It's Starting to Feel A Lot Like Christmas

I would like to start by apologizing if I ramble and jump all over with my thoughts. I guess that is the “stage” of mommy hood that I am in right now. My brain is all over the place, but I want to get my thoughts down before I forget them. So here goes…I hope you can make sense of my spastic thoughts.

It’s our first Christmas with our Little Miss and we could not be more excited. There seems to be a new long awaited peace in our home this year. We have dreamed about this Christmas for the past eight years….I just got a little chocked up typing that. Thank you, God for your precious son and your precious daughter that you have trusted us to raise!

For the most part, the house is decorated and the tree is trimmed. I still do not have all the decorations up, but I really don’t care. It is amazing how my priorities have changed since Gracelyn’s birth. In years past, I had to have everything completed in a day—two tops. Now, here it is Christmas Eve and I still have a pile of decorations at the front door for our front porch and gifts in the middle of the floor unwrapped. Oh well, I don’t care and thank goodness Matt doesn't either.

This year I am all about starting new traditions as a family. I want there to be special little things that Gracelyn looks forward to each year. Little things like making handmade ornaments together. Gracelyn and I made ornaments for the tree using cranberries a few weeks ago. They look and smell great. I made them last year, but it was so wonderful to have her to make them with me this year. I look forward to many years to come of us making things together. We made some for a wreath in the dining room, but it only got half way done. As a family, we are also going to bake Jesus a birthday cake. I will talk more about that below. If anyone has a family tradition that your family enjoys, please share it with me.

Matt and I bought Gracelyn a very pink Christmas tree for her room. We decorated it was words of encouragement and little wooden blocks that her Mama Donna made her. It is so cute and I know that in a couple years she will love it.

Being that Gracelyn Faith is only 12 weeks old, she cannot open her gifts. Some wise person, I don’t remember who, suggested that I buy her some things and Matt buy her some things and then we open each others. We thought that was just the coolest idea so that is what we are doing. I cannot wait to see what Matt picked out for her. The thought of him shopping for our little girl warms my heart with such love and joy.

A couple days ago, Gracelyn and I went shopping for a few last minute gifts for her and Matt. We had the best time. She is such a wonderful shopper….thank you, God! I can’t say what I bought yet…Matt may read this today. But, tomorrow I will post lots of pictures of Gracelyn’s gifts that she receives on her first Christmas. I sure do hope she like what I picked out. While we were shopping, we had to take a “bottle” break so we joined her daddy at work for lunch. It was a nice relaxing lunch and Gracelyn even left her daddy a “gift” all over his shirt when we left.

I can’t wait to start all our celebrations. Tonight we are going to a Christmas service at church. We can wait to have fellowship with our church family and praise God for sending His son for us. Tomorrow we are going to celebrate Jesus’ birthday with a birthday cake. Gracelyn and I went to the grocery store yesterday to buy the items needed to make His cake. I really wanted to make a red velvet cake. I thought that would be fitting to symbolize the blood Jesus shed for us and red also symbolizes new begins and birth…thanks, Joli, for telling me that part. Well after searching in a busy grocery store two days before Christmas, I am told they were out of red velvet cake mix. I was so disappointed. I ended up getting strawberry. I figured that was almost red. Jesus knows I tried so I am sure He will like the strawberry just the same.

Well, nap time is almost over, so I will stop rambling for now. I would love to wish you all a very Merry Christmas. I pray that you all remember the true meaning of Christmas and invite Jesus to your celebrations, into your home and into your heart.

God Bless!