This past Christmas was a special time for our family. As the boys have gotten older, they are starting to understand Christmas and why we celebrate. They love hearing and telling the story of how Jesus came to earth as God's son to save us from sin and death. They are also starting to understand the concept of asking presents and getting a lot of cool new stuff.

I have to admit, it is becoming quite a challenge to teach the boys that this time of year actually is about Jesus and not just about asking Santa for everything they want. Here is an example of one conversation I had with Nate:

Me: Nate, what do want Santa to bring you for Christmas?

Nate: I want a phone.

Me: I don't think you are old enough to have your own phone.

Nate: Well, I'm not asking you for a phone. I'm asking Santa.

Me: I'm pretty sure Santa will not bring you anything that parents don't approve of.

That settled the issue, temporarily.

In addition to celebrating Christmas together in Fort Worth, we were able to travel to Virginia to spend the holiday with my family. My sister Katie, her husband Joe, and Ella recently welcomed Master A.J. into the world, and we could not wait to meet him. I have to say, he was totally up for the task and I'm pretty sure I am his favorite uncle already. During our trip, we also got to make a visit to Charlottesville so we could show the boys where they were born. I have been back a couple of times since we moved, but the rest of family hasn't. Other than the long drive there and back, we had a lot of fun walking around Grounds and seeing our old neighborhood.

Other activities we did were visiting two Smithsonian museums (Air and Space and Natural History), seeing Frozen, going to see Christmas lights and a carnival, playing board games, eating at a hibachi grill, giving A.J. a bath, and chasing Sabrina (the dog) around the house. I can't forget Sabrina. Overall, it was a perfect Christmas with lots of love, memories, and fun.

You can see all of our pictures from Christmas in our photo album, and you can also see our family photo shoot.