Christmas!

Christmas and a few other holidays can be one of the most fun parts of a new marriage.  Be honest what is more fun than starting new traditions or continuing old traditions with a new flair?!?  Sure it can be tense melding traditions or splitting time between families, or just not seeing family at all but mostly it is just fun!  

Luckily no tension entered our home this Christmas season.  Instead we spent time with both sides of our families (something we are aware will probably have to stop eventually) and enjoyed the beginning of some new traditions, and the carrying on of some old (weird) ones.

Christmas Eve.

1. Christmas Eve service.  What is better than kids playing with open flames and worshiping Christ the King? Nothing!
2. Presents!  Yep you read that right.  All presents are opened on Christmas Eve.  Both of my parents grew up doing this and so did I.  Luckily Brian wasn't opposed to this strange but great tradition.  We always read the Birth of Jesus before presents though!  Must have.
3.  Twas the Night Before Christmas.  Santa's Flight Path.  Brian's dad used to take the boys outside and show them how santa would arrive, where he would land, etc.  Brian is excited to do this one day as well.  Cookies and Milk out....
4. Santa comes!  I know I know there is so many different schools of thought on this. I write knowing that some believers think I am crazy for teaching my kids about santa.  Christ was the main part of our Christmas growing up and santa a fun piece of the puzzle.  I did not think Christ wasn't real because I found out santa was not who I had thought he was.  I believe you can do both and do them well.   (On the table for discussion- Elf on a Shelf. I love it.  Brian isn't sold.  I probably just haven't shown him enough pictures from Pintrest yet.)

Christmas Day.

1. Santa.  Overnight santa placed unwrapped presents under the tree and in stockings.  Santa doesn't wrap he doesn't have time PLUS all the toys are fully assembled which means we can play immediately!   (Ok I see the breakdown of the theory santa doesn't have time to wrap but has time to assemble everything.)
2. Breakfast.  I will attempt our tradition of Cinnamon muffins (my mom's recipe) however I have failed at every attempt thus far.  Then the rest of our day is our playground.
3. Birthday Cake.  We would all gather around a cake  or cupcakes and sing Happy Birthday to Jesus.  So fun!

 Other fun traditions we have discussed.  Reading Christmas stories under the tree, advent calendars, and a Christmas Movie Night Sleep In (camp out by the tree in our favorite christmas pj's and watch a christmas movie and drink hot chocolate - we should totally do this in July as well).


I'll leave you with a little Bob Goff nugget on Christmas.  I love the picture it paints in such a few sweet words.

"Every story needs a storyteller and all of heaven leaned over the rails knowing that ours.... was about to arrive!"

Merry Christmas