First Christmas in Our New Home | Virginia Lifestyle Photographer

I love Christmas traditions. 

Ever since we had Ava I have worked hard to create special holiday traditions and memories.  We moved this past fall and because of the distance we had to change some of our usual traditions.  This was bittersweet of course. 

We had our trusty elves to bring fun and cheer to our home all the days of December leading up to Christmas.  Ava was worried at first that they may not find our home but I assured her they would have been properly notified by the North Pole address book system ;) 

When Ava was three I created an advent calendar full of activities.  I was a bit sad that some of our usual activities had to change.  We use to go every year to a restaurant on the eastern shore and then go to the lights at Sandy Point.  I did miss our trip to the restaurant but we found a new, much more awesome light show not far from our house. 

With a December wedding I also had to plan more in home activities and easy things to do to keep stress down.  Some of our activities included baking cookies, making ginger bread houses from scratch, see a light show, snowman bowling, make ornaments, a candy cane hunt, cut down a tree, etc.  The idea is to spend as much time as possible together doing festive things.  The kids absolutely love it.  I'll be honest it does take a good deal of planning and determination to pull off.  I try to mix in a few days of simple activities like hot chocolate and watching the polar express because some nights I really just need easy.  Some activities are practical, like cutting down our tree.  It's something we would have to do anyways. 

Here are my two cuties posing at the tree farm...

and here is a little collection of our instagram photos of our fun...next year when I'm not so worried about dress fittings, and the last minute details of a wedding I hope to really document our advent fun properly

I truly hope my kids look back on this time and think about how magical and fun it all was.  To me there is only one thing better than that feeling you got as a kid at Christmas time and that's getting to watch your own children experience the magic.  Don't you just LOVE Christmas time!!!

Here are my babies before heading to bed Christmas Eve...this holiday season went so fast.  A little part of me is already anticipating the fun of next year.