Merry Christmas!

Ahhhh Christmas. It truly is the most magical time of year. There are MANY reasons why I love this time of year, the obvious one being the symbolic:  it's a celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. But I also love the literal reason: that celebration brings together so many people, so many friends, and so many families. 

Growing up, my parents and family made Christmas magical, in so many ways. As far as I can remember, we would make and decorate Christmas cookies, watch the best Christmas movies, make reindeer food, go Christmas shopping, and eat the best food. We were always with family, always with my aunts, uncles, and cousins, at my Mamaw and Papaw's house, at our house, at the bowling alley, together. The entire family, just enjoying every moment. 

But those weren't the only things I remember about Christmas growing up. I also vividly remember my family donating and giving to others who weren't as fortunate enough to be able to enjoy the holidays as we did. I remember my family sponsoring a boys home for Christmas. They invited all of the boys for Christmas at the bowling alley. They bowled, ate, and then opened presents specifically bought for each of them off of a Christmas list they provided. I remember my mom volunteering to take a fellow classmate shopping for Christmas. And I remember her always filing up the "Toys For Tots" box at the bowling alley sky high with toys. I remember my mom telling me why they did things like that and it made me more thankful and appreciative of the fact that our family was/is so fortunate to be able to do the thing we do for ourselves, and for others. And most importantly, I remember staying up super late on Christmas Eve to attend the late night church service which reminded us all of what Christmas was really about: the birth of Jesus Christ. 

And now that I am an adult, now that I have my own child, I truly appreciate everything that my parents and family did for us growing up to make this time of year so magical, in so many ways. And as a parent, I strive to give my son the same type of Christmas: a Christmas that is about family and fun, a Christmas that is about giving to others, a Christmas that is about Jesus Christ, and a Christmas that is about tradition .

With that being said, I hope all my friends takes some time these next couple of days to spend time with family, remember why we are celebrating, and just enjoy this magical time of year.  Merry Christmas!

Confession: Here are three of my favorite Christmas traditions that I enjoyed as a child that I share with Talon:

 

1. Advent Calendar: This was always one of my favorites. In the month of December, before I would go to school each morning, I would eat the piece of chocolate behind the door with the current date. We always used the 'one time use' advent calendars but this year I found a reusable one. This tradition was probably one of Talon's favorites this year because he has a better concept of date and time and knew when Christmas was coming. :) 

2. Mickey's Christmas Carol/ Very Merry Christmas - Sing Along Songs : These were both two of my favorite Christmas movies as a child. These were released in 1980's and I'm pretty sure we had them since the day they came out. Every single year, we would listen to the sing along songs while decorating the tree and watching the Christmas Carol multiple times during the month of December. Since then, Disney has remade these to make them a bit more 'modern' yet they still have the same great meaning that Talon and I enjoy together.

3. Reindeer Food: This was always a must when I was a child. We had to leave reindeer food (dry oatmeal mixed with glitter) out so the reindeer wouldn't overlook our house (because of the glitter). This is something Talon and I do every year.