Today at Klyde Warren Park, a beautiful girl dressed as Santa gave my toddler a candy cane.

This park is one of my favourite spots in Dallas, because when we go there life just feels different. Today we saw families playing board games, kids on the playground, a giant Christmas tree, and lots and lots of people taking photos (mostly with cell phones) of their loved ones. There’s such a sense of community.

Grayson loves parks. Really, right now, since he’s two, he loves running. He’s not very good at it, except in his own mind. But today there was so much to see, he stayed right by our sides and took it all in. Especially the huge Christmas tree.

When the beautiful girl dressed in a Santa skirt approached us, she asked if my daughter could have a candy cane. I guess that’s what we get for not cutting his hair! (But no, not happening any time soon.) She was accompanied by a videographer, who complimented my Nikon 85mm 1.4 attached to my camera – photography nerdout for the win! I really should have asked what they were filming. Either way, they caught my 2-year-old, suddenly shy, accepting the candy cane and then clinging to my leg as though he were scared. (There’s no way!)

Once they were gone, Grayson came out of his shell, eager to destroy the candy cane. I really hadn’t thought it through; we had no baby wipes and candy canes are about the stickiest. But how much he enjoyed it, and these precious snaps I captured, totally made the mess worth it. Isn’t that the best part of life, embracing the beauty of not just the most beautiful, polished moments, but of the messes too? Being a photographer and a mother highlights this for me almost every day.

Have a happy little Christmas, Grayson. I love you!