December 4, 2020
Transitions & Expectations
I absolutely love Christmas. There's three things I really love about Christmas. That is baking sugar cookies, putting up our handmade nativity, and driving around looking at all of the beautiful Christmas lights while sipping hot chocolate. There's one thing I really dread about Christmas, and that is asking my kids for their Christmas list. It's usually ridiculously long and has lots of things in there that they absolutely do not need.
Last year, I limited them to four gifts each, and it actually worked out pretty well. They were very intentional with their list, what mattered most, what mattered least. And the list was actually-- they did a great job. So this year, we're definitely sticking with the same thing. You guys get four items to choose. So let me know when you have your list and give it to me on a certain day. So that day came. And I was taken back and really brought to tears with their list.
This year has been like no other for our family. We've moved cross-country. We live in a different home, a different state. We started new jobs. My kids have a different school. And then two weeks after we moved, the pandemic hit. So definitely a year like no other. So when I got their lists, there was nothing on their lists. They said they were absolutely grateful for all of the extra time that we were able to spend together as a family, and just be there for each other and, just really grateful for everything they've been blessed with this year.
So as inspired by my kids, we were just spending Advent in a whole new way this year, and we are giving back. Every Sunday, we're looking at doing different things as a family, spending it together. We're going to be baking cookies and taking them to the homebound. We're going to be sending Christmas cards to the military, making ornaments for the elderly. And we are just so eternally grateful to spend that time together and being blessed for everything that we've been given this year.