Say Cheese!

Our camera snapped away on Sunday. We not only visited the Nordstrom Santa in downtown, but we also attempted to take family photos outside for this year's XMAS card. Two locations (with breakfast at the Sheraton in between), two wardrobe changes, two kids under three - we were a little too ambitious. Aside from Dylan getting a little frightened by Santa the moment it was our turn, both he and Mia did a great job overall up until it hit nap time. Then it was meltdown for Mia. Dylan on the other hand was happy as a clam - he was licking and chomping away at his first candy cane. Did I already mention that he LOVES mint? :)

This year the kids only had to wait for an hour inside to see Santa (vs. the 2+ hours two years ago). The key word being *inside*. We were lucky that Devin and his dad headed out an hour before Santa Lane opened to save a place in line *outside*. Hardcore Santa goers? Maybe. But the main reason for the early morning madness was so that the little ones didn't freeze outside. I'll post the official Santa photos when they arrive.

For family photos, getting a good shot in which all of us are looking at the camera and both kids aren't crying was challenging. Despite what we look like, we love our new SLR camera - Devin and my XMAS present to ourselves. Here are a few test shots as a preview of our experience: