2011 has been kind to us in many ways, and in some ways not so kind. I just want to focus on the good things that happened this year, and so I'm going to post them in no particular order:
1. Twiggles has decided that having a babysitter isn't such a bad thing and that it's ok for Mama to leave him occasionally to have time alone with daddy.
2. Hubby and I went on our first date in over 3 years without any children. We attended his company Christmas Party.
3. We have taken charge of our health with Young Living Essential Oils, and doing so eliminated my son's need for his harmful asthma medications.
4. We have been trying to eat much better than we used to, and it's working slowly.
5. I have finally begun making friends in the same city as I through my local MOPS group.
6. I enrolled in college, to get a degree that I'll actually use this time.
7. I finished my first college course in 10 years with a 99.28% - the only points I lost were for grammar usage, mostly the forgetting of commas.
8. I found a great ladies Bible Study to participate in, which makes me very happy :)
9. My oldest regained his confidence in reading, and loves it again.
10. I celebrated my 9th wedding anniversary.
11. My baby found a friend :)
12. Hubby and I found friends that are actually in our stage of life (married with children)
13. Our children are becoming young gentlemen.
14. I have learned to listen more to God and less to me.
15. Our winter has thus far been extremely mild and I've not had to turn on the heater yet.
Oh I'm sure there are more but those are the ones I can think of just now. :) So how was your 2011?
Wednesday, December 28, 2011
Saturday, December 24, 2011
Christmas
I love Christmas, I love the lights, the beautiful decorations, the Christmas music,the cookies, the family gathering, the giving, the snow and cold (well, before moving to the desert that is), but most of all I love that Christmas is a celebration! A celebration of the birth of a tiny baby oh, so many years ago! Now I know that Christmas is not the Christ child's actual birth date, but it is the day on which his birth is celebrated and that is just fine with me! I had planned for so many things this year for Christmas, and as plans often do most of them just did not happen. I am sad that so many of the great activities didn't happen, I am sad that our outside decorations never made it up, I am sad that we do not have a large selection of cookies to munch, but most of all I am sad that these things are making me sad.
See, I know, and my children know that Christmas is not about any of these things, they know that the most important thing at Christmas is to remember that God sent his son, as a tiny baby boy, to save the world from their sins! Yet it bothers me that the worldly activities of Christmas have not been completed. Why? Why am I bothered that we neglected certain things? Why am I bothered that instead of these worldly activities I spent time with my children making crafts that we were able to hang in the house, that instead of baking and decorating we chose to snuggle up on the sofa and read Christmas stories each day? I guess I am bothered because I remember my Christmases as a child and I want my children to experience those. Yet I know that I have grown since then, and that what we did do this year was enjoyable for them and that tomorrow morning they will be spoiled just as they always are, that tomorrow morning they will have presents under the tree (which is decorated), that tomorrow morning they will spend hours tearing off paper, oohing and ahhing, and playing with the toys, books, and games that are wrapped and hidden in my closet. Tomorrow morning they will be having so much fun they'll forget to eat breakfast and will be munching cookies on the way to Grandpa and Grandma's house where they will open yet more presents, and play with yet more toys, and eventually sit down to enjoy a wonderful meal with those that love them most!
I feel better already! Just writing this out, and listening to God as I do has made me realize that we really did keep the spirit of Christmas in our hearts, we just chose to do it differently this year, and that's ok.
How did your family spend the days leading up to Christmas? Do tell!
See, I know, and my children know that Christmas is not about any of these things, they know that the most important thing at Christmas is to remember that God sent his son, as a tiny baby boy, to save the world from their sins! Yet it bothers me that the worldly activities of Christmas have not been completed. Why? Why am I bothered that we neglected certain things? Why am I bothered that instead of these worldly activities I spent time with my children making crafts that we were able to hang in the house, that instead of baking and decorating we chose to snuggle up on the sofa and read Christmas stories each day? I guess I am bothered because I remember my Christmases as a child and I want my children to experience those. Yet I know that I have grown since then, and that what we did do this year was enjoyable for them and that tomorrow morning they will be spoiled just as they always are, that tomorrow morning they will have presents under the tree (which is decorated), that tomorrow morning they will spend hours tearing off paper, oohing and ahhing, and playing with the toys, books, and games that are wrapped and hidden in my closet. Tomorrow morning they will be having so much fun they'll forget to eat breakfast and will be munching cookies on the way to Grandpa and Grandma's house where they will open yet more presents, and play with yet more toys, and eventually sit down to enjoy a wonderful meal with those that love them most!
I feel better already! Just writing this out, and listening to God as I do has made me realize that we really did keep the spirit of Christmas in our hearts, we just chose to do it differently this year, and that's ok.
How did your family spend the days leading up to Christmas? Do tell!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)