I love Christmas time

I love Christmas time. I love the smell of the tree that is right next to the computer here. The girls are sitting on couch right next to each other and they are watching one of the Disney Christmas movies. The music and the story lines just make me feel all Christmassy!

I was in the middle of making a list of all of the ingredients that I need to make all of the cookies and candies that I want to this year and I just started to get all warm and fuzzy about it all! It isn't cold out and it won't likely snow, but inside it looks and sounds like Christmas.

I can't wait until Julia gets here and we will watch White Christmas and Little Women (I just love that movie and I like to include Julia in a yearly viewing of it if I can).

We will make Christmas cookies and the girls and Loran will help decorate them. I have almost all of the shopping done and have kept up on the wrapping. I listen to Christmas music every day and we are rearranging some rooms to prepare for the little girls' Christmas present (I am so glad for a rather large master bedroom to fit the other furniture!)

There are presents in the stockings but not under the tree (2 dogs, a cat, a 2 year old and a 1 year old don't lend themselves to leaving presents lying around), although the presents are on a shelf and visible for curious little eyes (like Loran's and Julia's).

I thoroughly enjoyed visiting with a group of people on Saturday who really understand winter! There was reminiscing that made me feel like home! Thank you for that my friend!!!

I had a few crafts that I wanted to do with Ankica and Lillian around the holidays but often I just sit on the floor and play with them. There is time for the stress of crafting with toddlers when their big sister gets here :-)

Does Christmas make me think of Christ? Oh yes, certainly. More than half of the songs I listen to are about Jesus and all of the wonder that His birth brought. I have a little Nativity scene up on the mantel that I see every time I walk past it (I am hoping for a bigger one with separate pieces for a future Christmas). I talk to my girls' about the Nativity story and Loran will read it from the Bible on Christmas. These are traditions that run deep.

It is funny to me how Christmas makes me feel truly thankful. I think that Thanksgiving is just a warm up for me, because every day between Thanksgiving and New Year's I feel more and more thankful and grateful, for the family I have now, for the traditions that have been passed down, and for the future I treasure thanks to the love and sacrifice of our Lord and Savior.