" bike that Santa went to the 

ends of the earth to find.

These Wall-E and Eve robots talk to each other.

mmmmmmm! Butterbraid.

twinsies :)

dye-free lollipops were possibly Ben's favorite stocking stuffer

Ben was very interested in Tante's "BIIIIG present."

I wish I remembered what was so funny.

Ben got a hiking backpack filled with all the essentials for his adventures with MeeMee.

This Hotwheels track Ben received on Christmas Eve from Great Grandma Lola was the hit toy.  It was fun at MeeMee's and a blast on the stairs at home.

 

 

Thanks to a white Christmas that started late and picked up steam as the afternoon wore on, we stayed at MeeMee's an extra night and enjoyed an extra cocktail after an amazing prime rib dinner. 

This Holiday season was a little shorter due to a late Thanksgiving and a little rushed due to the stomach bug that ravaged our house, and Ryan's travel the last two weeks before Christmas.   Despite all that, this year more than many, the kindness of strangers, fellow shoppers, retail workers and neighbors really got me in the spirit.  I felt like people were kind in general and really slowed down a bit to help each other out. Because there were a few traditions we were forced to miss, I really focused on being present for the ones we did enjoy and really felt the love and magic of the season around me.  We finished the Christmas holiday as healthy, happy Heimer's and have lots more Holiday time to spend together and with family and friends.