Lightsaber Battles And Zoo Snafus: The Week's Best Photos

With the craziness of the holiday season in full swing, it can be easy to miss some of the heartwarming moments happening around us. Luckily for you, we've rounded up some of our favorite photos that captured light-hearted moments from around the country this week.

From a random act of kindness that made one boy's Christmas to an unexpected-yet-adorable zoo mixup, here's what's been happening this week:

A Secret Santa Makes One Family's Day In Tinley Park, Illinois

After a neighborhood grinch stole 6-year-old Matthew Resler's inflatable Christmas Minion from his front lawn, an anonymous "Santa" stepped up to the plate and left a replacement Minion in the yard with a note that read: "I heard someone borrowed your Minion without asking. Since you are at the top of my Nice List, I wanted to start your Christmas early."

Resler's mother has no idea who left the new decoration, but said the good deed left her speechless. "I had to hold back tears as I read the letter from Santa to Matthew," she told Patch. "It wasn't that we needed the Minion but more so the reminder of how awesome people are and how much they care." See the full story here.

Star Wars Fans Come Out In Full Force In Los Angeles

"Star Wars: The Last Jedi" hit theaters last week, and L.A. fans showed their enthusiasm by raising neon lightsabers during the epic Glow Battle Tour at Grand Park Dec. 15. The tour headed to San Francisco the following day. See Patch's "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" review here.

One Zoo Gets A Big Surprise In Nashville, Tennessee

The Nashville Zoo made headlines back in March when it announced the birth of Niran, a male clouded leopard cub that was the first of his species to be born via artificial insemination using frozen and thawed sperm. This week, adorable Niran once again made the news after it was discovered that the cub is actually female! Employees caught on when they noticed Niran's growth lagging compared to her male playmate, Kuso. See the full story, here.

First photo: Chris Pizzello/AP