The Gauntlet Part VII - Christmas Eve and Christmas Day...

Lyrics from one of my most beloved Christmas songs:

It's not the glow you feel
When snow appears
It's not the Christmas card
You've sent for years

Not the joyful sound
When sleigh bells ring
Or the merry songs
Children sing

The little gift you send
On Christmas day
Will not bring back the friend
You've turned away

So may I suggest, the secret of Christmas
It's not the things you do
At Christmas time but the Christmas things you do
All year through

My greatest 2015 resolution will be to achieve a true spirit of Christmas the whole year through so that come December 24th and 25th I will not feel guilty about taking that for my little family to be with them - not feeling the pressure to be anywhere or do anything. I want to have the option of baking cookies that day should that be our desire. I want to spend as little or as much time on the Nativity story and have time to act out a Nativity play. I want to be able to sit through the entire viewing of Charlie Brown Christmas. I want to be together with my family. I will not feel pressured or patronized for choosing this over other activities because I will have given my time, talents, and gifts throughout the whole year. It is not because I am a Grinch or Scrooge, it is because I want to focus on what I consider to be the true meaning of Christmas and that is the birth of Jesus and what he did for me. And no, I'm not shunning Santa or giving up on him. We enjoy the spirit of St. Nicholas and I am familiar with his story and origin and I think giving generously in secret is a great tradition and one I will always believe in. I don't think it detracts from true Christmas spirit until the emphasis becomes all about Santa visits, Santa gifts, and stressful secular traditions. I believe it is possible to achieve that true Christmas spirit and I am challenging myself now that 2015 will be the year to achieve it.
 
Below are photos from our Christmas. We did not have time to bake cookies but we did have time to make some reindeer food. That was extent of our baking this year. The kids did enjoy our brief Nativity reading and enactment. Hubby managed to sneak in a quick photo that makes me smile when I see it. Santa did visit. BB is still learning to unwrap gifts. The girls and I all had matching PJs - I love matching PJs - we do this all year but these were gingerbread ones so I could not resist using them for Christmas. T received some refurbished toys from the North Pole - Star Wars toys from the 90's. He is so happy with them. S has so many Barbie things she is not sure what to do. Actually, she put some away for opening at a later time. Hubby and I both received sonic screwdrivers of our favorite Doctors from Doctor Who. We got a good laugh out of that. BB's favorite gift was a silver box that some earrings for me arrived in. The fairy wings she received were also a big hit.. The older kids each gave a treasured item of their own and "wrapped it". It was a special surprise for us. Our little 4 foot tree was adorable and off the ground so our resident toddler would not bother it. The 100 year old angel has survived to see another Christmas. Santa's elves did raid my yarn stash and craft some items for T's beloved stuff animals. This is becoming a trend the past several years - wondering if that is going to continue. Oh, and it was a white Christmas.