The Ghosts of Christmas Pictures Past

Last week, my family went to get our annual "Santa Shot" that is our tradition every year. I said I was pretty sure that this is a tradition that we did every year from 2000 on... I was right. In 2002, we also did an at home picture for Christmas Cards (I think the last ones we ever sent out, to be honest (LOL!) ). So it is indeed an annual tradition since 2000. So for fun, I thought I'd post those pictures:


Christmas 2000 and a smaller Larsen Family, but Amber is indeed there :). She'd just have to wait another month or so to make her debut (LOL!). Nick was 4 and Karina was 2.


Christmas 2001 - Now we're all here :). 5 year old Nick, 3 year old Karina and not yet 1 year old Amber.


Christmas 2002 - The card card shot we sent out to our friends and family...


...and us again with our white haired and bearded friend. Nicholas was 6, Karina was 4, and Amber was just shy of a year old.


Christmas 2003 - The years I went back to school and swore I would not grow my hair back until I graduated (LOL!). Nick is 7, Karina is 5 and Amber is just shy of 3.


Christmas 2004 - OK, I was nearing graduation and I was doing jobn interviews, I decided the skinhead interviewing might be a little bit freaky. It would be the last time I would have any serious hair growth on my head, for now very obvious reasons (LOL!). 8 year old Nick, 6 year old Karina and not quite 4 year old Amber.


Christmas 2005 - And the kids are getting bigger :). 9 year old Nick, 7 year old Karina and not quite 5 year old Amber.


Christmas 2006 - I like this picture because it's one of the few where Karina wore her glasses. 10 year old Nick, 8 year old Karina and not quite 6 year old Amber.



Christmas 2007 - Last year's shot. Looks like we had a theme going this year, and I'm not sure why Nick was sulking (I probably gave him a hard time about something, I'd be willing to bet). 11 year old Nick, 9 year old Karina and not quite 7 year old Amber.


...and even though I posted it last week, here's Christmas 2008. Nick is 12, Karina is 10, and Amber is just shy of 8.

The Larsen Christmas Tradition

We've been at this for at least eight years now (I can check a little later to make sure), but since 2000, for certain, we have made the visit to "the Mall Santa" for an annual family portrait.

This all started a number of years ago with a frame that was given to us as a Christmas gift by our friends Robert and Robyn. We told them that we would make sure to put a different picture in it each year as a reminder of their friendship and what they mean to us. Every year, we get the picture shortly after the beginning of December, and we display it with the rest of our Christmas decorations until January 1st, when all Christmas decorations come doen and get put away until the folowing day after Thanksgiving, when the decorations come out and go up again. Each picture goes into a special memory book that Christina has maintained with reflections of the Christmas season that particular year.

One of these days, it will be a fun little project to scan them all into a gallery, but for now, Have a Merry lead up to Christmas 2008 with the Larsen Family and their old friend, Santa :).