Christmas...

Christmas was...

...setting up the Christmas tree with my mom...hanging my "My First Christmas" ornament from 1982.
...trying hard not to touch the gifts Mom had already wrapped for us that were under the tree.
...opening up gifts at Grandma Russell's on Christmas Eve and Grandma Bachman's on Christmas Day.
...going to church on Christmas Eve and then opening gifts afterwards until late into the night with my Mom, Dad, brother, and sister.
...wishing that Santa were real even if I knew he wasn't.
...nights spent giggling with my sister.
...staring at the Christmas tree and enjoying the warm feeling it produced in my soul.
...waiting snuggled in the car, trying not to let the cold get me while Dad loaded up the gifts from Grandma's house.
...lots of eating.


Christmas is...

...lots of eating.
...time spent in the word reflecting on the Christmas story.
...reviewing the story of the birth of Jesus with Adah.
...singing "Silent Night" and "Away in a Manger" to Adah to go to sleep.
...getting gifts ready for the people that I most treasure.
...working to keep myself at peace in the midst of the hustle and bustle.
...still having the joy of gathering with both of my Grandmothers.
...realizing that life is precious and that we only get so many turns around the sun...and that each breath is a gift.
...home group Christmas party.
...trying to savor each and every moment that I have to spend with family.
...being thankful that Jesus came for me.