~What Christmas means to me my love~

The pictures below are from Brody's very last preschool Christmas program. He did great, and we are so proud of him!

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There has been something about this Christmas, this holiday season, that has just been so magical. More so than I can remember it being since I was a little girl. Of course, when you are a kid, it's always magical. For me, as a child, Christmas was always just mesmerizing. Everything about it...from the decorating, to the baking, to the family gatherings, to the church Christmas programs, to the cold weather. When I think back to Christmas as I child, I still get that giddy feeling inside. I can still remember those feelings exactly as I felt twenty years ago, when I would crawl into bed on Christmas Eve at my grandmothers house, with my brother and my parents and cousins and aunts and uncles all piled in sleeping bags and beds along side me, with that crazy excited anticipation of what the next morning would hold. I can remember the glow of the Christmas tree lights shining under the door. And the warmth from the wood heaters and electric blankets. I can remember my aunt (who was a teenager at the time) waking me up in the middle of the night telling me she just heard the jingle bells on Santa's sleigh outside. I can close my eyes and go right back to that time...just like I am still there. Of course, I always knew the true meaning of Christmas. That we were celebrating the birth of Jesus. My family always put that first and foremost. But that celebration led to some of the most memorable moments for me as a child.

And something about this Christmas has just seemed extra wonderful, too. I'm pretty sure it's because I am home now. I'm not trying to juggle working with home and mom and wife. I'm just home. With my babies every day. I can sit down with them in the evenings and play by the light of the Christmas tree, without worrying about getting daycare bags packed and lunches fixed and clothes laid out. I'm not stressing about how we are going to get everything done, because there is time.
I am cherishing this time with my kids while they are still so little more than ever before. I'm not wishing for them to hurry and get bigger. I am snuggling them in their Christmas pajamas and driving them around to look at lights. We are making Christmas countdown chains. We are reading Christmas books. I am teaching them that Christmas isn't just about Santa and candy canes and presents, but that it's about that very first Christmas when God sent us the very best Gift, His Son Jesus!

Instead of just "surviving" Christmas, I am truly sitting back and enjoying every second of it. I am seeing it through the eyes of my children. The exitement on their faces as they find "Frisbee", our Elf, every morning. The glow in their eyes as they play around our Christmas tree. The sincerity in their voices as they sing Happy Birthday to Jesus. The smile on their faces as Brody announces each morning how many more days until Christmas. And it takes me back. Back to all of those amazing Christmases I had as a child.

And I realize that my children are making those same memories. They don't understand it right now, that they will someday be able to close their eyes and go back to this time. When they were still so little. And they'll remember the wonder of it all.

And I think it is ok for the wonder to be there. For some, there is the controversy over whether the "fluff" that we add to this time of year takes away from the true meaning of Christmas. And sure, I agree that if you only have the "fluff", the whole meaning of Christmas is lost. But if you make sure your children know that the reason we are celebrating is because we are celebrating the birth of our Savior, make sure they understand that the reason we give and receive gifts is because of that ultimate gift that we recieved when Jesus was sent to save us, help them understand that Jesus isn't still that babe in a manger...then it's ok to have that wonder of Christmas that we see in the eyes of our children. Because Jesus IS wonderful!!

We have a busy, busy week ahead of us, but I am so grateful that this year I can sit back and relax and take it all in. I am so thankful this Christmas that I am able to stay home with my children and be present in their every day.

I am so thankful for all of those magical, wonderful Christmas memories I have as a little girl. What joy it brings me to be able to look back and be inspired to create that for my children.

But most of all, I am thankful that I have a Savior who was born on that very first Christmas all those years ago! A savior who loves me and forgives me. I am thankful for all of my blessings this Christmas and that I am taking the time to savor every one of them.